Gumroad faces backlash over alleged NFT ambitions

Just as many of the ugliest online fights begin these days, Brian "Box" Brown, an Eisner-winning illustrator and comic artist, sent a seemingly innocuous tweet. It read, in part, "my former regular freelance employer has let me know they'll be...Embracing NFTs 🙃 so...we had to part ways." The then unnamed business, Gumroad, shot back the next day with a now-pinned response denying it had plans to enter the controversial crypto-collecting space, and has since attacked detractors from its corporate account, provided conflicting information and alienated a growing portion of the artist community it serves. How did it get so bad?Gumroad, for the unfamiliar, is a digital goods sales platform, which hosts anything from art to ebooks to self-help courses. It was built in 2011 by then-19-year-old CEO Sahil Lavinglia, who is perhaps the only consistent figure within the company. Following a period of growth Lavinglia had to lay off staff in 2016 after failing to raise more money. The company survived, but as it is presently structured, Gumroad is something of an anomaly. The number of full-time employees, according to one the CEO's blog posts is "none. Not even me," preferring to maintain a contractor workforce. It also espouses a version of radical transparency, choosing to make its product roadmap and board meetings public. The image of an all-remote workplace free from deadlines or meetings belies a somewhat haphazard business. Some former workers seemingly signed no contracts... Continue reading at 'Engadget'

[ Engadget | 2022-02-08 21:00:47 UTC ]
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Facing the ‘Hard Truth’: An Indie Reading List

Here at BookLife, we’ve compiled our own list of titles from self-published authors that address systemic racism and police brutality; explore African American history; or that otherwise reflect the diverse lived experiences of black individuals in America. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-06-08 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Book publishers sue Internet Archive for allegedly enabling piracy

When libraries around the US began closing their doors due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Internet Archive (IA) responded by creating a “National Emergency Library,” a collection of 1.4 million books from its free e-book repository Open Library. Pu... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2020-06-01 19:33:58 UTC ]
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New Tech, Fewer Reporters: Challenges Facing South Asian Newsrooms Post-COVID

Editors from several South Asian news publishers including The Quint (India), The Hindu (India), Times of India (India) and The Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2020-05-26 18:00:38 UTC ]
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What now for authors? On writing, coping and facing the future

Sanjana Varghese had been working as a freelance journalist in London for around a year when the coronavirus pandemic hit.  As countries around the world went into lockdown, many organisations froze their commissioning budgets, while others halted business entirely. Several of the pieces... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-21 20:08:07 UTC ]
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It's time to face the data

April 2020 found the publishing industry entering a period of unexpected change as bookshops closed and the focus turned to digital sales. The COVID-19 lockdown has forced writers to re-evaluate the future in this difficult time. As a narrative psychologist and fiction writer, I am interested... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-05 04:49:45 UTC ]
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Booksellers Face Difficult Decisions When Reopening Stores

As states relax their provisions to cope with the spread of Covid-19, bookstores will begin to reopen—and the logistical and practical issues bookstores will face as they prepare to do so are numerous. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-05-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
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CCNY’s Publishing Certificate Program Faces the Pandemic

Tthe Publishing Certificate Program at the City College of New York has recently found its graduates facing the same problem as everyone else in the book business: dwindling job prospects in an industry reeling from the impact of Covid-19. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Beauty, at what price? ‘If I Had Your Face’ explores women’s lives amid unnatural expectations.

Set in contemporary South Korea, Frances Cha’s new novel is an astute tale of four resilient women. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-04-21 14:13:00 UTC ]
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Publishing Needs to Face Its Ableism Problem

The communications manager of We Need Diverse Books asks that publishers continue to allow employees to work from home after the Covid-19 outbreak fades. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-04-17 04:00:00 UTC ]
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In Julia Alvarez’s ‘Afterlife,’ a widow faces a moral quandary

A Dominican American woman’s conundrums echo our national conversation about migrant communities. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-04-08 14:57:00 UTC ]
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A Haunting Debut Novel Brings New Faces to the Myth of the American West

“How Much of These Hills Is Gold,” by C Pam Zhang, reimagines the region’s past as a Chinese-American tale. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2020-04-07 09:00:07 UTC ]
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Indie publishers face 'existential crisis' after coronavirus lockdown but remain hopeful

Indie publishers face an “existential crisis” during the pandemic lockdown but remain hopeful they can make it to the other side. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-04-02 06:36:44 UTC ]
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This Is the Face of an Undocumented Immigrant. Don’t Look Away.

Karla Cornejo Villavicencio’s new book combines memoir and reporting to tell the stories behind the headlines. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2020-03-24 09:00:12 UTC ]
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In ballot initiatives, they made their voices heard. Then came the backlash.

GOP officials squashed efforts to expand the vote and combat gerrymandering, David Daley writes. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-03-13 13:52:27 UTC ]
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The Cover of My Face

A trans author reflects on the fraught history of trans women’s memoir covers, and why she didn’t want her likeness on her own. Continue reading at Guernica

[ Guernica | 2020-03-10 12:00:35 UTC ]
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A memoirist faces the consequences of revealing her family’s secret past

Helen Fremont’s parents were Holocaust survivors. Her new book “The Escape Artist” explores what happened when she shared that in a book. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-02-20 15:00:00 UTC ]
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John and Jessie Frémont’s story of gold, ambition and the American West

Steve Inskeep recounts the couple’s expeditions in the wilderness and in politics. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-01-24 02:35:38 UTC ]
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Ten libraries facing closure in Hampshire

Ten libraries could be closed across Hampshire with others having their opening hours reduced after the local authority announced plans to slash £1.76m from the service’s budget. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-01-10 01:00:51 UTC ]
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HarperCollins Canada boycotts RWA conference as diversity backlash grows

A host of publishers including HarperCollins Canada are boycotting the forthcoming Romance Writers of America national conference, as a backlash continues against the organisation over a race row. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-01-08 21:05:29 UTC ]
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Face Up: Industry Pros Pick Their Favorite Magazine Covers of 2019

While 2019 winds down, many of us are reflecting on the year that was. We talk about our favorite movies, TV shows, records, etc. But here at Folio:, one of our favorite things to look back at are the year's best magazine covers. As an annual tradition, we reach out to some of the top designers... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2019-12-19 19:17:56 UTC ]
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