If a person is the sum of what he or she reads, why isn’t the
world smarter, better and nicer? What’s stopping us from acting on what
we know to be true, based on the information we consume and the ideas we are
exposed to?
The problem is that the influence of the once-prominent book is
being eroded by cheap, easily accessible content online. We’d like to think the two can work together and actually support one another but often the
two are in direct conflict of a consumer’s time and money. Even worse,
people may be influenced or moved by online content that is not vetted,
complete, or unbiased, leaving books on the shelf that could very well provide
the depth of information and truth so desperately needed today.
It shouldn’t have to come down to the Internet vs. books, and yet
it does. When you have a free source of writings it will interfere with
how much time one can read books. And when it’s free, it gets harder to demand
fair compensation for a book. I believe each of us continually has to
state the case, publicly and privately, that books matter and need to be read
if society is to ever advance.
The Internet can play an important role in the dissemination of
information, but it needs to clean its act up. Fake news, biased content,
opinion dressed as fact, or shoddy research and sloppy editing leave the
Internet needing a sheriff to swoop in and clean it up.
Books, though they too, can be subject to what dooms the Internet,
offer something wonderful and need to be championed and protected.
There’s a rich history to books that deserves preservation but books are not
just museum pieces or a collector’s item. No, they can surely inform,
enlighten, entertain or inspire us to live better lives, have deeper
experiences, and unite to help one another. Books transform and shape
us. They capture something worth exploring, something that can’t merely
be blogged or tweeted about.
It’s not so much an issue of what’s the case for books, as all
book lovers can rattle off reasons why they love books, why books are
important, and why we must consume them. But who will make this
case? Who will go out there and talk not just about literacy, free
speech, or a specific book, but the very need to promote, protect, read and
share all books?
I need you to step up to the plate and insert books into your
chats with friends, visits with relatives, emails to colleagues, small talk at work, your social media, your dating profile, and whenever a
conversation takes place.
I need you to show books off – publicly read books and recommend others enjoy books too.
We each must make the case for books before it’s too late.
I need you to show books off – publicly read books and recommend others enjoy books too.
We each must make the case for books before it’s too late.
DON’T MISS THESE:
How do authors get on TV?
Where do authors go for book PR help?
What actually works in book publicity?
Do most authors make any real money from
their books?
Do you really need a book publicist?
Good book publicity is a marathon, not a sprint
Best Author PR Strategy: Cover The Basics
Can you sell at least 10 copies of your book every day for a year?
What Does It Really Take To Hit A Best-Seller List?
10 Lessons For Authors-Turned-Bloggers
Can you market your book for five
minutes a day?
Complete Author Book Marketing & PR
Toolkit for 2017
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.