Quote:
Originally Posted by darryl
I think the answer is that it is probably unfair to all but the Publisher. A greater royalty rate is not much comfort when there are none sold. Even 100% of zero is still zero. Of course, in all "fairness", I should point out that even if this price is not a mistake the likely intention of the publisher is not to deprive the Author of royalties but to divert sales from ebook to print book.
Having said that, I strongly agree with your comments. Fairness, whilst a wonderful thing, is usually highly subjective and far overused. It is usually impossible to be fair to everyone. And coming across as a whinger indeed makes the chances of a complaint being taken seriously very remote.
I concede that this pricing may well be a mistake. I am, as those who have read my past posts will be aware, not a fan of Hachette or traditional publishing in general, so sometimes can be too ready to assume the worst. I hope this proves to be true in this case.
There are many sources of books, both legal, doubtful and unquestionably illegal. Most books are fungible, and there are plenty of cheaper alternatives available. Otherwise, if one is prepared to wait there will be price reductions and promotions. There are libraries, both in our own countries and in other countries. If you are happy to read from paper, there is still a used book market. There is lending amongst friends and family. And, of course, there is piracy. The publishing industry is not unique. The best defence against piracy is to provide a great product, a reasonable price and an easy convenient method to purchase.
Amazon is doing this. Indie authors and publishers are doing this. It can be done.
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I do mostly used books.
Using cookbooks as an example. Let's say I want Cajun food. I see two books. Paul Prudomme and Emeril Lagasse. Paul is $20. Emeril is $15.* Since they are pretty much equal, I would grab Emeril.
*Figures made up.
The reality is I would wait till they are in the thrift store or flea market to pick them up. Or in the case of one Emeril book, my mom gave it to me.
Before you ask, yes I have found most of both those chefs books at the thrift store.