"Best Practices" for the Print-on-Demand Industry

by Erika Dreifus on
Disabled

Once upon a time I published a book via print-on-demand (POD), and I’m still occasionally asked to provide advice to others considering that route for their work. I’d recommend that anyone evaluating various POD companies read through this article on “best practices.” The article’s author is Angela Hoy, who certainly has a vested interest in promoting her own company (Booklocker.com). Still, there’s no denying that much of what she says in this article–apparently the first in a series–is valid. For example, POD publishers “should never, ever, ever claim ownership of files that authors have paid them to produce.” And companies should not “upsell authors on services they can get themselves for less or free.” This is an article to bookmark and reread.

The Wednesday Web Browser: Congratulations to Krasikov, Writing to Change/Persuade, and New MFA Resources

by Erika Dreifus on
2

Congratulations to Sana Krasikov, winner of the 2009 Sami Rohr Prize in Jewish Literature for her debut story collection (let’s hear it for short story collections!), One More Year. (Over on my other blog, you’ll find additional information about Krasikov and her work.)
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One of the most significant pieces of writing I’ve completed so far in 2009, in my view, is a letter I wrote to New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. When I wrote it, I thought back to Mary Pipher’s book, Writing to Change the World, which I had the pleasure of reviewing awhile back for The Writer. And I thought again about the importance of writing for change when I read Christina Katz’s recent post on “Writing to Persuade.”
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Over on Tom Kealey’s MFA blog, you’ll find two posts presenting new MFA-related resources: MFA Connect and Grad Insider.

PEN Online Translation Slam

by Erika Dreifus on
2

Our world would be much less interesting without the work of talented translators. And their work, itself, is incredibly interesting. Check out PEN American Center’s inaugural “Online Translation Slam.” (Sure, I’d have been grateful if the original poem had been written in a language I can understand [French, for instance]. But whether you can read the original Chinese poem or not, you’ll have to be intrigued by the differences between the two translations that emerged.)