Yesterday I was lucky to attend Book Camp New York, a decidedly “un-conference” for all those who love all things book or eBook. This motley, super-sharp and fiercely passionate group includes authors, publishers, marketers, developers and designers all gathered on one Sunday afternoon in Lower Manhattan to brainstorm how to make the best reading experience possible. The format of the day is organic and crowd-sourced…we started by brainstorming top publishing challenges to solve on a board which became our sessions for the afternoon. Challenges included: surviving and thriving as an eBook publisher, should eBooks be social?, Publishers…what are they good for???, the digital vs. print experience, working to create a single ePub that will meet all eReader specs, So that all may read…providing for the blind and handicapped in a digital world, building the perfect business model, and ePub vs. app. I was struck by the earnestness that this diverse group tackled these challenges, generously sharing experiences despite the fact that members of “rival” publishing houses were in the room. I was also struck by the fact that we as an industry have not been good at sharing why this exciting upheaval brought on by the transition from print to digital has been so challenging. I learned from eBook designers that a simple upgrade in a device (one of a myriad of devices) can literally “break” a book. I learned that because a myriad of reading devices exist, each with their own specifications and features means that editors and designers must now create many different files for the same book, adding to the time to deliver and production costs, all at a time when our reading customers expect that digital should be faster and cheaper. These are not easy challenges to solve in one Sunday afternoon but the desire and creativity of a shared passion for improving the reading experience allowed us to tease out some possible next steps that we can build upon in the coming year. I was also pleased to see other Canadians in this crowd and that we were welcomed so warmly - thanks to the organizers for pulling us together for one smart, engaging, and mind-expanding Sunday afternoon in New York! Now I must get ready for our next conference, Tools of Change, where many of the challenges above will be addressed and bandied about further. These are exciting times in publishing! Oh ya…I took this snap on my way home last night at the Bryant Park rink behind the New York Public Library. A perfect end to an awesome New York kind of day.

Yesterday I was lucky to attend Book Camp New York, a decidedly “un-conference” for all those who love all things book or eBook. This motley, super-sharp and fiercely passionate group includes authors, publishers, marketers, developers and designers all gathered on one Sunday afternoon in Lower Manhattan to brainstorm how to make the best reading experience possible. The format of the day is organic and crowd-sourced…we started by brainstorming top publishing challenges to solve on a board which became our sessions for the afternoon. Challenges included: surviving and thriving as an eBook publisher, should eBooks be social?, Publishers…what are they good for???, the digital vs. print experience, working to create a single ePub that will meet all eReader specs, So that all may read…providing for the blind and handicapped in a digital world, building the perfect business model, and ePub vs. app.
I was struck by the earnestness that this diverse group tackled these challenges, generously sharing experiences despite the fact that members of “rival” publishing houses were in the room. I was also struck by the fact that we as an industry have not been good at sharing why this exciting upheaval brought on by the transition from print to digital has been so challenging. I learned from eBook designers that a simple upgrade in a device (one of a myriad of devices) can literally “break” a book. I learned that because a myriad of reading devices exist, each with their own specifications and features means that editors and designers must now create many different files for the same book, adding to the time to deliver and production costs, all at a time when our reading customers expect that digital should be faster and cheaper. These are not easy challenges to solve in one Sunday afternoon but the desire and creativity of a shared passion for improving the reading experience allowed us to tease out some possible next steps that we can build upon in the coming year.
I was also pleased to see other Canadians in this crowd and that we were welcomed so warmly - thanks to the organizers for pulling us together for one smart, engaging, and mind-expanding Sunday afternoon in New York! Now I must get ready for our next conference, Tools of Change, where many of the challenges above will be addressed and bandied about further. These are exciting times in publishing!
Oh ya…I took this snap on my way home last night at the Bryant Park rink behind the New York Public Library. A perfect end to an awesome New York kind of day.

  1. vagabondphotography posted this