Non-fiction & Journalism

THE PIZZA BOX
A tag team fiction story John Searles (Author of Strange but True and Boy Still Milling) and I wrote together. Fun, light and short. Click here to read it
My Virtual Book Tour - Novel Blogging
Novel Blogging
Back in the old days (1998) when Amazon only sold books, before Stephen King released an e-book and Publisher's Lunch wasn't yet the plat du jour of the industry, I took to the Internet to market my (then) self published novel, Lip Service.

Since none of the bookstores I contacted would host a signing or reading for a self-pubbed book, I came up with the idea of doing a virtual book tour by default and started out by writing articles about the book for websites in exchange for live links to my site and doing live chat's I dubbed Virtual book parties.

Five years later, Kevin Smokler (getbooked at yahoo dot com) has come up with a much more sophisticated, clever and organized way for authors to do virtual book tours. Smokler not only finds, contacts and negotiates with the bloggers he handpicks to match content with audience, he also walks the author through the process and does tour marketing. Plus he'll take on fiction, which we all know is much more difficult to promote than non-fiction.

So this week me and my new novel, The Halo Effect - the first in a psychological suspense series featuring NYC sex therapist, Dr. Morgan Snow - went on a one-day book blog tour set up by Smokler.

After three weeks of planning, on Monday morning, July 26th at 8AM, still in my robe and slippers, with a cup of coffee at my elbow, I logged on and started blogging.

I didn't get up to take a shower or get my second cup of coffee till noon and Winka, the pooch, had to wait way too long for our usual mid-morning excursion.

The Results
By the end of the week my blog entries, an excerpt of The Halo Effect, a jpeg of the book cover, introductions and kudos for the book from some of the bloggers will have reached over 300,000 people. (One third of those people received opt-in email from one blog, which included a synopsis of my entry and live links directing them to the tour and to an excerpt of The Halo Effect.)

Over twenty-five additional blogs, not on the tour, have linked to the tour generating even more traffic. Plus all my blogging will remain live indefinitely for those who Goggle and/or read archives. (Blog entries show up on search engines.)

Of the eleven stops on the tour, five ran interviews with me and I created original content -- all of which invited reader feedback -- for the other six. I also offered a free book on each site to the best question or comment. (Something I strongly recommend.)

Just like a brick and mortar tour - this one took time and was surprisingly exhausting but also exhilarating.

I spent five days doing research, preparing posts and ultimately wrote over 12,000 words.

In addition I spent the actual tour day entirely online and three days later am still responding to email from readers.

It's far too early for full results but my website received over 15,000 hits from the day the tour was announced up to and including the two days after it started. My Amazon number dropped substantially (as low as 500 from a daily average of 13,000) and I have gotten over 225 emails and comments from readers of the blogs.

The most popular blog entry - based on the readers who've responded was an essay entitled "Too Many Books?" in which I asked readers if they are overwhelmed by the number of books offered in stores and how they pick the books they read.

So far, 60% said they are overwhelmed. 30% said no, there are not too many books but there are too few book reviews in the media. More than 70% said they rely on word of mouth and of those who mentioned review sources they trusted, the two most sited were The New York Times Book Review and Bookreporter.

Clearly, Smoker's virtual book tour gives a big bang for a small buck. (A tour like the one I did costs less than $2,000).

Don't get me wrong. I wouldn't trade my brick and mortar book tour for a virtual tour.

But F2F tours are not only expensive to set up and execute and except for big names/best-sellers, they can be very disappointing for both author and publisher.

Right now we have a glut of books that are being dumped all over the net and in stores in such a haphazard way that far too many readers are flummoxed by their choices and wind up buying bestsellers simply because they can't wade through the virtual and bricks and mortar aisles and have no idea of what else to chose. (Over 50 readers who wrote mentioned this.)

This virtual tour offers very targeted marketing, in depth information as well a venue that enables an author to connect to potential readers in a personal and intimate way.

Publishers should be aware that a virtual tour like the one I did is not for every author. Being invited to take over a blog is like someone allowing you to throw a party in her house.

The author needs to respect that relationship and thoughtfully create content that will appeal to each specific blog without going overboard on hyping and hard sell.

For instance, on Gothamist - a major blog devoted to NYC that gets 30k visitors daily - I blogged about my favorite New York City crimes with links to expand and visualize them and only mentioned the novel in passing. On another blog, The Elegant Variation I wrote an essay asking readers what they like hearing authors talk to them about and what authors should shut up about and we got a serious dialog going.

