No quote for this one, as it's wordless. But take a lesson in nonverbal storytelling from the winner of "Ukraine's Got Talent." (via)
Not your average bookstore fundraiser:
"Since May 6, when our nest of 77 eggs was found and moved to the corral, we have been putting a penny for every dollar spent at Paragraphs into our 'nest' which sits on our counter. We will continue to donate this 1% of our sales to Sea Turtle Inc. until the hatchlings are released."
I vaguely remember reading, sometime or other, a lament over the disappearance of good sportswriting. Here's your rebuttal:
"On Court 18 a match is not won and lost; it is just played out infinitely, deeper and deeper into a fifth and final set as the numbers rack up and the terrain turns uncharted. Under the feet of John Isner and Nicolas Mahut, the grass is growing. Before long they will be playing in a jungle and when they sit down at the change of ends, a crocodile will come to menace them. They are poised at 25 games apiece in a deciding set that is now nudging three hours."
There's a reason his book made it on the Indie Next List:
"Almost immediately, I started hearing from independent bookstores, most located in places I’d never visited... Their enthusiasm for the book helped guide me through the tumultuous times leading up to and after the novel’s launch. More importantly, their willingness to handsell a first novel by an unknown author they’d never met face-to-face continues to be the most stunning part of the whole publication process."
A clear-headed explanation of interchange fees (come on, you can't expect me to skip the wonkish stuff entirely!):
"Bloomberg reported a few weeks ago that 'Debit cards formerly passed at face value' just like checks. At some point the industry figured out it could charge big bucks for this and prices went up instead of down. That’s not how it’s supposed to work."
Fair warning - the link is worth following, but chances are you'll end up with a Paula Cole song stuck in your head:
"But I also think that if we are to stem, or at least retard, what has been described as the inexorable decline in prices for content, the industry has to produce content that's worth more than what the competition can provide... So I'd suggest that publishing's role should be less about just reflecting the culture (though despite what's written above, there's a place for that) and more about leading and even defining the culture."
Food for thought:
"Certain books... just hit a nerve with the middle-grade reader and continue to hit that nerve with each new generation of kids. Why? These books have plenty of heart, a sense of wonder, humor in good measure, relatable characters, and a strong voice. By telling a specific story in an emotionally true way, they’ve managed to become universal."
Have you heard about the store animals at Wild Rumpus? Then you'll definitely want to read about Collette Morgan's horses:
"I used to think that we had such a short riding season in Minnesota - then I came to my senses and bought long underwear and insulated boots. Revolutionary."
He won a couple of prizes - no big deal, just a Pulitzer and a National Book Award - so I think he knows what he's talking about:
"Many of the issues that dominated Cornelius Vanderbilt's life are ones that we struggle with today... I believe that understanding his life richly informs the present. But I think that if I had written up a set of lessons to be taken from his life, it would have diminished the book. It would have taken a complex, multi-faceted life, one rich with contradiction and ambiguity, and boiled it down to take-away nuggets."
I think we already knew this, but it's always good to have proof. (And probably money for anyone who can direct this trend away from food and onto books!):
"Branding food packages with licensed characters substantially influences young children's taste preferences and snack selection and does so most strongly for energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods." (via)
New buzzwords:
"A docent is a ‘knowledgeable guide’ and the function seems to me to perfectly complement the process of curation. In an online world, where more and more content appears to 'carry the same weight,' we will look to and pay for the combination of curator and docent – sometimes the same person or entity – who can organize and manage a range of content and also engage with the user so they gain insight and meaning from the material."
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