Technology For Writing

Technically, all you need in order to write is pen and paper. Some people still hold to that, but if you want to get your work out to publishers, then you need technology. You *could* make due with a typewriter, but then editing will be a nightmare. And we all know how necessary editing is to the writing process, right? :)

With technology comes the added risk of losing your work to a random glitch or malfunction, which means we need backups to ensure we don’t lose anything. I already did a post on backing up your work, so I won’t dwell on this. Instead, I’m going to focus on the good things technology can give us.

There are some pretty cool programs out there. Two, in particular, I use regularly when I’m writing. The first is called Evernote. It’s been around for quite some time so you may have heard of it. I use it as a place to collect all my notes and research for a story I’m writing. I keep character profiles, plot brainstorms, revision notes, research and references, story summaries, you name it. I keep it all in there.

These are items I used to keep in a notebook...or, at least, try to. Sometimes my notes would end up in multiple places, or I’d have to carry it all with me when I went someplace quiet to write. But with Evernote, it’s all there, all the time. And, my account isn’t local to my computer—it utilizes the cloud, so I can access all the info in my account from anywhere. There is even an app that gives you access from your phone or tablet. But the best part is that I can organize all my notes. For each project I’m writing, I create a ‘notebook’ with the title of that project. Then, I tag all relevant notes so it’s associated with that notebook. Easy-peasy. I love Evernote. I never have to wonder “what did I do with that list of websites” again. :)

The other program I use regularly is an app call CloudOn. I installed it on my iPad, and it works in conjunction with Dropbox—it gives you full access to the documents you store in Dropbox. If you don’t have an app that can read Excel files, no problem! CloudOn can let you read and edit it. Same with word and text files and probably more I haven’t discovered. Any changes I make through CloudOn gets automatically uploaded via Dropbox, and is waiting for me the next time I sit down at my computer. I actually write many of my blog posts using CloudOn (including this one) because it’s more convenient to carry around an iPad than my laptop.

Anyway, these are two programs I use regularly and love. Have you used them? Do you have any that you love?

Whoa, Back Up There…

We’ve all been there at some point or another. We work hard on something on our computer, then some random anomaly happens and *poof*, it’s gone. And then we want to scream and cry and stomp our feet. Right? Right.

I am paranoid about backing up my work. I used to test all kinds of software for a living, did it for almost ten years, so I know exactly how glitchy it can be. I don’t exactly have the greatest confidence in the tool that I use every single day: my computer. Most of the time, the code behind the software works the way it’s supposed to, but sometimes it goes off and does really weird things. Even really solid, high quality code can go all ADHD every now and then. Software programmers know this better than anyone, and I know one who backs up his personal computer every single week. It’s practically a professional setup, with a huge storage device that can hold an image of his entire hard drive. Needless to say, if something happens to his computer, he’s set.

The rest of us? Not so much. We don’t have the time, money, or knowhow to set up something like that. It’s too much hassle. But, there are things we can do to safeguard the really important things, like our manuscripts.

The best thing you can do is keep at least three copies of your files, all in different places—the key here is to choose the right place. If you keep a copy on your computer and then two different thumb drives, they’re all still in the same location, so to speak: your home. If your computer gets a virus, all three documents could still get infected. Also, if there’s a fire, or if someone breaks into your home and steals your electronics, you’ll still lose everything.

I actually have copies in four different places. Two in my home—one on my computer, and one on a thumb drive—and two offsite. There are some excellent offsite storage options available today. Google Documents is one place. It’s easy to use and you have a good amount of storage available for free. This also allows you to work on various computers without the need to carry around a thumb drive, and no worrying about losing it. You can also share your documents with specific people, in case you’re collaborating with someone or want him to read your work for feedback.

Another place is Dropbox. You do need to install it on whatever computer(s) you’re using, but once you do then you have access to Dropbox’s offsite storage. They also have a handy ‘version’ feature, where they will store the various versions of your documents for up to a month. If something goes wrong with the version you’re using, you can retrieve the previous one and not lose all of your work. Also, if you find you need more storage space, you can buy more for not too much money.

Yahoo Groups is another option. This is meant for multiple people to use together, and you can even create a group email that will send messages to all members. A couple of trusted writer friends and I use this to store our work, and when we’re ready we’ll ask the others to read and give us feedback. Yahoo Groups has a huge amount of storage so multiple people should be able to use this space easily.