No one thing makes a book sell.

But a combination of several things motivates a person walking by a table in the bookstore to notice one book out of twenty and say -- "Hmmm, I've heard of that book" -- and pick it up.

That's what I'm hoping will happen to my book thanks to Smokler and the tour he set up for me.



How I Write - Mystery Morgue Magazine
Before I write a word, I go shopping.

Ha. You think I'm frivolous and a procrastinator.

But I'm not shopping for me.

Before I write a word, I go shopping for an object of my main character's affection. A talisman. The one thing he or she would save in a fire if the worst should happen.

For my first novel, Lip Service, I bought the cigarette lighter that the bad guy used in the scene that scared my main character Julia Sterling out of my mind.

I took it to a bar - the same kind of bar I imagined my character went to and put the lighter down on the mahogany countertop and I shivered with fear.

For my most recent novel, The Halo Effect, I bought the sexy, slingblack high heel shoes my main character, Dr. Morgan Snow, the sex therapist wears when she steps out into the demi-monde to trap the killer and dresses up like a high class call girl.

(For the rest of the article click on the link above) Link

Powell's
The Deflowering of an Author
An essay about where the sensual subject matter in my novels comes from. By M.J. Rose. http://www.powells.com/fromtheauthor/rose.html



Jugglezine Magazine
Chronically, Electronically Misunderstood
The problem with e-mail is, we think we're good at it. http:///www.jugglezine.com/CDA/juggle/1,1516,109,00.html

O Magazine
Ask Your Mother To Tell You A Story
What we don't know about our mother's as women, friends, lovers and professionals can have a deep effect on our lives. By M.J. Rose. Not online but in the May 2003 Issue

Poets & Writers Magazine
How Lucky Can You Get?
Often when an author signs a book contract that's his or her last word on the all important publishing process about to be set in motion. Author of more than 150 articles on the publishing industry, M.J. Rose looks at how to redress that balance of power. http://www.pw.org/mag/0305/rose.htm

E-Publishing Ink
E-Books Fly the Friendly Skies
In-flight ads tout e-books' portability to United Airlines passengers. Also: A new way to check out e-books ... fee-based courses from BN.com... all in M.J. Rose's notebook. http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,55476,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Rampant Illiteracy: Oh the Horror
The Horror Writers Association can't abide the scary U.S. literacy rates, so it's sponsoring a benefit eBay auction. Also: Homes for pets.... hope for self-published romance authors... all in M.J. Rose's notebook. http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,55319,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Book, Website Spur Iraq Discourse
A new book -- and its companion website -- opposing a U.S. war on Iraq challenges readers to question authority. Also: Comics fans get more online strips.... The World Almanac hits handhelds...all in M.J. Rose's notebook. http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,55176,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
9/11 Book Born Online Hits Stage
A book of reflections collected online from professional and citizen journalists on the events of Sept. 11 makes its way to London's Old Vic Theatre. Also: Audio CDs digitize textbooks on tape...all in M.J. Rose's notebook. http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,55022,00.html

January Magazine
The Art of Procrastination
I don't remember ever wanting to be anything other than a writer. As I kid I devoured books and authors were my heroes. But no matter how many notebooks or pens I bought, no matter how many classes I took, no matter how many times I started, I never got farther the first two paragraphs.
http://www.januarymagazine.com/features/artofprocras.html

