Square Pegs

Hmm, let’s see, one hand you have a product that dominates a certain market. On the other, not so much. You, a business, decide to utilize a particular technology to provide your services to your customers. It makes perfect sense that you would choose the less popular, less ubiquitous platform to deliver your goods. After all, you don’t mind setting yourself up for failure. Librarians say they had little interest in audiobook downloads just a few years ago, but they have since noticed what everyone else has: the ubiquity of people sporting earbuds on streets, buses and malls. Nearly 28 […]

Yesterday, we observed an interesting conversation about text messaging (observed because we, alas, do not play this game). One person lamented the fact that text messaging isn’t a true American sport; another noted that texting is great, something to do in those moments between breaths; and, yet another declared that a text message is like an email — it’s not necessary to respond in real time. The key component here is that each person accepted that text messages to their cell phones are a given. Now, as promised, more and more advertising is being done to cell phones. Sure, it’s

Hunter S. Thompson was one of those writers whose voice I always loved: even in his “decline,” the anger, wit and energy that fueled his writing came through loud and clear. I always stopped to listen to what he had to say, even if it sometimes seemed to be the same thing over and over again. Whatever you might think of him, consider this: I think that one definition of a successful life how your friends and family react to your death. All that you can ask for is that they celebrate your life: how you touched them, how you

Someday, we might find that we’ve grown bored with the inevitable lawsuit trend, but until then, we watch the phenomenon with glee. Each day, we awake, wondering who will be sued next and what tack the suer will take. Now it is the television series Lost that is facing the time-sucking specter of litigation. Turns out the hit series is based on an idea developed nearly thirty years ago. And here the dude waited until he was assured of the show’s hit status before filing suit — when your hard work is at stake, always wait until you’re sure there’s

One day, we will find ourselves sitting in our cozy little office (though we are hoping it will be a bigger cozy little office with a couch), lamenting the attendant problems caused by the rise of print on demand. Because, we are sure, the problems will be legion. After all, how does one calculate the delightful reversion of rights clause without a final print date? (This is where, in another post, we’d note that now is a good time for all authors to start looking at how they can regain as many of their rights as possible as soon possible)

Not long ago, we brought you a fine discussion about the new “upperbacks” and how they’re leaking out into the world. At the time, the story focused on the excuse being given for the new format: old eyes on old readers. Setting aside the absurdity of that for a moment, we turn our short attention space to the consequences of switching to this format. Yes, we’re talking about shelf space. Adding several inches to the height of a book is going to cut into real estate. Wire racks will need to be adjusted to fit the new size. . .and

Ah, the vending machine. For some, they represent the last place on earth to buy stale gum. For others, they’re a big, huge item to abuse while the last candy bar in the universe hangs stuck between freedom and those coiled metal holders. And for some, the hip, the cool, the intelligent, they serve as repositories for useful items one needs in the middle of the night. For example, if you are in Tokyo, you can step out to buy such things as Pocari Sweat, beer, whiskey (various sizes ranging from small to very large), and batteries (also a wide

Often one feels as if all bases are covered when, in reality, only one base is covered. We forgot to tell Jim where we hid the spare key should he misplace his. We don’t like to speculate*, but our imagination is such that we spent many a moment visualizing his trying to figure out the weakness in the awesome security that surrounds this blog. If only he knew how easy Jill really is. . . But that’s neither here nor there. Today we have lots of things to discuss, very little time, and a sneaking suspicion that we’ll be distracted

Hmmph. Last time they went out of town, they asked me to take care of the cats. That was much less nerve-wracking. Food. Water. Laser Pointer. Hi, my name is Jim Connelly, and I am what that Google ad over to the right refers to as a “First Time Author.” I’ve been writing (and occasionally publishing) non-fiction for a very long time — nearly as long as I’ve known Booksquare, come to think of it — and only recently have decided to try my hand at writing fiction. So this world is all very new to me, which I think

You’re sitting around on a Saturday night after a fine dinner with fine friends (discussing an appropriately obscure American independent film*). You’re talking about your upcoming trip to Vancouver (and remembering that Canada is, indeed, another country. Must. Bring. Passport. Remember. What. Happened. To. Catharine.). You playfully recount the day’s meeting with the new cat sitter. You remind the husband that he needs to print the cute Get Well note for the old cat sitter — she likes cute. Then, oh, somewhere around what should be your last glass of wine, you remember. You’ve taken care of the job. The