The Past Is Here
The truth is, I don’t know much about the future of writing and publishing. Or the future of anything for that matter. I have no clue what’s around the bend. I’m still waiting for my robot slave. Ereaders? Like that’s ever going to take off. Next thing you’ll be telling me I’ll buy more ebooks than print books this year. Wait, let me put on my mylar suit, jump into my flying car and zip over to Borders. (Too soon?)
Actually, I loved Borders and I think it’s a shame that they are gone. Luckily I still have a local book store in my area–Mr. Paperback. I’ve been giving them my hard earned money since my senior year in high school (21 years ago if you must know). I still stop in at least once a month to pick up magazines and the occasional book. They have a nice selection of books by local authors.
I know many of you will hate me for this but, Mr. Paperback is never my first stop for books. I always hit Amazon first. Now before you go leaving me nasty comments I should point out that my local book store is about an hour away. Well, I’m sorry, when I want a book I can’t just drive up there and back. It’s not personal, it’s economics. Have you seen the price of gas lately? I click a link and a day later the book is at my door, free shipping and everything. Or I buy a book for my Kindle and I can read it in less than a minute. It’s pretty amazing when you think about it but Mr. Paperback has a coffee shop next door, so…
My point is, there is room in my life for both the old and the new and I think this is also true for the future of writing and publishing. In other words I don’t think it matters whether you write with pen and paper, a word processor, or voice recognition software. I think if you buy your books at a local book seller, online clearing house, or personal ereader, it doesn’t matter. What does matter is this: publishers are always going to look for good, well-written stories.
That’s the future and it looks a whole lot like the past. Good stories will always find a home, regardless of where you buy them or how you read them. So keep writing, whatever your methods and keep reading too. Read as much as you can, be it book or digital, in your chosen genre. Work on honing your craft and maybe one day I’ll read one of your books on a holographic, fully-immersed, virtual reality device, no bigger than a watch.
Now if I can only get my local book store to stock them. I’ll have my robot slave get on that.
Amazon has been my go-to spot for books for years. Paper books… none of this e-reader stuff for me (yet). But what I really prefer is going to the local library. I mean, especially if I’m not certain I’m going to want to read the book over and over again. Of course, getting to the library is near impossible for me between my schedule and the library’s; but my wife and kids have been using it a lot this summer, so that’s a start!
I don’t know if there are any local bookstores in my area. That’s a “shame on me” fact because I feel like I should know, but it’s also a factor of marketing – I’ve never seen a sign or a poster or an ad for one. We do have a big-box-bookstore or 10 (barnes and noble). I go in there occasionally, but usually just for fundraisers.