E-Book silent revolution growing

2011 may be the year that e-books dominate publishing. Out from this much aligned, easily dismissed electronic publishing format, the e-book is the "little engine that could" and did! 

Nook in color

James McQuivey, writing in Forrester.com, goes so far as to predict "When the dust settles, publishers will think think of their eBook strategy first.  Does this spell the end of print publishing? Not at all. McQuivey theorizes that
"Paper decisions will be made as an adjunct to digital decisions. Many, many books will be published without paper versions at all, at least until they get enough critical mass to justify going to paper."

Rather than a death knell this sounds to me like a celebration for new and formerly mid-list authors. The rising costs of traditional publishing has led to fewer books coming out each year. Publishers are less willing to invest in new authors. For writers, that's been the real death knell. If McQuivey is right, this option to try in ebook before print opens many new doors for writers. New authors develop a e-book following with cost efficient to free social media marketing and have time to build a print book audience.

So authors, start your computers! This economic driven change in publishing opens creative opportunities to us that are unprecedented.