While I admit I’m not much of a techie, I do the basics such as texting (learned that maybe 5 years ago), emailing, viewing video presentations/lectures on my I pad etc. Heck, I even learned how to post some of my work on my blog and I try to do twitter a little, but then, I don’t really get the silly twitter – shmitter. Maybe now you will understand my shortcomings when it comes to marketing my novel and other writings.
Frankly, I love the smell of paper – the paper bound in a book whether new or old. When I open up a book and my nose sucks in the commanding scent of the paper filled with printed words, memories surge forward into consciousness, as does a certain excitement for the treasure the words may bring.
Those memories include writing and drawing on the dirty floor in kindergarten on large pieces of white poster paper, the musty smell of libraries and used book stores, and the august scent of the old pages of a classic novel such as East of Eden, Look Homeward Angel or For Whom the bell Tolls. The smell of the paper as well as the feel of the texture carrying the thoughtful ink brings me closer I believe, to what the author intended me to feel and experience.
Warning: If you’re bored already because there aren’t any pictures, please skim down to the end for the grande finale and the app.
And I like to hear the pages rustle as I turn them rather than the cold clicking of a button on an e – reader. Long ago, I perfected the art of dog –earing my favorite pages and underlining certain impressive passages.
No, this is not a fetish kind of thing. Clean up your mind if you’re thinking that way.
Sure, I understand the advantages of reading books on e – readers, computers, I pads and tablets – the convenience, the huge storage capacity – the coolness of it all when you’re reading your kindle on an airplane and trying to impress the commoners. I get it.
But, at least for now, I’ll stick with paper.
Please though, if you prefer electronic, buy my book on Kindle or Nook or whatever.
Because of the shortcomings of an e – reader, I invented an app that when you activate it on your electronic device of choice, it emanates a smell of the paper of your choice for your olfactory pleasure: Parchment, papyrus, classic, nouveau rich, and 56 others. The smell gives the e – reader that perfect ambiance of a respected library as you read, even if you are reading 50 Sharks of Prey.
No one will know. But you will know.
SRC