Friday, July 22, 2011

In the News This Week

Fridays on the SCBWI blog, I share snippets of and links to some of the publishing/media-related news I've read during the last week that I found interesting, helpful, and/or fun. (I missed last week because I was on vacation.) Click titles to get to the full articles.

Today's news bits include collections of stories and posts related to just three topics: Google+ (you'll find helpful guides and tips), Borders (don't miss the going-out-of-business sale), and Harry Potter (who, surprisingly, is still not quite as popular as Jesus--at least on Facebook).


Google+: The Complete Guide (Mashable)
Google+: It’s the hot social network on the block. In just three weeks, Google’s competitor to Facebook and Twitter has amassed more than 10 million users, and its users are sharing more than 1 billion pieces of content daily. It’s become a hotbed for early adopters, tech luminaries, marketers and businesses around the world.

How Is Google+ Like Twitter And Facebook? [INFOGRAPHIC] (AllTwitter)
Google+ is the newest social network on the block, and it’s gaining a lot of momentum. But it’s very much an unknown quantity for a lot of people, as many of its features are still being explored.

HOW TO Tweet Your Google+ Posts Automatically To Twitter (AllTwitter)
A big Twitter management app has just added connectivity to Google+ for those of you who want to integrate your two accounts. Learn how below. ManageFlitter allows Twitter users to monitor which of their followers is active and which isn’t, in order to choose who is worth a follow back and who isn’t. And now they’ve added Google+ functionality, too.
 
How To Use Google+ Hangouts (eBookNewser)
Ever wish your writing group or book club could include readers from around the world? Last night we experimented with the Hangouts section of the new Google+ social network, coming up with some simple tips for using Google+ Hangouts to connect with readers and writers online. Using Google+ Hangouts, writers can quickly assemble spontaneous but private conversations in “live multi-person video” chatrooms.
 
Borders Sale Approved (PW)
In the end, Borders went the way of other large retailers like Circuit City and Linens 'n Things. At Thursday's hearing, Judge Martin Glenn said that he will enter the sales order for Borders's liquidation and going-out-of-business sales starting Friday. "This is a very bittersweet day in the history of this company," said Borders attorney Andrew Glenn. "We obviously didn’t get to where we wanted it to be, a full going-concern sale. Let’s just hope that people are reading books after this."

How Bookstores Can Survive in a Post-Borders World (GalleyCat)
Is the Borders’ liquidation the beginning of the end for independent booksellers? The American Booksellers Association (ABA) doesn’t think so.
This morning Google made an announcement of magical significance: the Harry Potter eBooks, which are being released for the first time this October, will be available via its Google Books platform. That sounds like it should be a given, but in the case of Potter it isn’t — author J.K. Rowling is selling the books exclusively through Pottermore, a site that she launched with much fanfare last month.

JK Rowling 'writing hard' on new work (Guardian)
Start all the clocks and plug the telephone back in: JK Rowling has provided a shred of comfort to the millions of mourners lamenting the release of the final Harry Potter movie with the revelation that she has written "quite a lot" of new material and has plans to publish it.

The news that Sarah Odedina is to leave Bloomsbury Children's Books after 14 years came as a shock on Monday, as London publishing was winding down for the summer. Odedina, who has published all of the Harry Potter titles, will take the reins as managing director and publisher of a to-be-named children’s fiction list at Bonnier, the privately owned Swedish media group whose U.K. operation already includes the illustrated children’s publishers Templar and Autumn. Odedina’s start date has not yet been announced and she has agreed to stay on at Bloomsbury until a successor has been named.  
  
Jesus Daily fans rejoice as they tackle their toughest competition yet to hold on as Facebook’s most engaging page: Harry Potter shattered box office records, but the noise on the film’s social networking home could not successfully outshine the long-standing number one contender.

1 comment:

LHughes said...

Your "In the News" posts are must-reads for me every week! You always manage to find a variety of timely articles.

All the Borders news is distressing for book lovers.

If bookstores are going to survive, they are going to have to take a new approach. If I were in charge of revamping the book store industry, here's what I would do:

-Hire event planners.
-Hold more events and workshops.
-Plan events and workshops that pair well with books.
-Sell those books.

Get people back in the stores by doing things that online or eBooks CAN'T DO. Socialize, food and drink, hands-on opportunities!