Davar Ardalan is the Senior Producer of NPR’s Tell Me More, and author of the recent iBooks-exclusive title, The Persian Square, which spans the extraordinary range of Iranian-American self expression, chronicling the myriad and indelible contributions Iranian emigres have made over their decades, fashioning American lives out of Persian identity and traditions. Ms. Ardalan contributed the guest post below.
Thanks to Apple, iBook Author brought out the digital journalist in me. As a long-time radio producer, I never thought I’d be capable of creating an interactive digital page much less a full scale digital book. I wrote and produced The Persian Square, all from the comfort of my home office just off the Severn River. In the process, I managed to integrate over 30 media files, including audio, video, photographs and text. On March 4th,the book debuted on iTunes in Apple’s iBookstore and made it to the Top 10 Charts for History.
iBooks is Apple’s publishing system for books, some of which also are published in print, and some are online only. Books created specifically for the online platform can take advantage of the unique interactivity of reading on a computer or tablet to create a whole new reading experience. Those books can then be sold and marketed online, and are available for purchase from Apple. It’s a great opportunity for authors with something to say to reach an audience directly, and skip a lot of the red tape that comes with the traditional publishing world.
WHY I CHOSE iBOOK AUTHOR:
I have been in public broadcasting for over twenty years and currently in the middle of a major reboot myself, as I learn how to integrate new media platforms with traditional forms of journalism that have defined my craft. Tablets are ubiquitous now and the mobile public is eager to interact with content on these new devices. As I researched ways to build new storytelling spaces, iBook Author fascinated me. The software is versatile and vast in possibility for those of us looking to engage the mobile public with our content.