Industry News
I heard Jane Friedman speak at last years Pennwriters Conference. She shared some great ideas about social media and Twitter in particular. Late in December, she made a short list of 5 Industry Issues for Authors in 2016. It's very interesting and will only take a few minutes to click over there and read. I also recommend signing up for her newsletter.
I saw another little statistic in a recent Writer's Digest about the decline of traditional newspapers. So many of us get our news online, there's no reason to wait for or pay for a print paper. Actual full-time journalists jobs have been nearly halved in the last twenty years. Our local paper used to be published seven days a week with a big, thick Sunday edition with all the ads and coupons. They cut back to two days per week and Sunday a few years ago. All the news in the paper is old if you bother to turn your computer or TV on the day or hour before you see the paper. The first writing conference I went to, there were a number of journalists attending. I haven't met any since. It really is a dying career though someone is writing those news items I read online.
I mentioned I did receive a few book gift cards for Christmas, but the coolest gifts I received were those little things my children picked out because they know what kinds of things I like. My daughter gave me the Captain Hook magnet and the dagger-shaped thumb drive for my birthday. My son and his girlfriend gave me The Rocketeer comic book and The Phantom Funko Pop. The little magnet is a prize from my local writers group for finishing the 50/50 challenge last fall. Our president designs them. Fun times. And all these goodies are surrounding my desk.
Make sure you stop by IWSG today and learn something about submitting to anthologies. If you write short stories, you probably want to read this.
Looking back on 2016, more than a few people I know didn't have a great year with many disappointments along the way. This is for them.
"If you're not failing every now and again, it's a sign you're not doing anything very innovative." Woody Allen
Did any of the industry news surprise you? Did you have anything on your desk cooler than my goodies? Do you submit to anthologies? Do you ever read a newspaper made from dead trees?
