Sleepytown Press

It is no secret that the Publishing World has been shaken to its core by "changes." There are a lot of things happening. No one really knows how the party will end.

Some believe that Traditional Publishing Houses will go away. They believe that those companies will stop producing a "book" that a person may hold in their hand and read.

I do not believe that. I do think that changes have happened and continue to happen. I do not think the book will ever vanish. There are too many places that a book must be available.

EBooks are big, but people still enjoy books. I did hear, on the radio, that last year 18% of the American Public had an  eReaders. Over Christmas and into 2o12, that number has increased to 21%.

That makes it very important that authors have eBooks available.

But, the questions is this...What about Traditional Publishing?

I do not see the "BIG" publishers going anywhere. I do see them being picky because of less money to spend on an author. I have talked with several authors who were published traditionally and have had their publisher put-off publishing a book that was once scheduled to come out in 2011 and now plan on it coming out in the Fall of 2012. The author that talked with me was upset, but "What do you do?" The economy has hurt a whole lot of people.

I am not against traditional publishers. I am just passing on to you what I hear and see.

Something really weird happened to my computer this week. I was sitting on my bed, using my lap top. It was plugged into an outlet. I heard a "sizzle" and looked down into the floor. Since it was night outside, the room was liut by lamp-light. I saw sparkes along with the "sizzle."

I thought, "What is it now?" I unplugged my computer and began to examine the plug. To my horror, I discovered that it was "shorted-out." It had either burned through or broken over time and the wires were bare in this one spot. The weird thing was that I probably would not have noticed, if my computer had not suddenly started to shut down because it was not getting power.

Yes, my battery does not hold a charge a long time. I have worn the battery out. I have to plug in my lap top to use it. I can use it off power, but it does not last for very long.

Fortunately, I went online and found a replacement cord for $7.99 with $5.99 shipping. it will be in around the 24th - 27th. In the mean-time, I can not use my lap top. It is really strange. When you do not have a computer, what do you do?

I am reading a book.

I am reading my copy of "the Writer" magazine. There is a great article titled "6 SELF-PUBLISHING SUCCESS STORIES.

Several years ago, writers who decided to self-publish were looked down upon as if they did not know what they were doing. Those authors were not considered good writers. Now, FINALLY, that view is changing.

Many authors have fullfilled their dreams by going the Self-Publishing route. The article gives us a view inside the world of six authors and we might actually benefit by what they have to say.

Yes, they do a lot of marketing, but as I learned, those who were with traditional publishers discovered there was no money or effort being put into their book. They chose to "take the bull by the horns" and do something about it.

One great piece of advice was gleaned from one of the authors:
She said, "It's all about the writing. No one wants to read any book, traditional or self-published, that is badly written." She went on to say that you must have people interested in reading what you have written.

She also suggested that an author START blogging "now" to build up a readership for a book. Post on Social Networks. Always keep extra books with you.

You can purchase "the Writer" Magazine at your local book store, or order it online. I did!!!

If you have not been published, by a publisher, in book form, check out the New Voice. This is a special promotion to celebrate the first "two" years of Sleepytown Press.

Submissions have started coming in. They are being read. We are going to find "two" winners for this special contest.

If you missed the deadline for the Short Story Anthology, start getting something ready for the next submission deadline.

So far, the Collection of Short Stories has been narrowed down to around 100 stories to choose from for the 2012 Edition of "Gallery of Voices." The cover color has already been selected.

We have enough to do one book and maybe two. There is a chance that we might do "two" books for 2012. One might be Spring and the other might be Fall.

Why "TWO?" This is the Second Anniversary of Sleepytown Press and what better way to celebrate than publish "Two" instead of "One."

Watch the web site for more exciting NEWS.