CHAPEL HILL

How are bookstores and video stores similar?

I am probably asked that question more than anyone else in the known universe, because I work in a bookstore, and I also recently published a novel set in a struggling video store.

I have pat answers prepared. But it's the subtext of the question I find most interesting. What people are really asking is, Isn't it sad how bookstores are going the way of video stores, that is, off this mortal coil?

"Yes, it's very sad," I want to say. "Except it isn't true."

The University of North Carolina Press has been awarded a $100,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation of New York to explore the obstacles and opportunities facing university presses as they seek to incorporate various forms of digital publishing. The funding will be used to study expanded publication models that can successfully and sustainably connect the emerging forms of scholarship that rely on digital and computer-based methods with the book and journal formats long associated with university press publishing.

Want to stay current on e-books and self-publishing news from around the web? Get MediaShift's weekly roundup in your in-box! 'Tis the season for reading -- both print and e-books. But can the two really coexist? For this video report (below), I checked...

To meet the expectations of readers in a print and digital world, Workman Publishing is expanding its relationship with Ingram, selecting CoreSource services for the management and distribution of digital content.

Chapel Hill, N.C.-based Algonquin Books, a division of independent publisher Workman Publishing, has launched the Algonquin Book Club, which will feature four book selections each year as well as literary events related to each selection. The events will be held around the country and simultaneously webcast on the Algonquin Books' website.