Rob Walling recently wrote a blog post called Why Startup Founders Should Stop Reading Business Books. At first the title made me scoff, but when I read the post in detail, his arguments made a lot of sense.

Many business books are actually a short paper with some good points; the main ideas are often found in the introduction and maybe the first chapter. Sometimes the whole point of the book is contained in the flap copy. But a book, to be a book, has to have weight. Translation: the page count has to be much more than 25. So many redundant pages are added.

Rob’s target audience of startup web entrepreneurs doesn’t have time to read extra pages. They are busy “doing” and usually running their businesses by the seat of their pants. In this context, his advice makes sense. (And he provides an out to read for fun and interest, so Malcolm Gladwell is still “okay” - whew!)

What Rob misses is that not everyone can absorb and integrate new information in a meaningful way just by reading the bullet points of a PowerPoint presentation or short article. Most of us need stories to remember and apply the lessons. In order for the information to stick in our brains, and therefore be useful, we need context and repetition.

So maybe startup founders should stop reading business books, but the rest of us could benefit from reading great books that share valuable lessons. The question is, Which books are worth taking the time to read in full? What’s your take?

We’ve entered a time where getting a book to market is as simple as 1, 2, 3. First, write the book. Second, make sure it gets a thorough edit. Third, self-publish in print and e-book form. Boom — “published” author. That isn’t to say it’s easy, but there has certainly never been a better time to get a manuscript off the shelf and into the hands of interested readers.

But some are asking, in a world where anyone can become published, how do you find something “good” to read? How do readers sift through the exploding number of titles to find the gems in the pile?

The answer may be, “just as they do now.” Even with a flood of new titles available, it stands to reason readers will continue to choose titles using the same criteria they have in the past. Google has determined (through some fancy algorithms) that there are nearly 130 million published books in the world. Readers have managed thus far to sort through those millions of book titles to find the ones they’re interested in. With that in mind, one can only assume readers will be able to do the same as the self-published market explodes over the next few years.

People gravitate towards what they like. They find authors or genres or subject matters they care about and are interested in, and make choices out of that pool. In fact, adding more titles will only grow the pot for readers, giving them even greater options on the subjects they enjoy.

Author Scott Nicholson explains it well in his article on the topic. He offers the analogy that despite her popularity, he has no idea what Lady Gaga sings, nor does he ever care to. But he finds new music that does appeal to him, when he wants to, through the channels he always has. Finding book titles would be the same. He finds and reads what he already likes.

Perhaps the growing wave of self-published titles will create some complexity and debris in the market, but how much it affects consumer buying and reading habits, if at all, remains to be seen.

In the not-so-distant future, say 10 years from now, books will be sold in three main formats: e-books, cheap print-on-demand paper books, and specialty hard cover collector editions.

1) E-Books
Digital readers are becoming cheaper every day. The Kobo is priced affordably at $149 and the magic sub-$100 price point is coming very soon. At the same time, digital readers are also getting better: better screens, better graphics, color eInk options, wireless and Bluetooth capabilities, and more memory for more books. Although the iPad may not crush the Kindle, it introduces a different kind of experience complete with audio, video, and virtually anything else you want to add. The environmental/green angle of digital books is also a great selling point. Kobo (formerly Shortcovers) was created in 2008 for a digital book market that was expected to account for 5-10% of all book sales within five years. Now the estimate is as high as 95% in 10 years. Add it up and digital is the future of books.

2) Print-On-Demand Books
Some people will still want their “beach-proof” copy of a book or something they can mark up in the margins. Technology like the Espresso Book Machine has made it cheap and easy to print single copies of a book and have it available in minutes from your local bookstore (yes, they will still exist), Costco, or even the public library. The difference is that these books will be produced digitally, then output to a paper format for a small group of buyers. They still make vinyl records after all, so we won’t be done with paper for a long time.

3) Specialty Hard Cover Collector Editions
Back in the old days of publishing, there were two types of books published: inexpensive paperbacks meant for mass consumption, and leather-bound hard cover books that only institutions or the wealthy could afford. The latter were as much to be collected and displayed as to be read. Well, what goes around, comes around. J.K. Rowling may have single-handedly created the rebirth of the collector concept when she packaged Tales of Beedle the Bard for Christmas 2007, complete with jewel-encrusted cover and handwritten manuscript.

