How many 'must-buy' authors do you have from Big 6 publishers?

ficbot · 03-10-2011, 08:32 AM

I wrote an article for this on Teleread and am curious to get more opinions. I think the Harper Collins boycott and the pricing/geo-restrictions/etc. might have more impact on the Big 6 than they realize because I think most readers have a few 'name' authors they follow, and aside from those, don't care much about the others. They'll round out their reading of those favourites with library books, used book store finds, borrowing from spouses or family, magazines, reading for school or work etc.

I know that for me, I have maybe two authors from Big Pub whose work I will buy, sight unseen, and be willing to pay a little more for. The rest of my books are just 'whatever looks interesting among the other books I have.' If something looks interesting but is priced too high or is unavailable, there are plenty of other books in the category of 'not too invested per se, but if I happen to get my hands on it, it looks fun.' So that means that out of 100 books I might read, 98 of them will not be big pub purchases, necessarily, but will be library books, impulse purchases which were cheap, Smashwords books or borrowing from my sister.

So, other readers out there, how many 'must-buy' authors do you have from the Big 6? And what percentage of your reading do those purchases represent?

Blue Tyson · 03-10-2011, 08:45 AM

1

In recent years, probably 0.1 %

Blue Tyson · 03-10-2011, 08:47 AM

And one from one editor, now that I think of it. But I get that paperback, and the ebook is georestricted anyway, so format shifting, there.

Worldwalker · 03-10-2011, 08:47 AM

Zero. I will not buy DRM-locked ebooks, any more than I'd buy pbooks I could only read in my living room.

Barcey · 03-10-2011, 08:47 AM

My 'must-buy' authors from the BPH's disappeared a year ago.

abookreader · 03-10-2011, 08:59 AM

Really the only one that I must buy is Nora Roberts for my Mom. When she puts a book out, I get it to my Mom's Kindle as soon as possible. It makes Mom really happy to have those books when she wakes up on release day and I'll keep paying to get them to her.

Others, like Nalini Singh coming up which I suspect they'll price at $14.99, I'll find a way to read the book but I'll read it at my price point. I'll group buy with friends or get it from the library or something.

Otherwise, I pretty much read what makes me happy. And if seeing your name or your Publishers name leaves me with a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach over your attacks on libraries or anything else - then I don't buy your product.

SameOldStory · 03-10-2011, 09:14 AM

Other

As Blue Tyson said, it's a VERY insignificant number of books.

I'm not really boycotting the big publishers or DRM, I simply don't want to pay those prices.

I also like independent authors. Sure some books turn out to be duds, but that happens with books from major publishers too.

What gets me is that they (the big publishers) are shooting themselves in the foot with their shenanigans. If I see a new book today for $15 - $25 I'll wait for the price to come down. But by the time that happens I'll probably have forgotten about it.

amward · 03-10-2011, 09:26 AM

None, if they are a big name author the book will come to the library. $30 plus is too much to pay for a paperback novel that I'll only read once.

rhadin · 03-10-2011, 09:28 AM

As I noted on Teleread, my must-buy authors are few and the must-buy means I must buy their hardcover when released. Until the advent of agency pricing, I would buy both the hardcover and the ebook versions of new releases of these must-buy authors; now I just buy the hardcover.

And even with that, the Agency 6 are losing out because I used to buy a lot of Agency 6 books -- hardcover and ebook -- that were not must-buy books. I've simply stopped buying their fiction books except for the very few must-buys. In fact, I just loaded up with ebooks from Smashwords -- I bought nearly 100 ebooks in the past few days from Smashwords (their servers really need upgrading desperately), so I won't need to buy any Agency 6 ebook or hardcover fiction for months, if ever.

Sweetpea · 03-10-2011, 09:41 AM

In my buying life, there have been very few "must-haves". Last year was exceptional, with 2 books. This year, I have one book on my list (end of the month). I will buy it, no matter the publisher (I believe it's Random House, but not sure). But after this book has been added to my library, I can't think of another book I must have at all cost...

elemenoP · 03-10-2011, 09:48 AM

I have almost no "auto-buy" authors anymore. BUT, the books I like seem to published by the big publishers. Things like: Cutting for Stone, Water for Elephants (actually her new book is *terrible*), The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. What would you call that, literary fiction meets popular fiction? I'm sure some would say it's one and some would say it's the other. But to me, all of those books had great writing AND a great story. I am still under the impression that for this kind of "mainstream but good" writing, these kinds of authors are getting published by the big publishers. I'm sure there is good writing from the indies, but it seems so hard to sort the wheat from the chaff? And it seems like a lot of the indie books are more in niche genres like sci-fi?

eP

SameOldStory · 03-10-2011, 09:50 AM

I'm buying, and reading, much more than ever because of the lower prices. In total, I would say that I'm spending more money than before too.

