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National Libraries Day

Thu 2 Feb 2012

It's National Libraries Day on Saturday: see http://nationallibrariesday.org.uk/. It's a shame that at a time when many libraries (almost 600) are in danger of closing, it hasn't received more publicity in the mainstream media.

As those of you who read my blogs regularly will know, I feel very passionate about libraries and about books. One of the most special (and quiet!) times I have with my children is at the end of the day when we snuggle up and read. Any stresses and strains are suspended in that short time when we're lost in whatever book we're reading together. Bliss! 

A recent article in The Guardian highlighted that four million children in the UK don't own a book, as many as one in six adults have trouble reading, and illiteracy is thought to cost our economy up to £81bn a year (see http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/feb/01/dan-jarvis-library-closures for the full article). These kinds of statistics do make you wonder why the powers that be keep devolving responsibility for library closures. On the face of it, libraries might appear to be low priority, but their neglect will surely have a huge impact on society and communities in the decades to come.

It's not all doom and gloom for libraries at the moment though. On 23 January, a new library opened in Hackney, apparently one of the biggest in the UK, and another 'super library' has opened at Canada Water: http://londonist.com/2012/01/new-libraries-for-dalston-and-deptford.php?showpage=2#gallery-1.

Does this mean that libraries are set to get 'bigger and better'? Are 'super libraries' (as supermarkets before them) the 'way forward'? I feel positively about any new libraries being built, but are we missing the point of what a library should be in a community? Or is change of this kind inevitable - and ultimately a good thing? 

Happy National Libraries Day for Saturday!

All good wishes,

Tracey

Award and reward

Fri 13 Jan 2012

Wow - what an exciting few days it has been for Passion for Publishing!

The main focus of my week has been BETT - an annual exhibition, in London, which showcases technology in education.

It was a great honour to be invited by Rising Stars to the BETT Awards dinner, and the Park Lane Hilton was an amazing venue. As you may know from earlier blogs, I was there to see if Switched on ICT (KS2) had won an award in the Innovation in ICT category. It was disappointing for us not to win, but there's always next year! You can see who won in each category and photos from the evening at www.bettawards.com/home.

I had a great day at the BETT exhibition yesterday. One of the highlights for me was talking to teachers about Switched on ICT - how useful they are finding the KS2 product, how they are looking forward to working with the KS1 material (KS1 was launched yesterday at BETT), and how it is making a real difference to children. 

A group of Year 4 to Year 6 children from a local school talked about projects they had completed using Switched on ICT, and why they enjoyed using it. I don't often get to see the 'benefits' of the products/books that I work on. For those of us who had worked closely on the project, listening to them was a lovely moment. There is nothing like seeing that all the hard work behind the scenes does make a difference.

Much as I love London and its energy, I'm looking forward to a slightly quieter weekend to recover from all the excitement!

With all good wishes,

Tracey

A year to remember

Tue 13 Dec 2011

It's been a busy and exciting few months for Passion for Publishing, professionally and personally.

I've worked with fantastic clients on educational products that I am passionate about. One of these products (Switched on ICT) has been shortlisted for a BETT award (Innovation in ICT category) and I'm honoured and excited to have been invited to the awards dinner in January: see www.bettawards.com/328625.

I have made some lovely friends through The Society for Editors and Proofreaders (www.sfep.org.uk/) and been involved in a couple of interesting voluntary working groups with them this year. The Society of Young Publishers has recently set up a Northern and Midlands group (www.thesyp.org.uk/). It's really positive to see publishing 'up North' getting some exposure.

On a personal level, completing a marathon (and an off-road one!) was my biggest challenge of the year. Apart from the physical training, it tested me mentally in much the same way as my work can - the need to have a 'can do' attitude, stamina, determination - and passion! On a rainy, cold, windy day in Kielder, Northumberland, the moment of realisation that I was actually going to make it across the finish line is one I will never forget. I never got to the stage of feeling I was going to 'give up' and not finish, but on those days when deadlines seem impossible, or a new work project feels intimidating, I remember that '18-mile feeling' and know that somehow I'll get through it!

Here's to a happy and healthy 2012 - and remembering all those who will be missing loved ones this Christmas.

