I watched the first half of THE WEST AND THE REST on PBS, with Niall Ferguson.
I think I used to take these things in without much skepticism, but nowadays I try to figure out the political leanings of the writer. Niall Ferguson, as far as I can tell, falls more into the "we're deep in debt and deep in doo doo, we must cut budgets, austerity" camp.
Unexpectedly, it was a bit of a travelogue, actually, showing castles and edifices all over the world. (Which shows the definition bias of "Success" in his estimation....)
Anyway, at one point, he talks about the how Muslim world for centuries banned printed books because they felt the calligraphy was more pure.
Which immediately made me think of books versus digital.
I had the realization that, in some respects, I'm not against digital. I think the technology needs to move forward, and used in every way that is beneficial to the world.
My opposition is personal. I don't want to used digital, I don't want to carry digital. I want to be a Luddite in my own business.
But this doesn't mean that I would ban digital options if given the chance. I think this will all have to play out, fair and square, in the marketplace. I PREFER printed books, but don't expect everyone to follow my lead.
Just enough to keep me in business.
And of course, there is the little matter of how I intend to put my fiction out in digital form, and not try to get a publisher on board. It's two different things. One is my day to day workplace and what I prefer to sell. The other is my creative side, and how I can best use digital to sidestep the ugly process of getting published.
I'm very much in favor of technology. But I'm also in favor of hanging onto some things that are a little backward, but pleasant and reassuring.
I think I used to take these things in without much skepticism, but nowadays I try to figure out the political leanings of the writer. Niall Ferguson, as far as I can tell, falls more into the "we're deep in debt and deep in doo doo, we must cut budgets, austerity" camp.
Unexpectedly, it was a bit of a travelogue, actually, showing castles and edifices all over the world. (Which shows the definition bias of "Success" in his estimation....)
Anyway, at one point, he talks about the how Muslim world for centuries banned printed books because they felt the calligraphy was more pure.
Which immediately made me think of books versus digital.
I had the realization that, in some respects, I'm not against digital. I think the technology needs to move forward, and used in every way that is beneficial to the world.
My opposition is personal. I don't want to used digital, I don't want to carry digital. I want to be a Luddite in my own business.
But this doesn't mean that I would ban digital options if given the chance. I think this will all have to play out, fair and square, in the marketplace. I PREFER printed books, but don't expect everyone to follow my lead.
Just enough to keep me in business.
And of course, there is the little matter of how I intend to put my fiction out in digital form, and not try to get a publisher on board. It's two different things. One is my day to day workplace and what I prefer to sell. The other is my creative side, and how I can best use digital to sidestep the ugly process of getting published.
I'm very much in favor of technology. But I'm also in favor of hanging onto some things that are a little backward, but pleasant and reassuring.