in which I rambled about books and publishing

Hey hey Hump Day!

I want to remind anyone reading this that my novels are free in ebook form on Smashwords.com this month. The codes can be used up to one gajillion times but the fun ends on 11/30 when they expire.

MacDowell Sisters and AnnaBeth
Coupon code: BE88Q
Expires 11/30/2010

Babylon Dragon
Coupon Code: EL96C
Expires 11/30/2010

If you don’t have a Smashwords account, you should totally sign up for one. There are many freebie books in just about any ebook format you could want. That includes pdf, Kindle (.mobi), epub, palm, txt and even html.

Even if you are not in possession one of those fancy ebook readers, you could download a copy for evaluation purposes and then order a copy on the Amazon if you like it. Hmm? Hmmmmmmm? Yes.

In unrelated news, there is a couple of publishing world stories that have renewed my sense of satisfaction with my indie writer status.

First we have Frey. This guy is crazy. He is pushing this package to fledgling writers. Basically, you give him your novel rights and your name (and maybe a small piece of your soul) and you get, drumroll please, $250! Ok, ok, there's a little more to it than that, but trust me, it's not pretty.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703805004575606393086301082.html

This is a contract for the desperate. There are plenty of people willing to prey on the dreams of others.

Personally, I would rather be indie. I don't feel desperate. I don't have to deal with rejections or the possibility of being rejected for the entirety of my career. But then again, I'm writing because I love it, not for fame and fortune. Although fame and fortune wouldn't hurt a bit.

//whispered aside to traditional publishing: caaallll meee//

Ahem.

So, this next bit of ridiculocity comes from the New York mother effin' Times. This is an entire article written about a literary agency moving their office out of what is considered the epicenter of publishing. Yes. Someone actually reported on this.

Really? You moved across a bridge? How rebellious! How progressive! Gee, I hope they have e-mail and telephones in that wild frontier. Gimme a break.

This really shows how rigid people in this business can be. This agency actually had to consider whether this move might damage their literary agency business. Wow.

And doesn't the NYT have something more important to report?

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/11/books/11agent.html?_r=2&partner=rss&emc=rss

That's all for today. Tune in upon the morrow for a guest post from author Laura Hogg!

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http://www.LeaRyan.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/LeaRyan1