The Final HNT

Every Thursday for the past six years I have been posting half nekkid pictures of myself as part of a world-wide blogger phenomenon. No, the pictures weren't always risque nor did they always involve some sort of half-naked state; but the posts were often about revealing myself in some way shape or form even when no additional skin was being revealed.

That has been part of the wonder of HNT. People participating in it have continued to interpret the HN in HNT in various ways.

For me, it has been a great thing to be forced to post a single themed blog post each week. Even on "blog dry" weeks where I wasn't able to chisel out some time to toss some thoughts into the blogosphere, I always found time to HNT.

I'll miss it. I'll miss the people. Yes, part of the weekly ritual was visiting as many other HNTers as you could to see what they were revealing. In that manner it was an incredible community building experience. Through HNT, I developed many friendships that continue to last, and I've even had the great fortune of meeting some folks I met through HNT in person. I'm pretty sure that, as time passes, I'll meet more friends that I originally connected with through HNT.

Why?

Because, it might have started between a small handful of blogger friends back in May 2005, but Osbasso has created a truly remarkable phenomenon that will last well beyond this "Final HNT" post.

Osbasso collected together a special "Farewell HNT" in which he asked a group of us, many of whom have been in HNT from the early days, to either come out of retirement for one last horrah, or to offer up a pre-scripted HNT post.  They all appear at HNT Finale for history's sake.

My final HNT post, the official one, appears there.

For that post, I used one of my favourite HNT pictures (the ad hoc "unmasking of Darth Tater" that turned into an entire series of a goofy adventure in which my son and I battled Darth Tater and his Clone army) - In the last year, I returned to a "re-write" of the original tale, and it was almost as much fun the second time around -- though, admittedly, I was in "edit" mode, trying to fix some of the previous storyline and make improvements on my prose and some of the bad attempts at humour.

You can read the whole zany storyline by starting here. Or if you prefer unrevised history, it was originally posted on Jan 12, 2006.

I also included my very first HNT post - a shot of my "Spooky Eyes" boxers. This was originally posted on October 27, 2005. In it, yes, I flash a bit of skin, but I also do something I'm rather fond of doing (and have done shamelessly on this blog for years) - I mention a forthcoming book signing - yes, it's often about the self-promotion for me, isn't it?

But I'll tell you the reason I went with these old classics is that I had trouble trying to picture what my LAST HNT picture would be.

Maybe because I wasn't quite ready for HNT to end . . . maybe because I didn't want it to end.

And, being the constant rule-breaker that I have been, I'm not entirely sure this will be my last HNT post.

Who knows.  We'll see.

To all the friends I have made, to the entire community of HNTers, I wish you one last fond Happy Half-Nekkid Thursday. Hope to see you around the blogoshere and elsewhere.

HNT - Three Wishes 2011

This being the final "Three Wishes" themed HNT, I thought I'd do what I normally do during a "structured" HNT post.  I'd break the rules and do my own thing. Why mess with the old Mark Leslie Tradition of doing that.

But speaking of tradition, I love the fact that Osbasso, the founder of HNT, created this themed type of post - it was meant to be a way for HNTers to go visit other members they didn't know, read about them and get to know them through the words and images they posted on their blogs. What a beautiful village-building activity. I applaud Osbasso for creating it and I applaud those who (unlike me every year) have embraced it.

I know I have gotten to know some other HNTers through this and cherish the experience.

Here's a link to my previous "Three Wishes" based posts since 2006

2010 - 3 Wishes 2010

2009 - Three Wishes 2009 (I got pretty creative with the descriptive post names, didn't I?)

2008 - Three Wishes 2008 (fell into a pattern, didn't I? But I modified it slightly for 2010 & 2011)

2007 - Gift of the HNT 2007 (shooting for a Gift of the Magi type name methinks)

2006 - Gifts of the HNTer (again with the Magi thing - I fall back to certain patterns a lot)

This year I simplify in my own way with three simple wishes in the realm of Dicken's A Christmas Carol, looking at Past, Present and Future.

