Italy Photo Highlights, Part 1 of 3

I took 1,909 photos in two weeks and wittled them down to a digestible 500 for folks' viewing pleasure.

This is the first of three groups. Enjoy.

(I released the second group. See it here.)

The Publishing Question We Need to Stop Repeating

On my way home from the gym today I listened to a BBC World segment on NPR about e-book publishing and how it needs to work itself out: readers need more books, writers need their fair share of royalties and publishing companies need to catch up after all the time spent in denial that e-books would become competition.

Of course I'm always interested in these reports, but inevitably the reporter questions, "Is this the end of publishing as we know it?"

Really? We're still asking that question?

"The end of publishing as we know it," if you're the type to go with such doomsday scenarios, occurred when Joe America gained access to the Internet.

And we're not going to come up with a one-size-fits-all answer to media. Just like magazines filled gaps that newspaper left, technology will continue to fill gaps print leaves behind. And just as I'm going to tap multiple  media  for information -- sometimes print magazines, sometimes the Internet, sometimes and e-book, sometimes a mobile app, to name a few -- one of those forms isn't going to completely disappear.

Too Much "Top Chef?"

I just made reservations to Stephanie Izard's Girl and the Goat for Brian's birthday in August. We liked her food on "Top Chef," which is why we want to go.

Not surprisingly, the menu sounds good, but I gotta admit: all those photos are distracting. They're selling her personality and not the food, which is the part I really care about, even if I really did think she seemed cool personally.

Which makes me wonder about the eatery: Too much girl and not enough goat?

The Gospel of Content Strategy: The Word's Spreading?

I'm happy to report that, in addition to the two people who contacted me about content strategy while I was in Italy, job boards for full-time and temporary work seem to be turning up more content strategy postings, contractual and full time. Can I get an Amen?

Content strategy has been part of my job for years, yet I only began billing myself as a content strategist about 8 months ago. When I launched a job search and expanded my freelancing, I tried to search for such positions, but they were nearly non-existent.

I'd go on interviews, where I realized talking content strategy with chief editors and publishers was an awkward subject, mostly because they couldn't speak to it -- frustrating as a colleague, a content strategist and a job seeker/freelancer. I understand it's a new term, so I'm patient. But the concept is important, so it's really important to me that people "get it."
 
It used to be you just churned copy and put packages of information in one place. For a while now, that hasn't been enough: you have to coordinate all that information across all those channels we're accustomed to: online channels, print outlets, radio and TV.

What you put out there has to be meaningful to people; it has to have value. If the user isn't getting something out of whatever you created (and I don't care if it's the flashiest of Flash designs, the swankiest of podcasts), they're not likely to come back for more, talk about it, remember it, remember you.

When we first started Housing Giants digital publication, we put up a lot of content that was flashy but not value-driven. Gradually, we wisened up on where we spent our resources and limited the fancy interactive elements to what would be really meaningful.

Sounds basic, right? We were blinded by the wonders of technology, so it took us a while to figure out the best way to deliver content to each of our audiences to make them care, as opposed to figuring out the most creative way to put up a pie chart.

That's part of the gospel of content strategists, and all indications are pointing to an uptick in content strategy positions in this evolving discipline. Let's keep those discussions going!

A Toast to Italian Food: Part I of ???

I'm back from an amazing trip to Italy, and before I write about it, I thought I'd pass along some food photos. After all, that's what this trip was about: Some people tote a sightseeing guidebook; I carried a food lovers' guide to Florence. 

I had a food rule I was able to follow about 98% of the time: choose restaurants without English on the menu. This usually got me eating surrounded by Italians and tasting the authentic stuff. If I saw the words "pasta with red sauce," I went the other way.

A great thing about Italy is that even crappy food at the bottom of the chain -- at train stations or right at the steps of a well-photographed statue, i.e. restaurants with English menus -- tasted good. Amen to wonderful ingredients!

I summarize my experience this way: At my favorite restaurant, I didn't want to ask for their bruschetta recipe; I wanted to know where they bought their tomatoes.

And without further adieu, a few photos highlights. It's a cruel transition from Italian food to American food. Thankfully I have photos to remind me of all those wonderful bites. Here's part I of ?:

Italians have un caffe -- an espresso -- and a pastry for breakfast, and although I actually missed my whole-grain-cereal-with-fruit breakfast from home, I always had room for this Nutella-filled treat at Cafe Pacskowski (sp?).

I have no clue how many pounds of tomatoes I consumed, but they were all amazing.

One of my first meals at what would become my favorite restaurant, Osteria Antica Mestica in San Niccolo. Clockwise from the right: crostini Toscani, beans in olive oil and what I call "tripe three ways." All are typical Tuscan favorites -- as is the vino della casa.

A working man's lunch near San Lorenzo market: panini with lamprodotto, the second part of the cow's stomach. The sandwich has a spicy red salsa with a parsley sauce on top.

Market special at Mercado Centrale!

A wonderful shrimp, avocado and lemon salad at Fiesolano in Fiesole -- refreshing, beautiful.

Pizza w/ artichoke, ham, porcini mushrooms and olives. Love the thin crust, which is the pretty much the only way I saw it.

"Un cappucino, per favore." I thought they all came with hearts. 'Tis not so!

And there are more, but I'm jet lagged and exhausted. Stay tuned!