iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 02/10/2026

"Manchester City committed fraud on a massive scale primarily as a soft power project for an authoritarian nation because it was allowed to do so. The Premier League chose to look away." @alexshephard.bsky.social 🔥 Finish them! newrepublic.com/article/2161...

It was always a farce. The report released by the Premier League earlier this week details the specifics of its massive accounting sham. But the sham itself was always apparent for anyone with eyes to see. Manchester City’s rise was not inexorable, nor was it the result of a sophisticated, hidden conspiracy that required nearly a decade to unravel. Manchester City committed fraud on a massive scale primarily as a soft power project for an authoritarian nation because it was allowed to do so. The Premier League chose to look away. The team was good and the money was flowing. Questions about its finances—let alone about its ownership—were swept under the rug. As Manchester City became the best team in the Premier League, the Premier League became the most powerful league in Europe and, by extension, the world.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 18/09/2026

Imagine publicly saying you can't be bothered with cleaning up the data that helps drive your discovery and sales, and suggesting "AI" can do it for you. Are you f**king kidding me?!? #cmonson www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/...

Miller took a somewhat different stance, suggesting that, with the rapid changes happening in the realm of discoverability, publishers should be prioritizing quantity over quality in their data sharing right now. He wondered if there was an opportunity for publishers to “provide information in a less structured way to retail partners in a way AI could consume it,” and implement standards down the line.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 03/08/2026

"Reaction to the paper has been muted at best. Librarians who have been working in the digital space for years quickly dismissed it. And publishers didn't exactly rally around it either." The latest @wordsandmoney.bsky.social newsletter is a must-read. 🔥 www.wordsandmoney.com/the-words-mo...

"While the goal of increasing access to digital books on fair terms is laudable, we must not encourage this direction in public policy making because it invites the possibility of other future mandates on how libraries must operate." Alan Inouye

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 28/07/2026

"If you think it's OK for publishers to force libraries to rent e-books rather than owning a preservation copy, you cannot complain when the last physical copy is in the hands of a company you dislike rather than a research institution you trust." Brandon Butler🔥 www.linkedin.com/posts/brando...

Lots of fake moral outrage happening right now about AI companies destructively scanning used books. I have zero patience for this nonsense.

If you want to preserve old books for public access, fund libraries. If you want to make the contents of out of print books more widely available, shorten the term of copyright. Do those two things and there is no reason to stress about destructive scanning.

Newsflash for people taking to their fainting couches and clutching their pearls over destructive scanning: books are just goods for sale on the market. They can be bought and destroyed by anyone at any time for any reason or none.

The market doesn't preserve books. Having out-of-print books in the hands of private sellers or buyers does society at large no more good than having them in a landfill. Most books, even library books, are destined to wind up in a landfill, anyway. If "Windows 93 for Dummies" helps Claude write better marketing prose before it meets its inevitable end, win-win.

If you're OK with a copyright system that lets five multinational corporations control the printing and circulation of 90% of books for ~150 years after they are written, you are in no place to whine about what happens to the last few copies of the books that these corporations refuse to re-print. If you think it's OK for publishers to force libraries to rent e-books rather than owning a preservation copy, you cannot complain when the last physical copy is in the hands of a company you dislike rather than a research institution you trust.

/rant

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 08/07/2026

"Good metadata is the secret sauce to discoverability in general, but it's particularly important for library selection workflows in vendor systems that may prioritize traditional bestsellers from large publishers." Me, on two of my favorite #ALAAC26 sessions. mailchi.mp/janefriedman...

How Librarians Actually Choose Indie Books and Why Metadata Matters
By Guy LeCharles Gonzalez

Getting a book into library collections is harder than most authors realize. Large publishers have systemic advantages that smaller publishers and indie authors simply can’t match—including distribution relationships, professional reviews, and sunk costs. However, with the Big Five unwilling to collaborate with public libraries on ebook pricing, the opportunities for smaller publishers and savvy indie authors are greater than they’ve ever been—but success requires understanding how libraries work, where the gaps are, and how to fill them.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 24/06/2026

It's #AntiPrimeDay this week at Bookshop dot org, so there's no excuse to buy books at Amazon! Need recommendations? Check out my lists of all-time favorites, and the books I've loved (so far) in 2026. #booksky bookshop.org/shop/glechar...

June 23-26
anti-prime day
Free Shipping on All Orders
Bookshop.org

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 17/06/2026

If you're in publishing and don't subscribe to The Bottom Line, you're missing out. The latest issue's diplomatic takedown of the Authors Guild's deceptive conclusions from their latest "research" is yet another example of why @janefriedman.com is one of the most important voices in the industry.