For Those From HNT of Yore (Past)
May you look back on the many years of HNT, on the joy of a community of bloggers from around the world coming together with a fun common purpose, at the friendships and laughs you shared. There are even those whom you might have known from HNT of past who are no longer with us. Either no longer blogging or who have, sadly, passed on. May you relish in the memories of the thoughts, feelings, smiles and tender moments shared. HNT was about community, about sharing, about getting to know one another (and being given a fun and playful way of doing it) May your thoughts and memories of it warm your heart.

For Those From HNT Present
You're involved in HNT at as significant a moment as the days it was first beginning and perhaps even what some refer to as The Golden Era - although Golden might be different depending on a person's perspective, because often the "gold" comes through the discovery of a great new community of like-minded people, through the discovery of the fun of sharing and the wonderful intimacy that can stem from it. Enjoy this moment, enjoy the feeling and soak in the moment. Yes, this is a simple wish for you to properly "Carpe Diem" - but not just in HNT, in all the things that you do that bring you joy. May you absorb the joy and wonder of each moment for everything you do. Those joys will become the memories you one day will cherish and reflect back on.


For Those From HNT Future
If 2011 marks the end of HNT, how can it have a future. Ah, that's the magic. Just like in the letter from a newspaper editor to Virginia, discussing how Christmas lives in your heart, the magic of HNT is in the future carried forth by all past and present participants who go forth and continue to share the love and wonder that made HNT special. You see, HNT isn't merely a weekly ritual, it's an excuse for community, a wonderful weekly reminder to share and connect. May your future bring that same sentiment to many things that you do, not just in blogging, but in your physical day to day life. Pause, take a moment to share something of yourself, to expose something and to look, listen and attend to those who are doing the same around you. That's part of what makes the world a better place. That's part of the ongoing gift you can offer.  Even if you're reading this or other HNT posts from the past many years from now, remember, it wasn't just about risque half-nude pictures, it was about people forging connections, engaged in the spirit of community. Be inspired by that to do the same in your own unique way and you'll enrich the world of those you come into contact with.



And, because it's HNT, I offer up a few pictures of the Christmas ties I've been wearing. I have tried to wear a Christmas tie every day for the past couple of weeks. I like ties. I particularly like novelty ties. But what I like best is how a novelty tie can sometimes inspire a smile in those who see them. Even if I only make one person smile from seeing a fun goofy tie, it makes my day to know that a choice of the way I dress has momentarily lifted someone in some small way.

 

 

This last one is a really fun one - have a closer look at the various snowmen

Happy HNT for all those from HNTs of Past, Present and Future!

HNT - Christmas Tree of Hope

This being the final "Christmas Tree" themed HNT, I thought I'd take a quick retrospective over the various "Christmas Tree" themed HNT posts I've put up here.

Last year, I sort of went off topic, but at least it's a Christmas theme.  2010 - Christmas Vacation at Chateau Leslie.

In 2009, I was riffing on Charlie Brown in 2009 - Markie Brown Christmas Tree.

2008 was a father-son theme, with Alexander and I in front of the "boy's" Christmas tree in our rec room downstairs. Simply titled Christmas Tree 2008.

Oh Christmas Treat was my HNT post from 2007, which included my very first Christmas HNT picture (a bit risque and more of the commonly understood version of "nekkid" in this one) and returns to the themed Christmas CD that I reposted about in 2010.

In 2006, I posted a jokish HNT (yes, because all my other ones are soooo serious) called Francine's Christmas Fantasy. Yes, this one shows a bit of skin in the "traditional" HNT nekkid sort of way.

And, when I was young and foolish and first beginning HNT, I took the "Nekkid" thing seriously and posted Bare Naked for the Holidays, using a strategically placed ornament to cover up the most private of parts.

