By Danica Cornell
The early part of the 21st century has been hailed as the Information Age—and with good reason. The advent of high speed Internet access has enabled us to live in a time when information, learning, and the acquisition of new skills are readily available to billions worldwide. And with so many tapping into this wellspring of data and knowledge, it’s not an overstatement to say this disruptive technology has had transformative socioeconomic impacts globally—the likes of which haven’t been seen since the industrial revolution.
As a science fiction writer, UFO researcher, futurist, and nanotechnology business owner, I end up spending a considerable amount of time on the Internet. I’m talking, a lot. So it’s not surprising it was through some research I conducted a few months ago, that I was able to make the connection between information theory and RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB (RRBC).
Say what?
It may sound strange, but time and again, I’ve found myself drawing parallels between the evolution of this illustrious organization and of all things, information theory—or more specifically, to a term used by information theorists known as phase transitions (PTs). In short, a PT is the movement of a disordered state into a an ordered, productive, and beneficial state. (I’m using “disordered” loosely here, as even in RRBC’s formative days, things were never truly disorderly.)
I know, I know. Applying information theory to a book club of all things sounds a little over-the-top. Simplistic. Maybe even downright laughable. But stay with me, because as we explore this concept further, I think you’ll see this idea is anything but simple. Or ridiculous.
A Brief Moment in Time
One can only speculate about whether or not President, Nonnie Jules was thinking about the idea of PT when she formed RRBC at the end of 2013. However, since the club’s inception, it’s become increasingly likely; (statistically speaking) that RRBC would experience such a phenomenon. And in fact, it already has! Allow me to explain…
In its earliest days, RRBC was like most new organizations: random-appearing from the outside and sensitive to small internal and external variations. In other words, to the casual observer, the first few weeks at RRBC may have appeared disheveled. But, it’s precisely during such initial states when literally anything and everything is possible! In fact, RRBC’s writer-members will likely appreciate that the Board’s first interactions tended to mirror the steps many authors experience during a novel’s conception: the initial spark of an idea followed by excitement/enthusiasm; the focusing of efforts; and lastly, getting to the task at hand—which, as every author knows, is when the hard work really begins!
For those more comfortable with structure and routine, the “chaotic” nature of such an undertaking may feel disconcerting until you consider that RRBC itself could be viewed as a disruptive innovation because of its potential to displace or transform established book clubs which offer fewer services/support to their members. In other words, just as high-speed Internet access transformed global communications, RRBC could have a similar transformative impact on the indie author community—especially as its membership continues to grow over time!
Information Sharing and RRBC
Things get really interesting—at least in terms of information theory and PT, as we look beyond RRBC’s very early days. That’s because with each new RRBC member who becomes indoctrinated into the Club through information sharing, (via a variety of Internet-based communications) they’ll learn about our culture of writing, reading, and reviewing books, as well as that of Profiling, Promoting, and Propelling our fellow authors. This means that over time, a growing number of members will continue to engage in this type of behavior, which represents a PT, which is to everyone’s benefit!
Another way to look at this is, if the basis of every society/group/organization is information, then RRBC is the perfect example of how organizations can apply information optimization in transitioning towards a more orderly and productive state. The fact that RRBC has achieved a PT in less than a year is a testament to its strong leadership along with its awesomely wonderful 500+ members!
That being said, hold on to your hats, because with regard to relevancy and excitement, all of this is about to take a quantum leap…
Writing and the Distribution of Wealth
Ultimately, most writers come to realize they acquire readers through their own actions which include: the quality of their work; their marketing efforts; and the connections they make within the industry. With this in mind, many may be under the impression that in terms of acquiring readers and reviews (what we’ll term here as wealth), writers tend to follow the Gaussian or bell curve, which is used to describe distributions in nature. However, instead of the Gaussian curve, what’s typically seen in such groups is what’s known as the Power Law. Simply put, this means more often than not, the number of “wealthy” writers is very small, while the number of “poor” writers is large. Make that colossal. Why? It seems that wealthy writers gain more wealth in a manner that is multiplicative, rather than additive.
Okay, let’s backtrack for a second.
If you think of book clubs in terms of societies consisting of authors and readers, and if you consider that most societies are either very connected or unconnected—what’s termed as small world networks, then the multiplicative effect of the Power Law makes more sense. The reason for this is because highly connected (better informed and better aligned) book clubs—like RRBC—will yield the best wealth-building results over time for their members. By the way, it’s interesting to note that the Power Law is used to explain many different types of social phenomena, including one many people like to talk about these days: the rich getting richer!
Why Authors Should Consider Joining RRBC
- Active, well-informed, well-connected membership;
- Awesome Mentor Program;
- Writing and Other Cool Contests;
- Extensive Twitter support through our Tweet Support Team and general membership;
- The option of promoting your blog and website on Twitter by using our club’s hashtag;
- A virtual V.I.P. Lounge for our most supportive members;
- A Conference and Book Expo scheduled for Summer 2015 in St. Louis, Missouri;
- Numerous author promotional opportunities including “SPOTLIGHT” Authors; Member of the Month, Books of the Month, #PUSHTUESDAY and #PUSHWEEK Winners;
- And so much more!
Your Personal Invitation
With all of this in mind, I’d like to personally invite you to visit RRBC at http://ravereviewsbynonniejules.wordpress.com/ and tell them Danica sent you. And while you’re at it, please check out all of our members’ fabulous posts for our Blog Recruiting Day Contest at http://wp.me/P49Fi9-GG and vote for your favorite one! 🙂
Coming Up…
Before I sign off, I’d like to add that I have some thought-provoking posts related to UFOs and extraterrestrial/ interdimensional beings in the works. This is an area I’ve extensively researched for my DARK STAR series, and as such, I truly believe these topics are worthy of serious discussion and debate. I hope you’ll come back and join me for what promises to be a lively and spirited exchange. Thanks so much for taking the time to stop by my blog today!
Until we meet again…
Happy reading,
Danica
ABOUT DANICA CORNELL
Danica Cornell is RAVE REVIEWS BOOK CLUB’s PR/Marketing Director. She’s also the author of the DARK STAR Sci-fi Series, a UFO researcher and futurist, nanotechnology business owner, and dog lover. To learn more about Danica and her work, please visit her website at www.danicacornell.com.
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