John Dishon's Blog

New crime fiction magazine that actually pays money: The Big Click

http://www.thebigclickmag.com/

According to their guidelines:

We pay $100.00 for electronic rights (online and ebook) and for non-exclusive The Big Click–themed anthology rights.

They're closed for unsolicited submissions right now. First issue has a story by Ken Bruen.

Added by John Dishon on March 2, 2012 at 11:52am — No Comments

Sh*t Book Reviewers Say

Added by John Dishon on February 20, 2012 at 11:30am — No Comments

Kunlun Journal of Chinese Historical Fiction -- Now Accepting Submissions

I don't know how many here will be interested in this, but anyway:

I started an online literary journal dedicated to wuxia and other Chinese historical fiction. I'm currently accepting submissions for the first issue. Submission guidelines are here. Although Chinese fiction is the focus of the journal, I'll also accept stories set in Japan, Korea, Vietnam, etc. Aside…

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Added by John Dishon on January 7, 2011 at 3:50pm — 10 Comments

Interview with Peter Straub

The background: Reddit asked Peter Straub ten questions and he answered them in this video. The questions were taken from the 10 highest voted questions from this thread:… Continue

Added by John Dishon on February 10, 2010 at 9:00am — 4 Comments

Inkless, Tonerless, Rewritable Printer

Added by John Dishon on February 4, 2010 at 5:41am — 2 Comments

This is a book trailer done well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_jyXJTlrH0

I've made no attempt in the past to hide my opinion that book trailers suck ass, but this one is awesome.

Added by John Dishon on January 2, 2010 at 7:00am — 3 Comments

DIY Book Scanners Turn Your Books Into Bytes

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/12/diy-book-scanner/

From the Article:

"A DIY book scanner also raises questions of piracy and copyright. The basic question being: Do you really own a book in all its forms when you buy a book?

At the same time, ironically, the DIY book scanner is helping new create new tools to make copyright information more accessible. Tulane… Continue

Added by John Dishon on December 13, 2009 at 12:50am — 8 Comments

Kirkus Reviews to cease publication

http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=45&aid=174719

Added by John Dishon on December 11, 2009 at 2:48am — 1 Comment

NYT Bestseller discloses personal sales and profit information

http://www.genreality.net/more-on-the-reality-of-a-times-bestseller

Added by John Dishon on December 3, 2009 at 8:32am — 6 Comments

Do music artists fare better in a world with illegal file-sharing?

http://labs.timesonline.co.uk/blog/2009/11/12/do-music-artists-do-better-in-a-world-with-illegal-file-sharing/

Added by John Dishon on December 2, 2009 at 12:44pm — 2 Comments

B&N to release competition for Amazon's Kindle with its "Nook" e-reader

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/10/barnes-nobles-kindle-killing-dual-screen-nook-e-reader-leaked/

Same price, sharing with others, color touchscreen, supports open formats such as EPUB, 2GB storage, wifi, b&w e-ink screen, discounted prices for ebooks (finally!)...the Kindle is in trouble.

Added by John Dishon on October 21, 2009 at 12:43pm — 8 Comments

Amazon sued over Kindle deletion of Orwell books

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090731/ap_on_en_ot/us_tec_amazon_kindle_lawsuit

Added by John Dishon on August 1, 2009 at 6:00am — No Comments

CSI Myths: The Shaky Science Behind Forensics

http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/military_law/4325774.html

Added by John Dishon on July 28, 2009 at 12:32pm — 1 Comment

Amazon un-publishes 1984 and Animal Farm from the Kindle

That's right. Those who bought those books now don't have them, as they have been deleted from their Kindles, their accounts credited for the price they paid.

So Amazon, via the Kindle, can take away books you have paid for, meaning when you buy a Kindle edition book, you don't really own it. Yet another reason not to buy a Kindle.…

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Added by John Dishon on July 18, 2009 at 8:06am — 3 Comments

Hemingway revealed as failed KGB spy

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/jul/09/hemingway-failed-kgb-spy

From the article:

"Its section on the author's secret life as a "dilettante spy" draws on his KGB file in saying he was recruited in 1941 before making a trip to China, given the cover name "Argo", and "repeatedly expressed his desire and willingness to help us" when he met Soviet agents in Havana… Continue

Added by John Dishon on July 10, 2009 at 4:38pm — 2 Comments

Kindle 2 Price Plunge Signals E-Book Reader Market Competition

http://www.pcworld.com/article/168098/kindle_2_price_plunge_signals_ebook_reader_market_competition.html

From the article:

"The bigger question remains, Is there a market here worth expanding? A dedicated e-book reader may enjoy a niche audience, but the question remains whether a separate device for reading digital books… Continue

Added by John Dishon on July 10, 2009 at 8:04am — 6 Comments

Amazon takes one more step toward in-book advertisements for the Kindle

http://features.csmonitor.com/innovation/2009/07/06/amazon-takes-one-more-step-toward-in-book-advertisements-for-the-kindle/

Added by John Dishon on July 8, 2009 at 1:47am — 14 Comments

Self-publishing finds commercial niche in digital age

http://washingtontimes.com/news/2009/may/22/self-publishing-finds-commercial-niche-in-digital-/

Some cherry-picked quotes:

On Tuesday, the bibliographic information company Bowker released statistics showing that last year, for the first time, more books were released by on-demand publishers than by traditional ones.

Traditional publishers… Continue

Added by John Dishon on May 23, 2009 at 6:00am — 2 Comments

Judge Reviewing Pirate Bay Trial Bias Is Removed for Bias

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2009/05/judge-reviewing-pirate-bay-trial-bias-is-removed-for-bias/

This case keeps getting more and more interesting.

Added by John Dishon on May 22, 2009 at 7:39am — No Comments

Harvard prof tells judge that P2P filesharing is "fair use"

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/05/harvard-prof-tells-judge-that-p2p-filesharing-is-fair-use.ars

It's a pretty ballsy position. For sure this will be a case to keep an eye on if you're interested in the future of intellectual property rights.

From the article: "Should Nesson win, he will essentially legalize the sharing of all digital… Continue

Added by John Dishon on May 20, 2009 at 12:59pm — 2 Comments

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