Wednesday, July 1, 2020

IWSG: Industry Changes

Many thanks to Alex J. Cavanaugh for the IWSG!
July Hop co-hosts: 
Me! :) 

OPTIONAL QUESTION: There have been many industry changes in the last decade, so what are some changes you would like to see happen in the next decade?

I wasn't sure how to answer this question as a writer when I first encountered it. So, I flipped it around and asked myself what I would like to see as a reader. I brainstormed in one massive paragraph, but then I broke it up into what I hope is reasonable chunks of ideas. My "big" idea is the last one I hit upon and it's still a bit messy.

As a reader, I would like to see:
  • Small bookshops everywhere! Book shops on wheels (parked next to the best food trucks, driving to park by beaches and hiking areas, etc.). Book kiosks for paperbacks of all sizes (chapbooks, novellas, novels, experimental fiction), audio, and e-book (not sure why we would need kiosks for e-books, but having a way to interface might be a good idea).
  • Storytelling and Read-Aloud groups everywhere for all ages and age groups. Book rooms, book discussion rooms, and reading rooms need to be including with all book shops - even kiosks and book trucks could have a small fold-out chairs for this.
  • Book clubs abounding. Readers connecting with each other and talking books. 
  • AND Streaming Book Channels/Websites like Netflix and Hulu, but for Audio and Reading. I know this sounds like Amazon, but I mean something with an entertainment interface - maybe even including book discussion rooms, author talk videos/meet-ups, and Q + A sessions. Basically, a combo of Netflix, Amazon, Youtube, and Facebook/Instagram with readers creating fan art for their books or taking pictures with their favorites. And, footage of actors like Levar Burton reading snippets of their favorite works out loud. 
  • This really cool book streaming service would offer good pay rates to authors, but also be inexpensive enough to draw readers/listeners and somehow have both the feel of walking into an online movie theater and an online library - with awesome graphic interfaces (this needs to be a key component, especially in the search section). 

I would love to see this as a reader and as a writer.

Instead of seeing reading as a chore, a duty, or a terrible assignment from the universe, we could get excited about it and treat it like the fun, entertaining, relaxing, wonderful, mind-bendingly awesome activity it is. 

What would you like to see happen to the book industry?


HELP WANTED:
My novella Crash became the re-titled Lift Off.  (Crash is an overly popular title word.)
I will be releasing an edited, revised version of the story. I had planned on shooting for an August release, then slowed way down in the revision process. I'm now looking at a November release date.
So, looking way ahead, would anyone be interested in helping me with:
1. A Cover Reveal.
2. Book Reviews.
3. A Book Blog Tour.
4. Twitter, Instagram, Social Media celebrations.
If you are interested in helping, please let me know in the comments or in an email.



Plus, I am hosting a one-time, free online Journal Writing for Creativity and Purpose Session on July 9th. Come, write with me!
Get details by sending me an email at tyreantigger (at) gmail (dot) com



48 comments:

Liza said...

I love this idea...especially lately with libraries closed. I subscribe to a couple of online book resources, but find often the books I want to read are currently unavailable. The thought of having many more titles to chose from is wonderful!

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I like the idea of a streaming book channel. Someone with the resources should start setting one up.
You know I'll help with your release!
Thanks for co-hosting today.

Jemi Fraser said...

I love your ideas!! The streaming book channel would be great!
I can definitely help you with Lift Off - You're welcome to visit my blog and I can do a book reivew too if you'd like!

Nancy Gideon said...

I LOVE your perfect world. It's mine, too. I remember Bookmobile Tuesday and toting home all the books I could carry, a bookstore in the small shopping plaza across the street and taking the bus downtown to spend the day in the library reference room. Unfortunately, the digital world has stolen away those pleasures in exchange for convenience. Sigh. Thanks for co-hosting this month!

L. Diane Wolfe said...

I love all of those ideas. They could really help readers and writers connect more and better.

mshatch said...

I would be happy to do a cover reveal! Just contact me when you're ready :)

Karen Lynn said...

Yes, please to small bookstores everywhere! I'd love to have one, myself some day. I can't believe I forgot to mention that in my own post. (Headdesk.) Happy IWSG Day, and thank you for hosting!

