Category Archives: Publishing

Bookselling, Publishing, Reading

Top Ten Books for Banned Books Week

Leave a comment

“Free access to information is a core American value that should be protected,” said Judith F. Krug, director of the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom. “Not every book is right for each reader, but an individual’s interpretation of a book should not take away my right to select reading materials for my family or myself.”

This quote comes in an article headlining the fact that “And Tango Makes Three” was the most challenged or “banned” book last year, and I think this may highlight our argument for Banned Books Week. How does “free access to information” apply to children’s stories or any story for that matter? If parents believe a book, which the librarian believes with worth reading, should be placed in a somewhat restricted access section in order to guard young reader, do that bar anyone from access to whatever information is in it? Of course not.

But as readers of this blog have said before, the best parental guard against children reading inappropriate material is parental involvement and moral instruction. Children can understand a good bit with loving instruction. Where “And Tango Makes Three” is concerned, it may be a good idea for children to read it, ask questions about what makes a family, and receive thoughtful answers from their parents. Perhaps a book like this makes the top of the challenged list because some parents don’t want to face uncomfortable issues.

I believe we live in difficult times, and I don’t think Christians and god-fearing people will gain any ground by trying to shut out bad ideas or “information” from their libraries. We have to know the truth, love our neighbors, and speak appropriately about issues wherever we can–to speak as a humanist. To speak as a Christian, we should love our Lord with all of our heart, soul, and mind, and then know the truth, love our neighbors, and speak appropriately.

Publishing

The Big Day

Leave a comment

Susan Wise Bauer talks about the myth of the publican date (I mean, publication date). The publication date used to be the day one could first find a book at his favorite bookstore. She writes, “‘Publication date’ now means: That window of opportunity during which the book is at the front of the store and also featured on as many media outlets as possible.”

Non-fiction, Publishing

Viking Norway update

Leave a comment

I recently received word that there is now an American website where you can order Viking Norway, which I reviewed here.

Fair warning for those with weak hearts: The price is steep.

The webmaster tells me you can get a lower price if you go for economy shipping.

They’re still seeking an American co-publisher who could help produce a less expensive domestic edition.

Update: I note that I didn’t actually provide the link to the new Sagabok site. I have remedied that omission.

Fiction, Publishing, Writing

Announcement

Leave a comment

A while ago I told you I’d come to an agreement with a publisher, and promised more details to come. Since then I’ve been silent on the subject, and you’ve doubtless assumed that a) I’m delusional, or b) the deal had fallen through.

In fact it simply took a while to work out the details.

Yesterday I signed a contract with Nordskog Publishing of Ventura, California to publish the next volume in the Saga of Erling Skjalgsson. The book is titled (for now) West Oversea, and it ought to be released in very early 2009.

Nordskog is a new publishing house with only a handful of books on its list so far. I’ll be one of its first fiction authors. I hope that this will enable them to give my book more attention in terms of promotion and distribution than has sometimes been my experience in the past.

I’ll keep you posted as the process continues.

Fiction, Publishing, Religion

The Religion of Tolerance kills a book

Leave a comment

Don’t look for this story in your local newspaper. Do you think it would get covered if Christians tried to get a book “killed” by its publisher?

In May, Random House abruptly called off publication of the book. The series of events that torpedoed this novel are a window into how quickly fear stunts intelligent discourse about the Muslim world.

By way of Power Line.

Publishing

A little slice of immortality

Leave a comment

I got a nice “birthday present” last week. It was a free copy of this book. It was sent to me by its designer, who is the son of the author.

Viking Norway

The story behind the gift goes like this. In the course of my researches for my novel, The Year of the Warrior, I made contact with a fine woman associated with a historical society in the Stavanger, Norway area. She put me in touch with Dr. Torgrim Titlestad of the University of Stavanger. Dr. Titlestad might be called a man with a mission. He’s a proponent of a revolutionary view of Norwegian history which traces the origins of the Kingdom of Norway to the western part of the country, rather than to the Oslo area, which has been the traditional, authorized view.

I promote the traditional view in TYOTW, by the way, mainly because I wasn’t aware of the new one when I wrote the first part of the book. If I’d known about the controversy, I’d have found a way to weasel around it. Continue reading A little slice of immortality →

Publishing

Hoping You’ll Judge By the Cover

Leave a comment

“Having cottoned on to the fact that chick lit books sell like cupcakes, publishers are now adding chick lit-style covers to any book written by a woman whether it fits the genre definition or not,” writes Diane Shipley. One of her examples points to three dissimilar books with similar covers. Does she have a point? [via ArtsJournal]

Publishing, Writing

Points of Reality in Publishing

Leave a comment

Mary DeMuth has three posts on what she calls publishing reality.

  1. Fewer books are being published, so more pressure to perform is on authors.

  2. People are changing jobs within publishing houses as well as leaving the industry.

  3. Writers should serve their readers. Readers will buy a book for their own reasons, not to do writers a favor.
Bookselling, Publishing

Price War

Leave a comment

“Amazon is in conflict with the Hachette Group, Britain’s largest publisher, over terms and discounts and is refusing to sell its titles,” reports the Times Online. Amazon usually buys books at half the cover price, but it is pushing for more, apparently at the expense of author royalties.

Another Times reporter comments, “If [the price war] continued, it would not be long before Amazon got virtually all of the revenue that is presently shared between author, publisher, retailer, printer and other parties.”