This year, I really wanted to build a Christmas tree made out of books, part of capturing some of the excitement of the viral Christmas tree picture. I ran out of time, so I thought I'd take that viral Christmas tree made out of book picture and add a fitting star to the top of it (fitting in my "slap Mark's head on something" sort of way I like to do for HNT)

Of course, I thought I'd post some random pictures of Christmas trees that I found online, just to share in the bookish love. You can find a lot more via a quick Google search. It's lots of bookish fun.

So, can you tell that I'm a person who has some books on his Christmas wish list . . . . ?

HNT - Getting Into Christmas Spirit

This week's HNT features a couple shots of the new Meaghan Smith CD that Francine and I got signed at her Hamilton show the other night.

In a beautiful story-tale way, it snowed in Hamilton the night before Meaghan came to town on her "It Snowed" tour. Beautiful giant flakes of the white stuff, sending a wonderful thrill through our son's heart (he already has grand visions of snow forts and sleds and shoveling).

No, the snow didn't stay, but it was still fantastic to see Meaghan perform "It Snowed" the next day, and the magic of seeing her perform certainly still lingers.

For those who don't know, the song (written by Smith) opens like this . . .

It snowed, it snowed, it snowed last night
Everything is sparkling with diamond light
The road is buried four feet high
Honey, let's play hookey 'cause it snowed last night

Francine, Alexander and I fell in love with the song a few years ago when we heard it on the radio while driving around looking at Christmas lights.

It Snowed is the title track off her new Christmas CD, a delightful addition to our Christmas music collection. I am, in particular, a fan of how she has modified some of the Christmas songs adding her own unique flair and style.

Getting to she Meaghan and her husband (Jason Mingo) perform was a special treat.  It was a small, intimate tour, not one for the whole band -- but perfectly suited for the intimate space The Pearl Company and the wonderful performance by the couple. Fran and I sat with a couple of friends I used to work with at McMaster, Laura and Matt - so it was fun to see them (Matt, knowing we were fans, poked me on Facebook to let me know about the forthcoming show - thanks, Matt!)

Meaghan has such a beautiful voice, a wonderful style and it was a real treat to see her and Jason perform and interact with the audience. We lined up to get our new CD signed and chat with the personable artist who stayed to see every single person who wanted to chat with her.

So, this week's HNT features my big giant thumb showing off the signed CD.

Good times - a fun memory of a great show, and now a great new holiday CD to add into our annual mix.

HNT - Author Pic for Haunted Hamilton

In late September, my buddy Peter Rainford and I spent a few hours one evening touring around Hamilton and getting some night-time shots of various locations that I covered in my forthcoming book Haunted Hamilton: The Ghosts of Dundurn Castle and Other Steeltown Shivers, which is due out from Dundurn in August 2012.

We visited several spots and when we were at McMaster Pete took a few shots of me under the McMaster Tower archway. (McMaster being significant for me given that I worked there at the bookstore from 2006 until the end of Sept 2011 -- and yes, there's a chapter in the book about the campus I love so much)

In any case, here's the author photo that Dundurn is planning on using for the back cover of the book.

I thought I should share it now - and what better time to share than on HNT.

Photo © 2011 - Peter Rainford

And yes, I'm trying to look all serious and "authorly" in the photo. (But it does work much better than the terrified look on my face when I was doing the research for the book - man, some nights while I was compiling information I scared myself silly)

Not sure if they'll use a cropped version - one of the things I like are the shadows cast from the metal frame housing the light under the archway - adds a nice eerie feeling (or at least, I felt a little eerie when posing for the picture - but then again, I just at shadows - Pete had to calm me down a few times)

Speaking of forthcoming books, the reason I'm up so late and blogging is that I just read through, signed and sent back a contract for an anthology that I'm going to be editing. Details forthcoming.

2012 is going to be a busy year filled with two books coming out and at least one more being worked on. No rest for wicked writers I suppose . . .

Happy Half-Nekkid Thursday!

HNT - Seeing Santa

This past weekend Santa arrived at Limeridge Mall.