E-Publishing Ink
Who Spilled Merlot on the E-Book?
Electronic wine lists help diners at Aureole restaurants in Vegas and New York match their meals with the prefect vintage. Also: E-publish in minutes.... E-books en espańol.... .... all in M.J. Rose's notebook. http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,54839,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Dogged Readers Bid to Pick Names
The creators of Greyhound enthusiasts vie online, eBay style, to name characters in a forthcoming self-published novel where the dogs run the show. Also: E-book surveys shed light on readers.... all in M.J. Rose's notebook. http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,54758,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Paper Mag Sprouts From Book Zine
The creators of Readerville.com believe they can make it on the magazine racks. Also: Website offers greetings like Hallmark, only erotic and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,54624,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Art Zine Stands Test of E-Time
Happy anniversary to fineArt forum, which turns 15. Also: You mention my poem, I'll mention your screed and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,54454,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Mommy, Write Me a Story
Mothers get publishing advice and support. Also: How to collaborate online ... create a writer's website and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/0,1284,53997,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Self-Publish Stigma Is Perishing
and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/0,1284,53996,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
How the Net Can Stop Gross Losses
Authors say the Internet-based business language described in a new book can level the playing field. Also: Book reviews galore, and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/0,1284,53864,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Promising Chapter in E-Book Story
Demand for e-books might be gaining momentum. Also: A thesaurus by any other name... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,53699,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Comeback of a Crusty Comic Cop
An old lawman's career is resurrected in Web comics. Also: Publisher reacts when readers complain.... Up-to-the-minute bestseller lists.... ... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,53586,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
USA Today's News Is Fiction
The online newspaper snags a big-name author. Also: Summer means savings ... market-testing with print on demand... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,53416,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Published in a New York Minute
Online techniques and technologies give publishing a new urgency. Also: Innovative new authors ... shrinking iUniverse ... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,53219,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
On Writing and Cheez Doodles
Authors' secrets, favorites and eating habits revealed. Also: Enhancing the search for fiction ... enhancing the search for knowledge in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,53041,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
E Is for E-Book Murder Mystery
Is the book dead? That's the underlying question in a new online production. Also: Big horror from small houses, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,52929,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
The Dickens of EBay
An author auctions off vintage clothes and brand new chapters. Also: Another self-publishing tool...and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,52784,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
A Dilbert for a Post-9/11 World
An online comic strip featuring cubicle workers discussing post-attack feelings is being made into a book. Also: A push for I Love to Write Day.... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,52658,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Book Reviews Find Homes on Web
Major newspapers are devoting less and less space to book reviews, but the Web is more than picking up the slack. Also: Deep Throat revealed? ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,52488,00.html

Poets&Writers Magazine
Everything Old Is New Again
Reinventing the Publishing Model
More than 3,500 novels are published in the U.S. each year (not counting paperback or genre fiction)—but even the most avid reader buys fewer than 50 of them. While the main advantage to being published by a large press is the distribution, marketing, promotion, and visibility it can offer, all too often that kind of attention is bestowed only upon the clearly commercial novel that is already earmarked to be a winner, usually because of the author's previous performance. But a few hardworking, independent houses are implementing new publishing practices ... ones that put the author first. By M.J. Rose
http://www.pw.org/mag/rose0205.htm

