Sunday, August 29, 2010

Good Things and eBooks

Here's a great thing I discovered today: TUL pens. Try one.

Here's another awesome thing: My fellow Greater Seattle RWA writer, Susanna Fraser, released her debut historical through Carina Press last week. The Sergeant's Lady is a twist on the usual Napoleonic-era lovers: a common-born sergeant and a high-born lady. No secret dukes or heirs switched at birth. (Please check out the website Mr. Fraser built for his wife. Exceedingly not-cheesey). Carina Press gives novels like this, novels that break genre conventions, a chance to find readers. Hey ... I know a writer in Seattle with a palindromic first name who has a time-travel Western romance. Hmm...

Several blog readers have never read an ebook. (Hello, Mom). If you want to try a novel from Carina - whether it's The Sergeant's Lady or Talk Dirty to Me (do I have to explain that plot?) - you DO NOT need a Kindle or any of those other readers. I read on my laptop. It's not as fancy or as lightweight, but a computer totally works for ebooks. No one tells you that, do they? If you have a recent copy of Adobe software, you can install "Digital Bookshelf" in seconds, free, from Carina, Samhain (where Vivi publishes ), or most public library ebook catalogs. Yes, public libraries are in the free ebook business. In Seattle you can check out (download) up to twenty ebooks at a time for twenty-one days before they expire. For free. This is amazing for romance readers because our paperbacks are rarely cataloged and the bindings self-destruct after only a few borrowers, but digital copies circulate forever.
And a third good thing: Pink Martini plays at Chateau St. Michelle tonight, 7 pm. Mr. Richland advised me to take a slicker but I'm totally ready to sing Dosvedanya, Mio Bombino in the rain.

4 comments:

Kate Diamond said...

I read e-books on my laptop, too, but I've been thinking of getting an e-reader. It probably won't happen any time soon, but I'm wondering what all of our e-reader owners out there prefer...

... I want it mainly so that I can take MANY books on my vacations, without having to pack them all. Some of those books would be textbooks, so I'd want the ability to e-highlight and annotate them.

Of course I will be doing my formal research before I purchase anything, but I'd like a little informal research from actual users. What e-book reader do you recommend?

Kate Diamond said...

Also, Anna isn't lying about Fraser's website. Check it out. Seriously.

Anna Richland said...

In theory the idea of taking a bunch of books on vacation on a light, hold-able e-reader is great. When I become a monthly traveller to book-signing events around the globe, I'll get the shiniest e-reader you ever saw. Current reading over 3 days at Campbell's Beach Resort in Lake Chelan: 60-ish pages. Yep, that's two digits in that number. And I was TRYING to read. Kids. When they no longer want me around, I'll get an e-reader to console myself.

Unknown said...

I read ebooks on my PC, too. I'm reading Paty Jager's amazing western historical with a blind hero and a scarred female doctor, Doctor in Petticoats, right now. I highly recommend this book. Thanks for the recommendation!