Re: OT: Reasons to NOT write an Oracle book
Date: Mon, 20 Oct 2014 12:35:30 -0400
Message-Id: <65211026-03BE-41F3-ABB0-412F241C3DBB_at_gmail.com>
Guess now that Pete has spoken I can add my two cents……lol
Initially I wanted to write a book just to say I’ve done it. The second book came about because I had the itch to write another. After participating in 2 books, I can say nobody will ever get rich off of writing; especially tech books.
Regards to the books that I’ve done, the process of writing is and was a pain but rewarding if you let it. I enjoy the aspect of sharing what I know or recently learned with the community; however, the same can be done through blogs today. Books are cool and require more work to get out the door; in the end it is cool to have something with your name on it. Books are easier to hand out to parents and grandparents as well. :)
In the end, books are a pain to write; but they are a good outlet for people who have a desire to write and share their knowledge with the community. I think it really boils down to this: “What are you, as the author/co-authors, trying to get out of the book”?
Bobby Curtis, MBA
curtisbl_at_gmail.com
http://about.me/dbasolved
On Oct 20, 2014, at 11:55, Peter Sharman <pete.sharman_at_oracle.com> wrote:
> +2. :) You DO learn a lot when you write a book.
>
> Having written one complete book by myself and parts of two other books now, I would add one more reason that I don't think anyone else has mentioned yet (ignore me if I'm wrong on that). I do it for the same reason I started publishing my blog (now on petewhodidnottweet.com for reasons that are explained on the home page there) - in many ways, I'm a teacher and I really, really enjoy passing my knowledge onto others. That's what gets me up in the mornings, and writing books is simply another way to pass on that knowledge. I think you'll find a lot of other people that write books do it (at least partially) for that reason too.
>
> And I totally agree with everyone who said don't do it for the money. Lucky for me, Oracle pays my salary because just writing books would mean my family would be on the streets. :)
>
> Pete
>
> Pete Sharman
> Database Architect, DBaaS
> Enterprise Manager Product Suite
> 33 Benson Crescent CALWELL ACT 2905 AUSTRALIA
> Phone: +61262924095 | | Fax: +61262925183 | | Mobile: +61414443449
>
> "Controlling developers is like herding cats."
> Kevin Loney, Oracle DBA Handbook
>
> "Oh no, it's not, it's much harder than that!"
> Bruce Pihlamae, long term Oracle DBA
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Tim Hall [mailto:tim_at_oracle-base.com]
> Sent: Friday, October 17, 2014 11:23 AM
> To: Jeff Smith
> Cc: Oracle-L Freelists
> Subject: Re: OT: Reasons to NOT write an Oracle book
>
> +1
>
> On Fri, Oct 17, 2014 at 12:37 AM, Jeff Smith <jeff.d.smith_at_oracle.com> wrote:
>> I've also found you don't really realize just how much you don't know about something until you go to write the book...so if you're looking for an excuse to expand your knowledge, writing a book does much more than just reading one. >> >> -----Original Message----- >> From: Tim Hall [mailto:tim_at_oracle-base.com] >> Sent: Thursday, October 16, 2014 7:29 PM >> To: Oracle-L Freelists >> Subject: Re: OT: Reasons to NOT write an Oracle book >> >> Joined the chain of mails part way through, so sorry if this is a repeat of other answers, or off topic from the OP. >> >> For people of my generation there is still a lot of prestige associated with writing a book. I've written two and know exactly what it has and has not done for me, yet when my colleague recently got a book published I was really impressed. I've not read it and never will because it is not from my subject area, but just seeing the book with his name on it impressed me. For all I know it could be rubbish... :) >> >> If you come across employers from my generation, I would suspect they will have a similar reaction. I'm not sure what younger people think, who've grown up with self-publishing and eBooks as the norm. Their perception might be different... >> >> Don't do it for the cash. Most people earn very little. Don't do it for the fame. There are loads of Oracle books out there and I couldn't tell you who half of the authors are. Do it for the challenge and to see if you enjoy the process. If you enjoy it, do it again. If you hate the process, don't write another. You will still have written 1 more book than most people. If something good comes out of it, that's great. If not, you've lost a few months of your time and you have something to show the grandchildren... >> >> Good luck! >> >> Cheers >> >> Tim... >> -- >> http://www.freelists.org/webpage/oracle-l >> >> >> -- >> http://www.freelists.org/webpage/oracle-l >> >>
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-- http://www.freelists.org/webpage/oracle-lReceived on Mon Oct 20 2014 - 18:35:30 CEST