always fun to look back at what's happening in emerging technology and entertainment. Here's an oldie but goody article about this blogger Joyce Schwarz back in 2002 at the time of the publication of her 400 page book CUTTING THE CORD: Guide to Going Wireless, Pearson Publishing.
This article appeared in CYBERPRO in 2002: it was written by new media author Chaz Austin.
Q: Tell us about your book. And when is it available?
A.The title of my book is "Cutting the Cord: A Wireless Consumer Guide," publisher is Que/Pearson (formerly MacMillan). It is available now on Amazon.com and BN.com (Barnes & Noble's site) and will be hitting bookstores such as Barnes & Noble in early July. The price is US $24.95, discounted on both Amazon.com and BN.com. It's also featured on TechTV.com and of course, the publisher's site.
Q: Since a good percentage of my audience is writers, tell us how you got the deal. How long did it take? What were the steps? Why are you uniquely qualified to write about wireless?
A: I set out to sell another book called "Between You & Me: How Instant Messaging and Text Messaging Are Changing Communication." I'm fascinated by IM and know Yossi Vardi from ICQ, one of its creators, and think the whole realm of Peer 2 Peer communication is fascinating, ranging from music sharing to movie sharing to message sharing. Obviously they all have privacy and possible piracy issues, which is another story.
Anyway, my agent didn't get a strong bite for THAT book; I think it was just too early. Now the experts are doing conferences on Multimedia Messaging (including pictures/avatars, etc.), but that was about 18 months ago. Meanwhile, the subject of Wireless was HOT, and since my proposal focused on Wireless too, it was getting input from editors like, "Why doesn't she do something about wireless? She seems to know the 'space' so well," etc.
So I was at Comdex, the major computer show, and I met Angela Ward, the Acquisitions Editor for Que Publishing, at a reception. She was promoting one of her author's newer books, then called "MP3 Underground," so I pitched her on the spot for my book. She said she'd look at the proposal right away. My agent was speedy and got it right up to her.
She called back and asked if I'd be willing to write another book for them first, a wireless guide. I decided to go with it because a) it was a viable subject, and b) we were able to hook it up with the Tech TV (the national cable network owned by investor Paul Allen's Vulcan Ventures) and I thought it would be a great 'in' to other, bigger opportunities. The deal was done quickly. In less than 45 days I had a contract and an agreed upon advance (low five figures) and then my first of three checks.
Q: Tell us about the process of writing the book. How long did it take to write it? to research it?
A: Process of writing the book??? Wellllll this was one of the first books in a new series and there was this new TEMPLATE format they wanted me to use. It didn't work with Word 2000 software, they wanted screengrabs, etc., and then there were some editor changes on Que's part (illness, maternity leave - theirs, not mine), etc. So let's say it was challenging in the formatting area. I couldn't just stick in some script formatting software and zoom ahead. It reminded me of the old days of hand-formatting a script, but much more complicated since I had to practically desktop publish the thing myself.
Q: How was the process of writing this book different from the others you've written? What were the unique challenges you faced this time?
A: The subject was like chasing a moving train! When I first started writing, no one in the industry was talking about Wi-Fi (802.11b) or Text messaging or Telematics (navigation systems in vehicles). By August 2001 (2/3 of the way into the 432 page book) the wireless world and technology started to shape up to be real, not "Blue Sky.
" By August 30 the book was almost complete and I was getting back editor comments (from four different editors, by the way). AND THEN CAME 9/11! I saw the effect that wireless - text messaging and cell phones - was having on the tragedy and how important they were for safety, communication and more. I told the publisher I wanted back the chapters on Safety, Privacy/Security & Future Workplace and I rewrote them to reflect the emergence of wireless as a crucial communication vehicle.
By then it became clear the book was not about technology and gadgets and gizmos, but about the next generation of communication leading not to pervasive computing (as many experts say), but to pervasive communication in an "always-on" world. If you haven't seen "Minority Report," GO. You'll get the concept immediately: interactive, location based advertising; ear-piece phones, personalized promotions, ubiquitous product placement, embedded chips in cereal boxes to make the pictures move and talk, and more. Science fiction is very fast becoming science fact.
So you could say after 9/11 I got my voice for the book and it was then more like painting scenes of the future for the various vertical chapters, i.e. - the Wireless Workplace, Home Sweet Wireless Home, Connecting on the Go, etc.
What became VERY clear was that the crucial theme was not more disparate devices but the "unleashing of the screens" from computers and televisions to handhelds and wall-mounted displays and more. The impact suddenly became almost overwhelming; "Screenagers" (those who grew up with Sesame Street and MTV) suddenly doing everything via screen or on-screen. Which of course has amazing implications for privacy, but also fabulous opportunities for screenwriters!
to be continued -- reprinted from CyberPro, 2002 in Hollywood2020.blogs.com, www.hollywood2020.net
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