Chrys Fey said...

Streaming services for books sounds awesome!

I can definitely help out with a blog tour, just let me know.

And please send me the details about your free online session, too. :)

Cathrina Constantine said...

WOW!! All great answers and ideas for this months question! I especially would love bookshops on wheels and/or small neighborhood bookshops that are inviting to all. Coffee. Tea. Cookies are a must :)

Our B&N has storytelling days and our libraries too, but having them come into neighborhoods, especially during summer sounds fabulous!

I belong to a book club and very much enjoy it.

Tyrean, I'd be honored to help with your release. Anything and everything! Send it over!

M.J. Fifield said...

I love the idea of a book shop on wheels parked next to the food trucks. Just the idea of it makes me smile.

I'd be happy to help out with your blog tour.

Debra Renée Byrd said...

A streaming book channel sounds super cool! I wonder if someone could make it happen.

I also wish bookstores weren't disappearing. We have 2 Barnes & Nobles in our state, not counting the college bookstores, and I'm not sure how many independent bookstores we have anymore, if any.

Thanks for co-hosting!

Diane Burton said...

Those are some really great ideas. I'm a reader first, so they resonated with me. I belong to a readers' book discussion group and love it. We read way out of my usual comfort zone--literary fiction, biographies, etc. Good luck with your revisions. Thanks for cohosting this month.

Computer Tutor said...

Count me in, Tyrean. Cover Reveal, blog tour, even a book review if that works for you!

Diane Burton said...

As soon as I hit publish, I knew I forgot something. I'd be happy to help with your cover reveal, etc. Email me: dmburton72@gmail.com

PJ Colando said...

wow - little bookshops everywhere! What a delightful concept -

cleemckenzie said...

Great ideas, Tyrean. I love them. This question has generated some really excellent ideas from members.

Thanks for co-hosting, and you can count on me for help with your re-launch! I'd loved to be a part of it.

Pat Garcia said...

Hi,
I too would like to see book streaming channels. That would be great.
Thank you so much for co-hosting and all the best.

Shalom aleichem,
Pat G @ EverythingMustChange

Sadira Stone said...

Some really great ideas! Which genre is Crash? You can contact me at sadirastoneauthor (at) gmail (dot) com.

A Lady Lawyer said...

I think you’re sitting on a goldmine with that idea- all you need is a good tech person to help you get it off the ground! Good luck for your book and thanks for co-hosting.
www.nooranandchawla.com

Natalie Aguirre said...

These are all awesome ideas to keep up the excitement about books. I'm lucky to have two indie bookstores where I live. It would be awesome if every town had one. Thanks for co-hosting.

And I'd be glad to share about your book in my Follower News.

Fundy Blue said...

I loved your post and ideas, Tyrean. I'm making a note to remember to signup for your Journal Writing lesson. It sounds awesome, and my journal writing has been pretty pathetic lately. Thanks for co-hosting! Take care!

Steph W. said...

Sign me up for book streaming, that would fit perfect with my terrible reading habits! I keep buying and renting books and they take forever for me to finish. I am always in the middle of several books.

Jenni said...

I love your idea for a book streaming service! I think we will see more ways of making the reading experience online with everything that's gone on the last few months.

I would also like to see people enjoy reading more. As a teacher, I see reading instruction often focuses on analyzing a story so much that it kills the joy of just enjoying a book. Unfortunately, we probably can't completely change that, but I'd like to see ways to encourage kids to just read and not for an assignment.

Jemima Pett said...

Book streaming sounds good. I really enjoyed listening to Elly Griffiths reading her books one chapter at a time on Facebook.

I can probably feature your book on my blog, cover reveal or blog tour would be good. I can’t promise a review till next year though!

Thanks for co-hosting today :)

S.E. White Books said...

A food truck type set up, but for books, sounds like the most amazing idea ever! And I know there are YouTube channels devoted entirely to books and book reviews, usually by genre. I think it's called BookTube, colloquially. If that sounds interesting for you, you can search your favorite title or author on YouTube and see if any results come up :)

Thanks for co-hosting today!

Sarah Foster said...

I love the book shops on wheels idea! It could be just like a group of food trucks, but every truck could be a different genre of books!