We headed over to the mall to see the incoming mini parade which included Sir Topham Hatt (from Thomas the Tank Engine), a couple of ponies from My Little Pony, as well as a few other characters, bagpipe musicians and mall staff dressed as Santa's helpers handing out fun activity/colouring books for the kids.

I hoisted Alexander on my shoulders so he could get a good view through the crowd.  Then I readied my iPhone to take a few pictures and remembered that there was a front facing cam on my new iPhone. So I snapped a couple of quick pictures to test it out.

Then, as things begin to start, it was cute how he was yelling out: "I see Sir Topham Hatt!" at the top of his lungs as the characters began their march far far down the hall.

At that point we knew it was a good idea to take him to this. (We'd debated on attending the Parade in Toronto which was the same day, but the concept of the drive plus the possible 5 hour wait just to get a good spot just wasn't feasible given our schedule of activities and chores for the weekend. This little event was enough to kindle the fun excitement of Christmas without overpowering it with long waits and being stuck in a huge crowd far from the comforts of home)

I took a few pictures of the characters and Santa, but I'd been more eager to see the look of joy that I knew must be plastered on my son's face.

So I switched to the front facing camera and took a few shots.

Ahh - got to love this smile as the various characters are marching by.

And this one, waving at Santa as he passes in front of us.

Got to love Christmas, and, in particular, the excitement and joy my son gets in the various little traditions that we do together which make it that much more special.

HNT - Down With The Old, Up With The New

As I began to write this I took at quick look back at the last few posts. The previous four were about Halloween, and I noticed I have not been blogging regularly. I suppose that's because I used to blog early in the morning before getting ready for work as part of my daily morning writing routine. (I began blogging as a warm-up to actual writing)

But the new job and 1.5 hour morning commute takes that time away. Sure, I could get up at 4 AM rather than 5 AM, but I'm needing between 5 and 6 hours of sleep a night, and that would cut into that in a bad way.

Still need to figure out optimum writing times. (Hmm, maybe actually taking a lunch break at work might do the trick - a difficult task when I enjoy my job so much that it doesn't feel like work.)

In any case, today's post is another HNT one - at least I have the HNT ritual to ensure that I blog at least once per week.  Today's post also refers to -- one last time for a while at least -- Halloween.

On Saturday, Alexander and I spent a couple of hours taking down the massive Halloween setup from our front yard. And on Sunday, with the weather being so absolutely gorgeous (particularly for November), Francine suggested that we put up the Christmas lights. She's a smart gal, that Fran - often reminding me of the challenges of climbing across the roof and slipping and sliding on a cold, icy surface when I wait too long to get those lights up (Of course, when Fran suggested it mid week after hearing the weather forecast, Alexander was itching to get started every day when I got home from work last week)

This week's HNT pics are of Alexander and I on the roof preparing to complete our task. (Yes, he has been involved in helping get the decorations up since he could walk - although it's only in the past few years he has been coming out onto the roof with me - when he was two he used to pass me the decorations through his bedroom window then point out where to place things.)

And I just couldn't bare to take pictures of the putting away of the Halloween decorations. It's still too painful to think about . . .

HNT - Me And Margaret

The other night at International Festival of Authors there was a Canopy / McClelland & Stewart promotion featuring a cut-out of Margaret Atwood with an alien body. (Her latest book, In Other Worlds, is a series of essays about science fiction)

I, of course, couldn't resist getting my picture taken with the cardboard cutout of Margaret Atwood in Canopy's "My Evening with Margaret" promotion.

Can you really blame this fan-boy reader?

Making A Good Thing Better

You know how peanut butter and chocolate, when brought together, created a marvelous new taste sensation?

I discovered just such a sensation the other night when Francine and I were out on a date. Yes, our idea "date night" involves having a quiet and relaxed dinner, then spending an hour or two browsing around a bookstore, then having coffee and chatting.

