Song of the Day: Hold My Hand by Hootie and the Blowfish
And so it is upon us. I’ll be flying out to New York this weekend for the RWA conference.
The final touches are being applied. I’ve done my OCD thing making lists of what I will wear each day and night, including jewelry and shoes. My agenda for the week has been printed. My iPod is charged. The camera has been cleared for the gazillion pictures I’ll take. A new notebook for those novellas I plan to write in my down time (hahaha) is ready to be packed. And I’ve dug out all my pins to wear on my name badge.
Just a few days ago, I finally found a pair of sparkly, sexy high heels to wear with my cocktail dress for the awards ceremony. Since I’ve lost some weight, I’ll be rockin’ this outfit. Hubby seems to think I’m going to pick up men. Never mind that 95% of the attendees will be female.
Yep. Other than the carefully stuffing the suitcases for minimal wrinkle-age, I’m ready to go. So I’m thinking, what will my goal for this conference be?
Network, leadership seminar, retreats, workshops, sightsee, dinner with my Ruby-Slippered Sisters, attend parties, these are the given activities. Yet, this year will be different in other ways.
My ear will be to the ground listening, like Tonto, for the stirrings of the industry. Over the rise, there cometh a change. Self-publishing is whipping in the wind and causing quite a ruckus. Is it a manifest destiny of sorts? I don’t know, but the publishing industry and related organizations will need to assimilate and grow with the digital shift sooner or later.
I’ll also be interested in the value, means, and insight on marketing a self-published book with other conference attendees.
I can’t wait to share with you what I will learn.
MUSETRACKS 
Have a wonderful time! BTW where do you get your photos from?
That’s some Tonto Kemosabi! Can’t wait to hear what you learn!
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Thanks Linda~
I visit various sites while harvesting pictures. And I spend waaaaay too much time browsing. 🙂
Tonto is purdy nice to look at, isn’t he?
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Have an awesome time, Jenn. Women will jostle you for photo-ops. Men will grovel for your attention. I hope I have you on my flight- – First Class and a smooth ride all the way.
BTW… just finished BLOOD AND TREASURE! You simply slayed it! An amazing read!
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John~
You have me on such a high pedestal. Though it is unwarranted, I think I’ll keep you around. 😉
Thanks for the kind words and support for Blood and Treasure, too. Yep – I think I’ll keep you.
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I hope you have a great time and a safe trip…
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Thanks so much, Savannah. Will do.
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I can’t wait for conference. I’m excited and nervous all at the same time! I too will be listening for the winds of change and then decide on where I belong in the new world of publishing.
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I’d love to know what the publishing future holds. There have been some radical changes and the past year has seen these changes accelerate. But I can make some predictions.
If one big brick-and-mortar store chain shifts to POD production on the premises (Barnes and Noble anyone?) the changes will come even faster. One technical hurdle will be a standardized format for the POD production files.
Agents and publishers will still be important–there’s no knockin’ the gate-keeper function, plus authors can use help whipping their MSs into shape. However traditional printing will all but vanish. Since there’s no room for the wholesale channel in the world of e-books and POD files, that function will vanish as well. Finally there will be even greater consolidation in the brick-and-mortar world–those who can afford a POD setup in their store will survive, the rest won’t.
Without production, shipping, or warehousing costs, plus almost immediate payment (compared to today) when an e-book or POD book file is accessed, publishing will become less risky. But keep in mind the present retail price structure for e-books. And shifting POD into direct contact with the consumer will mean POD-produced book prices will tumble to conventionally printed price levels.
I’m sure many will try to take advantage of the situation, or claim publishers and agents are in real trouble, so authors should share in their pain. Authors shouldn’t accept this. I think the agents and publishers will do well if they learn to embrace the new future.
But beyond that my vision becomes fuzzy.
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