The following authors will be signing at the Information Today, Inc. booth [#4525] on Saturday July 11 from 1:00 — 2:00 p.m.
Tasha Squires, author of Library Partnerships: Making Connections Between School and Public Libraries
Pop culture mavens Sophie Brookover and Elizabeth Burns, authors of Pop Goes the Library: Using Pop Culture to Connect With Your Whole Community
They. All. Rock! Come on by 
.
It’s been an honor and a privilege to work with a number of ITI authors, but I was never so intimidated as when editing Kathy Dempsey’s The Accidental Library Marketer — given that she edited some of my own earliest work over at Computers in Libraries magazine. Be that as it may, her due-out-any-day-now book, quite simply, rocks. Get it. Now. In tough economic times her succinct and down-to-earth advice is more important than ever.
Also, if you’re headed to ALA next weekend, be sure to stop by Kathy’s book signing at the annual Swap & Shop on Sunday July 12. Swap & Shop runs from 11-1:30 in the special events area in the exhibit hall — so you can go even if, like me, you’re only springing for the exhibits pass! And check out her new site at LibrariesAreEssential.com — the URL sums it up right there.
If you’re going to be attending the CIL conference next month, and you want to take the opportunity to talk book ideas, drop me a line! (If you missed it, I’m a consulting editor for ITI books — meaning I find people to write for them.)
Sometimes it’s just easier to hash things out in person, or when you begin to bounce ideas off of someone. I’ll even buy you coffee or something .
Brian Mathews just pointed me to COVER ART CONTROVERSY at his blog — note anything interesting here?
Fun with stock photos!
Always wanted to buy one of my books but been shocked at the cost of trade publications? ITI is currently running a holiday sale — 40% off all in stock items when you order online. Check it out.
If you already have the whole set or just don’t want to hear from me, then check out some of the other recent titles like David Lee King’s Designing the Digital Experience (sale price $14.97!), Pam MacKellar’s The Accidental Librarian ($17.70), or Virtual Worlds, Real Libraries ($23.70). (Sale prices show up when you add to your cart.)
The best thing about my editing gig with ITI is the chance to work with people writing about such interesting things. Talk about professional development! I told you about The Accidental Librarian earlier today, so I thought I’d also talk about two other fascinating titles coming out this month.
You probably know about David Lee King by now, but did you know about his new book: Designing the Digital Experience? David’s writing is amazingly clear and readable, and here he walks readers through the concept of “digital experience design,” going beyond usability to focus on all aspects of a customer’s digital experience. If you design for the web, you might want to invest in a copy for yourself as well as one for your library .
Want more? Read chapter 1 over on David’s blog, or an excerpt from the foreword over on David Armano’s blog.
And, speaking of digital experiences….
If you’ve been baffled by the ongoing hype around Second Life and other virtual worlds, or if you’re fascinated by what libraries can do there, here’s one for you:
In Virtual Worlds, Real Libraries, Lori Bell and Rhonda Trueman pull together a variety of contributors, each of whom is working on a different, yet fascinating, virtual world project. This is especially useful if you’ve been skeptical about the potential of virtual worlds, or confused about what goes on there — and fun to read about others’ projects, if you’re already a veteran.
Enjoy!
A recent comment on the old-in-Internet-years “If it quacks like a librarian…” post reminded me that I meant to tell you all about this upcoming-any-day-now book from Pamela H. MacKellar that I had the privilege to edit for ITI. As our fantabulous marketing copy notes:
Are you doing the job of a librarian without the advantage of a library degree or professional experience? Do you wonder what you might have missed in formal library education, how highly trained librarians stay on top of their game, or what skills and qualities library directors look for? Have we got the book for you!
Pam did a great job — So, if you’re quacking with the rest of us, check out The Accidental Librarian!
… in Monterey next month? I am, so, if you’d like to meet up, grab lunch, talk over a book idea, or just talk, drop me a line. One of the main reasons I go to these ITI conferences is to meet potential new authors. Sometimes it’s a lot easier to kick around ideas in person, so don’t be shy about taking the chance to chat if you’ve had one in the back of your mind. (Plus, they have really good food there!)
What’s the logical next step for Pop goes the Library, the blog?
A. Pop Goes the Library, the book!
B. Pop Goes the Library, the book blog!
C. Pop Goes the Library, the Flickr pool!
D. Pop Goes the Library, the wiki!
E. Pop Goes the Library, on Twitter!
…You’ve probably figured it out, but here’s the deal: Sophie Brookover and Liz Burns have written a most awesome book, and I’m so pleased to have had the privilege of working with them on it! It’s releasing August 11, so reserve your copy now .
Going to the Computers in Libraries conference this April? I am. And, if you’d like to meet up, chat about book ideas, or ask questions about the publishing process at ITI, this is a good time to do it. Drop me a note at rgordon@infotoday.com — and I hope to see you there!
