Palibra - Like iTunes for Writers

Not long ago I got an email from an agent making me aware of Palibra. I was in the midst of completing and returning edits to my other agent, as well as juggling a host of other labor intensive projects, so I'd set the information aside.

Well, yesterday was the day I had that extra moment to explore Palibra and my hands got a little clammy with excitement once I did. As the founder, Edwardo Jackson, describes it, it is sort of like an iTunes for Writers, a place where writers can offer their short narratives (8,000 words or less) to readers for immediate download for less than a dollar. Just a penny less than a dollar at .99, but pennies do add up after while!

I was impressed with some of the names I saw that were already contributing. Writers I respect like Gloria Mallette, Karen Quinnoes, Lolita Fields and others. I signed on as a contributing author right then and offered a short work of fiction that speaks to the unspeakable issue of female castration entitled The Grabour Bush, along with another little inspirational piece, Sometime It's Only a Caboose. (Late update! Check out an excerpt from Tell It Like It Is as well!)

I think it is a great concept. It really offers writers the type of sounding board we all have long really needed, but, it also gives readers something tangible and tantalizing too! Palibra sounds like a win-win for everyone to me.

Instant Google

A couple of days ago I finished writing my article for my monthly contribution to Blogging in Black. Its posting date was a few days out, which was good, because I needed to learn the system there for posting in advance. I fiddled for a bit, got a little confused on the military time clock, but, with a little help from a fellow blogger, got it done. I felt like a proud little first grader when I finished, but I still needed to wait until the 4th day of the month to know for sure how well I'd done.

I woke up early this morning, the 4th, and rushed to my computer at the appointed time to pull up the site. My heart dropped. It wasn't there! Doggone it, I thought, I did something wrong. But, with a quick click of my refresh button I realized all it well. It was there, just as it was supposed to be!

While reading over my post, Birth of a Premise, an email notice popped up in the lower corner of my screen. I blinked. It was a Google Alert and it was alerting me to, that's right, the very article I was reading that had posted less than ten minutes or so before! Now that blew me away! Instant Google? Wow!

How things change... for the better!