NPL Publishing Consultants

I have been asked by more than a couple folks what exactly I read every day/week/month. I don’t think my reading list is vastly different or superior to anyone else’s who considers themselves well read… Let me give you just a brief partial list:

What you must read every week to be informed: The Economist. What Time & Newsweek want to be when they grow up. Don’t be put off by the name… this is the world’s preeminent weekly news magazine. Period. For example, a recent ‘focus story’ was on offshore finance… everyone else would give you a page or two… The Economist devoted fourteen pages of text covering the subject from six different story lines. And no, I don’t get a new bicycle if I get twenty people to subscribe. (Pick up an issue before telling me what’s better.)

From politics, to a very interesting outsider’s view of the US, to an insider’s view of the UK and Europe, to spot on reporting on finance (they lean a skoosh to conservative), science, books, name it. They are truly worth every dime of the roguhly hundred dollars a year you pay for the privilege.

What you must read every week to be informed, and take with a large grain of salt: Publisher’s Weekly. What everyone in the industry would like to count on as gospel, but the magazine’s biases make it difficult. In the absence of anything else, read it. Let me know what you’re reading instead of PW, please.

Lately, I have been railing about the fact that PW doesn’t offer much “reading” in their read. Anywhere from 12 to 16 pages of ‘news’ and that word is used so broadly, as to be equated with politesse, per issue… really folks, what’s the point any more? The same editorial staff now covers three magazines that used to cover one. How much could they possibly care?

I am fast becoming a fan of Book Business and Publishing Executive. I get weekly and semi weekly email pages full of articles, and actually stuff of interest to those of us who are responsible for paying for things like printing, and advertising, and employees. As I read more, I’ll report back… maybe we can all migrate from PW to something that makes sense.

What you should read if you’re a marketing type: Catalog Age, DM News, trade publications about informercials, retail trends, and demographics; and at least some of the weekly/monthly business magazines. INC has been consistently good. Forbes is ideologically bent in my direction, and for a big business magazine, is simple to read, and covers lots of mid size applicable stuff.

What you should read to understand what’s next: I read hundreds of online and print magazines, writers, blogs, article series, and informational white papers and demographics, statistics, and trends studies every month. Since I have this moniker of being a ‘futurist’, I have to in order to be 12-36 months ahead of everyone else. Of course, I read a magazine appropriately entitled The Futurist for longer term trends in the world around us. While I am loath to have already chosen the next Stanley Cup winner, (Detroit looks good), I have been spot on about a number of publishing issues over the last four years, and if you keep reading, you’ll know what’s coming in the next four.

Books… do I ever read a book? I do my best to read two to four books a month, above and beyond the half dozen or so books I read every week in my regular daily workload. Since I am about a 99.5% non fiction reader, much of what I read is business, self help related, or humor.

The last three books I have just finished:

Atlas Shrugged – while this is my eighth reading and might not qualify as a new book for me, it rings far truer fifty years after it was written than when it first came out. Can I urge everyone to read it without being labelled a libertarian? I have been called worse. While I have some philosophical issues with Objectivism, the economics and politics are so frighteningly accurate, it is required reading… and I am not the only one who thinks so.

The Long Tail – I think I recommended this last month. If I did, read it again. If I didn’t, this is the one book that will give you the future macro about the Internet. Now you’re doing 2% of sales on the net… in two years, 50%… in five years, 100%, minus your special sales bulk sales. Here’s the why and the global how. You still have to figure out how the how applies to you, but here’s a big piece of the roadmap.

The Four Hour Work Week – Yes, it apparently can be done, and I have made copious notes and will be synthesizing them over the rest fo the year to see exactly how to apply this author’s structure to my organization. I’ll keep you posted.

Be well til next time.