The Floodgates are Open

It seems the 'digital issue' is dominating the publishing world these days, and why not - it's changed the face of publishing, printing, and even reading and writing.

In today's New York Times, an article "Digital Publishing Is Scrambling the Industry's Rules" references just this very issue and the ways in which it is now engaging both readers and writers, while making the publishing industry very nervous.

In a recent 'experiment' one author posted his manuscript online for review and commenting in-process, by site visitors. Another author drafted, edited, and made available for free his entire book online. 
In the second case, the need for a traditional publisher was eliminated completely, which is why "...hovering above the discussion of all these technologies is the fear that the publishing industry could be subject to the same upheaval that has plagued the music industry...

Leading the way, or at least trudging along with everyone else, into the next generation of books is The Institute for Future of the Book where development of fresh new reader/writer-software, online collaboration and editing of in-process books, and speculation on how to bring the book with us into the future has been going on for quite some time. 
Rather than fight against the inevitable process of progress, this group seeks to redefine the role of each key player in the publishing industry - and in particular they are including the reader.

If it is this trend of consumer interaction and participation that so worries the industry, perhaps a reevaluation of just who authors are penning for in the first place, is in order.