E-Publishing Ink
Looking for the 'E' at BEA
The hype and hoopla surrounding e-publishing is still there, but it's just a little harder to find. At Book Expo America last weekend, a few initiatives stood out ,in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,52319,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Moxie, or $10 Worth of Chutzpah?
Writers are steamed at online zine Moxie's decision to charge $10 per submission. Also: A home for Web-comics ... a smaller e-book reader ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,52168,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Font of Errors Plagued Awards
Loss of funding killed the Frankfurt E-Book Awards, but the concept was flawed from the start. Also: New awards on the horizon ... a glut of guilt ... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,52015,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Authors Question Author's Guild
Writers aren't answering the Guild's call to de-link from Amazon to protest the bookseller's practice of hawking used books. Also: Come back, Oprah.... more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,51791,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
(Book Clubs') Life After Oprah
Oprah closes her book club and a thousand take her place. Also: Where the reviews are ... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,51632,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Literary Lynching Goes Online
A new book chronicles the sometimes ugly history of what happens to authors when they criticize the government. Also: A writer thinks visually.... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,51429,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Beaming Promos a Tough Read
Would free excerpts direct from a kiosk to your handheld make you buy the book? Also: What's in a publisher's name? ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,51291,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Are Authors Abused by Used?
Online sales of used books, review copies and remainders vex authors who just want to get paid. Also: Random acts of literacy ... your inner librarian ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,51113,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
How to Do It (Publish, That Is)
Do it yourself publishing, with help from others. Also: Getting hip on Hep C.... Shakespeare or shaky scholarship.... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,50971,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
A Site for Seeing Amazon Sales
Authors have a new way to track sales. Also: Downloads for the visually impaired ... The Canterbury Tales get a facelift ... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,50807,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
A Medical Text That Heals Itself
Comments, additions and improvements for this peer-reviewed journal are just a click away. Also: A reader Olympics poll ... e-books for soldiers ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,50655,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
A Footnote to E-Book History
Douglas Rushkoff's e-book, which was annotated by readers online, will be published in print form. Also: Adding a third dimension ... an author gives himself a 5-star review ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,50468,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Reading on the Net With Boys
See Jane read better than Dick. See man who wants boys to read better. See man develop a website to address problem. Also: Reviewing new review site.... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,50350,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
E-Mail That Lures Book Readers
Chapter-a-Day thinks it can get people back into the habit of reading books by e-mailing them a chapter a day. The only way to finish the book is by buying it, though. Also: Enron scandal hits e-publishing.... and more from M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,50193,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Psalm's New E-Book Reader
Prayers, hymns and psalms are but a click away. Also: The demand for print on demand ... e-book publishing rights redux ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,50023,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Authors' Sites Offer Insights
Authors like the idea that publishers don't get involved in their promotional websites, saying the autonomy allows them to be more creative. Also: A Tennessee library lobbies for funding.... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,49865,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Preview Copies Go Digital
E-galleys arrive as a cost-effective promotional tool. Also: Listing the e-book bestsellers.... A print-on-demand idea that really cooks.... All in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,49534,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
2001 Was a Tough Read for E-Books
Apparently, the e-book revolution is still a tome waiting to be written, but judging by the opinions expressed here, there is no shortage of potential authors. M.J. Rose looks at the year in e-publishing.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,49297,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
E-Books Live On After Mighty Fall
Last week's shuttering of MightyWords is just one in a series of closings by big-name, e-book sellers. But smaller companies are thriving. Also: MightyWords' last words.... Read like an e-Egyptian.... in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,49184,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Black Publisher: From Net to BET
A small publishing house that markets entirely online gets big league attention from Black Entertainment Television Books and top book clubs. Also: Hitting the streets for Sept. 11 victims ... erotica goes serial ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook. in Culture
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,48983,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
E-Books OK'd as Art in the U.K.
A grant by the U.K.'s funding body for university research confers automatic legitimacy. Also: Erotica is significant, too.... Powells.com expands its e-offerings.... All in M.J. Rose's notebook. In Culture
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,48804,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Audio E-Books Seek a Buzz
That sound you hear is audio e-books, magazines and newspapers clamoring for attention. Also: Hitchhiker's guide to his hard drive ... the language of digital rights ... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,48620,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Online Library Expands Database
Ebrary adds scientific, medical and business titles from key professional publishers. Also: Struggling netLibrary gets a lifeline, and book clubs unite, all in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,48480,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Post-Tasini Guidelines Sought
The National Writers Union and Primedia negotiate licensing issues. Also: Random House targets young-adult e-book audience.... Light reading in the future.... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook. In Culture
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,48334,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Simon Says: Buy E-Books Here
Simon & Schuster gets into the retail biz. Also: Writers wish AOL would have asked ... dispatches from an environmentally friendly essayist ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,48146,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Watch as This Novel Gets Written
A winner of the Pulitzer Prize will write his novel online while surfers watch. Also: Online discussion groups flourish, and Scholastic releases another e-book. It's all in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,47961,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Rejects' Finders Fees Rejected
Xlibris backs down on its offer to pay literary agents for referring authors they've taken a pass on. Also: Best-selling tips for $69.95 ... Will someone save Netlibrary.com? ... all in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,47770,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
And Now a Novel From Our Sponsor
Product placement and banner ads invade the world of e-books, in an e-mail serial by author Jesse Kornbluth. Also: A Halloween download.... Frankfurt E-book Awards.... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,47534,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Eight Copies Sold Is Enough
The Frankfurt eBook Awards nominates a non-fiction title that has sold only eight copies. Also: Self-publishing readers dig Frankenstein.... A page-turning contest.... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,47391,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Selfless Acts or Self Promotion?
Booksellers question other booksellers who hitch their wares to the Sept. 11 attacks.... In an unrelated promotional scheme, an author gets naked on the Net.... All in M.J. Rose's notebook
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,47179,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Web Readings Replace Real Ones
In the wake of the attacks, authors turn to virtual book tours. Also: Writers union says The New York Times blacklists freelancers ... and e-books are showing an immediacy that the printed word can't duplicate ... all in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,47036,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Book World Lends a Helping Word
Online publishers and booksellers turn to buyers to help raise money in wake of attacks. Also: Intifada.com not welcome at Amazon, a firefighter's story and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,46908,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Boundless Books Abound
Figures show e-books are cheaper and titles more plentiful than what's often reported. Also: It's not who you know but where to find them.... Kids can publish too ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,46635,00.html

