According to a New York Times article, on Tuesday, Penguin Group (publisher of such notables as Tom Clancy and Nora Robers) will unveil Book Country, a website for writers of genre fiction.
“In its initial phase Book Country will allow writers to post their own work — whether it’s an opening chapter or a full manuscript — and receive critiques from other users, who can comment on points like character development, pacing and dialogue.”
Sounds pretty cool so far, however, here’s the kicker: Later this summer the site will generate revenue by allowing users to self-publish their books for a fee. The books will bear the stamp of Book Country, not Penguin.
The project is spearheaded by Molly Barton, the director of business development for Penguin and the president of Book Country.
So, what we have here is a very clever way for Penguin to raise income by enabling authors to self-publish stuff Penguin is not interested in publishing. Got to admire that bit of business ingenuity.
I'm still a bit surprised to find myself administrator of a community that dwells in the sensual and the erotic. Who would have thought all those dirty books residing under my bed would lead to this? I have to say it is wonderfully liberating to realize the only dirty things under my bed are the dust bunnies; that my passion for things erotic is simply a healthy interest in sexuality. There's nothing quite like a community of like-minded people to light the way.
I graduated from University with a degree in anthropology and live with my professor husband. However, the New Yorker in me is still alive and kicking. We have three kids: a professor, a financier, and instructional designer. Things are more comfortable now that they don't have to answer the classic elementary school question, "What does your mommy do?"
In 1996, with the help and encouragement of several women, I founded the Erotica Readers & Writers Association. It's a continuing pleasure to mingle with the passionate souls of ERWA.
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