On last Saturday night's date (our celebration of 15 years of marriage), I fell in love. But I didn't just fall in love again with my beautiful wife and the life we've created together (like peanut butter and chocolate - to carry the metaphor on, I suppose I'm the PB and she's the chocolate)

What I also fell in love with was the idea of a new version of Scrabble.  

Scrabble for Book Lovers. Or rather, Scrabble: Book Lovers Edition.

It plays like traditional Scrabble but there are bonus points for using author names, book titles or literary characters. There are also book-world themed cards that seem to work like CHANCE or COMMUNITY CHEST cards in Monopoly, where you can play one of those cards to perform some sort of special bonus activity) It looks like a lot of fun and a book nerd's delight.

The game is made by Usaopoly and licensed by Hasbro, but I haven't been able to find it on either of their websites.

In any case, both Francine and I were delighted to see this incredible merger of two things we love so much. We love playing Scrabble (although, admittedly, she often kicks my ass) and we love books.

This new version of the game seems to be just such a thing for us to spend a relaxing evening at home together in front of the fireplace after Alexander goes to bed.

I Got A New Skull

Yesterday, as part of a themed series of gifts from Francine (she loves to do fun themes that she knows I'll love), I received this great skull.

It's a bowl - we'll likely use it as a candy dish for Halloween - but I'll want to use it when I do book signings - particularly when I do them during the Halloween season. You fill the bowl with some free treats and it often brings people a little bit closer to your lonely store-front table . . . it's also a fun conversation piece.

Okay, who am I kidding? I'll want to keep this thing out year, round. I could eat popcorn out of it. Wouldn't that be a great popcorn bowl when you're watching horror movies? I could perhaps find a spot on the end of my desk to keep this on, fill it with tiny chocolate bars so that when I'm in the throes of an all-day writing marathon I don't need to stop for sustenance - I simply reach over and keep myself fueled.

Hmm - I wonder if they have a similarly sized skull coffee mug?

HNT - True Stories Picks

I was recently contacted by CBC Books for a bookseller poll for Canada Reads 2012 - the question was what five books would I select for the best "True Story" pics.

It was certainly an interesting and challenging list to pick from. I wanted to be able to select from the full range of the types of non-fiction/true story books I had read. The selection I ended up going with was something that I feel nicely represents the range of my preferred reading tastes whenever I do pick up a non-fiction book, particularly one with biographical elements.

Here's what I wrote for my submission of the five titles...

"In determining this list I had to wanted to think about Canadian authored books I had read that not only told some sort of "true story" but which also had a significant impact on me. I'm primarily a fan of fiction, and, as such, I don't typically read a lot of biographical books. When I read non-fiction I tend to want to read something that will teach me something. To that end, each of the five books I selected ended up teaching me something. It might have been something new that I was enlightened to learn, it might have been a perspective I hadn't previously considered; but in many cases, the reading of these "tales" taught me something new about myself. Reading these books altered my perception, my understanding and the stories stayed with me long after reading them. I tried to draw a list that ran the full spectrum of the types of "true stories" that I like -- stories that demonstrate growth, learning, the gaining of wisdom through trial and error and overcoming the various trials and tribulations that eventually build character."

And here are the books I picked....

