# Help a fellow scribbler get his degree!



## Dave Watson (May 8, 2013)

Okay folks, I'm in the junior honours year of my degree and am doing my dissertation on the effect of new technology on the publishing industry. I just wanted to put some feelers out to see if people on here would be interested in taking part in a survey about the subject, or if any working writers, agents, publishers or editors would be interested in being interviewed. 

My idea is to investigate the effects, good and bad, of e-books and the recent rise in the amount of self published work available through Amazon, Smashwords and the like. Does the advent of the Kindle and other e-readers make it easier or harder to become a writer? I know there's a huge debate about the whole quantity v's quality thing, and it's this I want to get people's feelings about. 

So, if anyone would be interested in taking part in the survey or doing an interview, thus helping spur me on my way to my degree and the fruitful productve career that will inevitably follow, let me know. 

Much obliged.

Dave


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## Cran (May 8, 2013)

As a semi-retired journalist, writer, editor, and wannabe publisher who started out when typesetting meant manually placing individual letter type blocks into print frames, I might be able to help. I can also introduce you to a couple of contacts who have active roles in aspects of your core question from the professional side.


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## Dave Watson (May 8, 2013)

Cran, you are a gentleman and a scholar. Thanks very much indeed, and I'll be in touch with you post haste.


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## Lewdog (May 8, 2013)

I think you should include the negative consequences that have befallen the newspaper industry and journalists.  Yahoo! recently had an article that journalist was one of the top five dying professions in the world.


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## Jason (Oct 31, 2013)

I would be glad to talk if my history fits your criteria.

After over a dozen rejections from publishers in 2000 I dropped my first book - only a few students got the Kinko's version of it.  In 2007 I self published both print paper and ebook versions (but not Kindle) of a spectacular financial failure. Now, some years later I am returning to writing with a three book nonfiction series in educaton.  I'll be publishing the first book shortly on Kindle.


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## Dave Watson (Nov 1, 2013)

Thanks Jason. I'll be putting a link to a wee survey type thing on this thread real soon.


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## Dave Watson (Nov 22, 2013)

Hello again folks. 

Righty, here's the link to the survey, which is less than 10 questions long and shouldn't take you longer than a couple of minutes. 

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/7VHZB26

Thanks in advance for all your lovely data! 

Dave


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## Divus (Nov 23, 2013)

OK Dave I double clicked on the link only to receive the page which says: " This page can't be linked to"                                                                                                         DV


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## Jason (Nov 23, 2013)

All seems well.  The link worked just fine for me.  I only single clicked it.  It took me to the survey (which I completed)  If I click it now, it takes me to survey completed page.


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## Cran (Nov 23, 2013)

Done. 

Although the survey is about technology and the creative process, the questions seem to be limited to only online use of own websites and the two large(st) social platforms. Two unmentioned paths from there are the changes in personal computing and recording technologies (PCs, laptops, smart phones, etc) and the emergence of online professional contact platforms (LinkedIn, etc) and sources of freelance or contract work (Seek, Elance, Odesk, etc), alongside the broadening of capability for self-publishing at low cost which has all but killed the traditional high cost hard press vanity publishing.


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