Carrie-Anne said...

More indie bookstores would be most marvellous! We need fewer big box stores and more small, personalized businesses.

Erika Beebe said...

I really like turning reading into a positive social interaction. All of your wishes sound wonderful and doable. I will help with your release too :)

Olga Godim said...

I like your ideas about the changes to the book industry. With our library still closed because of the COVID, I need alternative access to books I'm not ready to buy.

Michelle Wallace said...

Small cosy bookshops...
Mobile book kiosks at the beach, in the park, at the mall; book carts on wheels moving here, there and everywhere! I love the idea!
Oh, and coffee too - we have to have coffee.
Thanks for co-hosting this month.

Doreen McGettigan said...

I LOVE your ideas! I'm happy to help with your book release stuff, whatever you need. Thank you for hosting this month!

Toi Thomas said...

Thanks for co-hosting this month.
I love your ideas. LOVE them.
I'd like to help with your release.

Tamara Narayan said...

That's a great idea. A book channel. Contact Reese Witherspoon, stat!

Lynda R Young as Elle Cardy said...

I love your thoughts on industry changes.
Happy to help spread the word :)

Anonymous said...

I love your ideas, especially the little bookstores everywhere!

Happy to help with your new release!

Susan Gourley/Kelley said...

You have some great ideas. Can we put you in charge of the publishing industry going forward? Would love to host you on my blog for book release. Pick any date in November except the first Wednesday and it is yours.
sgourleyauthor@gmail.com

Beth Camp said...

When I spent summers in a small rural area with my grandparents, every week, the Bookmobile came. Now, with pandemic closing libraries and bookstores, large and small, I'm grateful every day for my Kindle and OverDrive at my local library. Have you read Susan Oliver's amazing THE LIBRARY BOOK (nonfiction)? The book starts by trying to solve the mystery of a fire at the Los Angeles Library in 1986 that destroyed 400,000 books. One idea that comes out of Orleans' book is that sense that libraries are community-based and community-centered. I wonder when our libraries will reopen. Your wonderful ideas might find a home and support at your local library.

Thank YOU for co-hosting -- and, yes, I'll write you separately about that upcoming book release. Congratulations. Beth

Arlee Bird said...

Small bookshops sound nice. I'd like to see all the bookshops that have gone out of business over the past 2 decades come back.

Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out

Deniz Bevan said...

Ooh, that online session sounds fun!

More small bookshops is a wonderful idea!

Rachna Chhabria said...

I like all the ideas you have suggested. Your online session sounds wonderful.

Joanna Weston said...

Those are some great idea! Mobile bookstores would be absolutely charming, and a book streaming service would be wonderful right now, while so many of us are still in lockdown, or at least limiting our exposure to other people.

Chemist Ken said...

I wonder how genre-specific bookstores would work out. An all fantasy bookstore, for example, or all romance. Now that would be neat. Probably not financially viable though.

Samantha Bryant said...

A streaming book channel would be awesome. I find a lot of those activities in various setting, but a one-stop-shop would be cool! @samanthabwriter from
Balancing Act

Steven Arellano Rose Jr. said...

Those ideas for the future in the industry seem pretty neat. Sounds like Litopia (a literature or book utopia)! We definitely need more bookshops and stands since so many physical bookstores have dissapeared.

Don't feel bad about delaying your book release. The novel I'm working on was originally going to be released in January 2021 but will probably have to get pushed to a month or two later.

Kalpana said...

Thank you for co-hosting the IWSG. I think each of your ideas is brilliant and love the thought of book carts everywhere and a huge entertainment area, virtual or real for the enjoyment of all things books.
I'm happy to help with book publicity.

Hilary Melton-Butcher said...

Hi Tyrean - you've obviously got some great ideas here ... as the others comment on. Good luck to you ... lots of thoughts ... enjoy the book release - I'll be around - take care - Hilary

Denise Covey said...

I want to make one of those little street libraries so I can offload some of the thousands of books I own and can't throw away. Congrats on the book release. I might get back to you on that.

Liesbet said...

I love you ideas, Tyrean, especially the streaming channel. Making reading more attractive and compelling is always a good thing for the population who is held back for some reason. Happy revising and releasing!