Comments on: Career Quandary http://www.mizchef.com/2009/09/career-quandary/ Food Is Sexy Sun, 05 Feb 2012 23:18:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: AndiM http://www.mizchef.com/2009/09/career-quandary/comment-page-1/#comment-156 AndiM Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:57:34 +0000 http://www.mizchef.com/?p=615#comment-156 Ditto! Why the hell pay editors less for ebooks than for print books? It's the same amount of work, regardless of format in which it's ultimately published. sigh. Ditto! Why the hell pay editors less for ebooks than for print books? It’s the same amount of work, regardless of format in which it’s ultimately published.

sigh.

]]> By: Carrie http://www.mizchef.com/2009/09/career-quandary/comment-page-1/#comment-151 Carrie Sat, 19 Sep 2009 20:13:59 +0000 http://www.mizchef.com/?p=615#comment-151 You know I'm with you on this, girl. I'm sure not rooting for more ephemera in the world, which already has too much blah-blah in it (badly written, to boot) with comparatively little substance. I hope publishers come to see your point too. Distinctions are good. You know I’m with you on this, girl. I’m sure not rooting for more ephemera in the world, which already has too much blah-blah in it (badly written, to boot) with comparatively little substance. I hope publishers come to see your point too. Distinctions are good.

]]> By: admin http://www.mizchef.com/2009/09/career-quandary/comment-page-1/#comment-150 admin Sat, 19 Sep 2009 19:10:58 +0000 http://www.mizchef.com/?p=615#comment-150 You make a good point, Carrie. However, if they keep asking for quality, they should be prepared to pay for it--obsolete or not, ephemeral or not. And, as you yourself stated, quality costs money. Perhaps the real question is: Has their definition of "quality" changed? Furthermore, I don't see why a reader would be any less appalled by errors in an e-book than they would be by errors in a print book. Maybe it's just me (and those in my age group or older). I see so many kids Facebooking and twittering utter nonsense that maybe they really <em>won't </em>care what books look like, regardless of what format they're in. Whether or not something will be obsolete is another issue. The way I see it, the <em>medium </em>might become obsolete but the <em>literature </em>will not (at least where books and short stories are concerned--magazine articles are a different animal). Wouldn't it be in the publisher's best interest to put out a truly good product so that when technology moves us from e-books to holograms acting out the story to chips in our heads that send us brain waves, the original story will be remembered as "good" and therefore worthy of being put out in the new media? If I love a print book and years from now it's available as a hologram, perhaps I'll buy it. But anything that is garbage now, will I spend money on it in another medium? The answer is no. And I hope publishers come to see that. Thanks, Carrie, for livening things up. :-) You make a good point, Carrie. However, if they keep asking for quality, they should be prepared to pay for it–obsolete or not, ephemeral or not. And, as you yourself stated, quality costs money. Perhaps the real question is: Has their definition of “quality” changed? Furthermore, I don’t see why a reader would be any less appalled by errors in an e-book than they would be by errors in a print book. Maybe it’s just me (and those in my age group or older). I see so many kids Facebooking and twittering utter nonsense that maybe they really won’t care what books look like, regardless of what format they’re in.

Whether or not something will be obsolete is another issue. The way I see it, the medium might become obsolete but the literature will not (at least where books and short stories are concerned–magazine articles are a different animal). Wouldn’t it be in the publisher’s best interest to put out a truly good product so that when technology moves us from e-books to holograms acting out the story to chips in our heads that send us brain waves, the original story will be remembered as “good” and therefore worthy of being put out in the new media? If I love a print book and years from now it’s available as a hologram, perhaps I’ll buy it. But anything that is garbage now, will I spend money on it in another medium? The answer is no. And I hope publishers come to see that.

Thanks, Carrie, for livening things up. :-)

]]> By: Carrie http://www.mizchef.com/2009/09/career-quandary/comment-page-1/#comment-149 Carrie Sat, 19 Sep 2009 18:28:22 +0000 http://www.mizchef.com/?p=615#comment-149 Good questions raised. As for e-publishing, I wonder if "shelf life" has anything to do with what e-publishers pay writers and editors. It used to be that if a book was meant to have a long shelf life, more attention would be paid to the editing and production. Anything to be replaced or made obsolete in a year or so might receive more casual attention. An employer might officially disagree, but maybe the thinking now is that I'm going to read the e-book or magazine, barely reflect on the mistakes I find in there, and go on to the next thing--because there's always a next thing. If I make a printout, how long am I going to keep it anyway? But you're right: a quality product requires effort that should be paid for, even in an increasingly ephemeral world. (Sorry, I'm off the soap box now. Time to get a snack. Maybe chocolate.) Good questions raised. As for e-publishing, I wonder if “shelf life” has anything to do with what e-publishers pay writers and editors. It used to be that if a book was meant to have a long shelf life, more attention would be paid to the editing and production. Anything to be replaced or made obsolete in a year or so might receive more casual attention. An employer might officially disagree, but maybe the thinking now is that I’m going to read the e-book or magazine, barely reflect on the mistakes I find in there, and go on to the next thing–because there’s always a next thing. If I make a printout, how long am I going to keep it anyway? But you’re right: a quality product requires effort that should be paid for, even in an increasingly ephemeral world. (Sorry, I’m off the soap box now. Time to get a snack. Maybe chocolate.)

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