Welcome to my world and beyond...

A collection of snippets of the books I write and, occasionally, my life and the things that inspire my writing...

Wednesday, April 2, 2014

A to Z: B is for books

Books...  Humans have a long history of creating them. In days before the printing press was invented, books were copied by hand. The majority of people were illiterate, so most of the time, the profession of copying books fell into the hands of clergy members.



As you can well imagine, it was a slow--and expensive process to create a book. The most often copied book was the Bible. And every well-to-do home that could afford literacy  and a book, had a Bible.

Although there were ways to print before the early 1400s, it was the Gutenberg press that precipitated the greatest change in book production.  (The current "Gutenberg Project" to scan out-of-copyright books into free ebooks is named after this press.) The price of books fell, and with the raised availability of books,many more people had them--especially the Bible in their homes. In remote areas (such as newly settled areas in the New World) the Bible often served as the book for teaching children how to read.

Now, here we are at the advent of another major change in  how books are produced. Ebooks, and POD are changing the face of publishing. Another post will delve into that, though.

Do you feel the shift in book production? Do you have any old books that you treasure, any antique books?

Visit other April Blogging from A to Z Challenge by clicking here.

This WIKI article on "Books" is a pretty interesting read--for when you have time. ;-)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book

10 comments:

  1. I find it fascinating how books have reflected cultural and technological shifts and changes. When we moved to Guatemala, we had to get rid of our print books and update our Kindles. As a result, I'm not reading as much because I prefer reading books in print but still it's nice to have the option of an ereader.

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    1. Good observation, Karen. The reading media does change with culture and technology. And a new wave is upon us. I wonder about archiving digital files. Where will the library be? :-) Thanks for visiting!

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  2. Although I am not a vast reader, but the shift in the book production is pretty evident. I wonder how much time writing a book must have consumed earlier. It was great to look back in time and realize that we have come a long way...

    Good luck for rest of the letters :)
    Garima
    www.garima82.wodpress.com

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    1. It would have taken a long time for a book like the Bible. :-) Thanks for visiting. :-)

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  3. Not antiques, but I do have a large hardcover book collection spanning 40 years. I just LOVE the look of books on shelves. Sadly, am running out of space, LOL The whole ebook craze doesn't thrill me at all, but, you can't fight "progress", plus the cost of hard copies has gotten ridiculous. Still, nothing beats the feel and rustle of the page between your fingers.
    The Doglady's Den

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    1. So true, Debbie. I have a few antique books. I saved them from a dumpster over a decade ago. Shocking that they were being tossed. Wish I could have saved them all.

      I have become a fan of ebooks--which comes as a surprise to even me. I know operate on this method. If an ebook deeply resonates with me, I'll buy a hard copy and try my darnedest to get it autographed. :-)

      Bravo on your 40+year collection. They are like old friends setting on the book shelves. :-)

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  4. Probably the oldest book I have is a Madelaine book I read and read as a child - with my lovely drawings too! Yes we must get rid of some books - we have too many I can't imagine writing without a computer so I really can't imagine writing a book by hand

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  5. Yes, I know what you mean. I occasionally jot down longhand notes when an idea grabs me but I'm not on the computer. Time consuming. :-) Thanks for the visit, Susan. ;-)

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  6. The first version of Return of the Crown was written by hand. I liked writing it that way...but that was awhile ago. I generally use the computer now : )

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    1. Did you save a handwritten copy, Millie? I think it would be a neat thing to have--to show your grandchildren someday. You know, after you've given them autographed copies of your series. :-)

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