Cutting Edge Publishing, Whichbook, and Other Various Electronical Oddities I Discovered This Week

So, anyone who knows me knows that I am a techie nerd. I like new technology. I like playing with new technology. I like discovering new things that are coming out and new ways to do things. So, when I discovered this on Writer Unboxed the other day, you can see why I was so happy and interested and spent the next couple of hours delving through J.C. Hutchins’ page.
Here is some of what I have learned from all the insanity that was my webpage hunt of coolness:

1. Podioboooks are awesome. (I suggest that you check out his 7th Son books delivered through free podcasts.)

• While it may sound silly, giving away his writing really worked for him.
• This brings in the many internet users who listen to books instead of read them.
• Free is a good price, especially in this economy.
• If you can figure out how to do the audio on your own and have a decent voice for it, you can have a friend help you with what you don’t know and end up doing this stuff for free or cheap yourself.
• You can link to the podiobook stream from multiple places and different formats.

2. Online webpages for characters are really quite spiffy if your character is tech savvy enough to have one.
3. If you can get your friends in the writing world to do video intros to your books, that’s really quite fun and you can create a whole ad campaign based on that and word of mouth alone.
4. Offering contests and ways for the people to feel like they are a part of the book also are helpful. (Look at his “Commit me to the Brink” contest and content).
5. Party Pack PDFs are a good way to get the word out as well and offers an immediately fun way to get your friends together for an evening.
6. Talk to people that are a bit on the fringe technologically. Often, they’re willing to help and a little less overwhelmed than the more mainstream. Plus, they bring an audience mainstream publishing websites may not reach.

Whichbook: This is an awesome invention. Basically, you use sliders and it recommends a book. It’s pretty accurate too. Came up with some good recommendations. I don’t live in the U.K. though so the lending library part of it doesn’t work for me. But, still, this is awesome good fun and the recommendations are solid as well.

Kindle: Now, I had thought that this was only the hand held reader before. I found out this week that it’s not. There are actually different types of this now. There is actually a Kindle app for your iPhone or iPod Touch now. Also, Kindles aren’t the only readers on the market, though they are the most popular. Barnes and Noble has a reader as well. Their version is actually a free ereader for you Blackberry, PC, Mac, or iPod/iPhone. Same concept, only it’s a program that is integrated into an electronic that you already have. I’m curious to compare the two, only problem is that as I’m out of work I have no money to try the Kindle so I can’t tell you which is better.

I love Piers Anthony so I was pleasantly surprised to find that he has an Internet Publishing Site now. The thing about this man is that he is hysterical. The amount of puns in his works are amazing. Plus, as a kid I loved him simply for the fact that he admitted that in fairytales no one ever has to use the bathroom so he makes a point of his characters being more true to life. They use the bathroom. They get angry. They have food that they don’t like. There are actually bugs in the beds in the woods (that somehow in fairytales never have bugs or tree sap even though they’re made out of branches and are on the ground). Smoke happens from fires. People actually get dirty. Fighting is not all glory. And yet, his books still remain fantastical and have the feel of a fairytale. Plus, I had to love that Xanth looks like Florida. Seriously, the man is brilliant. Check him out if you don’t know his work. He will make you laugh and think at the same time.