Ebooks, Authors and Blogging the Ad
Writers Weekly and Booklocker co-owner, Angela Hoy, recently wrote a blog entry in defense of authors who want to receive free copies of their eBooks. You can find the source article here:
I actually have a response for this situation, which may surprise many of you. Angela, I am a huge fan of Writers Weekly (WW) and follow your site faithfully which is conveniently embedded in my Google Reader. I get a lot of choice information from WW and I think hands down it’s an Internet content creator’s absolute dream. Frankly, I can’t live without you, Angela.
Let’s nutshell, shall we? In a nutshell, Authors write eBooks for publishers, publishers publish ebooks and make lots and lots of tiny scraps of digitally sexy money. Publishers then roll around in glee naked, bathing obscenely in their newfound Internet dough and then reluctantly, like Scrooge parting with a penny, return a small portion to the authors of the eBooks. We call this “paying a royalty”. Sometimes an author may also want a complimentary copy of the eBook.
Now Comes “the Rub” as the Bard Would Say:
“Nawwwwww……” says the Publisher “don’t wanna”. The author gets sufficiently irritated and the publisher doesn’t really care because authors, as we all well know, are a dime a dozen.
WELL
Not all publishers. Booklocker co-owner Angela Hoy loudly proclaims this in her ad-like soapbox and I loudly believe that she has the right and obligation to do so because it brings to the overexcited new writer something to “look before leaping” about: With WHOM should I publish? That is the question.
I’m on the fence here. One one hand, let’s defend the authors but I can’t shake it out of my head that if an author writes the eBook and relinquishes ownershop of said book to the publishing house why would he need a complimentary copy of the eBook itself. It’s on his hard drive. Now in RL publishing I understand the need for the copy but not so much for the eBook.
Ok, maybe he wants to see it in the final format. I get that; but as a publisher, which I am not, I would be worried about the author freely distributing the article to friends who in their most virulent enthusiam begin to pass the eBook to their friends who pass it to their friends and so on and so on. You know, what these uninformed fans like to call “free advertising (so ya better be grateful)”. This type of viral action can only hurt the financial bottom line of both the book publisher and the author and if the book publisher cannot make money on an eBook venture then the publisher may become reluctant to publish digital media.
ON The Other Hand
The publisher could set up a profile website for its authors which allows the author to update its content and in the content control section, the author could see a one time download and a restricted PDF version of the featured ebook.
Its that simple. Can this be done? Hey if we can either fake or actually put a man on the moon, then surely this solution is a viable one.
Lastly, authors need to take a more proactive roll in negotiating their contracts. Spell out the terms at the beginning and include the complimentary copy. Again, the solution is that simple.
Angela, I agree with you 100 percent that authors should receive a complimentary copy at a 100 percent discount but I think the copy should automatically come to the author upon publication of the eBook and the receipt of that eBook confirmed by both the author and publisher. It’s very easy to live happily ever after if both parties are in agreement.
The Magpie’s ONLY Comment on the Death of Steve Jobs
Well, I let the others write the obvious on Steve Jobs. Oh you read it all: he was suckled on the goat-like tit of Thomas Alva Edison, He sprang like Athena from the metal head of Henry Ford, He was a never forgotten icon of this generation which I would like to point out is aging and somewhat forgetful. This past week you heard it all. Well, I was looking for something to say but I was getting upstaged by all of the big blog cats on the internet mountain top.
So, I was over at the Huffington Post reading this and that and I came upon one of those endless tomes to his greatness. Well, the one that I found in my Google Reader gave me a typical “he’s dead” title and a posting by Google Adsense and I think Steve Jobs would have loved it so here dear reader, one last song to Steve Job for you.
Huffington Post: Steve Jobs Dead
Google Adsense: Jobs Available
‘Nuff Said.
And for the Magpie’s final entry in this weeks round up:
Happy Birthday Johanna Kearns!
She got a car for her birthday! Not just any car but this was the car in which she was born. Sounds so sweet!
Your mother was in the back seat of your car with her legs spread wide birthing a baby, hot towels everywhere, she was probably cursing the very life of your father and he was telling her "short breaths honey short breaths".
Childbirth is an exhilarating experience and I am so glad I did not have to do it—it you want to garner any kind of respect for women, childbirth is the very reason. When one someone says “buck it up and be a man” remember that neither of these male specimens ever “birthed no babies”. So who is the stronger of the sexes. Well, I remember the size of my daughter’s head as it emerged from her mother’s womb. I have to concede the title to the women: Sorry fellas.
As for Johanna, happy birthday to you, enjoy your car and keep your eye the road--oh and no more car babies.
I'm Just Sayin...
The Mighty Magpie Copyright 2011 by John Mahogany
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