It makes me wonder how much better off they'd be if their prices were lower.

Sell 10,000 ebooks at $14 each = $140,000
Sell 20,000 ebooks at $10 each = $200,000

HarryT · 03-10-2011, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SameOldStory

I'm buying, and reading, much more than ever because of the lower prices. In total, I would say that I'm spending more money than before too.

It makes me wonder how much better off they'd be if their prices were lower.

Sell 10,000 ebooks at $14 each = $140,000
Sell 20,000 ebooks at $10 each = $200,000

Doesn't that depend how much profit they're making per book? If the book is costing them $11, then:

Sell 10,000 ebooks at $14 each = $30,000 profit
Sell 20,000 ebooks at $10 each = $20,000 loss

I'm not suggesting that it does cost $11, of course, but there's more to it than you suggest.

Pomtroll · 03-10-2011, 11:15 AM

I voted other. I have quite a few I buy. And for the most part they are cheaper than if I bought the paperback or hard cover. BUT I have become more selective of the hard cover authors. I tend to wait for paperback prices in e-books now.

RockdaMan · 03-10-2011, 12:27 PM

None. I judge each and every book by its own content.

View Poll Results: How many 'must-buy authors from the Big 6 do you have?
Less than five---I follow a few big names but can take or leave the rest	41	44.09%
5-10- I like certain big name authors	21	22.58%
0- I only read indie books or library books	16	17.20%
Other	15	16.13%
Voters: 93. You may not vote on this poll

03-10-2011, 08:32 AM	#1
ficbot Wizard Posts: 2,409 Karma: 4132096 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite/iOS Kindle App	How many 'must-buy' authors do you have from Big 6 publishers? I wrote an article for this on Teleread and am curious to get more opinions. I think the Harper Collins boycott and the pricing/geo-restrictions/etc. might have more impact on the Big 6 than they realize because I think most readers have a few 'name' authors they follow, and aside from those, don't care much about the others. They'll round out their reading of those favourites with library books, used book store finds, borrowing from spouses or family, magazines, reading for school or work etc. I know that for me, I have maybe two authors from Big Pub whose work I will buy, sight unseen, and be willing to pay a little more for. The rest of my books are just 'whatever looks interesting among the other books I have.' If something looks interesting but is priced too high or is unavailable, there are plenty of other books in the category of 'not too invested per se, but if I happen to get my hands on it, it looks fun.' So that means that out of 100 books I might read, 98 of them will not be big pub purchases, necessarily, but will be library books, impulse purchases which were cheap, Smashwords books or borrowing from my sister. So, other readers out there, how many 'must-buy' authors do you have from the Big 6? And what percentage of your reading do those purchases represent?

03-10-2011, 09:50 AM	#12
SameOldStory My True Self Posts: 3,126 Karma: 66242098 Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Trantor, Galactic Center Device: Galaxy Tab 2 7.0	I'm buying, and reading, much more than ever because of the lower prices. In total, I would say that I'm spending more money than before too. It makes me wonder how much better off they'd be if their prices were lower. Sell 10,000 ebooks at $14 each = $140,000 Sell 20,000 ebooks at $10 each = $200,000 Last edited by SameOldStory; 03-10-2011 at 09:52 AM.

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03-10-2011, 08:45 AM	#2
Blue Tyson Blue Captain Posts: 1,595 Karma: 5000236 Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Australia Device: Kindle Keyboard 3G,Huawei Ideos X3,Kobo Mini	1 In recent years, probably 0.1 %

03-10-2011, 08:47 AM	#3
Blue Tyson Blue Captain Posts: 1,595 Karma: 5000236 Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Australia Device: Kindle Keyboard 3G,Huawei Ideos X3,Kobo Mini	And one from one editor, now that I think of it. But I get that paperback, and the ebook is georestricted anyway, so format shifting, there.

03-10-2011, 08:47 AM	#4
Worldwalker Curmudgeon Posts: 3,085 Karma: 722357 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: PRS-505	Zero. I will not buy DRM-locked ebooks, any more than I'd buy pbooks I could only read in my living room.

03-10-2011, 08:47 AM	#5
Barcey Wizard Posts: 1,531 Karma: 8059866 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Canada Device: Kobo H2O / Aura HD / Glo / iPad3	My 'must-buy' authors from the BPH's disappeared a year ago.

