The Writing Center

From what I’m hearing, we’re less than two weeks away from the launch of the Sony Reader. While I doubt this launch will garner the same media attention of, say, a new Sony PlayStation, I might end up buying one.

Now, I know eBooks got off to a rough start a few years back. There was much hype about the death of paper, and Amazon was going to be doing all digital downloads. Needless to say, paper books are in no danger, and I don’t think the Sony Reader will be the death of them either. But, let’s face it, I’m getting old, and the type in these books keeps getting smaller. With the Sony Reader, you can increase type size up to 200% without any degradation of quality, which is my main motivation.

You can store up to 80 books, and the device claims a long battery life between charging. I travel a fair amount and would love to have something like this instead of all the books I lug around. The device also is good for PDF files, which I think could open up some interesting business publishing models.

Now, what kinds of books will you be able to view with this reader? The publishing industry, like the music industry, hasn’t exactly embraced the idea of digital downloads. John Wiley and Pearson have sued Google for simply making books searchable. So we can’t know what books will be available and what restrictions will be included. This alone will make or break the business model. However, if Sony has learned a thing or two from the iPod, hopefully it won’t be too restrictive with the rights.

Sony is setting up a ‘Connect’ store for eBook download, similar to the Apple iTunes store. I have to admit that I’d prefer it if Apple was launching a reader instead of Sony because Apple generally does a much better job in the usability department. But I’m excited nonetheless. The device isn’t cheap — $349 looks to be the retail price. But that price hasn’t exactly stopped the iPod from selling millions.

However, I think Sony’s real opportunity is going to be with the older folks, like me: People with disposable income and bad eyes. Leave the kids alone with their iPods; market the Readers to us.

People love a good story, whether it’s a book, a movie — or even a business. And it seems that lately the business world has taken a greater interest in the finer points of storytelling. According to Publishers Marketplace, HarperCollins just signed a deal with authors Richard Maxwell and Robert Dickman for a book tentatively titled PERSUASION: The Five Key Elements of Stories that Sell Products and Ideas, deconstructing storytelling into five major components (Passion, Hero, Antagonist, Action, and Transformation) in order to teach successful communication through narrative.

The nice thing about selling through storytelling is that you really have to think about what makes your story unique, interesting, and worth your reader’s time. Coming up with a good story may force you to rethink how you do business altogether, and that’s a good thing.

So what is your story? Seth Godin, in his book All Marketers Are Liars, says “Your goal should not (must not) be to create a story that is quick, involves no risks, and is without controversy. Boredom will not help you grow.”

The good news is that you don’t need to spend a million dollars on a fancy ad campaign to get your story out. Today, all you need is a Web site or a blog.

And a story.