The Brain Phone Is Ringing

Who could not want this?

Via Futurepundit: “In an interview with The Atlantic the CEO of Google reveals he does not want to implant a Google interface into people’s brains. Luddite.”

Two of the short stories in Conmergence feature a similar technology, a cybernetic “eye” immplanted in place of one biological eye. It’s not meant to be a prediction — although I think if some sort of internet lens could be designed, that would be big. C’mon, you know you’d want some.

Headwind – Booktrailer of the Day

This book makes me wish I were taking an airplane flight somewhere. Because I love a good spy book to read on a plane.

Historic footage serves this trailer well. The placement and font of the writing is a little odd. But the soundtrack is wonderful.

This book is by Karen Brees from Chalet Press. I understand there will be two more books in the trilogy. Yay!

She Thinks, He Thinks

Her: He’s hitting on me. What does it say about his expectations of relationships that I’m pushing a baby carriage, and that doesn’t spell MARRIED?

Him: She got knocked up once, she must be willing and able.

Her: On the other hand, it is kinda flattering. I guess despite that extra thirty pounds, I’m still hot!

Him: I like big butts, I can not lie.

Agent Publishes Through CreateSpace

Even agents are epublishing these days:

Agent Andrew Wylie shocked the literary world this summer when he made an Amazon exclusive deal on backlist titles from some very big name authors. Now Sharlene Martin, a Seattle-based literary agent, is following in Wylie’s footsteps with her agency Martin Literary Management.

Publishing Perspectives reports: “Martin’s agency published Cirque Du Salahi: Be Careful Who You Trust on September 15. It’s the story of Tareq and Michaele Salahi, who Martin represents along with the book’s author, investigative journalist Diane Dimond. Martin decided to get the book out quickly, short-circuiting the normal one — year publishing process, by publishing it through Amazon.com’s CreateSpace program.”

Quote of the Day + Zombie Cartoon

“Any idiot can face a crisis, it is this day-to-day living
that wears you out.”

— Anton Chekhov

Early Dawn – Book Trailer of the Day + Is it Worth the Money?

This has two things that interest me. One is the use of the old sepia photos, which I like. My favorite part is when the sepia turns to color, although this isn’t a constant effect throughout the trailer. The second is the way the words are written on bands across the screen, which I’m more ambivalent about.

This book is a Western, which I don’t normally read, and to be honest, I might not read this one, but the trailer did catch my interest in the story.

* * *

Slightly off topic…

I know some people think booktrailers are a waste of money. This one is by Circle of Seven Productions, so it wasn’t cheap. I really like them, but do worry about whether a $1000 trailer can pay for itself in sales. Then again, trailers do have one advantage, which is that I watch trailers for genres I normally never read, and if the trailer is good, I often watch it several times. Sometimes I watch it so much, I feel an overwhelming curiosity to read the book, even when I initially had no interest. But I read a LOT. And pretty eclectically. Are there enough people like me to justify the cost? I’m not sure.

I know that I’m watching the cost of my own trailers pretty closely, because as much as I would love to splurge, I just can’t. If I add anything to investment costs in my anthology, it will be interior formating. I’m fooling around with InDesign, and given enough time, I am sure I could master it sufficient unto my meager purposes, but time is tight for me right now. Money is tight too, though. The one thing I refuse to do is put out a crappy product. (Though I’m not saying you have to use InDesign to have a good product.) Somehow, I will make it work.