| While the world at large becomes increasingly | | | | vast. But with e-books there is no paper or ink, and it |
| concerned about a global shortage of energy and the | | | | is now possible to produce fantastic looking |
| availability of precious natural resources, the publishing | | | | publications of all sizes - from a few thousand words |
| world can look toward the green alternative of | | | | to a few dozen book chapters - by publishing them |
| electronic books, or e-books. Already many - if not | | | | and selling them as e-books, the more eco-friendly |
| most - of the major newspaper publishers have | | | | alternative to conventional printing processes. |
| found it both necessary and easier to shift their | | | | In fact many types of publications must be sold as |
| focus from offline ink and paper news to online | | | | e-books in order to gain the respect and business of |
| electronic news, and that appears to be the way of | | | | their readers, who are so conscious of the need to |
| the future for the whole publication business. | | | | reduce wholesale consumption of paper - and trees - |
| Already much of the energy behind book promotion | | | | that they only buy e-books. Amazon's newest |
| and sales has gone digital, and even conventional | | | | invention, the Kindle, is considered the iPod of |
| books are sold by digital means. The biggest book | | | | publication because it is a gigantic leap forward in |
| store on the planet is, after all, not a brick and | | | | terms of the e-book industry. Now people are buying |
| mortar establishment but an online merchant with | | | | one portable electronic device and using it for all of |
| virtual stores all over the world. Similarly, many of the | | | | their reading needs, from home to work and from |
| most prominent authors and publishers are turning to | | | | the sports page to the latest thriller novel. |
| e-books as a more convenient way to market the | | | | The key for writers and publishers in this new |
| written word. | | | | electronic medium and marketplace is, of course, to |
| Even those who specialize in the sales of paperback | | | | compete successfully by doing what it takes to |
| and hardback books use e-book promotions to | | | | properly advertise their e-books across the Internet. |
| further widespread the exposure of their e-books to | | | | No longer is it all about putting books on book stands |
| the global Internet marketplace which helps fuel | | | | in the front window of a book shop or displaying the |
| e-books sales far and wide. That kind of effort is | | | | spines and covers of books artistically on tables and |
| further evidence that publishing is going digital, and by | | | | shelves that line the aisles of stores. Now the sales |
| doing so is helping writers and readers "go green." | | | | are done on carefully designed and crafted web |
| Everyone knows that in order to publish pamphlets, | | | | pages, and marketing is all about showing off |
| reports, essays, booklets, books, or sets of books | | | | e-books on sites that know how to reach out and |
| that it is necessary to use paper that comes from | | | | attract "hits" or visits from potential customers who |
| wood pulp. But the number of trees and forests is | | | | rely on such sites as their new green-friendly |
| being rapidly depleted due to this kind of demand for | | | | bookstores. |
| more trees, and the environmental ramifications are | | | | |