With all good wishes

Tracey

The times they are a-changin'

Tue 26 Jul 2011

After a very restful and relaxing break, I've been catching up with work emails and articles over the last couple of days.

One of the articles that resonated with me was related to self publishing: http://publishingperspectives.com/2011/07/self-publishing-too-easy/, and it threw up three main issues:

1. The changing relationship between author and reader (which Bob Mayer discusses in the link provided within the article)

2. The changing face of publishing generally

3. Quality - do lower prices make 'readers more tolerant of less-than-perfect prose'?

I don't have the definitive 'answers' to any of these questions. I'm not sure who does at the moment, as publishing is changing so quickly! I do get the odd enquiry from people who want to self publish, but it isn't something I've had a lot of involvement with to date. Clearly, it is a growing market.

What I do know about, and pride myself on, is developing and producing quality products for my clients. The recent well-publicised article on the BBC website, 'Spelling mistakes "cost millions" in lost online sales' (see www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-14130854) suggests that quality is still important to customers and that grammatical errors and spelling mistakes do affect people's 'faith' in a product. Would people 'forgive' an author/publisher if a book was riddled with errors but they had only bought it for 99p or equivalent? I'm not so sure.

For me, what's missing from the article on self publishing is explicit discussion about the importance of the relationship betwen author and editor. An editor does so much more than correct grammatical errors. He or she can also often be responsible for transforming 'raw' ideas into plain English, suggesting clearer ways to structure ideas, and developing content alongside the author.

Is the relationship between author and editor also changing? It's changed significantly for me over the last five years:

• I don't 'talk' to authors as much as I used to - either because they are overworked teachers who are writing at their PCs late at night and cannot commit to a specific time to catch up; because of their preference to use email (which can be easily done on the move via mobile phone); or because of geographical challenges. I have spent evenings at the PC talking to an author because that is their only available time slot to chat! I miss that opportunity to speak more on the telephone and face to face because I think communication in this way enhances quality. I recently had a face-to-face meeting with a group of people I'll be working with in October and I know it will make a difference to have had that initial contact once we start working 'virtually' together.
• Publishing schedules are being squeezed more and more. Authors are under pressure to produce content more quickly. Editors and project managers are often then left to unpick content that doesn't fully fit a brief and to squeeze a demanding schedule even further due to unrealistic demands on writers.

Should editors and proofreaders accept that quality is going to be compromised to some extent due to the increasing speed of the publishing process, and therefore increasing demands on them? Clearly, compromising on quality is anathema to my business and what it stands for, but am I being unrealistic in this changing world of publishing?    

Have a good week,

Tracey

Working and running

Thu 7 Jul 2011

It's nearly the end of Week 3 (of 16) of the marathon training. The Halifax hills aren't getting any easier on the legs yet, but it is an experience I'm enjoying - so far!

I'm a bit worried about how I'm going to fit my training in over the next couple of weeks as we're on holiday. This got me thinking about some of the parallels between being a sole trader working in publishing, and training for something like a marathon:

• No work, no pay - no running: no increase in fitness.
• Self-motivation: the big project I'm working on is nearing its final deadline and I need to keep my energy and passion for the work going - I need to keep on following the training plan, come rain or shine.
• Positive thinking: there is a huge amount to do to complete my current project and timescales are very tight, but we will get there - take each day of the training at a time and we'll finish the course...
• Although I mainly work from home, I am lucky enough to be in touch with a lovely bunch of like-minded people from the Society for Editors and Proofreaders (http://www.sfep.org.uk/) - although I mainly run alone, I've met a great group of people at the local running club, who are inspiring and motivating.

A couple of people recently have said that it won't do me any harm to have a week or so off from the running - I guess, as with work, sometimes having a break can be a positive thing. So the trainers and running gear are staying at home during the first week of hols, as is the pile of proofs that is currently staring at me!

I'll be back online in a couple of weeks.

With best wishes

Tracey

PS: Thank you to everyone who has donated to Cancer Research so far. We have raised over £200, which is fantastic - thank you! If you are able to spare anything, please visit http://www.justgiving.com/Tracey-Cowell3. Many thanks in advance.