Category Archives: ebooks

Progress

Today, the Association of Canadian Publishers‘ digital arm, eBound, posted an interview with me. I may be a little biased, but I think it makes for interesting reading. Click here to find out my thoughts on marketing books online, ebook development, and what the best kind of interactive children’s media is.

And how’s my creative writing going, you ask? Well, my New Year’s resolution was to continue writing every single day, and so far I’ve only missed 4-5 days this year. A story that I started writing last April is now sitting at 65,000 words–and I missed a few months of daily writing in 2012, so that’s less than a year’s work. It’s gratifying to see how small daily habits can add up to big accomplishments.

A friend of mine recently started a blog, and in one of her first posts, she shared a favourite phrase: “What you do all the time matters more than what you do once in awhile.” I’m officially adding that to my list of mantras, right after “A clean house means you have too much time on your hands” and “Clowns are not funny, they’re downright creepy.”

Happy holidays

So, how did everyone’s holidays go? Toronto escaped the snowstorms that incapacitated the east coast–even the light snow forecast for Christmas Day never showed up. I spent a quiet Christmas at home with Julian and the kittens. They’re settling in quite nicely, and I have high hopes that they will learn to stop stepping on our heads when we’re trying to sleep.

Here they are as reindeer, bugging Santa-Julian:

In book news, Fractured received a wonderful review from Pamela at At Home Between the Pages, and I was also interviewed by the lovely Claudia Osmond on her blog.

My big Christmas present this year was an ereader: the Kobo, to be exact. The first ebook I read on it was Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver.

Pros:

  • I found the eInk reading experience to be just as satisfying and immersive as reading on paper–no eyestrain
  • Kobo is lighter than a book, and more compact than Kindle or iPad
  • Don’t have to hold Kobo open–much easier to read one-handed
  • Can carry around thousands of books with you: great for travel
  • Can download books without going to a bookstore (I looove bookstores, but I also love getting to read a book the minute I decide to buy it, rather than having to go pick it up or wait for it be delivered)
  • Can add multiple bookmarks
  • Can sync between computer, ereader, and iPhone so that I can pick up where I left off even if I leave my ereader at home
  • More space on my bookshelves! So much easier if I ever move again!

Cons (of ereaders in general and the Kobo in particular):

  • eInk is black-and-white, so covers/illustrations look horrible
  • Can freeze or run out of battery power, cutting off access to your entire library at once
  • No touch screen: can be annoying to have to use buttons to scroll through a long menu rather than just tapping the option you want (the iPhone has spoiled me!)
  • Somewhat slow page refresh can break the reading flow sometimes, especially when starting a new chapter
  • No lending capability yet, nor can I re-sell my “used” ebooks
  • Prices still seem high (about the price of a paperback), considering that I can’t re-sell, lend, or give away an ebook once I’ve bought it

Do you have an ereader? If so, which one? What do you love about it, and what do you wish was different?