03-10-2011, 08:59 AM	#6
abookreader Wizard Posts: 1,516 Karma: 2567610 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: Kindles - Keyboard, Fire, 2-US, iPhone, iPAD	Really the only one that I must buy is Nora Roberts for my Mom. When she puts a book out, I get it to my Mom's Kindle as soon as possible. It makes Mom really happy to have those books when she wakes up on release day and I'll keep paying to get them to her. Others, like Nalini Singh coming up which I suspect they'll price at $14.99, I'll find a way to read the book but I'll read it at my price point. I'll group buy with friends or get it from the library or something. Otherwise, I pretty much read what makes me happy. And if seeing your name or your Publishers name leaves me with a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach over your attacks on libraries or anything else - then I don't buy your product.

03-10-2011, 09:14 AM	#7
SameOldStory My True Self Posts: 3,126 Karma: 66242098 Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Trantor, Galactic Center Device: Galaxy Tab 2 7.0	Other As Blue Tyson said, it's a VERY insignificant number of books. I'm not really boycotting the big publishers or DRM, I simply don't want to pay those prices. I also like independent authors. Sure some books turn out to be duds, but that happens with books from major publishers too. What gets me is that they (the big publishers) are shooting themselves in the foot with their shenanigans. If I see a new book today for $15 - $25 I'll wait for the price to come down. But by the time that happens I'll probably have forgotten about it.

03-10-2011, 09:26 AM	#8
amward Wizard Posts: 1,299 Karma: 2081110 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: SW Australia Device: Eco Eclipse, Sony PRS 350 (pink), Ipod Touch, Kindle Touch	None, if they are a big name author the book will come to the library. $30 plus is too much to pay for a paperback novel that I'll only read once.

03-10-2011, 09:28 AM	#9
rhadin Literacy = Understanding Posts: 4,833 Karma: 59674358 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: The World of Books Device: Nook, Nook Tablet	As I noted on Teleread, my must-buy authors are few and the must-buy means I must buy their hardcover when released. Until the advent of agency pricing, I would buy both the hardcover and the ebook versions of new releases of these must-buy authors; now I just buy the hardcover. And even with that, the Agency 6 are losing out because I used to buy a lot of Agency 6 books -- hardcover and ebook -- that were not must-buy books. I've simply stopped buying their fiction books except for the very few must-buys. In fact, I just loaded up with ebooks from Smashwords -- I bought nearly 100 ebooks in the past few days from Smashwords (their servers really need upgrading desperately), so I won't need to buy any Agency 6 ebook or hardcover fiction for months, if ever.

03-10-2011, 09:41 AM	#10
Sweetpea Grand Sorcerer Posts: 9,707 Karma: 32763414 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Krewerd Device: Pocketbook Inkpad 4 Color; Samsung Galaxy Tab S6	In my buying life, there have been very few "must-haves". Last year was exceptional, with 2 books. This year, I have one book on my list (end of the month). I will buy it, no matter the publisher (I believe it's Random House, but not sure). But after this book has been added to my library, I can't think of another book I must have at all cost...

03-10-2011, 09:48 AM	#11
elemenoP Wizard Posts: 1,717 Karma: 3790058 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: NYC Device: Kindle Paperwhite, Sony 650	I have almost no "auto-buy" authors anymore. BUT, the books I like seem to published by the big publishers. Things like: Cutting for Stone, Water for Elephants (actually her new book is terrible), The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. What would you call that, literary fiction meets popular fiction? I'm sure some would say it's one and some would say it's the other. But to me, all of those books had great writing AND a great story. I am still under the impression that for this kind of "mainstream but good" writing, these kinds of authors are getting published by the big publishers. I'm sure there is good writing from the indies, but it seems so hard to sort the wheat from the chaff? And it seems like a lot of the indie books are more in niche genres like sci-fi? eP

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03-10-2011, 11:15 AM	#14
Pomtroll Guru Posts: 822 Karma: 1341819 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Minnesota USA Device: Sony 350, Sony T1, Kindle Touch, Kindle PW1	I voted other. I have quite a few I buy. And for the most part they are cheaper than if I bought the paperback or hard cover. BUT I have become more selective of the hard cover authors. I tend to wait for paperback prices in e-books now.

03-10-2011, 12:27 PM	#15
RockdaMan Banned Posts: 1,644 Karma: 213512 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: On the other side of over there Device: Pandigital Novel, Kindle G1 (broken), iPod Touch	None. I judge each and every book by its own content.