• Last Resort: A Memoir - Linwood Barclay
• The first book by Barclay which I read and which turned me on to his wonderful mixture of being funny yet touching at the same time. It was only later that he also demonstrated his mastery of suspense I bought the book after seeing him read at Word on the Street in Toronto. I was working the Toronto Star booth that day and heard the same reading 3 or 4 times - he was just as fascinating every single time I heard it, which sold me on the fact I had to read this book. It was a great introduction to a brilliant writer.
• Traveling Music: The Soundtrack to my Life and Times - Neil Peart
• Peart is a talented and passionate writer. His lyrics are what drew me to listen to Rush in the first place, so when he started writing (this is one of about half a dozen of his books) This biographical look at his life, told with respect to the music he was listening to as he was experiencing that life was a wonderful way to explore his life as a musician, a husband, a father and a friend. This book is incredibly touching, thoughtful, introspective, observant, funny, insightful; even if you've never listened to Rush you can enjoy the tale he unravels.
• Negotiating with the Dead - Margaret Atwood
• This academically styled look at writers and writing is wonderfully interspersed with Atwood's personal reflections and life experiences. It offers a thoughtful and in depth look at the profession and culture of writing and yet contains enough "light" personal references to be seen in a biographical light. And, as a writer I couldn't resist including this often overlooked gem from one of Canada's most prolific writers.
• Last Canadian Beer: The Moosehead Story - Harvey Sawler
• This isn't just the story of a successful independent Canadian brewery, but it's also a look at the story of a family that built a company up and achieved phenomenal success while following a consistent dream. It's as much a "business" biography book as it is a family legacy. Of course, upon finishing the book, my respect for the people behind the Moosehead brand grew exponentially. Since reading it, I continue to pause to toast the Oland family whenever I enjoy a pint of their beer.
• Me Minus 173: From 328 Lbs to The Boston Marathon
• Snell is a captivating motivational speaker. Her frank and poignant story of how she got to be 43 years old and decided to make some simple changes to improve her health and lifestyle is inspiring and heartfelt. It demonstrates the power of a person's conviction and can likely inspire others to set and stick to simple goals. It's not so much the story of weight-loss as it is a tale that empowers the reader to follow their own dreams. 

And here's a picture of me holding all five books.

What I think I love best about the selection that various booksellers have chosen is that everybody's picks are quite excellent and wonderfully eclectic. Looking at everyone's selections on a whole you can see that we have covered a significant amount of ground. And I was honoured to be included with such great booksellers.

HNT - WOTS 2011

I was at The Word On The Street this past Sunday. It's always such a fantastic day. Of course, how could spending a beautiful Sunday afternoon with thousands of people who are there to celebrate reading and advocate literacy (two key ingredients of WOTS) not be a great thing?

Joining several other authors at Horror Writers Association's booth in the Writer's Block, I got a chance to meet a lot of fine folks, bump into friends I haven't seen in a while and share some information about my existing and forthcoming books.

This week's HNT include a few pictures taken that afternoon.

Nancy Kilpatrick, Sephera Giron, Ken Lillie-Paetz, Mark Leslie

Ken and I chatting with a book lover who is checking out CAMPUS CHILLS

For the display table, I had brought a beautiful hand-carved skull chest that I had purchased at a Hamilton street festival just a few weeks before - the Locke Street Festival, which is, like WOTS, always a grand time.

At WOTS I was handing out a coupon code so that people could download a free digital copy of my short story SPIRITS via Smashwords. Since the code is still valid for a few weeks, if you're interested in checking it out, please email me a request with SPIRITS in the subject line and I'll send you the code.

HNT - Avatar

For years I have been using the exact same avatar across various social media platforms. It's the little image of my head, tilted slightly to the side, with some buildings in the distance and an orange post immediately behind my head.

I thought, for this week's HNT, I would reveal where that head-shot came from.

First, I stole the image from a friend's blog back in about 2005. Taras Shuper, a buddy I used to work with at Chapters Online had a list of his blog friends on his side-bar which included images. Shupe (as he is affectionately known my many pals) had cropped that image of my head-shot from a picture I had posted on my blog. I thought it was a cool picture - so I started using it as my avatar for my profile on this blog. As I branched out into various other online social media, I used the same picture.

I thought it would be important for people to be able to recognize me across different platforms, so, using a consistent avatar is one way of ensuring people know that it's the same Mark. I also potentially confuse people since I write fiction under the name "Mark Leslie" and am known in the bookselling world as "Mark Lefebvre" and in various other circles I use the full "Mark Leslie Lefebvre" -- thus, the consistent avatar assures people it's the same me.

The original picture that "Shupe" cropped was one that Francine took of me on the Staten Island ferry. We were in New York City for our anniversary many years ago (I believe it was in 2003), and she snapped this shot of me - we were "close" to the Statue of Liberty and I wanted to get some pictures of us with the beautiful New York city skyline in the background.