From Salon -
Michael Chabon, Rick Moody and other dismayed authors respond to the news that a tony jeweler paid novelist Fay Weldon to put its products front and center in her new book.
By M.J. Rose
www.salon.com/books/feature/2001/09/05/bulgari/index.html

From Wired -
More Black Voices in Print
With the market for African-American books expanding quickly, traditional publishers turn to self-published writers. Also: E-books offer extra goodies.... Many formats make e-book titles slow to the gate.... All in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,46463,00.html

Should Writers Kiss & Tell?
Revealing the Nonfiction Behind Fiction
By M.J. Rose
www.pw.org/mag/rose.htm
And one last note best-selling author and thinker Seth Godin has a terrific newsletter that if you don't already get you should: the sub address is
http://link.ixs1.net/s/link/sub?rc=cp&rti=k1033&si=g0&pc=4s

E-Publishing Ink
Sklyarov Boss to Skirt DMCA
The president of ElmcomSoft will present the same paper on copyright security that landed programmer Dmitri Sklyarov in a U.S. jail. He's doing it in Amsterdam. Also: Book pirates abound.... E-book guidelines are updated.... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,46318,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
The Library That Keeps On Giving
The California State University system brokers a deal with NetLibrary so e-books can be lent to many at one time. Also: Turning Ploughshares into e-Ploughshares, fiction goes 3D and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,46160,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Print-on-Demand Books Cost More
Cover prices for books that don't exist until buyers order them rise as much as 30 percent. Also: Writers just want to get paid, a 10-hour read and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,46012,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
They're Young, But They Can Read
So-called Young Adult books often lose the battle of shelf space in stores but they flourish online. Authors are also fighting to broaden their audience. Also: Up-sizing for the sight-impaired, free books with purchase of a reading device, and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,45764,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
A Ticket to Fix Encryption Woes
Digital tickets could be the answer to those pesky digital rights protection issues. Also: An online debate on digital rights, wedding dress tales and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,45475,00.html

And a personal essay of mine about how e-book authors are not getting respect was published in Salon yesterday. (I didn't want to clog up your mailboxes with two notes this week).
http://www.salon.com/books/feature/2001/07/30/ebook_outcast/index.html

Why I'm an E-book Outcast
The Web made me a successful author, but getting people to respect me as a "real writer" has been harder to come by. Here's an essay about the ups and downs of getting taken seriously in Salon.com
http://www.salon.com/books/feature/2001/07/30/ebook_outcast/index.html

E-publishing Ink
Throw the E-Book at Sklyarov?
Publishers laud the Justice Department's arrest of the Russian software trafficker, but most of the online e-book community sides with the luckless hacker. Also: The latest in e-book marketing ... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/ebiz/0,1272,45466,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Twelve-Minute Book Delivery
The first fully automated print-on-demand book vending machine is on the
way. Also: Remnants is in big demand, and New York on no dollars a day.
All in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,45228,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
How to Pre-Sell a Best-Seller
Invitation to Weigh In on Wedgies
NPR commentator Douglas Rushkoff asks readers to contribute online annotations to his futuristic historical novel, Exit Strategy. Also: Happy birthday, Project Gutenberg, and the return of a poet. All in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,45067,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
How to Pre-Sell a Best-Seller
Franklin Has Some New E-Book Pals
Franklin Electronic Publishers adds about 3,000 titles with new relationships.
Also: An Adobe security crack.... Readers want more, cheaply.... And more in M.J. Rose's e-publishing notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,44958,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
How to Pre-Sell a Best-Seller
Interest in Neil Gaiman's American Gods is spurred on by his three-year-old online journal. Also: An online rag goes downloadable, and another e-mail publication experiments with "print" ads. All in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,44751,00.html

A self-help e-book publisher creates a book that's more like a store; whatever makes you feel good is now available for purchase. Also: Friends of Readerville.com chip in, e-books get ID numbers.... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,44579,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Once-Dead Writers Site Returns
EbookNet.com, closed in April by Gemstar, will return as eBookWeb.org in July. Also: The search for virtual miracles ... the expansion of an online library network ... all in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,44385,00.html

