Feeling Bookish

I’m simultaneously reading an eBook on the Nook (The Handmaid’s Tale) and a hardcover (Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk) and it’s proving to be pretty easy since the topics are so divergent.

I’m also thinking a lot about (if not actually doing) my own writing. I hope everyone can/will appreciate the increased blogging output as of late, but my Google Docs have also grown in number and measure.

If you’re curious what I’m up to – and I’ve been very coy – check out these two innovative approaches to the future of the book:

I’m no developer, I’m more of a hack(er), but I get excited when I think about extending some of the ideas on this blog, marrying them with my non-blogging past-times and dreaming up something new. It also doesn’t hurt to have spirited (albeit brief) conversations with folks at the forefront of eBooks.

Needless to say, I’ve done the whole novel writing thing and the flash fiction thing – and I like to revisit both concepts now & again, but this is something new.

If you’re curious about more thinking on the future of the book check out this video from the Social Books Panel (#sociabooks) at Social Media Week 2011.

You should probably also check out Jonathan Safran Foer’s Tree of Codes as well. Transformative found art, I’d guess you’d call it.

Happy Reading & Writing!

Nooked

Despite having received The Nook, Barnes & Noble’s eReader, for Christmas as a present, I still don’t actually have the device in my hot little hands yet. It’s on back order and won’t ship until February 1, so I’m stuck trolling the internet for news, reviews & gossip with maybe a brief stop by my local B&N to fondle the display unit.

Wait.
That sounds gross.
Strike that.

In any event, here are some links and sites I’ve found in my travels that I think will be useful for Nook folks specifically, but also for anyone interested in the nascent eReader segment, plus a few free ePub (eBook format) sites thrown in for good measure.

  • MobileRead
  • They’ve got a dedicated Nook forum, but this seems like a great site for eReader fans everywhere, regardless of device, eBook format or software.

  • nookTalk
  • Very similar to MobileRead – a blog w/ forums – but solely Nook-focused.

  • nookaholic
  • A blog about the Nook written by a NYC-area college student.

  • nookboards
  • Blog & forum.

  • nook-Look
  • Free wallpapers & screensavers to make your nook pretty.

  • Google Books
  • Legacy books & magazines in ePub format.

  • Project Gutenberg
  • The grandaddy of all free eBook resources. Great even if you don’t own an eReader.

I’m also a bit intrigued by the similarly Android-powered “Alex” eReader that was on display at CES (not that I went or had my hands on one).

And I’m sure my opinions will change once I get my Nook, but having played around with the Kindles of multiple in-laws (say that five times fast) I think I’m going to be happy with any eInk device.

Ok.
I’m done.
No more talk of any more e-anything words.
Too complicated.

Talk to you when I get my Nook (and likely do one of those douche-y unboxing videos & posts). Off to Goodreads now to mark some books as to-read.

Happy Friday!