First, this study has no historical baseline; it can’t claim book buying is down. The headline takeaway is that only 25 percent of print and ebooks read in the last month were bought new or obtained through a paid subscription. But does that represent a change in consumer behavior? We don’t know because this study is a snapshot only, not a comparison with prior studies. To be fair, it is well known that digital borrowing has surged at libraries, especially since the pandemic. In particular, it was revealed in 2019 that library ebook revenue for Macmillan increased by 800 percent over five years. But if readers have truly abandoned buying for borrowing, total book purchasing, especially for fiction, would be falling. In fact, the opposite is happening. The fiction market has seen some of its strongest growth since the pandemic.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 10/06/2026

I don't ask for much, so please click this link, scroll down to the Q&A section, and give a thumbs up to this one from KJo. TYIA. 🤓 www.skechers.com/skechers-gar...

Q: When will you make them in adult sizes? Not every car loving kiddo has tiny feet.

Verified Reply - Tim the Shoe Guy: Interesting idea. While the Garage shoes are for kids only currently, it's possible these could be made in bigger sizes later on.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 05/06/2026

If you're a publisher that doesn't support your primary political organization's agenda, now would be a good time to speak up. #cmonson #ALAAC26 gardenstate.social/@glecharles/...

Publishers choosing the nuclear option with James Patterson makes me think the recent library ebook bills are gaining real momentum and have a chance at succeeding.

They're sensing the tide is turning and are willing to risk their reputations to keep readers from having a consumer-friendly way to access ebooks that still makes them plenty of money.

If you're a publisher that doesn't support your primary political organization's agenda, now would be a good time to speak up.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 29/05/2026

Looking forward to attending the #USBookShow next week! I'll be there both days (and nights) for a mix of programming, networking, and meetings. If you'll be there, drop me an email and let's plan to catch up.

The 2026 U.S. Book Show is June 2–3 at The New York Academy of Medicine, 1216 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10029.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 02/01/2026

Me, earlier this morning. 😫

A Slack message from me: "Is it Friday or Monday? 2025 or 2026?!?"

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 31/12/2025

Writers who are against using AI tools for writing but think they're fine for marketing are hypocrites. FOH. #cmonson

An album cover with a Goofy lookalike and the title, "This ain't it" in all caps.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 30/12/2025

Classics! My daughter is a self-proclaimed dice goblin and we got her these fancy ones for Christmas.

A set of 7 metal dice with a Dwarven vibe.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 20/12/2025

Huh. 🤔 (Came out in December '78 and was still the #1 movie in '79.)

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 04/11/2025

I'll be at #LibraryConLive on Thursday w/ @comicsplus.bsky.social! Our featured session, Comics & Manga RA for Middle Grade & Teens (11am ET / 8am PT), features three great librarians sharing their comics and manga expertise. #ReadAllTheComics #LibComix librarypass.com/2025/10/15/j...

Comics Plus' virtual booth for LibraryCon Live 2025.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 29/10/2025

Post a perfect album from the 90s that isn’t Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden or Alice In Chains. ("As if!" @reetamac.bsky.social 💯)

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 14/10/2025

Every now and then I remember Ryan Britt's thoughts on literacy in Star Wars, but this time the context wasn't about Star Wars at all. 😞 reactormag.com/most-citizen...

But, what’s sad about Star Wars is that its inhabitants (save for our heroes) seem so complacent and lacking in imagination that this sort of thing was bound to happen in one way or another. In reality, if a whole culture relied exclusively on a group like the Jedi to not only guard justice and truth, but also be the only educated, literate people around, that culture would be seriously screwed up. Meanwhile, these people simply rely on their droids to do everything else.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 08/10/2025

This is another reminder that social media is an ephemeral data collection scheme, and you shouldn't make any of these platforms your primary source of news, engagement, or connections. If Twitter and Substack weren't enough, please let Bluesky be the last time y'all fall for this trick. #cmonson

Old school cartoon panel with a woman looking out of a window at a city skyline in the distance, saying, "What a stupid time to be alive."

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 10/09/2025

Man, that scene messed me up so bad, I took a rare screenshot. 😢

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 27/08/2025

"I’d argue that the last 10 years haven’t been all that revolutionary for publishing, at least not as much as the 10 years before that." @janefriedman.com Everyone in publishing should read this, and if you're not already a subscriber, you absolutely should be. janefriedman.com/how-publishi...

