A SKYPE IDEA

According to the latest bulletin of the Authors Guild, the computer phone SKYPE is the gadget du jour for publicizing books.  Needing just a computer, an internet phone, a webcam (which is probably standard on your reasonably new laptop) and a SKYPE account, the mostly free service is widely used by families to keep in touch.  It is also very useful for phone conferences, adding that invaluable element of visual communication.

Publishers have suddenly discovered that they like it as a promotion tool, because it is a lot cheaper than sending authors on tour.  The authors themselves find it is a little strange to invite the world into their living rooms to talk about their books. On the other hand, Andrew Clements (Extra Credit) finds it is an easy way to make contact with the public, yet keep plenty of time for writing, while Brian O'Dea (High) says that it means an author can keep control of the promotion of his or her book.

It sounds very promising as a way to avoid all those wasteful hours on the road, though there is something about face-to-face with current and potential readers that considerably enlivens the writing life.  And how does one promote an author-reader SKYPE session?  It would be interesting to find out.