Archive for October, 2008
The big day is finally here–happy Halloween, everyone! Get in the spirit with one of the classic creepy books I added to my top-10 scariest BookList. Then in this week’s Question of the Week tell us what books you find or used to find really frightening and share your ideas for book-themed Halloween costumes.
Did you know that all Hallows’ Eve evolved from an ancient Gaelic harvest festival to the costumed candy harvest we know today? The Gaels believed that on Halloween night the boundary between the living and the dead dissolved, allowing dead souls to wreak havoc on earth. Mischief still reigns supreme on Halloween, and perhaps after all the trick-or-treaters and costume revelers have gone home, our own ghosts haunt us in the darkest hours of the night…(Be still, skeptical brain! Halloween’s more fun if you believe in ghosts, if only for a night.)
Here’s to a night of tricks, treats, and Sarah Palin costumes. Have a great holiday, everyone!
October 31st, 2008
Happy Monday! There’s a new DailyLit Question of the Week, and it’s ready for your responses. Here’s a hint: it has to do with this week’s holiday and BOOks. (See what I did there?)
If your mind is bubbling with ideas, jump to the forum and tell us what you think!
October 27th, 2008
Since we recently launched our Reader Survey for Free Books, we thought it would be the perfect time to reveal some of the highlights from our first Reader Survey (with commentary by yours truly).
Reading Habits
40% of you have read between 1 and 10 books in the last 12 months
25% read between 11 and 20
21% read between 21 and 50
12% read more than 50 books
And they say people don’t read anymore!
You Heart Digital Books
Many of you (47%) like digital books because they’re lightweight or easy to carry. Even more of you (60%) like them because they’re environmentally friendly. But the most popular thing about digital books? Low cost.
Where do you DailyLit?
While 76% of you read DailyLit at home, more than half of you read at the office—tsk, tsk! (But we won’t tell—especially on the 2% of you who read during meetings.) And, to the poor reader who wrote this: “Had done so at work till boss cut off internet access - boo!” Remember, if you have a Blackberry or iPhone you can still get your DailyLit. Vive la résistance!
And last but not least, some of our favorite comments from our lovely readers:
To the reader who said s/he reads “in bathroom while brushing teeth:”Is there an award for multi-tasking? You totally deserve a medal for simultaneously improving your literary knowledge and oral hygiene.
“I love Daily Lit. I also have something to read when I’m out and about because I can read off my phone. It annoys my boyfriend when we’re at dinner or something but I love it. :)” What can we say? We’re irresistible.
To the reader who said s/he reads “on the toilet:” Ew! Well, at least you’re not dirtying up a printed book, right?
“Love how I get a small installment everyday at lunch - the perfect companion to a sandwich!” DailyLit is the new mustard!
Thanks to everyone who filled out this survey. We loved your suggestions, ideas, and all the nice things you said about us. We can’t wait to hear from you again, so be sure to take our Reader Survey for Free Books!
October 21st, 2008
It’s Monday again, and that means it’s time for DailyLit’s Question of the Week. Last week we asked which literary hero/heroine you would be, and your responses ran the gamut–from Alice in Wonderland to Huckleberry Finn (with only one Elizabeth-Bennett-wanna-be! Maybe Mr. Darcy has lost his touch…).
But it’s a new week and a new question. So get your literary thinking caps ready, and jump to this week’s question.
October 20th, 2008
We’re excited to announce the launch of books from AMACOM–the American Management Association–on DailyLit. There are a wide range of titles available, from books on Looks and (big) Boys and their Toys to serious how-to guides for business professionals. Also available is A Class with Drucker, an intimate look at Peter Drucker and the ideas that have profoundly shaped management practices. Reinvigorate your work or your worldview by spending just a few minutes a day with one of these books–you’ll be glad you did.
Check out all of the AMACOM titles that have just launched on DailyLit:
October 15th, 2008
You know things are grim when Edgar Allan Poe is the man of the hour. The master of the macabre’s Masque of the Red Death graces the cover of The New Yorker this week, imagined by artist Robert Risko in “Red Death This Week” as an all-too-realistically-scary allegory for the chaos and death (of a sort) that has stalked the stock markets these past few weeks. If you don’t know the story (or Poe in general), I hate to tell you this, but the ending is not pretty.