Moreover, I’d argue that the last 10 years haven’t been all that revolutionary for publishing, at least not as much as the 10 years before that. Yes, new players have changed the landscape, consolidation has continued, there are political battles. But the industry I reported on in 2015 operates in fundamentally the same ways, so when I talk with writers I’m not telling them anything dramatically different today than I did in 2015. In fact, it would be easier to write an article about all the changes that did not come to pass. (I can’t resist; that’s coming in a later issue.)

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 21/08/2025

Thanks to @publisherswkly.bsky.social always giving Substack free promo, this makes it sound like @emilymbender.bsky.social is also writing there, which was a disappointing shock. Thankfully, that's not the case; she's using Buttondown, which somehow doesn't qualify for free promo. 🤔 #cmonson

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 23/07/2025

PS: This is a @cheriepriest.com & The Clockwork Century appreciation post. 👍🏽👍🏽 bookshop.org/a/100022/978...

The Clockwork Century novels by Cherie Priest in a stack.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 30/06/2025

Last day of #ALAAC25, my primary takeaway hasn't changed...

Me, in a "Decentralize Publishing" T-shirt from Hub City Press.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 18/06/2025

"COVID was the final nail in a coffin BEA lay in for years, but the inability to build BookCon into something with staying power is as much about industry myopia as any specific failures on ReedPop's part." Me, 12/1/2020

Screenshot of three of my archived tweets from 2019-2020, in date order:

"Until #BookCon embraces the full potential of YA's diverse audience and distances itself from BEA's antiquated trade focus, its growth will be unfairly constrained, its success viewed through a cracked lens." (links to a PW tweet) 6/3/2019, 11:59:59 AM

"With PRH pulling out, the other Big 4 will surely follow and BEA will have no choice but to postpone or cancel. There's just no way NYC gets back to anything resembling normal in the next 4-6 weeks." (links to a Publishing Perspectives article) 3/18/2020, 8:00:40 PM

"COVID was the final nail in a coffin BEA lay in for years, but the inability to build BookCon into something with staying power is as much about industry myopia as any specific failures on ReedPop's part." (links to a PW article) 12/1/2020, 1:43:13 PM

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 10/06/2025

Got my Flag Day shirt ready! h/t @alexdecampi.bsky.social www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/7259...

Me, holding up a green "No Kings. no Tyrants." shirt.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 07/06/2025

The New Jersey Bookstore Crawl: Visit participating NJ independent bookstores on June 7 + 8, 2025! #NewJersey www.jerseycollective.org/njbookstorec...

New Jersey Bookstore Crawl June 7 - 8, 2025

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 16/05/2025

There's so much to unpack in these two short paragraphs, but it's an important reminder that, despite their participation in a few self-serving lawsuits, corporate publishers only really value libraries as marketing channels. www.wordsandmoney.com/after-trump-...

Overlooked in the outrage over Perlmutter's firing is that Congress, with the support of the publishing industry, voted to hand the Copyright Office over to Trump in 2017, during the president's first term. The Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act would have given Trump the power to appoint the Register of Copyrights for a 10-year, renewable term, subject to Senate confirmation, as well as the power to fire the Register at any time.

After rushing the bill through the house, largely, critics argued, to keep the newly appointed Carla Hayden from appointing the next register of copyrights after she removed then register Maria Pallante (who is now the president and CEO of the Association of American Publishers), the bill was ultimately blocked in the Senate.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 04/04/2025

This collection of zines from @janineveazue.bsky.social brightened my day, as much for their content as their clever use of paper! #FridayReads #zines www.etsy.com/shop/Stitcha...

The Office Life Bundle of zines in a plastic bag, alongside a zine about libraries, and sheets of Hello Kitty and dinosaur stickers.

The individual Office Life and Libraries zines.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 19/03/2025

Substack has convinced so many people that they're independent creators who own their newsletters and audiences, but every single reference to them is framed as either "their Substack" or "on Substack." Even worse, many of them use this framing themselves. #cmonson

A video game screenshot of a man walking down a well-lit alley, saying, "Ah shit, here we go again."

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 14/03/2025

I'm cheating, with one fiction, one nonfiction.

Dark PR by Grant Ennis and Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 19/02/2025

I've always despised the term "reluctant reader" and discourage its use at the day job, but I'd never taken the time to solidify my thoughts, never mind write them down. Ellie Lathbridge wrote this excellent essay on why the term needs to be retired. jcsonlineresources.org/blog/what-is...

