Not which we disbelief he can do it. The male The New York Observer calls the “Svelte Twitter Svengali” has the story of environment the club tall as well as vaulting over it. He files prodigiously for The Times; stars in the latest “Page One” documentary; as well as has promulgated, as of my final check, 21,376 Tweets — not counting the apart Twitter stream where he annals each taste of food he consumes. (Brian mislaid some-more than 90 pounds final year upon the Twitter-assisted diet; it’s substantially tough to feed yourself when your fingers have been henceforth merged to the keyboard.) As his co-worker in the media-reporting unit, David Carr, memorably pronounced of the gifted upstart, “I still can’t get over the feeling which Brian Stelter was the drudge fabricated in the groundwork of The New York Times to come as well as fall reduced me.”

So yes, he can write the book. But since would he wish to? Why, in fact, would anyone wish to?

For years right away the populist prophets of latest media have been proclaiming the genocide of books, as well as the marketplace seems to at the back of them up. Sales of imitation books in the U.S. appearance in 2005 as well as have been in solid decrease since, according to publishers’ net income interpretation reported to the Association of American Publishers.

Watching which trend, we find my pique for the state of civilized world comes with the guilty swell of relief. Sure, we would skip books — as well as so, by the way, would my young kids — nonetheless during slightest the genocide of books would put an finish to the irritating actuality which everybody who functions for me is possibly essay the single or wants to. we would get my staff back!

Every month, it seems, the small contributor drops by my bureau to ask the leave of deficiency to write the book. we patiently insist which book-writing is anguish — slow, lonely, frustrating work that, unless we have been the really singular exception, gets the half hearted examination (if any), reaches the couple of thousand people as well as lands upon the remaindered shelf during Barnes & Noble. we relate my own knowledge as the book disaster — dual incompletes, as well as I’m still profitable at the back of the large allege with the each year check to Simon & Schuster which we consider of not as the weight nonetheless as bail.

But still the reporters — as well as editors, as well — keep entrance to lay in my bureau in between the teetering stacks of Times-written books which we meant to review sometime as well as to attend kindly to my outline of book-writing Gethsemane, as well as afterwards they stick upon the cliff-bound lemmings anyway.

Off they go to write books about wars, books about spies, books about diplomacy. Books about basketball, books about China and, entrance soon, the book about basketball in China. Half a dozen books exploring aspects of the new monetary meltdown. One (and the single some-more pending) about George W. Bush; one (and another pending) about the Obama family. We do cookbooks, transport books, nonplus books as well as film guides. A book explaining the English. A book explaining the French. Books about The New York Times. We do biographies (Whittaker Chambers, Edward Kennedy, Virgil Thomson, Einstein) as well as memoirs (growing up in Alabama, flourishing up in Liberia, flourishing up Catholic). Cancer. Jazz. Physics. Pipe organs. Marriage. The weather.

Two editors were writing books about their dogs. At the same time!

Over upon the Op-Ed page, where we am migrating in September, every columnist solely one has created the book or dual or three, nonetheless customarily the single is shutting in upon William Safire‘s 20-something output.

I’ve schooled engaging things from the books of my staffers. we schooled which we in use the monetary bard who got himself so low in debt he couldn’t have his debt payments, the media columnist who had been a moment addict as well as the grill censor with the story of eating disorders. (To those who found these cases problematic, we replied which there is no improved gift for essay about hold up in all the complexity than carrying lived it.)

I declare we have not set the good example. we sealed dual book contracts, after all, as well as nonetheless we over conjunction of them, we did conduct a reduced autobiography of Nelson Mandela for “young readers,” atonement the oxymoron, as well as I’ve created the couple of introductions for compilations of Times material. The Times covers books, reviews books, ranks books as well as publishes books. We have been sum enablers.

We put up with the writers since we wish the bent happy, as well as since the small of their status accrues to The Times. But we do so during the cost. Books meant writers who have been absent or dreaming from every day journalism, writers who have to be transposed when they leave their stating beats as well as landed somewhere when they return. There is the wily attribute in between what they unearth for their books as well as what goes in to the paper. There is the awkwardness of reviewing books by colleagues — as well as the larger awkwardness of not reviewing them. There is the rancour of those left at the back of to take up the slack, generally where fat advances have been paid.

So, since aren’t books passed yet? It helps which e-books have been booming. Kindle as well as Nook have started to refashion the economics of the Gothic edition industry: no trucks, no paper, no earnings or remainders.

But which does not insist since writers write them. Writers write them for reasons which customarily have the small to do with income as well as not as most to do with masochism as we competence think. There is genuine compensation in the story deeply told, the box richly argued, the nonplus meticulously untangled. (Note the tense. When people contend they adore writing, they customarily meant they adore having written.) And it is still the credential, the trophy, the pathway to “Charlie Rose” as well as “Morning Joe,” to conferences as well as panels which Build Your Brand, to vocalization fees as well as essay assignments. After Brian’s book, he will be an even some-more stellar Stelter.

His book, by the way, will examine an additional permanent aged middle — sunrise television. It will come in both imitation as well as electronic formats, nonetheless he confesses, “I’m certain I’ll cite it as the hardcover.”

Sigh. It will never end.

Bill Keller is senior manager editor of The New York Times.