Yes! My Ears Can Read?

I have noticed that a big percent of people out there in our hub-world and else where make this following statements: "I am a writer and I want to publish a novel." "I just don't have time to read all the books that I want to."

Yet, that being said when they approached the publishing world they are bold over by the cost of the gauntlet that they must endure. There is an agents fee, who can only talk to the publisher, then if the publisher happens to like or had not filled his or her quota for that---year you might have a chance if you can afford all those hidden fees that are down the line. Sure it is exciting to get that book that you spent numerous hours on to maybe be seen in print.

I have found other avenues that you might like to explore or think about. There are pro's and con's to both side.

For several years I have "Self-Published" my own novels---Fiction--Non Fiction and that can be successful if you understand that you will spend most of your time marketing. This was something that I disliked for it is very time consuming and I just wanted to write that next novel that was whirling around in the back of my mind. Maybe for those that have that kind of patients it would be enjoyable?

Many say that they read books also for the fact that the like to sit and feel the flipping of page to page. Yet, here we sit writing an email and using a keyboard to type and reading the monitor. Yes, we are all creatures of habit and yes I too will always read and enjoy the Hubpages that we are all here doing at this moment.

All of us seem to have book shelf's and boxes of paper-back, hard-cover books, that we just hang on to after we have read them. No! I too can not throw a book away. Some can read a book several times and enjoy it---I only wish to read it once and then move on to the next exciting one. Oh! Yes we all say that we pass some of our books on to other people to read. Well, what about that author of that book that worked so diligently on every word in that book---remember it could have been you. Did you receive any monetary reward other that maybe someone might purchase you next book if they liked it.

• Book Store Returns:

Returns are the process which booksellers can return unsold stock to the publishers. Some have admitted that return rates have topped 50%, and the numbers have been rising for some time. This means that they are disposed of, usually pulped or simple placed in landfill.

• Trees Into Books:

According to the USDA Forest Service's Assessment, 20 million trees and an estimated 5 million acres of natural forest are logged annually to provide wood pulp for the writing and printing market. We are failing to recognize or accept that all systems on the planet are mutually related, alive and sacred.

• Digital Formats:

The term e-book is a contraction of "electronic book,"  An e-book is usually available through the Internet and can be down-loaded to different devices and read either at the computer or printed out or transferred to hand held readers.

I am a big fan of Audio Books.   I very seldom buy a paper book---for the following reasons:

•  Audio Books:

An audio book is simply a spoken reading of a book.  Usually, that of a regular book and recorded on to a medium such as CDs or cassetts.  This had made the door open for accessible to the blind or illiterate and on many occasions when reading is impractical or impossible, e.g., driving or commuting to and from far destinations, etc.

•  Formats:

Audio Books are usually distributed on CDs, cassete tapes, down-loadable digital formats (e.g. MP3, mp3)  Windows Media Auido (wma) and Audible (aa) and most recently, some preloaded digital formats.

I enjoy the feature of the bookmarking.  This allows a listener to pick up where the last listened.  Most MP3 players will bookmark.  The popularity of portable music players such as the iPod has made audio-books more accessible to people for portable listening.  Now the most popular titles are put on audio books by the publishers and or authors.

I am here to tell you that I have read books through audio that I would have never read with paper books.  I have also listened to audio's that I would have never picked up in the paper version, simply because of the time it would have consumed.  Many people complain that their eyes get tired and they then put the paper book down and many times never finishing it.

In audio you hear added sounds that make the story become more real.  (Mysteries, e.g. a door creaking when it opens.)  (a sudden sound of a phone ringing) etc.  This also makes your mind engage deeper for you are thinking about all those sounds and what they could mean only to you---each listener will see this play out differently.  Those that just sit in front of the TV and maybe watch this same book that has been turned into a movie---they don't have to think---(the TV does it for you), your brain is just sitting there in that dull state.

There is nothing that compares to seeing a young persons face light up when he or she is listening to a story and the sounds, (e.g. Harry Potter)  Once again their creative imagination is immediately connecting and the brain is stimulated.

Learning a language, now you can hear the correct pronunciation, plus the spelling of the word.

•  CD Recycling:

Let us remember that the plastic in CDs are non-biodegradable; dumping them in landfills adversely affects the soil.  There are many recycle services now that are free of charge.  They are processed and then reused in automobile and building materials.

I marvel and I am grateful for all the technology that has been placed at my finger-tips in all forms, for it has given me the opportunity to choose and learn new things.

YES MY EARS CAN READ!

•  Learn as though you would never be able to master it, hold it as though you would be in fear of losing it.---confucius