But I think the point that “human behaviour at every level in society” is changing is the really important insight. People's thinking and expectations are changing and will want adjustments socially and politically before long…

Gutenberg.org has been surpassed by Google Books, Archive.org and others increasingly, though I have probably over a thousand books from there on my ereader. It's the overall digital changes brought on by the Internet and new publishing technologies merit the term Post-Gutenberg. When we human beings moved into a new stage of development and evolution, we need a handy new term to help understand what's going on. My vote is for the Post-Gutenberg Age–way past postmodernism now…

Your comments here inspired me to also look at your website, where I see you emphasize some related themes. Here, what I think is important in terms of the Literature Network and the End of the Print Age is your observation that it is “human behaviour at every level in society” that the new digital technologies are changing. It's true that many commentators get stuck on the hardware or gadget, i.e., here, the Kindle, yet it's the behavior that counts and is evolving all over the world, really, and it's not grandiose to say so, but a fact… The typical traditional publisher hasn't got much of a clue. We're just at the beginning of major change.

I do agree that the change is all about the democratization, decentralization, of who is in control. Not the old gatekeepers of public opinion, self-serving corporate entities, often, in the past, the librarian guilds and all their subservient reviewing journals, for instance. It's a scary new world for those people… but the excitement is out, one can feel on the Net, all over the world people are coming to realize that we have entered a New Age, the Post-Gutenberg Age is the term I prefer, though consensus is still evolving… way past postmodernism now.

For further details, see my Publishing in the Post-Gutenberg Age
http://www.fglaysher.com/Post_Gutenberg_Publish...

Frederick Glaysher
http://www.fglaysher.com

. . . Graphic novels often are

Oh yes, and Murky Depths has just issued its first paid for PDF, Issue #10, which features Mike Carey's writing competition. Just £2.

I agree with most of Epstein's overall perspective on the vast changes that are and will take place both in publishing and our culture. We can only speculate on many of them at this early stage. His limitations are those of a traditional publisher, yet he's one who has been central to developing the Espresso Book Machine which promises to go far beyond traditional publishing.

I'm puzzled by Epstein's comment that “fiction is almost never collaborative.” When was it ever? I can't think of a single book of fiction or poetry, of the first order, in any culture, that was “collaborative.” What would it be? Maybe some of the old early epics, Gilgamesh, as he alludes to, very rare. Even it, in the end, as known to us now, was the work of one great master. Otherwise, a contradiction in terms…

Despite that caveat, I think it's fair to say Epstein has his finger on the pulse of the Post-Gutenberg revolution more than most publishers, though I think he's vastly undervaluing ebooks, though it's understandable, since he's placed all his chips on the Espresso Book Machine. I admit I'm slightly biased in his favor since I have three books available through the Espresso Book Machine.

In response to Epstein's article, one blogger has interestingly observed, “Physical books are the author’s equivalent of musician’s concerts.” I think writers and publishers ought to reflect deeply on that possibility. It may also be paper books prove to be the equivalent of “vinyl.”

eBooks will definitely take over much of the market-share of the Espresso Book Machine, POD, and traditional publishing. eBooks solve all the printing and distribution problems of publishing. Most importantly, eBooks solve all the problems confronting the writer and the reader. I'm not interested in solving problems for the mega-corporate publishers; they are the problem. The sooner writers and readers largely get rid of them the better. The Digital Age makes that possible.

I read Epstein's article on my Sony Reader… I'm currently working on putting all my books into ePub and other ebook formats.

My own attempts to understand these transformations, as both a writer and publisher, can be found on my website, if interested:

Publishing in the Post-Gutenberg Age
http://www.fglaysher.com/Post_Gutenberg_Publish...

Frederick Glaysher
http://www.fglaysher.com

The only way for business (and the rest) to survive is to recognise the loss of power to shape, to accept it, and to adapt from top to bottom. That's hard for big corporations which are inflexible or slow-moving. Specifically to publishing, this could be a massive opportunity for publishers if they can adapt rapidly, and essentially stop working in the way they always have. They need to recognise that the big challenge of the 21st century is not to get books in shops, but to be heard. As more people buy digitally, finding the right product in the tsunami of information and chatter will be difficult. If publishers shift most of their resources to marketing, they can then offer a unique and powerful service that makes them relevant – a big island in the middle of the ocean where drowning readers can swim for safety.