Comments on: Macmillan Blogs…And The Heavy Lifting Begins

By: If You Could Talk to Publishers, What Would You Say? | Dear Author: Romance Novel Reviews, Industry News, and Commentary

Sun, 07 Mar 2010 10:02:12 +0000

[...] I left asking for clarification. Ami Grecko, formerly of Tor and now with Adaptive Blue (GetGlue) says that the time for heavy lifting for Macmillan and other publishers begin. But we can start the [...]

By: Ami Greko

Ami Greko — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 23:56:31 +0000

@Ryan I would also recommend the WordPress plug-in that allows readers to rank people on ‘Hot or Not’ in the sidebar.

@Kassia, @Evan, @JC I’m excited to see where this goes. It’s nice to know there are others along for the ride with me!

By: Kassia Krozser

Kassia Krozser — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 22:26:46 +0000

I am very much appreciative of John Sargent’s stepping into the world of social media (blogging=gateway drug) and that he responded directly to comments. It’s not easy to face your critics directly, but this is exactly the kind of conversation I (and so many others) have wanted for so long.

I also understand the very real challenges of CEOs blogging, from time, to content, to time (and, oh yeah, the lawyers). Time is going to be the tough one. He might want to empower someone to handle the day-to-day responses, stepping in when it makes sense. I doubt anyone would fault him for not being an active participant on the blog (I mean, if he were, I’d be supremely impressed).

And yeah, you get the usual suspects, but you also get the people who really want answers and clarity. The former have good points mixed in with the, uh, crankiness, and the latter really are seeking information. It is in short supply.

(And it is a great design. If you happen to see the genius behind that lovely look, give up a fist bump from me.)

By: Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 22:20:25 +0000

I keep suggesting animated cat gifs, but no takers.

By: Evan Schnittman

Evan Schnittman — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 20:10:19 +0000

Cheers to John for venturing into this terrain fraught with peril. His former Macmillan colleague Richard Charkin led the way inspiring many of us to follow suit (I dont pretend to have the knowledge, scope, or importance of either)

But this is a tough road to hoe. Coherent, meaningful, helpful commentary amidst the shifting sands of change is very hard to pull off, much more so if you are the boss!

Kudos to John for trying… and after looking at the comments, I wonder if he is regretting the decision!

By: J.C. Hutchins

J.C. Hutchins — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 14:52:33 +0000

I was equally thrilled to see Sargent take a progressive and transparent (as much as he can be) approach to educating creators and consumers on the shifting trends in publishing. In light of the recent Amazon/Macmillan standoff, Macmillan is uniquely positioned to lead the discussion about the promise and potential pitfalls of the evolving marketplace.