My July issue of RT never came (I think someone at the PO is stealing my subscriptions. This is the 2nd missing RT issue and I’ve also missed an issue of RWR. :brow: ) so I e-mailed and requested a new one, which just arrived. I flipped through it today and paused at a letter to the editor titled “E-Request” where the reader requests the publishers do a better job of explaining in their advertisments that the books being advertised are e-books. She says she’ll read a snippet, want to buy the book, and then find out it’s an e-book. At which point she won’t buy it and is instead disappointed at being deprived a read that intrigued her.
On my chat group, the Book Cafe, I gave two readers the choice between Sex on Holiday and Catching Caroline. They both requested SOH. If they were both e-books, one of the readers wanted CC. But if SOH was paperback, she’d take that instead.
On Lori Foster’s message board, there is a discussion about Ellora’s Cave. Some were turned off by the covers, others by the level of heat, others by the number of parties involved in the sexual releations. But there was one reader who didn’t even know what EC is or even where to find it.
My agent, who is spending most of his days talking to me lately (poor guy), reiterated today his thoughts on e-publishing and they’re not positive. My print editor doesn’t consider e-publishing to be publishing credits. If you’re only in e-book, you’re unpublished.
I’ve received e-mails from readers who state their eagerness to read my Bravas, but please forgive them, they won’t buy Caroline because it’s an e-book. However, if it comes out in print, they’ll snap it up.
Understand, I’m just talking and not complaining. I’m not at all hurt or offended by my print readers who won’t buy my e-books. I’m perfectly happy if they only buy my print work, I’m grateful for that. But I find it interesting how many readers and publishing professionals are still not… jees, I don’t know… into e-published work. When I do chats, the questions are mostly about my Bravas.
Speaking of chats, I have two coming up over the next few days. If you’re interested, the information is on my Top Five Page. I’m also a Featured Author on The Romance Studio for the month of July. And I think it’s not too late to vote for my smooch at ECataRomance. :kiss:
I’m glad you finally got the July RT. Check out yours truly in the centerfold! :cheer:
I have a read a few ebooks — mainly stuff by authors I know or had heard a lot about, but in general, no, that’s not what I buy. It doesn’t conform to my reading habits (i.e. something I can stil in my bag and read on the subway, the plane, while waiting at the dentist’s office); it’s difficult to browse (I might be in a bookstore picking up a magazine or a book and buy half a dozen novels to read, but I’m not as likely to just be “browsing” the epublishers’ website (though on the few occasions when I have gone to one of those sites to pick up something in particular I’ve usually bought a few more); and I’m not into the idea of buying a gadget to be able to read the book when I can read a print book without any extra technology. However, this is a minor concern compared to the others, becuase, indeed, you can read them on your computer. But combined with the fact that I do most of my pleasure reading *away* from my computer, and I don’t tend to come across ebooks anyway, that’s just the way it happens.
I have nothing against ebooks as a form, nor against someone whose work, say, came out solely in audio which is extremely uncommon but I read an article about one recently). It’s just not the medium I do most of my reading in.
Regarding industry opinions, I’ve seen it both ways. I’ve seen editors who say it depends on the epublisher, those who differentiate between the same publisher’s print and e-book list, and print pubbed writers for primarily ebook publishers who say that it doesn’t matter how many books they have on the shelf, the NY publishers look at the publisher of their books and dismiss them as “previously unpublished”. It’s a mad mad mad mad mad mad world.
But as for my reading preferences, that’s why it’s print. It’s not the content, it’s the medium I find difficult to deal with. (I read print newspapers, too…)
by Diana July 1st, 2005 at 8:53 amI’ve just recently started reading ebooks, and I’ve found that while I dont mind reading EC titles or other epublisher titles, I’m not really looking forward to reading some of the full length, also in print, books that I have. I think I’m hesitant to read a 250+ book on my itty bitty palm, whereas 80-150 pages (the length of many of the EC & co. books I have) is less daunting. I’ve got to get over it though ’cause I’ve got quite a few “print” books in pdf!
by Jay July 1st, 2005 at 7:24 pmI know I have gone on and on and on already in your blog about how much I love e-books. But here I go again: I LOVE EBOOKS. :cheer: I love books in *any* form. If it’s a book and it’s a compelling story I’d likely read it if it was written on a series of cardboard boxes. I’m an addict. And if I love an author’s work and she decides to write her next book upside down on index cards, I’m lining up to buy it. It’s not about the format to me it’s about the story.
Things are changing in the world and I like new things.
I have oh, I’d say 50 boxes of books sitting in my room and 10 bookshelves lined with my favorite titles. Frankly, I’m drowning in books. That’s why I’m trying to find some of my favorites in ebook format. I’m not saying I’ll get rid of my print copies, but at least then I could move them to the storage building and still be able to read them whenever I wanted to in ebook form. I could store all these books on a few burned DVDs. Takes up a lot less room that way.
That said, I want to buy Catching Caroline *so* much (it’s a steal for $3.00!) but AQ doesn’t take PayPal. Unfortunately I don’t use credit or debit cards, just PayPal linked to my checkbook.
~Mandy
by Mandy July 1st, 2005 at 8:37 pmI love that photo, Diana! :clap:
I do hear it’s mostly the delivery medium that is the turnoff, not the content. They don’t like reading on the computer (I don’t like it either) and some have trouble reading on Palms, eBookmans, and other readers. (I use an eBookman.)
by SylviaI myself find that it takes…more “work” read an e-book than it does a print book, which is why I prefer to read print–not to mention that computer=work. And as for e-pub=published author or not, it is a double edged sword and a hurdle that I’m not sure can be crossed. Not as long as the majority of “normal” readers walk into bookstores without the knowledge of release dates, shelf life, etc.
by Evangeline July 2nd, 2005 at 1:24 am