First off, it’s available again – and updated for the new 3G iPads! You can grab Damon Brown’s Simple Guide to the iPad (3G iPad Update) for your Kindle for only $1.99!

Second, if you’re interested in why it wasn’t available, you can read my latest blog post on BNet.com, Barnes & Noble E-Books Effort Won’t Reverse the Insidious Consolidation of E-Publishing. An important subject as we shift from traditional publishing to digital distribution, the e-publishing power dynamic has become way too lopsided to serve the interests of agents, publishers and, especially, authors.  Please read and feel free to contribute to the conversation.

Panel moderator Noah Kravitz of PhoneDog was nice enough to set up a “livestreaming” link for tonight’s panel – you’ll need Adobe Flash to watch the video below. It starts at 7:45 PST here in the Bay Area. Enjoy!

And if you want more info on the iPad, don’t forget to pick up Damon Brown’s Simple Guide to the iPad – perfect for owners as well as potential buyers.

Watch live video from VidSF on Justin.tv

Have an iPad, Kindle or another e-book reader, or a e-book reader on your home computer? I have two new books especially made for e-book fans! Here are descriptions from their “back covers”.

Damon Brown’s Simple Guide to the iPad:
Make the most of your iPad! Veteran tech author Damon Brown gives all you need to have fun with Apple’s popular device, from music and word processing to photos and video games. The down-to-earth tone cuts through all the tech jargon,

while the detailed information will get novices and techies alike up and running. Both affordable and thorough, the book will make you an expert in an hour or two.
Price: $.99!

The Damon Brown Reader: A Decade of Sex, Tech & Pop Culture Journalism:

On the cutting edge of music, tech and sex culture, Playboy and New York Post writer Damon Brown has opened the world to the most influential subcultures. In his first anthology, Damon takes six of the best pieces over the past decade from some of the top publications. Also includes an exclusive excerpt from Porn & Pong: How Grand Theft Auto, Tomb Raider and Other Sexy Games Changed Our Culture.

Price: $2.99!

Click on the links to download the books through Amazon and read them through the Kindle device or the free Kindle app on the iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, PC or Mac. They will be available at the same price for the Sony Reader, Barnes & Noble nook, kobo and Apple iBookstore shortly.

“Porn & Pong” readers – I’m coming to Portland! Catch me this Wednesday at Reading Frenzy, 7 pm, for an intimate reading from “Porn & Pong“. Hang out afterwards and head to the club Rumpspankers for a fun video gaming night hosted by Portland’s own Darklady.

It will be the first stop on my roadtrip up to Seattle for the awesome Penny Arcade Expo. I’ll speaking about the topic of sex and video games there on Sunday afternoon.

Hope to catch you at any or all of the events!

Wednesday, September 2nd

Porn & Pong signing and reading @ Reading Frenzy

7 pm – 8  pm

921 SW Oak St., Portland, OR

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Porn & Pong afterparty @ Rumpspankers

7 pm – 11 pm

700 NE Dekum, Portland, OR

Not necessary, but you can RSVP on Facebook and follow me on Twitter for the latest news (and maybe even some liveblogging).

As you may know, About.com is one of the most read knowledge sources on the web. From now on, you can come to my About.com website to learn about the latest and hottest games for your iPhone/iPod Touch, Android, Palm or other portable phones. There are already many reviews online as well as tips on finding the right gaming phone, where to find free games, and how to get started playing on your mobile.

Content will be fresh daily, so be sure and come through regularly (and let your favorite gamers know, too)! http://mobilegames.about.com

I also will be posting important About.com reviews and stories through my Twitter account: http://www.twitter.com/browndamon.

More info is here at Corvus’ site.

Penny Arcade Expo is one of the largest video game conferences in America. This year it’s happening in Seattle over Labor Day.

Come through, give your opinion and get your copy of Porn & Pong signed (or grab it at one of the soon-to-be-announced book signings!).

Join me this Saturday in New Orleans for my first Southern Porn & Pong book reading and signing! It will be at Faubourg Marigny Arts and Books, a cool indie book store just outside of the French Quarter.

