Last Friday a few authors came by HarperCollins to brainstorm about how best to use all of the free tools on the internet. Gretchen Rubin from The Happiness Project is a great example of an author who is really making the most of what’s out there. Love her blog! Her book comes out in January 2010.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the 1960s lately. Specifically this idea of the resurgence of the 60s: The sense of idealism and change. The return to community. The hopefulness.  Is our culture really changing or are Crocs simply the new Manolo Blahniks?

A recent Times article “Kickin’ Down Madison Ave., Feelin’ Groovy” cited the election of Barack Obama as the driving force behind the shifting of the cultural tide (they also cited the musical Hair??).The piece quoted several marketing executives and advertisers who said things like “The ’60s era embodies the culture of thinking for yourself and taking a stand.” This made me smile. And, lo and behold, companies like Proctor & Gamble, Macy’s and General Mills all have 60s oriented campaigns -and let’s not forget this year’s Barney’s Holiday catalog!

That same day I read an amazing Esquire feature by Colby Buzzell that was evocative of the 60s in a very different way. (Colby is writing a book for us called OFF THE ROAD in which he travels across America and documents his experience.) His cover story, “Down & Out in Fresno and San Francisco” is a Kerouac-esque portrait of the crack filled Tenderloin district in San Francisco, a neighborhood he calls “the pot of shit at the end of the rainbow.” The article is dark and dizzying. I have no doubt that Colby’s book will reveal some deeper truths about contemporary America, because that’s what he does. And that is why I’m excited to publish him. But this Times article made me realize something: At the end of the day, I guess I’ll be selling the 60s, too.

I was preparing for a talk about the tools of the internet with Harper authors on Friday — and I came across this new site.

Kassia Krozser and Kirk Biglione are top notch in my book, and I’d sincerely recommend anyone who wants to know more check out this site and what they are offering.

I love what Kirk says on this video about Twitter.

Theresa Brown came to lunch the other day. Her upcoming book, Critical Care (May 2010) is extraordinary. I can’t wait for everyone to read it. It grew out of a New York Times story she wrote.

One of our Twitter friends, Melissa Klug from Permanence Matters snapped this shot of a stack of Who Is Mark Twain? in Common Good Books in St. Paul, MN. It made my day…..thank you Melissa and Common Good Books!

Next to Keith Richards, I might add.

Theresa Brown visited our offices today with her wonderful family—her husband Arthur and her three children (Conrad, 12; Miranda and Sophia, 9). Theresa, who writes regularly for the New York Times about her work as an oncology nurse, has just finished her manuscript for CRITICAL CARE: A NURSE’S FIRST YEAR, which we’ll publish next May, 2010.

No matter how long you work in publishing, nothing can replace that feeling when you see a book you’ve been working on in an actual bookstore for the first time. Bonus points (and probably a little squeal) if the book is on display. Last week, celebrating the launch of ORGANIC AND CHIC by friend Sarah Magid, I was at Word – a super cool, super smart bookstore in Greenpoint, Brooklyn – and I saw BURN THIS BOOK front and center of the store. And, of course, I had to take a picture.

If you haven’t read all about it on Techcrunch or Mashable yet, get ready. Tonight when the clock strikes twelve a mad dash will ensue as Facebook’s more than 200 million users rush to grab vanity urls for their Facebook pages. What’s a vanity url, you ask? Not much different than a vanity license plate.

The Facebook vanity url is like a personal calling card, a place you can direct people to connect with you online, especially if you don’t have your own website. Instead of searching for your profile within Facebook, friends, family, and everyone else on the web will be able to go directly to your page by typing in a vanity url, i.e. http://www.facebook.com/katie. Read more about it here. 

Now comes the hard part…deciding what your url should be. You only get one url and once it’s created your choice is set in stone. Choose wisely!

For the adventurous book-lover, check out New York Times Book Review’s Literary Map of New York. Discover where your favorite literary characters once lived, worked and visited.