Off Topic: To self-publish or not to self-publish

To read or not to read - that is the question.

I pick read. I think it's better to share you work than to not share it, regardless of the means of that sharing. This is why I'm a strong believer in self-publishing. Why not give people the option of reading your work - even if it's just your aunts and uncles who buy it. I think to have a book that you can hold in your hand and say, "I wrote this" is special, even if a publisher didn't think so.

This brings me to the question: electronic publishing or hard copy publishing? Maybe this makes me sound old but I love real books with real pages. I'm not intrested in reading a book on any type of hand-held device. I know they're smaller and lighter but they're a lot more expensive too. Imagine being on a beach in Mexico and reading a book on your iPad. Yuck! What do you do if you want to go for a swim? That thing will be gone in a flash. No one's going to steal a $12 paperback. And if they do, it's not the end of the world.

Call me crazy but I also love cover art. It's probably the main thing that attracts me to reading the back cover. (I'm sure I'm not alone in this. Don't judge.) You can't beat going into a real bookstore and browsing the shelves for your next great read.

One thing that would be interesting to see Julie Wilson do is observe what people read in airports. I'm a sucker for buying books at the airport because it's like they sort through the book store for you and just carry a small selection for you to pick from. Some of my best reads were purchased at little airport convenience stores. The departure lounge is the best place to read a novel.