As some of you know, the Faubourg Marigny is actually my old neighborhood – I lived on St. Roch street, a few blocks away from the park, and left when Katrina hit in ’05. I wrote the majority of Porn & Pong while I was in New Orleans, so having my first Southern signing there is both a privilege as well as a homecoming of sorts.

Here are the details:
Faubourg Marigny Arts and Books
600 Frenchmen Street
Saturday, June 6th
7 pm

Come by, grab a book and say hi!

Luckily, our talk will be on Saturday afternoon! The panel is “Make Your Web Site Add To Your Bottom Line” (April 25th, 2 pm). We’ll talk about using websites, blogs and social networks to help sell your work. I will be talking about using the ‘net to connect with book readers online.

More info about the wonderful organization and the conference can be found at the ASJA website.

The San Francisco Examiner website gave Porn & Pong: How Grand Theft Auto, Tomb Raider and Other Sexy Games Changed Our Culture a hearty thumbs-up:

“Porn & Pong is a fascinating look at the history of pornography in video games and modern media… If you have any interest in history, you’ll find Porn & Pong a fascinating and enjoyable read.”

Check out the entire review at Examiner.com.

For more insights, I’ll be speaking at the American Society of Journalists and Authors conference in New York the weekend of April 25th. The Saturday afternoon panel will be on how writers can use the web to connect, network and build audiences. Check out the details at the ASJA website.

games Magazine interviewed me for a fun, two-page spread on the book, pornography and technology. Read the interview here.

It was great meeting everyone at last month’s LA book signing! We literally shut the place down, and Freddy and Eddy were gracious hosts. More signings will be happening soon – stay tuned!

In other good news, Publishers Weekly, the main book industry trade publication, gives Porn & Pong a thumbs up!

Publishers Weekly says “this slim, fun read… looks at the young medium in context and finds that, even in its infancy, video games were already as influential, potentially dangerous, and worthy of dissection as any other art.”

You can read the review in its entirety at Porn & Pong HQ or the Publishers Weekly website.

And while you’re doing your (online) holiday shopping, pick up Porn & Pong as the perfect stocking stuffer for your favorite gamer, techie or pop culture lover.

The book signings continue! Catch me in Los Angeles on Friday, November 14th.

November 14, 2008

Freddy & Eddy

Book reading and signing, 8 pm

Come by, get your book signed and say hi! Fellow sex culture writer Regina Lynn had a great book signing at Freddy and Eddy there earlier this year.

Also, on Saturday, November 15, Jon M. Gibson – who wrote the awesome Foreword to Porn & Pong – will be having a signing for his annual Nerdcore calendar at Golden Apple comics. Info will be up soon on the Nerdcore website. I will be there as well. I wouldn’t miss it, as last year was a blast.

Finally, PlanetOut/Gay.com has run a hot excerpt from Porn & Pong. Check it out.

Sirius listeners,

Catch me on Maxim Radio today at 2 pm EST/11 am PST for the Level-Up video game show. Host Scott Pitek and me will be talking about – what else – Porn & Pong. It should be a fun discussion!

Sidebar: My critically-acclaimed Pocket Idiot’s Guide to Satellite Radio is still the only Sirius/XM book out there. Whaaaat? Check it out to learn about the best music option available today.

Porn & Pong – and me - are on the road!

This week catch me at East Lansing’s MSU bookstores and next week in Chicago. Come by, get your book signed and say hi!

More dates and cities are being added every moment - keep abreast at Porn & Pong central.

October 10, 2008
MSU Meaningful Play Video Game Conference
Roundtable – When Will Video Games Grow Up?: Handling Adult Topics In Video Games

Michigan State University
Barnes & Noble (across from MSU)
Book reading and signing, 8 pm
East Lansing, MI

October 11, 2008
MSU Student Union (At the Entrance)
Book signing, noon to 1 pm
East Lansing, MI

October 16, 2008
Quimby’s Bookstore
Book reading and signing, 7 pm
Chicago, IL

October 19, 2008
Early 2 Bed
Book reading and signing, 6:30 pm
Chicago, IL