If you prefer your Poe on the escapist side, instead of confronting our terrifying reality you can make your very own paper Poe. Yes, an artist named Brian Gubicza has made a pattern available free here (click on the blue words E.A. Coobie under the picture to download the PDF). Just print it out and fold it up–which might only work if you’re clever, since there are no directions. If you succeed (huzzah!), take a picture and send it to us support[at]dailylit[dot]com]!
In either case, DailyLit is here to help. We have lots of Poe, so you can hunker down at home and hide from the Red Death/recession. With your paper Poe for company!
Thanks to GalleyCat for the New Yorker cover and Jacket Copy for the foldable Poe.
October 14th, 2008
I’m very excited to say that we just posted our first ever DailyLit Question of the Week. Each Monday we’ll ask a new question, and we’re hoping that all of our readers will share their responses.
So, without further ado, let’s have a drumroll please (………….lame drumroll, I know) and jump to the question!
October 13th, 2008
The Lolcat phenomenon has emerged from the “intertubes” and spawned a real-life, dead-tree book. I Can Has Cheezburger? A Lolcat Colleckshun went on sale this week. It’s not the first blog-to-book leap, but it might be one of the most unlikely.
Only on the internet could a place with random photographs of cats–and the occasional walrus–with humorous and misspelled captions submitted by readers become something that literally thousands of people look at every day. It even lays claim to a language–Lolspeak, “the first language born of teh [sic] intertubes.”
It’s gotten me thinking about the Web 2.0 phenomenon–that is, the personalization of the internet through user-generated content. Although DailyLit’s content isn’t created by readers, our customizable reading schedules make reading very Web 2.0 indeed. What all this means for society–and for the future of reading–is a fascinating question that’s well worth pondering.
What say you, readers? Is the Lolcats book an extraordinary example of the creativity possible in an online world? Or is this it surest sign yet that the intertubes–I mean, internet–will spell destruction for traditional reading and books (and standardized spelling)?
October 9th, 2008
Our fourth tip is all about you: specifically, how you can customize your subscriptions on DailyLit. Lots of you asked about this on our new Reader Survey for Free Books, so we hope this helps. (And if you’re a DailyLit reader who hasn’t taken the survey yet, please do! It will help us give you more free books, which makes everybody happy.)
You can customize the frequency, time, and length of your installments, and you can do so in three different places.
You can customize your subscription:
1. In the Subscribe Box on the book page when you sign up for a book.
2. On the Subscription Confirmation Page, which you see after you click on the link in the email confirming your subscription.
3. On the Manage Your Subscriptions page, which you can access via the “Manage Your Subscriptions” link in any email or by logging in.
In addition to the adjustable delivery time, there are three frequency options that are visible in a drop down menu (Weekdays, Every Day, and Monday, Wednesday and Friday). If you click on the word “Advanced,” you’ll see the ability to fully customize delivery frequency and the length of your installments: normal, longer (twice as long as a regular installment), and longest (4 times as long).
See? When we say that our books come to you on your schedule, we really mean it.
If you’ve been following our tips series, you’ve already learned some cool tricks to make DailyLit easier and more fun to use. (Out of the loop? Tsk-tsk. Get caught up here with tips #1: Reading on your Blackberry, #2: Managing your DailyLit books in Outlook, and #3: Managing your DailyLit books in Gmail.)
Do you have a DailyLit tip? Email it to us at support[at]dailylit[dot]com.
October 8th, 2008
November is National Novel Writing Month, when writers all around the country try to crank out a novel of 50,000 words in just 30 days. It’s a pretty epic undertaking, and although I’ve never participated myself, I’m guessing that the finish line can seem prohibitively far away for many writers. Don’t be scared, though; as it is with so many unexpectedly fun things, NaNoWriMo is as much about the journey as the destination. And yes, I think clichés like that should be totally acceptable in the NaNoWriMo contest. Hey, 50,000 words is a lot! There’s no shame in fluff.
Up for it? For more (ahem) constructive preparation, we’ve just launched No Plot, No Problem! A Low Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days, which is the official NaNoWriMo handbook. Half of the book is designed to be read prior to November, and the other half offers day-by-day encouragement to take you through the month. Start reading today and you can set your reading schedule to match the event’s timing. Voilá! Instant NaNoWriMo coach. 
Go for it, readers! And don’t forget to stop and smell the roses along the way (another cliche=another 3 words towards the goal)!
Have you participated in NaNoWriMo before? Planning to this year? Tell us!
October 7th, 2008
