I don't know about you, but I am waaaaay bothered by the range of costs for e-books!
First, too many are being given away in my opinion...I've seen comments that they are being given away because they are self-published and they're selected purposely for giveaways...
In my opinion, an author should only give their product away on special sales... and they should make a point of including the real cost for the book...i.e., what is being saved...during the sale.
I just went to a book that I'd like to read...it was $8.99! Hey, (1) I can buy paperbacks at that price...and (2) I would prefer reading a paperback any time! and (3) That's about the same price that top authors are selling for...
Hey, if I was not willing to pay $8.99 for a book that I can't hold in my hands written by Norah Roberts, James Patterson, and all the rest of my favs...I sure wouldn't purchase a book by an unknown writer...
Let's face it, if an ebook is a full-size book, it still should be less than a paperback...What do you consider a fair price for a book that, because of copyright, I normally just delete because I can't even give it away to charity???
And what about short stories?! Yikes! I'm seeing stories at as little as 13 up to 99 pages being sold for $2.99...Ok, the simple math... if I can get a full novel for $2.99, why should I pay that much for a short story?!
What is the value of your work? Most authors need to think about that more often... And why oh why only go the e-book route instead of either/or print if you want to sell your book at a higher price...at least you give the reader a choice to pay for a book they can hold in their hands...and easily keep or share...
Yeah, I know, I know...I get most of my books free...So what, I've spent years building up a reputation for my reviews so that I am always overwhelmed with requests...
But guess, what, I still buy books...paperback and ebooks if I want to read and consider the price fair...I make a point of not pointing out on my blog which books are which, because I don't consider them any different for purposes of my reviews...
But writers...something has got to give! I've seen books on Amazon with thousands of reviews! Does that mean that they gave their book away free? If so, is it worth it to you, the writer, to have thousands of reviews...and no income from that book!
Think about it...make Getting Reviews a part of your marketing plan and made your time, money and reviews all count!
What do I mean by that? I mean, use those few reviews to your benefit...Share them socially in an ongoing fashion to get more readers catching the postings! Or to remind them that your book is still available!
'Nuf said...cause this is, of course, Just My Personal Opinion!
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