Articles from August 2009

Books at SXSW? You Can Make It Happen

August 18th, 2009 · 20 Comments

A few years ago, I wrote a post lamenting the lack of book people at the South by Southwest Interactive festival. Last year, as we know, a panel put together by a group of publishers missed its target, angering the audience. This year…wow, it’s a bookstravaganza. I am so pleased to see so many book […]

File Under: Square Pegs

Competing for Eyeballs: Reading in the 21st Century

August 11th, 2009 · 22 Comments

There is no doubt we live in a time of change. Last week, I wrote that it’s never good for an industry when its customer base changes faster than the business model. It’s even more dangerous when you assume your product is recession-proof, technology-proof, distraction-proof. I was reminded of this again when I read David […]

File Under: Square Pegs

Changing Reading Habits, Changing Bookstores, or How Soon is Now?

August 4th, 2009 · 18 Comments

If you are a regular reader of Shelf Awareness (and if you’re not, you should be!), you know about the steady drumbeat of bookstores closing. You also know about the rising chorus from booksellers who are changing, adapting, growing, and understanding their place in the larger community. I am really lucky: I have two branches […]

File Under: The Future of Publishing