[edwest]

Hi Nick,


Thank you for your effort. But I must discount the comments, and the lack of civility, of one author. I'm scanning the Book Trade press constantly for useful information and her's is not an average experience, not even close. I'd like to preface my following comments by saying that I believe humility is a necessary virtue. I'm on a private, book industry only mailing list, and they are quite strict about letting any information they disclose from reaching others. It arrives on an almost daily basis and it lists authors and deals, along with specific dollar amounts, plus the transfer and titles of individuals in the book industry and their new job title, a valuable resource to book publishers regarding where the industry is focusing their efforts; i.e. are more people getting hired to handle digital work, promotions, print work, etc. Then there's Publishers Weekly where the major publishing houses, and name analysts, examine the book market from all angles.

I think I'm safe in saying that the internet, the most powerful communications tool on the planet, has been left to the hands of 6 year olds in too many cases. People without the knowledge, skill or talent to do what needs to be done. And I can't think of any publisher that can remain in business without using the internet to some degree. As you know, bookstore space diminished considerably after the completely avoidable collapse of the Borders bookstore chain. I'll close by saying that Barnes & Noble, for one, has not capitalized on that as well as they could have.



Best,
Ed