Collector books will have full-colour interiors, embossed covers, and other features that will make them feel like pre-Gutenberg illuminated manuscripts. They will be gifts for people who have everything or decor for people who want to be seen as having everything. They will not meant to be read, just visually enjoyed. Remember the special edition of The DaVinci Code with all the beautiful pictures? Like that, only more so. Prices will be upwards of $75.

So where will you be in the transition? Leading the wave with your e-reader device or lugging around printed books? As I always tell my 85-year-old mother-in-law, how do you know you don’t like it if you haven’t tried it? Just like cell phones 15 years ago (who needs one of those?!?), e-readers are here to stay.

I’ll admit it. I’m something of a contradiction.

In my work for clients, I am constantly exploring the newest ideas in publishing, looking for ways to innovate and adapt. I find that exciting.

At the same time, I thrill to everything old. I love old books, old paper, the old models. The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries are especially intriguing to me.

So when I came across this Printer’s Dictionary and Guide Book, published in 1892, I just had to snap it up for my collection. Issued by Kelsey Press out of Meriden, Connecticut and priced at 25 cents a copy, the guide is a small, hard cover volume of advice for the would-be printing press operator.

Click thumbnails to enlarge.

The sub-title sums it up:

Containing Webster’s spelling and division of the most used words of the English language and chapters on job work, punctuation, useful receipts, etc. Not complete treatises, but a brief, handy guide for every day use, for professional and amateur.

It just so happens that the front and back contain ads for printing services and equipment from Kelsey Press. It’s a clever little piece of marketing, an early information product.

Click thumbnail to enlarge.

While most of the advice it contains is now antiquated, some of it is strangely timeless, including these tips on how to start and conduct a small paper:

Arrange a definite plan, to begin with. Give your paper some distinguishing feature, and not follow in the old ruts. If you are personally interested in some particular art, science or sport, you can, if you have energy, make your journal popular among others interested in the same subject. Or a paper can be made popular by making the leading matter village news, wit and humor, puzzles, rebuses, and the like. Church papers help the work much. Subjects are plenty. Choose one to your taste or ability, and make it your specialty. Make your paper alive with that subject, and fill the space not occupied therewith by pleasant miscellany. In a small sheet long, prosy articles appear out of place. It is seldom that a single article occupy more than a page of paper, and a column and a half article should be considered long.

Having perfected your plan for conducting a paper, you choose a name for it, which requires considerable thought. You want one appropriate to your leading subject. Let it be as short and striking as possible. There is much in a name. Whether you propose to circulate the paper free, as an advertisement or otherwise, or to make money out of it, it is best to fix upon it a subscription price; it gives it an apparent value even if given away…

So there you have it. Your “paper” — book, blog, articles — should have a focus that you’re passionate about. Make it your specialty and others with the same passion will be drawn to you. Keep your content and your name short and punchy. Value your work, even if it’s given away for free.

Maybe my love of new and old aren’t such a contradiction after all. A look at where we’ve been can sometimes provide guidance on the road to where we’re going.

This Confident Writing Challenge asks everyone to define their best posts of 2008. Most useful, most fun, and most original are easy. The best, though? Always the latest one.

With December upon us, we are now deeply into the holiday buying season. If you’ve got an author on your list this year, here are some suggestions — some fun, some practical — for great gifts.

1. Trees
What better “off-set” present for someone who publishes dead-tree books than a living, breathing, oxygen-producing, bird-housing green thing? Trees Instead plants single trees, half-acres and acres in the US state or Canadian province of your choice, and provides a certificate and card to your recipient.

2. SPAN Membership
The Small Publishers Association of North America provides dozens of benefits to the self-publishing author. Membership comes with discounts on everything from shipping and advertising to Amazon and insurance. Plus your recipient gains access to articles, online discussion groups and other resources.

3. Subscription to a Publishing Magazine
A year’s subscription to Publisher’s Weekly in the US or Quill & Quire in Canada will keep your author in the loop with all the latest publishing industry news.

