Saturday, July 18, 2009

reading the Reader

In some ways, the eReader is great. I can start a new book without even setting the last one down and getting up and looking around. That's also a drawback, because I was lying there way too late one night and thought, "aw, I'll just start this little old thing" when I finished another book. I finally just turned it off, though, remembering that I had several physical books on my shelf, both purchased and from the library, that I wanted to read first. And it was late and I needed to sleep.



With the latest news on Amazon deleting George Orwell books (because they didn't actually have the right to sell them, apparently), it makes me wonder. The discussion is circulating around "who owns this book?" on the eReader loop. Turns out you don't own it.

One of the reasons that I am leery about going all electronic is that though I am allowed to read a book, I can't just tell my mom "this is a great book" and then mail it to her. Or buy her a book and read it before sending it (hehehe). People share books.

Also, in 20 years, am I still going to be able to read a .pdf file? I have paperbacks that are considerably more than 20 years old on my bookshelf, so don't tell me that all paperbacks fall apart.

And no, I don't think my high school copy (bought at a used book sale, even) of Pride and Prejudice is the Gutenberg Bible, but it will probably stick around for another 20 years.

And what is this about some agents and authors refusing to be published in eformat? Or at least waiting 6 months? Why are they not getting the same royalties both ways, since the price is generally the same AND the publisher and distributor don't have to make actual physical copies? Yes, they have to maintain larger servers, there is that, but the same amount should come to the author, shouldn't it? I think that's going to be the next big step: the same royalty to the author, no matter what the format.

And I know myself too well to think that if I find an eBook to be fabulous that I will go out and buy a hard copy. I won't. Sorry. It takes a heckuva lot to get me to buy something that I read from the library, at least not until a few years later when it's hard to get it from the library or else I want to reread it and I think "why not?"

No comments: