An Epiphany, Courtesy of Winnie The Pooh
Today I had an “ah ha” moment while reviewing a proposal from a prospective Wrox author. On the last page of the proposal I was confronted with the image you see on the right from AA Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh. An odd inclusion for a tech book proposal to be sure, but it was the accompanying quote that struck me.
“Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin. It is, as far as he knows, the only way of coming downstairs, but sometimes he feels that there really is another way, if only he could stop bumping for a moment and think of it.”
This may be my new favorite quote and although it can be applied to many situations it certainly reminds me of the current state of book publishing. Here we are being dragged down the stairs by business models, margins and revenue targets that are decades or even centuries old.
We must think about other ways we can create valuable content that meets reader needs and deliver it in new ways that readers want. We need to realize that there is a whole new way to deliver our messages to the readers. We must cast off restrictive mindsets and embrace the changes occurring around us.
And like poor Edward Bear, we need to stop bumping our heads long enough to realize there really is another way.
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