4. Autographed Copy Stickers
A roll of Autographed Copy stickers is a great item for book signings and events. You can often find packs of the stickers on eBay. Or try a Google search.  Make sure you buy stickers that are easily removed — you don’t want to damage book covers.

5. Framed Cover Art
Authors are generally quite proud of their book(s) - and rightly so! So why not give a gift that commemorates their publishing achievement? Have their dust jacket matted and framed for an elegant and special piece of art.

6. Author Buttons
There is no shortage of fun buttons to buy for your author. These are just a few we found in CafePress stores. Search on “author buttons” or “writer buttons” to find more.

7. Bookish T-Shirts
As with buttons, you can find just about anything on a t-shirt. This one from Printfection seemed particularly appropriate for the holidays.

8. Collectible Books
Most authors are avid readers and booklovers. When you give a meaningful rare, antique, or out-of-print book, your recipient knows you picked the item just for them. And guaranteed, they won’t get the same gift from anyone else. Do they have an author they particularly admire? See if you can get a first edition or autographed copy. Or look for antique books that are related to their field. AbeBooks, Alibris, and eBay are all good places to find out-of-print books.

9. New Books
Duh! We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention buying some new books for your author. There are many helpful writing and self-publishing guides that make great gifts. Here are four in particular that we like.

• The Self-Publishing Manual by Dan Poynter
• Book Design and Production by Dan Masterson
• Sell Your Book on Amazon by Brent Sampson
• Woe Is I by Patricia T. O’Conner

Happy shopping!

Just for fun on this sunny Wednesday, click over to someecards.com for a couple of bookish e-cards with a dry twist.

A recent article in Publisher’s Weekly made reference to print books as “slow media”. Given the never-ending proliferation of technologies that facilitate constant and instantaneous communication, the term — and the article — intrigued me.

Slow media, as I understand it, is about appreciating the time that goes into producing and consuming a piece of information. It reminded me of the Slow Food movement, which touts the leisurely enjoyment of an organically grown and naturally prepared meal.

I decided to do some digging, and sure enough, I wasn’t the only one to draw parallels between slow media and slow food. Blogger Matt Shepherd wonders if anyone is actively forming a slow media movement to underscore the value of printed books and handwritten letters.

While Matt acknowledges that “fast media” has its place, this blogger from the Rocky Mountain News sees slow media as an either/or proposition. In his or her opinion, choosing slow media is a conscious rejection of fast media — because you’re tired of fast media, overwhelmed by it, or simply unconvinced of its usefulness. You choose slow media because your “inner Luddite” is screaming to be free.

I disagree. I don’t think one delivery has to be valued over the other. Each has its place, its benefits, and its pleasures. Perhaps books in the form that we know them aren’t doomed for the dustbin of history after all. We just need to acknowledge that both the tortoise AND the hare have their place in the world.

Doot-doo-doo-doooo! (that’s one of those old-timey announcement horn calls, just so you know)

Well, this is it…the official launch of First Issue, the new blog for trade non-fiction authors and self-publishers.

First Issue aims to clarify and simplify the steps involved in sharing your ideas with the world through a book. Publishing can seem like a bewildering endeavour—but we’ve been there, done that, so can share from our experience.

What can you expect here? Let’s lay it out.

The focus
Information, commentary, and advice covering all aspects of non-fiction book writing, publishing, and marketing. Tidbits on trends and developments in the publishing industry. News on what the “big guys” are doing and what that means for the “little guys.” A look at marketing innovations. An exploration of how books and related intellectual property can expand or enhance a business.

The niche
Trade non-fiction (books written for the layperson), especially on business topics.

The goal
Provide support and guidance to non-fiction authors, especially those navigating the publishing industry for the first time.

Who’s the blog writer?
I’m Jennifer, one of the principals at Highspot. In a nutshell, we help business owners turn their ideas into books. Believe it or not, despite years working as a writer and editor, this post marks my initiation into the world of blog writing. First Issue indeed. Yes, I’m a bit of a blog newb so feel free to provide pokes and guidance if I’m off course. Insightful comments, engaging debate, and constructive feedback are always welcome.

Find me at:
Email: blogger@highspotinc.com
Twitter: jennifertribe
Facebook: 623661635
LinkedIn: Jennifer Tribe