Digital publishing on the rise - Abeng Press issues first digi-title

Abeng Press, a newly established publishing imprint, has issued it's first title, the digital edition of B. Richard Nicholson's Hold It Right There, Mister Preacher!, a critique of biblical discourse, especially within his Seventh-day Adventist milieu.

"Despite news to the contrary, reading and writing are not dead and the business of publishing is adapting well to the new digital technologies," said editor/publisher Mark Lee.

Florida-based Nicholson's hard-copy edition of the book was published late last year by an American imprint, and Abeng Press is doing the worldwide distribution of the digital edition.

The book is available in three popular formats, PDF, EPUB and MOBI, so that it can be read on mobile devices, dedicated e-readers and regular personal computers.

"There is no turning back in the technology march," said Lee, who noted that the world's largest online bookseller, Amazon.com, now reports that 60 per cent of its books sold are digital downloads.

"Books on hand-held devices are going to be the answer to the textbook problem faced in developing societies such as Jamaica, and we want to be part of that solution," said the publisher.

Abeng Press is located in the Greater Toronto Area city of Mississauga.