These are just three offsite storage options, but there are probably more. Do you know of any? If so, please share!

Where Is Technology Taking Books?

I usually talk about the craft of writing on Mondays, but today I’m going to talk about different forms of books, such as audio books and digital books. Which, I think, have excellent uses. So, forgive me as I ramble on here...

I recenly drove to my mom’s house and back, and listened to the audio version of THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN while the kids watched WALL-E in the back seat. I loved the entire experience, and it made the drive so much better. Time passed quickly, and I was actually sad when we reached our destination because it meant I had to turn the story off. Then, after the kids were in bed, I finished listening to it while I folded laundry – a chore I absolutely hate, but was made palatable by this great story playing in the background. That right there makes audio books worth it for me.

As for digital books, I also think this has excellent uses. You can carry 100 books in a paperback-sized device, which makes traveling much lighter. You could read a book on your computer, if you’re so inclined, or even on your iPhone. ePublishing makes it easy to carry around your books and read whenever you like, rather than when it’s convenient to have the book with you. I tend to carry a book wherever I go, just in case I get a spare minute to read. For now, it works fine because I have to carry a huge bag for kid stuff as well as my own. But when I no longer need to carry kid stuff, I really want to go back to an actual handbag. And not all books will fit in that. So it would be nice to have a small device that fit nicely inside.

I’m technically savvy. I’ve got a bachelor’s degree in Math and Computer Science, and worked in the computer field for nearly ten years. I like gadgets and internet and wireless connections and all that fun stuff. But, I don’t read ebooks. Even if I didn't have to carry around a huge bag, I still wouldn't have an electronic reader. It obviously has nothing to do with the technology, since I like it. So, what's my problem? Quite plainly, it’s the price.

For those of you who don’t like math, I apologize right now because there’s plenty below. : )

I looked up the list prices of several editions of THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN, which contains 336 pages:
Hardback list price: $23.95
Paperback list price: $14.99
Audio CDs: $34.95

These prices are all fine and dandy, since there’s production and print costs for each. Plus, the publishing house needs to make money, and the author needs to make money, so I’m willing to pay for these things (or get them from the library).

Next, I looked at the cost of the digital edition. According to both Amazon and Sony, the suggested retail price is $18.95. Um, that costs more than the paperback version, yet there’s no print cost. *scratching head*

Granted, $18.95 isn’t what either Amazon or Sony charge. They offer a discount:
Sony eReader price: $13.26
Amazon’s Kindle price: $9.99

These prices are less than the list price of the paperback edition, but by how much? For Sony, it’s $1.73. For Amazon, it’s $5.00. So Amazon is the better deal, right? Nope. Amazon offers pretty deep discounts on its printed books, and their price for the paperback edition is $10.19. Which means the real savings between the Kindle and paperback is $1.18.

So, you’re saving either $1.18 or $1.73, depending on which eReader you own. But for what? A digital book is not tangible, and people like to see what they’ve just bought (especially when they’ve just paid nearly the same as the tangible edition). In fact, your digital book is at higher risk because it could be lost if your computer decides it’s done with life, or if your device is damaged or stolen. Sure, you could lose all your books if your house catches fire, but, let’s face it, it’s far more likely for an electronic device to quit on you than for your house to go up in flames. :)

In my research, there was only one digital version that I thought was fairly priced: the audio download on Amazon, which is $18.35. It costs money to make the audio edition of a book because you have to hire a reader, record him/her in a studio, and edit the recording. Then, you can either put it on CDs, or sell it as a download. The CDs cost $34.95, but the download is nearly half that. Which makes sense, since there was still some cost in creating the audio version.

But for digital books, converting files is easy. You don’t need to create anything new, you’re just taking the existing text and making it available for different digital readers. There are computer programs that do this conversion for you, so you don’t even need to hire someone. The only cost is to make it available for download in a secure environment. But there is certainly not $18.95 worth of work involved. If there is, I'm skeptical of the process being used.

For me to willingly purchase digital books (and I would love to do this), the price would need to be half the price of the print versions. Which ultimately means it would need to be half the price of the paperback edition – not the hardback edition. I think that if ebooks were priced this way, there would be a lot more people interested in digital. Not enough to make the printed book obsolete or anything, but enough to maybe bring down the price of the digital readers.

Anyway, I have gone on far too long, and all of this is just my opinion based on my limited view of the publishing world. But thanks for listening. :)