Big publishing industry news this week: Oprah endorsed Amazon’s Kindle reading device, having “fallen in love with it.”
Which is not unusual; I’ve heard very little criticism concerning the Kindle. People may not rave over it like they raved about the iPod when it first came out, but the Kindle seems, for many intents and purposes, rad. Awesome. Exciting.
Which makes one wonder: if it’s so awesome and exciting, shouldn’t Entrekin be available for it?
Why yes, yes it should be:
Ain’t it purdy? You can click that link to find its shiny new Amazon page.
The timing couldn’t be better, nor, I think, any less coincidental. I’ve been working on the Kindle version since back in August. Not that it took that long, but I mentioned I was going to be changing things up toward the end of October.
I still go back and forth on Lulu. The reason I put Entrekin on the Kindle was that the digital downloads have been so extraordinarily successful, with more than a thousand across the various stories. I like that Lulu allows me to offer the DRM-free .pdfs, not to mention that it also allows for the tangible book for anyone who wants a souvenir. I had a bad experience in Lulu’s community, but then again I’ve realized that if I simply decide to use Lulu solely as the printing press I’d always meant it to be, it does still serve my purposes pretty well, its forums, policies, and customer service notwithstanding (more on those three later, and elsewhere).
So no, I’m not done yet. I’m still curious about a lot of aspects of publishing and the ways it’s changing, so it looks like Entrekin will still be around for a bit. As always, you can get it here.
Thanks to everyone who’s made it such a success so far, and remember to keep telling your friends about it.
Especially if, you know, your friends own Kindles.
(because, really, here, so far, I’m at a loss; where and how does one market to Kindle owners?)
October 27, 2008 at 11:07 am
I want a kindle sooooooooooooo bad.
October 27, 2008 at 12:11 pm
I doubt I will ever own a Kindle. Another plastic-covered gadget that will eventually end up in a landfill. I may be a dinosaur, but for my money you can’t beat the feel of a book in your hands. I’ll even spring for hardcovers on occasion.
I don’t know much about Lulu, but have you looked into Booklocker.com to publish your book? They seem to have a pretty good deal compared other POD publishers.
October 27, 2008 at 1:30 pm
@PQ: yeah, they do seem cool. I might hold out for the next gen. But who knows?
@Digital Dame: I like how dichotomous your name (digital) is with your perspective (which seems a bit like a Luddite, no offense intended); didn’t Fitzgerald say genius is being able to hold two contrasting points of view simultaneously? That said, I’m not sure about the your second sentence; I think too many people make the mistake that the success of the Kindle would mean the death of books, or that a plastic gadget and screen replaces a hardcover–I just don’t think that’s the argument. I own lots of books I’d never get rid of, because I do like the feel of books in my hands, but that’s not to say I wouldn’t like the option of either and the use of both. No one’s asking anyone to choose between Kindle and a book, after all.
And I have not, but I’ll have to now. Thanks for the pointer.
October 27, 2008 at 2:19 pm
Ha, never thought of myself as having Luddite tendencies, but I guess it’s true in this case. I think I’m just maxed out on gizmos and gadgets and things that click and whirr and buzz.
The dichotomy of my online moniker was in fact deliberate. I have a Jane Austen Action figure (no joke) sitting in front of my computer screen at home and the incongruity of it struck me, in a humorous way.
October 27, 2008 at 4:32 pm
They’re cool but mad expensive…and I am kind of partial to actually turning the pages on a book.
October 28, 2008 at 12:33 am
What is a Kindle? I could guess or google it, but I won’t. So you can either tell me, not tell me, or lie to me.
October 28, 2008 at 7:19 am
gothamgirl,
Kindle is an electronic text reader made and sold by Amazon. You can download books to it and read them on the Kindle. If you go to Amazon’s homepage (Amazon.com) the ad for it is top center, you can’t miss it.
I haven’t really looked into them too hard, not really looking for something else that needs batteries, but if the Kindle should fail, I wonder if you get a free pass to re-download anything you may have already downloaded? Assuming of course you get a new Kindle.
October 28, 2008 at 9:01 am
@Digital: yes. Whenever you download via Whispernet, Amazon archives it, so you you never lose it. So you don’t actually have to re-download everything; it saves it all for you.
You also get an e-mail address to which you can send .doc, .pdf, and .html files, which Amazon will then convert for sending to your Kindle for a nominal fee (a dime, if I’m not mistaken).
October 28, 2008 at 5:52 pm
@Digital Dame, Will:
Darn. I was hoping for a really ridiculously untrue. Like Kindle is a robot on amazon that beats the crap out of people if they send your package late. You guys DID have permission to lie to me. Thanks for the truth though. Now I know and knowing is half the battle.