Tag: ePublishing

Talk Back Tuesday: Encyclopaedia Britannica – Brilliance or Blunder?

Welcome to Talk Back Tuesday on iBraryGuy 2.0.  This is your chance to make you opinions heard.  We invite you to take our poll and to sound off on timely topics by using the comments section below.

This Week:  Encyclopaedia Britannica Goes Totally Digital

After 244 years of publishing one of the most widely regarded encyclopaedias on the planet, the folks at Encyclopaedia Britannica have made a startling announcement.  There will be NO MORE PRINTED volumes.  Instead, the company will be focusing on digital media and applications that will deliver the same venerable and scholarly content.  The goal is to fully embrace the digital age and to solidify Britannica’s respected brand in the world of new media.  Was it a wise choice?

The company has reported that sales of its printed sets have been in decline for over a decade.  The public’s love of all things mobile and electronic is without question.  So it almost seems a natural progression for a publisher of Britannica’s stature to pursue such a progressive course.  Few in the public, however, saw this coming.  Reactions have been far ranging, with digital luminaries praising the leap, and old school book lovers lamenting the loss of a paper masterpiece.

So we are putting the question to you, our readers.  Has Britannica made the right decision or was it too much too soon?  Take our poll and share your thoughts in the comments.  It’s “Talk Back Tuesday” and we want to hear from you!

With Pubit!, Barnes & Noble makes ePublishing a breeze and gives you a share of the profit$!

Hitting it big in the world of publishing has never been an easy nut to crack.  Authors not only need write great works to publish, but also navigate the hops and hills of the industry.   The advent of ePublishing has changed the game to a large degree.  Thanks to the eReader revolution, getting your works out to the reading audience has never been easier . . . Well, not until now at least.  First mentioned last May, Barnes & Noble’s new ePublishing system not only helps you get your masterpieces to market faster.  It helps you set your prices and share in the profits.  Meet Pubit!

Barnes & Noble touts itself as the world’s number one bookseller.  Its Nook eReader, though not as popular as Amazon’s Kindle, has been a success.  Its eBookstore is flourishing.  There is a lot that is attractive about Barnes & Noble to writers looking to publish and profit from their own eBooks.   Earlier this spring, the bookselling behemoth hinted at a platform that would make publishing electronic books easier than ever – a near instant way to get works in front of the eyes of millions.  Since then, the project had been shrouded in secrecy.  That is, until Barnes & Noble yesterday unveiled “Pubit!” and launched the latest salvo in the ePublishing wars.

Using Pubit! is free and easy.  You simply create your content (book, article, etc.), create a Pubit! account, upload your work, and set your price.  Pubit! will convert your work into the popular ePub format (compatible with more than B&N’s Nook, by the way) and add it to Barnes & Noble’s eBook store.  If you’ve created a winner, you are paid a percentage of the retail price (40%- 65% based on price set) for each sale made. It is just that easy.

Certainly there are other self-publishing sites and platforms available.  But what they lack is the name recognition and audience that Barnes & Noble enjoys.  That is not to say that we can all quit our day jobs and become successful, wealthy writers.  Not even Barnes & Noble can guarantee that!  But the opportunity is out there like never before.  Why publish your work the old fashioned way when you can Pubit! with Barnes & Noble? (Aside from loving the look and feel of a real, paper book of course!).