New York is an absolutely beautiful city. I have also recently made some changes in my life (which will be revealed very shortly on this blog), in which New York features quite prominently. So I figured this NY picture is rather appropriate right now.

HNT - Boys Being Boys

It has been a busy few weeks. It always gets this way working at a campus bookstore.

The storm will pass, things are already starting to slow down.

For example, yesterday, I only worked 12 hours. It felt, strangely, like a really short day. (It's all relative, right?)

And though this summer was a great one (we had one of the best July's for weather in our little part of the world), it seemed to have passed all too quickly.

This morning I was looking at some pics from the past summer, and laughed when I saw this one of Alexander and I goofing around at the Dinosaur Mini Golf on Clifton Hill in Niagara Falls earlier this summer.

It reminds me of how the fall season brings Halloween -- one of our family's favourite times of year. Fran and I have always loved Halloween.  And, ever since he could walk, Alexander has been involved in the huge tasks involved in purchasing new materials for, deciding on a plan, and setting up our front yard to be a spooky haunted graveyard.

And I just love those special family moments where, after acquiring one or two new Halloween things as a family, Francine sends us out to work in the front yard; then the delight we take in showing her all the details of our new "masterpiece."

HNT - Zombie Mark

I didn't leave work last night until almost midnight. I've had too many of the days that never end lately.

It seems as if there's way more to get done than there are hours in a day. And the most frustrating thing is that, even if I had stayed and worked around the clock, I doubt I'd be even close to caught up. To toss in a well-used cliche, it's like I'm trying to squeeze blood from a stone.

On days like these when it feels as if I'm shoveling water, I wonder when I'll start to look like Zombie Mark.

A buddy of mine (a friend I made through the weekly ritual of HNT actually), made this photo of me - this zombi-fied version of me is based on the profile photo/avatar I use for most of my social media presence.I thought it was pretty damn cool. Brandon is a very talented fellow.

Actually, I think the zombie Mark in this picture looks a bit better than I feel right now.

Oh well, onward and upward. If I can't pause to make fun of myself, then what good am I?

HNT - Sue Dough Nym

CHCH news recently did a "back to school" piece on ebooks and came to the bookstore at McMaster to look into whether or not more students were buying etextbooks.

I talked about the fact that etextbooks were not like the "general trade" ebooks that you might normally buy from a place like Kobo, for example. (A great example to use since our bookstore sells Kobo readers along with iPads and other tablet devices that are popular because you can run various ebook apps on them).

Etextbooks are typically "time bombed" or set to expire at the end of the term, so, though the student pays slightly less for their etextbook they don't have anything at the end (ie, a book to keep or perhaps sell back into the used market and get some cash for, which typically helps them buy the next textbooks they need on their educational journey) - thus, the initial cost might be a little lower, but the residual value is typically much less in the long run.

Most of the students who have been weighing their options end up finding it a better value to purchase the textbook package which includes access to the etextbook. It is typically not that much more expensive than buying the ebook alone (several times, the ebook is included for free with the new textbook purchase), and they get the flexibility of using both depending on their location/situation. (For example, with a couple of the 1st year books we have for Chemistry and Kinesiology, the textbooks are extremely heavy. The bundled textbook/ebook allows the student to leave the textook in their dorm-room rather than lug it across campus, and if the prof refers to or reads from the book in class, the student can easily follow along accessing the ebook on their laptop, tablet or ereader device.)

Here's a snapshot from the interview done with me in our store.

I think it's cute that they got my name wrong. (They transposed the B and V - a popular mistake in a name where the B and R are silent and thrown in seemingly just to confuse people) and the second e is more of an "a" sound - ie, Lefave.......) It makes me want to collect a scrap-book of all the times I have appeared in the media over the years and my name has been mis-spelled. It might be fun to look back at.

But really, is it any wonder why I write under the pseudonym Mark Leslie?