E-Books Out of Print Already?
It seemed like all anybody could talk about at last year's BookExpo America was e-books. Not this year, where print books were all the rage and e-publishers agreed prices must come down. M.J. Rose reports from Chicago
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,44277,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
WSJ: The Little Dickens
A serialized novel makes its way onto the pages -- and homepages -- of The Wall Street Journal.... Also: Book sites team up for a summer reading contest.... Students at Stanford go wireless.... and more, in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,44135,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
New Accounting for Best-Sellers
When the editor of a best-sellers list for e-books asks for verification, one author says it's an invasion of privacy. Also: Art books you can carry ... a campus without books ... and reviews with pull. All in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,43978,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Kids Ask the Darnedest Things
Do you ever hate yourself? That and other questions are posed in a new book edited by, and for, adolescents and young adults. Also: The first e-books are free.... And more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,43778,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Pay to Publish, Pay for Review
Yep, authors can pay for anything now -- including reviews of their work. The controversial idea launches soon on a website near you. Also: The benefit of a free sample, and poetry that pays.... In M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,43606,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
E-Pledge Drives Don't Work
Steve Outing's prominent online writing list went asking for user donations and came up half-empty. Also: Bye bye RocketLibrary... The Vines... and some romantic face-mail, from M.J. Rose's e-notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,43403,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Fall of Times New Roman Empire
Online literature goes against type, including one e-book that's based on a collection of fonts. Also: Learn the craft, download it to your phone, and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,43198,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Authors Lose Sight of Writer Site
Writers like to be read, so it came as a shock when Gemstar closed down Ebooknet.com without warning. Also: Authors make for good interviews, an author's diary and the Revolution arrives on Palm, all in M.J. Rose's e-publishing notebook.
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,42922,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
The E-Book as Print-Edition Ad
Not waiting for e-books to become the preferred product to read, one publisher is placing ads for printed books in electronic form. Also: A queen gets her due.... and customized textbooks.... all in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,42751,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
When in Doubt, Believe in Self
Traditional book publishers said Juliet Waldron's book was too romantic, too historical, too something. So she self-published it, and now it's been honored with an Independent Ebook Award. This and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,42624,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Peanut Now in Palm's Grasp
Tuesday Palm acquires Peanutpress.com, which gives the handheld giant a firmer hold on the e-book market. Also: the Rolls-Royce of e-book readers, sci-fi writers get to be read, and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,42484,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Authors to Protest Amazon
The Author's Guild is planning a formal protest against Amazon.com, which puts cheaper, used book offerings alongside the new ones. Also: Poor fiction sales prompt AtRandom.com to go nonfiction, a publshing house offers free downloads and other sites give authors more control. All in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,42350,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Random House Sues for Rights
The dispute rages over rights for e-books versus print books. Slate launches e-books and e-book reviews. Also: PreviewPort.com offers free author websites.... The New York Post puts its archives online.... and more in M.J. Rose's Notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,42195,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
E-Books Are Now on the Shelf
Electronic books are hitting the bookstores in an experiment to see if new technology can be sold the old-fashioned way. And an online bookshop is offering hands-on customer service. Also: E-books do sell, publishers try to sell and authors seek those who sell. All in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,42021,00.html

Inkspot Vanishes From Xlibris
The acclaimed writer's website is a casualty of cost-cutting moves by the digital cooperative press. But it may return. Also: Interactive and hyper-linked texts want attention, an advertiser-based site pays, and more.
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,41900,00.html

A Recipe Straight From the Heart
When noted cookbook author Marcia Adams was diagnosed with advanced heart disease and put on a heart transplant waiting list, she didn't stop writing. But her book wound up not selling - except to readers as an ebook. Plus more on a free book about hacking and how much profit Stephen King made on the plant.
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,41741,00.html

Amazon Wants to Sell Your Stuff
The online retailer announces a plan to handle transactions for smaller retailers, including booksellers. Also: E-book bestsellers.... the National Writers Union v. publishers.... and more in M.J. Rose's notebook.
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,41611,00.html

Here's One Healthy E-Publisher
E-publishing dead? Take a gander at Fictionwise.com, a healthy site in a supposedly floundering sector. Also from M.J. Rose's notebook: A new nteractive novel.... The Virginia Book fest.... and more
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,41343,00.html

