The Fine Print ISSN 1832-8871 ISSUE 3, FEBRUARY 2006 Editorial 3 NEWS 4 From Inspiration to Publication The big squeeze 5 Peter Donoughue Are we living through the death throes of publishing as we know it? The answer lies in our understanding of big retail, big technology and big China. Editors in transition 10 Michael Webster In a world where perceptions can be as powerful as reality, understanding the commercial realities and trends in the publishing industry is essential. Proprietary intellectuals 13 Andrew Ryder The traditional academic model is an open-source one. Ideas are exchanged and enriched through competition and discussion. Under the proprietary model, brand-wearing intellectuals act as gatekeepers and often as ‘owners’. Slang in Australian English 20 Sue Butler Slang responds to a desire to live life dangerously, to launt the power of the word, to demonstrate a particular kind of style. Will the old-style slang of Barry Humphries be replaced by the language of Bart Simpson? Dumbing down for museum audiences 27 Jennifer Blunden Museums have moved from the cabinet-of-curiosities-type exhibition to the notion of writing label text as if it were part of a conversation. This doesn’t have to be at the expense of intellectual rigour or integrity. ‘Editing, at its best, is a conversation’ 34 Bryony Cosgrove Shortly before publication of Prochownik’s Dream, Alex Miller discusses the process of working with an editor — handling conlicting responses to a manuscript and questions of voice, characterisation and setting. The editor can play a critical role in bringing a book to its full potential. ISSN 1832-8571