Author name: Booksquare

Dissecting the publishing industry with love and skepticism.

Working With Technology

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Yes, it amuses us greatly to point to the music industry as a source of innovation. After all, how can we take seriously a beast that has worked so hard to dominate the forest, only to find out the ants are running things quite nicely? We can’t, and as always, ignore the labels and look toward the artists. For most musicians, like most authors, there is not a lot of money in making and selling products. There are a lot of consumers out there, and they are faced with a lot of choices. Getting someone to put down hard-earned cash […]

Tools and Craft

Desperately Seeking Definition of Organic

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It has been several years since we had what is affectionately known as a “day job” — this week, we have been reminded of the inherent rigors of such an activity, and we find we cannot recommend it. One must rise early and go somewhere else. Then there’s office coffee. It is always bad. And traffic. How does anyone survive leaving the house? We do not know, but we are hitting the road for the fourth time this week. Four work days, four days away from the comforts of our home office with all its toys and distractions. That surely

Publishers and Editors

Farsighted and All That

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We don’t want to give away too much, but in 2008, we will have been online for, uh, nearly twenty years. And the Internet was around long before we had our first dial-up account and encounters with bulletin boards and such. In 2008, Amazon and e-commerce in general will be a mature market. So, yeah, that would be a good target for publishers to get their e-commerce acts together. We realize it’s tough, picking up an entire industry and turning it 180°, but we strongly encourage publishers to move a bit faster. Technology is your friend and can help you

Publishers and Editors

Why Authors Should Not Sleep Through Algebra

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We were asked how algebra could possibly be relevant to authors. We thank you for asking! This is one of our favorite subjects. Most authors we know think math is icky and scary (and you won’t get an argument from us), so they trust others to make sure they’re being paid correctly (in addition to trusting, oh, friends and relatives to read agreements and say, “yeah, this makes sense”). This is a Bad Idea. You must understand what is going on. We cannot emphasize this enough. Mistakes can be made. Any author who does not take the time to understand

Tools and Craft

Good Girls Do

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We’ve always been big on the idea of the collective unconscious. Sarah of the Idiosyncratic Mind (and we mean that as the sincerest of compliments) has read our mind, proving that brilliant thoughts can cross continents. She’s had a series of posts this week revolving around a set of themes dealing with men, women, writing fiction, and gender differences (lots of links at the end of our rambling thoughts). It’s not just about leaving the seat up or down. As she looks at a recent Financial Times article on female (crime fiction) authors who depict graphic violence, she starts with

Tools and Craft

It’s Your Business

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There comes an ugly moment in every writer’s life: it’s when they discover that underneath the art of it all is a business. If one writes seriously, one must face this fact. Writing requires skin like impenetrable armor and nerves of skill. It also requires fair knowledge of algebra, contract law, marketing, editing, and other sundry skills. We have learned that a martial art or two will not go amiss. As much as we enjoy living in our fantasy world (and we cannot overemphasize how happy we are there), we entered the world of writing with the goal of understanding

Tools and Craft

Sensual Indeed

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When we were six, a rather bizarre mixture of rye bread and a mystery illness struck. To this day, we cannot smell rye bread without growing nauseous. It is telling that we would rather starve than risk inhaling the faintest odor of seed. Other scents evoke memories, and despite our omnipresent allergies, we rely upon scent often enough to believe it is truly the most evocative sense. But does it make for a good promotional trick? Will the sweet, astingent odor of lavendar make people rush to the shelves, eager to purchase a favorite book? Do scents described in novels

Books/Mags/Blogs

This, We Get

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By our estimation, copyright law has been around a long time. Yet it continues to evolve in new and different ways. While those of us who are fascinated by this stuff get a continual fix of information, others may find themselves scrambling to keep up with rapid changes. For those fine folks, we suggest that the wind will change tomorrow. For authors, the fair use concept has been entrenched for some time. We once read a thread on a list where a group of published authors debated how many words from a song could be used before the Fair Use

Square Pegs

If Someone Could Explain

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Two interesting copyright-related stories caught our attention this morning — the first because we’ve picked it up, turned it sideways, and looked at the back, and it still doesn’t make sense. Now, admittedly, we haven’t reviewed The Walt Disney Company’s financial statements, especially those relating to South Africa, but our vaguest recollection of the Disney machine hints to us that it has oodles of money. We’re willing to accept that copyright laws differ from country to country (thus adding another layer of confusion to the whole thing), but we cannot see how losing this particular case could mean the loss

Square Pegs

We Hardly Ever Point to Reality

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We are in awe by Ken Jennings’ winning streak on Jeopardy. We love a winner. Mostly. But we do love a smart guy. But despite our resolution (see earlier today), we cannot let the winning streak myth pass. He didn’t go on hiatus and then return to defend his crown. That’s not how things work. These episodes are (close your eyes if you hate reality) taped in advance. The program has returned from hiatus. It’s a subtle, but important difference. This does not make KenJen (yes, we really typed that) less of a competitor, but it does remind us that

Square Pegs
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