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The Marketeers Club: Goodreads

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Clip-art-book_GoodreadsWhen I discovered Goodreads last summer I was intrigued. I hadn’t really thought about what the site was or how it could be used in terms of marketing books. My first thought was, “What a lovely site for book nerds to come together and talk about their favorite thing: books!”  

I have since become a Goodreads user, emphasis on the word “user.” I don’t write reviews and I don’t contribute to book discussions. I rate books and mark them “to-read” or “read” for my own personal enjoyment. I have just two “friends” on the site. I’m never critical of a book I “star” because I wouldn’t finish reading it if I didn’t enjoy it at least a little bit. My minimum score is three stars. I often agonize over the fact that you can’t rate a book with ½ stars. What if I think a book really deserves a ½ star more, but I don’t think it deserves five? It’s my one, really BIG complaint about Goodreads.

When Amazon bought Goodreads in May 2013, there was a lot of shock, concerns, and jokes. What would the acquisition mean for this trendy little book site? Would Amazon completely change the platform? Would people have to pay a subscription? Maybe more advertising would fill up your screen or worse, you’d have to sign into an Amazon account to use it! I think my favorite tweet  was:

@faitherinhicks: Amazon bought Goodreads? … that's gross. 😦

or

@FakeEditor: Amazon just bought Goodreads. And in other news, Barnes & Noble didn't.

In a recent interview with the Atlantic, Goodreads founders Otis and Elizabeth Chandler answered questions about the evolution of their online community and the backlash they incurred as a result of the Amazon purchase. Back in May, many users’ opinions were clouded by a strong dislike for Amazon and the theory that Amazon would take away crowdsourced reviews, along with everything else that could possibly be good about Goodreads. Another tweet:

@okgirl96: I don't view Amazon's acquisition of Goodreads as a positive. Inevitable, yes.

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People Make Publishing: The Book Attachment

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Rob Buchanan is the Sales Coordinator in Marketing and an experienced Twinkie chef.  It is almost impossible for me to get rid of a book. The first books I ever bought were paperbacks of the Belgariad series by David Eddings. I bought them when they were fairly new back in the late 1980s. I didn’t take care of my books back then like I do now, so they have seen a lot of wear and tear. I’m not sure they would survive another reading, so if I ever get the desire to read the series again, I will probably have to … Continue reading People Make Publishing: The Book Attachment

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Doc Martyn’s Soul: Buzz Words

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Buzz words abound in all businesses; certainly they have a prominent place in publishing. Some buzz words—content, metadata, discovery, analytics, for example—are perennial, always seeming to hover around the peripheries of publishing, creating a shadow, partly because of the weight they carry and partly because no one seems to know what to do with them. For years, ebooks has been a buzz word. You could choose an adjective at random and it would fit the relationship that publishers have had with the word ebooks: scary, exciting, innovative, repressive, paranoid, overwhelming, cash cow! Other words come and go more frequently. MOOCs … Continue reading Doc Martyn’s Soul: Buzz Words

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Settlers of Catan: Beginning of 2014 Recap

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Weston Poor is an editorial assistant in EDP and runs marathons but has no idea why.

All right, it has been a few months since we last spoke. This could have been avoided, but, let’s face it, I’m lazy. Since we last left off, a hunt for the most wins in 2013 was at its peak. Of course, Terry “the Bandit” Boldan won the title by a narrow margin but, nonetheless, with all the hardiness of a champion. Boldan wouldn’t improve on his eleven wins, but that wouldn’t matter because Shirley Thornton wouldn’t improve either. With only two games left after the Thanksgiving break, the only settlers to improve their win totals were Nathan Putens and Erica Corwin, leaving the 2013 season win totals at:

Terry “the Bandit” Boldan—11 (Winner winner, chicken dinner!)

Shirley “you must be joking” Thornton—9

Erica Corwin—5

Leif Milliken—5

Nathan Putens—5

And my wins are hardly worth mentioning . . . really.

It was a solid accomplishment for the well decorated veteran settler. The Bandit declined to comment on his season win title. He claimed that he didn’t want to give his opponents ammunition. Always thinking defensively, that Bandit. The only indication he would give was that he’s a snake (in terms of Chinese symbols) and it was the year of the snake.

This year marked my discovery of Settlers of Catan, and thus my introduction to life. I made a good start by winning my first two contests. However, I haven’t done much since those two wins. The main takeaway from my rookie year: ensure significant resource flow with initial settlements on frequently rolled numbers, and always, always keep an eye on the Bandit.

Now that 2013 is over, it’s time to get started on the 2014 season. There is no off season for settlers, not like those overpampered pro athletes in highly televised sports. They can have their off-season; we want to play.

Here are some pictures of all the games for the current season.

Image 1 (Corwin, 1-2)

January 2, 2014: Erica Corwin opened the 2014 season with an impressive win. Her signature blue playing pieces are surrounded by some other settlers’ expansive developments. It might not look like she has much on the board, but trust me she won, note the presence of the proverbial sheep. Corwin utilized the smaller field of play by gaining footholds on some of the more useful resources. The two development cards she purchased (a victory point and a monopoly card) aided her victory. Point totals: Corwin—9(time expired), Milliken—8, Boldan—7, me—6.

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The Director’s Dish: Current Trends in Publishing

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I recently was asked to guest lecture at a publishing class about what I see as major trends in the book industry. You don’t always get to sit down and organize on paper (in this case, on Power Point) the things you know are happening in your industry. I thought I’d share some of the things I think are current trends in book publishing: Consolidation across all the channels. Whether it’s publishers themselves (e.g., the recent Penguin/Random House merger), printing presses (the number of printers has declined 18% in the last seven years), the mergers of significant wholesalers (e.g., Baker … Continue reading The Director’s Dish: Current Trends in Publishing

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People Make Publishing: Press King Cakes

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Alison Rold is Assistant Production Manager in EDP and she is a fearless bread baker.  Many years ago, before the birth of the Internet, a friend of mine told me that he was delivering a lot of king cakes from New Orleans. I had no idea what a king cake was, but I was intrigued, thinking maybe it was some elaborate sheet cake. I went to the library and found a book with a picture of one. Then I hunted down a king cake recipe in another book. It didn’t look like a cake at all. It looked like a … Continue reading People Make Publishing: Press King Cakes

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From the desk of Ravi K. Perry: Black History Month

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Ravi K. Perry (PhD, Brown University, 2009) is an assistant professor of political science and Stennis Scholar for Municipal Governance at Mississippi State University. He is the editor of 21st Century Urban Race Politics: Representing Minorities as Universal Interests (Emerald Group, forthcoming). Building Community in … Continue reading From the desk of Ravi K. Perry: Black History Month