The second candycorn is in stores, I have to buy bags of it. It’s sort of like my obsession with Cadbury Eggs at Easter. I see it–and all willpower leaves me. I have to have it. So–two bags of it have disappeared in my house in only a week and a half. And this morning I’ve actually been thinking maybe I should go to the store to buy more before they stop selling it! Do you ever catch yourself having crazy conversations with yourself? Like trying to talk yourself into things–and then realizing that if you have to talk yourself into something, that’s YOU talking to YOU and it’s a little weird. Yeah, it happens to me all the time. Anyway, I love Halloween for the one reason that Candycorn is in stores. We never really celebrated Halloween when I was little. I think I remember trick-or-treating once (Jeff feels like this is a tragedy beyond measure). Anyway, I do know that I want Ashtyn to get to be excited about dressing up and trick-or-treating. I was thinking of taking her this year, then remembered she’s 14 months old and everyone would know that I would be eating the candy, not her. So I’ll wait till next year.
On to self-publishing! Everyone’s been talking about Mike Hyatt’s blog and the announcement that Thomas Nelson’s going to provide an avenue for writers to self-publish. So lots of people are excited, and lots of people think they’re crazy, and lots of people seem to be upset about it (who knows why? Is it really worth getting upset over?). Anyway, I’ve read a few blogs about it. Chip MacGregor has a good posting up (http://www.chipmacgregor.com/). We talked about it last week in our staff meeting and such. I checked out the Westbow website. Here’s what I think: I’ve said it before, publishing is evolving, like everything else. Will this new thing with Tommy Nelson result in scores of great books published? Of course not. Will they make money? Yes. Are they a business? Yes. (This is making sense to me so far.) Will a few good books be published that wouldn’t otherwise? Most likely. Will some awful books be published? Unfortunately. In the end, it’s really NOT the end. Of the world, that is. Or publishing. It’s just something new that Thomas Nelson is trying and I love that they’re being innovative and doing something that’s making everyone take notice.
So, don’t worry. This is not a sign that traditional publishing is over–or that publishers are going crazy or no longer care about quality. It’s just a reality that people are going to find new ways to get published. It’s okay. If you’re really bothered by it, I recommend candycorn. 
