Thanks, if you were any more helpful, I'd be starving

[pbray]

Google alerts can be a good thing. It lets me track a press release in the wild, or find out about new reviews of my books.

It can also be a bad thing, when it alerts me of yet another ebook piracy site. I'm not going to give them credibility by posting a link, but here's how they describe themself:

You love books, yet have a low budget and not sure which books to purchase. Why not try reading one or two books of different authors to see if they suit your interest. At my blog, I provide you downloadable full-text ebooks...the cost to you is free

Gee. Thanks. It's one thing to lend a friend a copy of a paperback ("Try this author, I think you'll really like her.") But thinking that you're somehow doing a service by posting ebooks for free on the internet? You've just taken that one sale and turned it into one hundred, one thousand, ten thousand or more free downloads. But that's okay. Everyone knows authors are rich and we don't need the money.

After all, it's not like I have any expenses to cover. I get to try laptops free all the time. Electricity, internet, mortage, groceries, they're all free too. My doctor is happy to give away free hours of his time so patients can try him out, the same goes for the people who change the oil in my car, and the guy who mows my lawn.

Maybe the people doing this don't understand, or they just don't care. Maybe they're blinded by news stories about the advances that luminaries receive and have no concept that the average genre novelist makes less than minimum wage, and that's without any benefits.

Yes I remember what it's like to be poor and not to be able to afford the books you want. I remember days when I would literally skip meals in order to save up the cash to buy a new book, and making do with the limited selection at the library. But back then it never occurred to me to start stealing books to feed my habit, and it wouldn't occur to me now.

And, of course, for every e-piracy site that gets shut down, two more spring up in its place.

Grr. Argh. It's Monday and I see stupid people.

Comments

[gallaure.livejournal.com]

Just to lighten things a little, and maybe help...

Last year when True Blood came out, and I found out about the Charlaine Harris books. I searched the web for excerpts so that I could decide if I wanted to go to the bookstore and buy. I'm QUITE broke, so the decision to spend cash was heavy. My boyfriend is a librarian, but he said there were about 3 months worth of holds on the first book, and I wanted to read before I finished watching the series (and SO glad I did!! )

I clicked on a link in a blog that led me to a download page, and there I was, staring at thirty authors' books, including the 1st 3 Sookie Stackhouse novels. The whole novels. Complete. Pdf format.

That pissed me off. I'm a writer, and who wants to write for free? But I wanted an excerpt, so I read the first bit of sookie 1. Then I went out and bought it. Then I bought 2. And 3. And 4 and 5 and 6, and then 7 which was only in hardback, so $26 worth of one book.

Then, I told several friends on Facebook who had just read other vampire books. I let them know that these were better. Not one but EIGHT of my friends went out and did the SAME thing I did. We all bought 7 paperbacks and 1 hardback each, and this during a major recession. Most of us have already bought the new book that just came out, too.

So, even though that blog poster is a complete ass and a thief, he made a lot of money for Charlaine Harris. You're completely right to report the blog you found, just like I did. We will unfortunately NEVER be able to stop these people, but at least you know that not all people who find these web publishings of your work will be thieves and jerks. Some of them will become fans, and they will bring others.

Fortunately, now I can get free sample chapters from Amazon on my Kindle, so I don't have to get mired in that searching-for-excerpts bog again.

[pbray.livejournal.com]

Sadly, for every story like yours, I think there are at least as many stories that start out "I was going to buy the new JANE DOE novel, but then my friends told me I could get it for free off the internet so I did." Which, if enough readers do this, leads to the ultimate conclusion that "And now two years later I'm wondering why JANE DOE isn't writing any more books, I really liked her." Except, of course, that JANE DOE's publisher wasn't selling enough books (print or electronically) to make it worthwhile to keep publishing her, so JANE DOE was dropped. And JANE DOE, unable to live on good wishes, has gone back to work and given up writing.

It's hard to see the impact when we're talking about bestselling authors. But for beginning and midlist authors, losing a few hundred or a few thousand sales can make all the difference.

[gallaure.livejournal.com]

Fair point. Just wanted to try to put a bright side out there, though.

Also, if it helps, all the free pirated copies I've seen are REALLY CRAPPY. Instead of 'we'll' it will say 'w311' and the like. Makes it hard to read, and annoys the HECK out of me, especially since I'm a grammar/spelling nerd.