A (Super) Brief History of Publishing

I was asked, several years ago, to be one of the guest speakers at The Writers of the Future for the 30th Annual Awards Ceremony in Los Angeles, California. The topic they wanted me to cover was the future of publishing.

You can't, of course, consider the future of publishing without first taking a quick look at the history of publishing.

And that's exactly what I did, in this talk that begins with the thought that publishing was derived from human-kind's innate desire to share stories.

It's Fun To Talk To The WCYR

Young man, there's no need to feel down!
I said - young man, pick yourself off the ground
I said - young man, 'cause you're in a new town
There's no need to be unhappy . . . 


Yeah, I know, the title of this blog post doesn't roll off the tongue the way that Y.M.C.A. by The Village People does, but it just came to me in the way that unexpected lyrical earworms hit you.

I've been putting together the content for what I'll be talking to the good folks at the WCYR (Writers Community of York Region) about this coming Sunday, Jan 13th, and I realized just how much of a pleasure it is when my life-long passion (writing) collides so beautifully with the job that keeps a roof over my head and food on the table.

I was asked to come chat with the group after one of them had seen me speak last May at the Ontario Writer's Conference alongside Cynthia Good regarding storytelling in a digital age. (Here's a video of my talk)

OWC May 2012 - Talking on "Storytelling 360°: Storytelling in a Digital Age"

It was a really fun talk, because I was there as an author, but I was also there as a representative from Kobo -- and I, of course, couldn't help wearing my role as a bookseller.

In any case, here's an overview of the talk I'll be giving this Sunday.

Writers have never had more opportunities in front of them. This is at once exciting and overwhelming. What path to take? What roads to travel down? How does a writer make sense of the different options and opportunities available to them in both print and digital?

Navigating the multidimensional aspects of being a writer today takes an understanding of the industry from top to bottom and the ability to cut through a lot of noise. From SASE to ePub, from physical author events to the virtual aspect of social marketing, from the basics of the business of writing to not being drowned in the slush pile which has migrated from the a publisher’s back room to an online catalog near you, journey through one writer’s experiences operating in virtually every aspect of this dynamic and ever-changing industry.

Yes, I'm there as a writer, and to talk about my own experiences in traditional publishing and self-publishing (and perhaps even sell some copies of my books via the awesome Blue Heron Books who will be on site not only with some of my books, but some great books on writing) - but I will also be putting my Kobo's Director of Self-Publishing & Author Relations hat on, to share tips and insights for authors who are beginning to become involved in various self-publishing pursuits.

I will, naturally, demonstrate a positive bias towards Kobo and the awesome Kobo Writing Life platform for self-published authors and small publishers (With a darned cool blog filled with author profiles, articles and tips on the craft and business of writing), but I'm also going to be open and clear on the importance for authors of being available on any platform.

In any case, this Sunday will be yet another one of those days in which I'm working, yet I'm not working, in which I'm required to be there, and yet delighted and eager to be there.

Seth Godin, in his wonderful wisdom had written: "Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, maybe you should set up a life you don't need to escape from."  

I always smile when I read or hear those words, because while I do enjoying relaxing and "vacationing" I very rarely feel the need to "escape" from this incredible life I have. On the contrary, I enjoy embracing it and I consider myself very fortunate that I can work in a role that I am passionate about and believe in . . .

. . . and when it becomes difficult to determine when I am working and when I am just living the life I want, it feels like a really, really good thing.

You Spin Me Right Round Baby Right Round

In May 2012 I was invited to co-deliver a plenary session talk at The Ontario Writers' Conference (with Cynthia Good, Director of the Creative Book Publishing Program at Humber College) called Storytelling 360°: Storytelling in a Digital Age.

We had decided to split it up and have Cynthia focus on specific examples of trans-media storytelling, while I focused on looking at the history of storytelling and how the art of storytelling has evolved with technology.  I also used the concept of 360° to make meta reflections on my own mulch-faceted role as a storyteller, a bookseller and Director of Author Relations and Self-Publishing at Kobo. I outlined my own journey from using a typewriter to various electronic and digital options as a writer while quickly outlining the journey from oral storytelling, the scroll, the printing press and digital books.

It was challenging to do this talk, particularly when I wasn't yet able to talk about the forthcoming Kobo Writing Life DIY platform built to help authors get their work into Kobo's catalog.  We had scheduled the official announcement for the platform to take place in early June at Book Expo America - so while I had been extremely excited about KWL, and dying to share it with a room full of writers, I couldn't yet mention it.  Talk about a challenging test of my self-control . . .

Cynthia opened up the session with a fascinating talk.

I then did my bit . . .



And afterward the two of us participated in a quick Q & A.

It was great collaborating with Cynthia on this talk -- always a pleasure to work with her.  (In a past life, I used to pop in to talk with one of her classes about POD and the Espresso Book Machine - that was always a good time) Ontario Writers Conference was a fantastic day spent with writers, participating in workshops, listening to talks and, of course, networking with other writers. 

All of the talks and workshops were entertaining and informative. One of my favourite bits was when Douglas Gibson did a wonderful job of entertaining the crowd with his "Stories About Storytellers" segment, asking the audience to mention a Canadian writer from his latest book and then telling an interesting story about that author from his personal experience.

As recently as last weekend I had people approach me and state how much they enjoyed my talk that afternoon. That is pleasing to hear, particularly since I have agreed to teach a workshop for the 2013 Ontario Writers Conference, which will be taking place May 4, 2013 entitled BEYOND THE SLUSH PILE: The Ins and Outs of Digital Self-Publishing.  And yes, this time, I will certainly be talking about Kobo Writing Life as I outline possible strategies, step by step details and various elements of tackling the world of digital self-publishing.