Here's an announcement I ran across the other day:
"Men's Health and Prevention publisher Rodale has created a new digital team and named its apps guru Matt Bean to a new position, reflecting its view that once-exploratory digital products have become a high-growth business for the company.
Rodale is the latest traditional media company to organize itself around digital product development for the iPad and other mobile platforms, as print ad revenue softens.
As brand editor at Men's Health and Women's Health, Bean launched more than 40 mobile apps and oversaw the company's first iPad apps as well as its first videogame, YourShape: Fitness Evolved.
The iPad isn't the only area of digital focus for the company. Along with the reorg, Rodale released its first e-book-only title, The Six-Pack Secret, under the Men's Health brand, for $9.99. Bean pointed to e-books, as well as other higher-priced mobile apps like its $8 Cook This Not That!, as a big part of Rodale's strategy in 2011."
What's the implication of this for writers? Well, especially for those who write articles or nonfiction books that might be translated into a digital format (beyond just turning it into an ebook), I think it's important to be aware of the new media and watch carefully what's working and what's not. So far three main elements distinguish online writing:
* it's concise
* there's a visual element that complements it (ideally video)
* there is an an interactive element (at the lowest level, this means a subject that's likely to provoke comments)
Nobody has yet figured out how to take full advantage of delivery formats like the IPad (including how to make them pay enough), but there are a lot of people trying. Writers who are tuned in to the particular demands and potential of the new media will be in demand. Yes, content is kind, but so is the ability to deliver it in the right way.
(for help in reaching your writing goals, join my online Writing Breakthrough Strategy Program. You can get details and sign up at www.jurgenwolff.com)
