Why print? A digital enthusiast explains

“Why print?” was the topic of the first of the Small Publishing Network’s roadshow events, held at Berkelouw Books, Paddington, in Sydney last night. As someone with extensive experience in print and digital production, and as a new publisher starting out in the digital age, I was invited to participate on the panel. The other panellists were Sophia Whitfield of children’s book publisher New Frontiers and Alice Grundy of Seizure magazine and book publisher Giramondo. The following are my own thoughts on the topic, prepared in advance of the event and augmented in the light of some of the issues raised.

There are four very good reasons for continuing to produce books in print in the digital age: production quality; the supply chain; perceptions; and accessibility.

Editors and the digital revolution

Ebooks are no longer the novelty they were only 2-3 years ago, but the publishing industry is still experiencing massive disruption from the effects of the digital revolution. Recently considering three different aspects of today’s publishing landscape, I came to one conclusion: the role of the editor is paramount and likely to increase in importance.

Aussie gives tick to TOC

Attending major industry events is always a big deal for us Aussies, as they are so rarely held in our hemisphere. With so many event sessions available online, either after the event or sometimes concurrently, you really have to ask whether it’s worth not just the cost but the travel time getting there and back. It’s a question I’ve been asking myself since returning from O’Reilly’s Tools of Change for Publishing 2012 conference in New York a month ago.

New website for Golden Orb Creative

My new website for Golden Orb Creative is now live: www.goldenorbcreative.com. You can still access Gossamers directly on WordPress, or via the Golden Orb Creative site.

It’s still a work in progress, as I flesh out the full range of services and add some pictures here and there, but there is sufficient content to be going on with. Hope you like it!

Major publishers merely “OK” is not the whole story

“Best Publishing Companies to Work For” is the headline of this article doing the rounds at the moment, and possibly the major publishers listed are patting themselves on the back right now. A closer look at the data puts a much less positive spin on the figures for the multi-nationals, but that’s not the whole story. It’s the missing portion that’s most misleading.

EPUB: an introduction

This article provides a brief introduction to the EPUB format (EPUB 2 and EPUB 3 standards), how EPUB differs from other digital book formats, book design considerations and ebook readers supporting EPUB. The article is intended for publishers and production managers without an IT background. 

Book design for author-driven automation

Dymocks’ author-driven publishing platform, D Publishing Network, launched on Wednesday night. It’s been months of hard work (and the reason my blog posts have been few and far between of late) but incredibly rewarding at the same time to have been involved in what has, essentially, been a massive IT project.

Proofing books in the digital age

The process of proofing a book for publication has become much easier for print books and much harder for ebooks.

Ebook conversion or ebook production?

Do publishers think in terms of ebook conversion, or ebook production? The article explains this important distinction and its implications.

Ebook conversion: the basics

This article provides a brief guide to ebook conversion, covering what it involves and how to select a conversion service, with an emphasis on maintaining quality.