New York Stories Go Electronic
The New Yorker is publishing a series of e-books in a format that will mirror their recent anthologies. Also: Dot-authors get their names back ... Frankfurt e-book awards to recognize innovation as well as writing quality ... and engineers get into digital rights management.
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,41451,00.html

From Rejection to E-Lation
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,41193,00.html

E-Publishing Now a Noble Effort
Barnes & Noble Digital decides to become a publisher, begging the question: Will Amazon.com and others sell its books? Also: Why not make the e-books look good, too? ... And poetry goes global
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,41056,00.html

Publishing 2000
The King and E Y2K was a breakthrough year for the world of e-books and e-publishing. One name stood out: Stephen King. But there was other news, too. M.J. Rose takes a look at the e-year that was.
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,40800,00.html

Start-up Rosettabooks will be bringing the classics to e-book format.
Also: Bookface hits a rough patch, and a site that helps you check books out -- at the library.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,40731,00.html

Early Reports on Death of E-Books, E-Serials Are Greatly Exaggerated
If there is a lesson to be learned from Stephen King yanking the roots out from under The Plant, it is that one experiment by one author does not prove that e-serials are doomed.
ttp://www.content-exchange.com/cx/html/newsletter/2-14/mj2-14.5.htm

Stephen King's 'Plant' Uprooted
Stephen King says he'll stop delivering "The Plant" online after its upcoming sixth chapter, leaving readers miffed and without an ending. Click here
Stephen King's 'Plant' Uprooted Or cut and paste this url into your browser http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,40356,00.html

A Bad Ending for E-Authors
E-publisher MightyWords terminates half its authors and slashes royalties to those it retains. The message to self-published authors is clear: If you want to sell books, sell them yourself.
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,40086,00.html

Pirates Invade Book Publishing
A website that offered links to free downloads of entire texts of copyrighted books by famous authors has changed its homepage and is denying it ever existed. But the question remains: What can the publishing industry do about this Napster-ization of book
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,38945,00.html

Rediscovering Indie Bookstores
Independent booksellers have gotten the message, and more and more their little bookstores in the middle of nowhere are finding second homes on the Web. By M.J. Rose.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,38672,00.html

Black Hole in Writers' Universe?
3:00 a.m. 12.Sep.2000 PDT A writers' group is investigating the mysterious disappearances of their titles on iUniverse.com. Also from M.J. Rose's notebook: E-audiobooks ... Buy an e-book, plant a tree ... And more.
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,38706,00.html

E-Publishing Empire Strikes Back
by M.J. Rose
1:10 p.m. Aug. 14, 2000 PDT
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,38213,00.html

E-Publishing Ink
Prospective Veep's E-Book
by M.J. Rose
1:10 p.m. Aug. 14, 2000 PDT
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,38203,00.html

The Future of E-Textbooks
by M.J. Rose
12:00 p.m. Aug. 15, 2000 PDT
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,38061,00.html

King 'Plants' News on His Site
by M.J. Rose
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,37867,00.html

E-Publishers Fear Trademark
3:00 a.m. 4.Oct.2000 PDT The company's filing a trademark application for the word 'EBOOK' has small-time e-publishers fretting. But trademark attorneys and big-time publishers say it's not going to happen. By M.J. Rose.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,39232,00.html

Discontent at Contentville.com
by M.J. Rose
8:25 a.m. Jul. 27, 2000 PDT
http://wired.com/news/business/0,1367,37804,00.html

More 'Miracles' for E-Authors
by M.J. Rose
3:00 a.m. Jul. 25, 2000 PDT
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,37733,00.html

This E-Book Is a Free Book
by M.J. Rose
6:00 a.m. Jul. 17, 2000 PDT
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,37600,00.html

Stephen King, the E-Publisher
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,36915,00.html

Rejection Prompts Self-Publishing
by M.J. Rose
http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,36807,00.html

E-Books Push Bookselling Envelope
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,36745,00.html

IPublish Praised, But Will URead?
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,36548,00.html

Publish or Perish, or Pay Up
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,36016,00.html

Ebooks for Writers, Not readers
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,35722,00.html

The Story of E-books
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,35037,00.html

Serial Ebooks make a Killing
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,34499,00.html

Ebooks the Next Chapter
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,34210,00.html

Trying to Eright a wrong
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,33240,00.html

New Books No Bindings
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,32733,00.html