Various ideas for encouraging reading engagement.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 12/02/2025

It's always fascinated and annoyed me how the industry collectively decided they could measure #BookTok impact on book sales, using the laziest version of last-click attribution I've ever seen. I'm glad @janefriedman.com had the intellectual curiosity to dig in. mailchi.mp/hotsheetpub/...

I reached out to Circana to inquire about their BookTok sales tracking and heard back from executive director David Walter, who confirmed they continue to maintain a BookTok author list for reporting on book sales driven by BookTok exposure. However, he added, “It’s not an exact science by any means, as we are not able to attribute sales directly to BookTok—i.e., whether the consumer discovered the book via that means. We include all of the authors’ books too, which also means that the effect we’re measuring will be on the high side.” He also noted, “We primarily use Barnes & Noble’s listing of BookTok books to create and maintain our list, and we add new authors periodically.” Director Brenna Connor added that the current list of authors in their BookTok group is now over 200 and is updated quarterly; she also consults industry sources like Book Riot and Publishers Weekly to maintain the list.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 10/02/2025

We'll never know whose insights were mined and synthesized to generate these responses, and because most people aren't very good writers, these tools are going to make it impossible to know who's using them vs. writing authentically. What a stupid time to be alive.

A woman looking out a window, a vague skyline in the distance: "What a stupid time to be alive."

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 28/01/2025

The description closed the sale, but the cover made it possible. Ended up being my favorite read last year.

The Ballad of Perilous Graves by Alex Jennings and an Octavia Books bookmark.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 27/01/2025

Capitalism makes us all complicit to varying degrees, and paths of resistance will vary. Not everyone can just quit their job, or even openly speak their opposition. Those who can, must do it for those who can't, widening the paths for everyone else.

A lot of people are going to have their values challenged and tested over the next few months, and many of them won't have the luxury to immediately live up to those values without risking losing everything.

That's by design.

Capitalism makes us all complicit to varying degrees, and paths of resistance will vary. Not everyone can just quit their job, or even openly speak their opposition.

Those who can, must do it for those who can't, widening the paths for everyone else.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 25/01/2025

I was a voracious comics reader as a kid and my memory of specific issues is fuzzy, but these four are deep in my #comicsDNA.

The Complete Calvin & Hobbes slipcase and hardcovers

The Complete Far Side slipcase and hardcovers

The Essential Moon Knight Vol 1: Doug Moench & Bill Sienkiewicz

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 23/01/2025

Working on tomorrow's newsletter, desperately trying to avoid current events as much as possible. 🤞🏽 loudpoet.com/newsletter/

A computer monitor with the edit view of a WordPress blog post visible. A glass of Bourbon is in the foreground because January is a long year.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 22/01/2025

I really do want to give this place a fair shake, if only to keep in touch with some of y'all who've settled in here, but it's clearly going to require taking full advantage of its filtering tools to keep my feed tolerable. I'll go find important news when I'm ready, from sources I trust.

Muted words on Bluesky, in text and tags, including specific people and "news" websites.

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 21/01/2025

Not sure doomscrolling will be avoidable over the next few weeks as the "flood the zone with shit" playbook kicks into high gear. Pick your lane(s), tap out whenever necessary, and find sources of joy wherever you can — online and IRL.

Keanu Reeves as Neo in The Matrix Resurrections, "Oh, God."

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 17/01/2025

Because I want no part of Google's Beta Bullshit Machine, I turned off Gmail's Smart features and personalization options in Settings. In response, these jerks turned off the custom folders for Social, Updates, and Promotions, so now all of my email goes to my main Inbox. 👀 #cmonson

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 15/01/2025

I am not "anti-AI"... I am pro-craft. 💯 indieweb.social/@jaredwhite/...

Mastodon post from Jared “Indie Social Web” White, @jaredwhite@indieweb.social

I would like to propose we start using the term "pro-craft" to describe our movement, rather than anti-AI.

craft as a verb:
to make or manufacture (an object or product) with skill and careful attention to detail

craft as a descriptive noun:
an art, trade, or occupation requiring special skill, especially manual skill

I am not "anti-AI"... I am pro-craft.

I've dedicated my life to being a good craftsperson, in a variety of disciplines, and I'll be damned if I let craft be devalued or dismissed.

Jan 14, 2025, 04:07 PM

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Guy (aka glecharles) @loudpoet.com · 31/12/2024

At Target last night, I'm guessing traditional publishing lived to fight another year. 🤔

One copy of Taylor Swift's Target-exclusive Black Friday stunt on a shelf in Target.

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