Half the time I’m never certain what to believe anymore when it comes to e-book sales in a general sense, but according to the following article the rise in e-book sales seems to be 134% by 2012. This comes from the Publishers Association Yearbook, 2012.
Digital formats (encompassing ebooks, audiobooks downloads and online subscriptions) accounted for 12% of the total invoiced value of sales of books in 2012, with this share rising from 8% in 2011, and from 5% in 2010. Other notable statistics from the PA Yearbook 2012 include an increase of 4% for the home physical sales of children’s books, up to £233 million, while home physical sales of school books saw a rise of 6%, to £172 million. Total physical sales of fiction books have also grown, by 3% in 2012, leading to sales of £502 million. Physical and digital sales of fiction books combined have risen by 21% to £674 million, and digital sales of non-fiction/reference books have grown by 95% to £42 million.
With all this talk about the death of the American author, and how e-books are nothing more than a passing trend, you have to wonder what motivates some people to put anything in print. On the other hand, e-books seem to have this unusual effect on some people, where they sometimes feel the need to lay down and die for their beloved print books. For me it’s always been about the content, not the physical tangible item. There’s no way in hell I’d ever go back to reading print books.
You can read more here, where they get into what’s happening with digital sales in the UK.
Parents Support Libraries
According to a new study, 94% of parents want to see libraries stick around.
The report also highlighted how many lower income parents would be “very likely” to use library resources like “classes on how to download library e-books” (44 percent), “e-readers already loaded with library content” (40 percent), or a “digital media lab” (40 percent).
There’s more, here. I don’t even have kids and I would support anything library oriented. I used to live at the library, well after I’d graduated from college, too. I checked out some of the best books I’ve ever read, from all of Anne Rivers Siddens novels, to Anne Tyler’s. I do think that libraries need to change a little. I’d like to see them become more like community centers where people can gain access to books, media information, and use technical devices they may or may not have at home.
Magic Mike 2; Matt Bomer
According to this next article, there’s serious talk of a second version of the film, Magic Mike. This second installment will most likely be a prequel because Mike retired at the end of the first film. This is one of the things I love about doing a series of any kind. You get that freedom to make it up as you go along.
“We actually just had a meeting about it the other day. It’s getting pretty far along,” Soderbergh told Pride Source about the sequel. The new film will likely be written, once again, by Reid Carolin, with input from star Channing Tatum.
I didn’t see anything mentioned about Matt Bomer, though. For those who might not know, he was in the first film…check out photos here.
But I do find Channing Tatum very interesting. I’ve seen photos of him in various places that show him in different ways. And most of the time he’s not the thin god we all think he is. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing. He’s been more than attractive in every photo I’ve seen of him, with or without the extra weight. I just find it interesting that he has that ability, and that discipline, to sculpt his body in such a way that he can transform from one character to another. I’ve never been able to do that. And I’ve had to watch every single morsel of food I’ve put into my mouth to maintain a 32 inch waist all my life. One ice cream sundae and it’s all over for me. So I just stay away from anything like that…and run five miles a day.
Colorado Now Has Civil Unions
It’s not marriage, but I’m thrilled to see that Colorado legalized civil unions last night with a midnight ceremony.
The first gay couple granted a civil union in Colorado said their vows before hundreds of people early Wednesday morning at a downtown Denver municipal building where couples and members of the public gathered.
The new law legalizing civil unions took effect at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, and both Denver and Boulder began issuing licenses immediately.
Another step big forward for LGBT people, with a whole lot to go yet. Because as wonderful as this is for gay couples in Colorado on many levels, and I truly do mean that, it’s not going to help them in a federal level when it comes to things like inheritance taxes. This is something all gay couples need to discuss right now, at the moment, just in case something happens to either one of you.