Quote:
Originally Posted by ScotiaBurrell
starbucks coffee not cost $4. not in US.
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Yeah, that's why I always hate these comparisons. A "cup of coffee" at starbucks costs $1.50. A "coffee drink" like a caramel frappucino might cost $4...but that's more akin to a defrosted milkshake than it is to a cup of coffee. Not that there's anything wrong with that...
As to the $13 e-book, I think the author is out of line. I don't know the author, haven't read his work, and have no idea whether the book is worth $13. And I have happily paid that much for an e-book, so I don't think that a $13 price is necessarily out of line.
However, if the book *is* worth $13, it's not worth $13 because some 2000 calorie coffee drink at Starbucks costs $4. It's also not worth $13 because Weeks spent two years working on it. As others have noted, it has no inherent worth; it is only worth what people will pay for it. Which means that individual readers will need to decide for themselves whether the price is right; Weeks's opinion doesn't have any impact on whether an individual reader would value the book that much.
I sort of understand why he was annoyed by the fan's comment, but a simple "if you don't think it's worth it, don't buy it" would have been enough.