Should writers be paid by the number of pages people read?

Amazon has implemented a new policy to pay writers just that way. Plus, writing to help seniors, the art of nonfiction, and new writing lingo.

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Each week, Evan Peterson rounds up stories from across the Web that scribes of all stripes should check out. Should writers be paid by the number of pages people read? Can writing help you live longer? These questions, (almost) answered.

Paying per page: Amazon announced that it will be paying writers by pages read for books published on Kindle. Peter Wayner argues in The Atlantic that this will reward some writers while punishing others.

A system with per-page payouts is a system that rewards cliffhangers and mysteries across all genres. It rewards anything that keeps people hooked, even if that means putting less of an emphasis on nuance and complexity.

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