That $4 cup of coffee...

[BeccaPrice]

Apparently on Twitter (I don't twit, so I only know about this from blogs), Brent Weeks got bent out of shape when a fan complained about the cost ($13) of his newest ebook.

I ran across this article in The Digital Reader where they're making the case for why a $4 cup of coffee is a better deal than taking a $13 flier on a new-to-you author.

Now, I would never pay $4 for Starbucks - can't stand their coffee - but will willingly spend a couple dollars on Tim Horton's. And I gladly spent $15 on the eARC of the new Bujold book - but she's one of only a few authors I'm willing to do that for.

I think Nate Hoffelder makes a good case in the article.

[morriss003]

I bought a Jayne Ann Krentz ebook for $7 recently. It was a release of a book she wrote in the early 80's. Better than paying $40 for the book on eBay.

[pidgeon92]

Any thing is only worth the price someone will pay for it. I think that price increases based on the comparative wealth a person has, as well as their desire for something.

I have no qualm with spending $4 on a pumpkin spiced latte. More than $10 for an ebook is difficult for me. No, it doesn't make sense, as the latte is consumed far more quickly than the ebook. I also have a few hundred unread ebooks in my queue. I do not have a few hundred fresh pumpkin spiced lattes.

[DarkScribe]

Pumpkin spiced latte? Seriously?

I feel ill - and I love coffee. Unadulterated espresso coffee; I drink eight or nine cups a day.

I will have to tell my wife about this one, she has all these weird coffee tastes, the type where the waiter needs two A4 pages to write down the order.

[BelleZora]

Back in the 70's I worked at Seattle's Pike Place Market near what was then the world's only Starbucks. Excellent coffee and a good book were then and still are great pleasures to me. I still prefer cozy little coffee shops like that first Starbucks, before it became a ubiquitous brand name with sterile shops, and don't mind spending money for a good cup of coffee and a good read.

Yesterday I paid $14 for a book that will probably take 2-3 days to read, which is still cheap entertainment. Usually,though, my books cost no more than a good cup of coffee and less than a movie ticket.

[wyndslash]

i don't think a cup of coffee and a book are comparable o.o heaven knows how much i've been spending on overpriced pastas and tea lately.

[spindlegirl]

I always have found that retort to be ineffective to me. I could go back and forth with a whole host of other things they in turn have spent money on unnecessarily.... Did they really need the fancy name brand jeans when the plain ones would have been just as cozy and nice?.... we all make our choices about what has value in our own eyes and why that is so.

But TDR makes a good point. I don't like Starbucks much (my husband's home roast is good enough for me - oh and last time I was in Starbucks a regular cup of coffee was more like 2.49 for a tall :P).

I rarely even go out to the cinema, yet will pay a couple dollars for a dvd rental. I put out less money for things I don't know... I love some of my favorite coffee shop coffee... Will I love the e-book as much as the coffee if it is 4x - 7x the price? That is to be determined at the library or when "freebie" time comes.


But heck, I don't even pay more than $12 for a pair of Jeans that I expect to survive at least 50 washings in its lifetime.... if we want to get into price and perspective....

[spindlegirl]

Originally Posted by BelleZora

Yesterday I paid $14 for a book that will probably take 2-3 days to read, which is still cheap entertainment. Usually,though, my books cost no more than a good cup of coffee and less than a movie ticket.

I agree to some extent - I don't mind paying quite a bit of money for books I know I am bound to re-read over and over again.

I'm fussy on expensive entertainment. Books used to be "poor man's entertainment", and I hope that still remains so. I still like my books to woo me before I'll make them mine forever.

Not many people are re-readers, but I am slow to get tired of re-reading a favorite book. I like to savor and repeat/relive favorite experiences. If an author can persuade me into loving their work of fiction that much, then take my $13 by all means, but I really only buy things I can trust. I've never been a gambler.

[afv011]

Originally Posted by BeccaPrice

Now, I would never pay $4 for Starbucks - can't stand their coffee - but will willingly spend a couple dollars on Tim Horton's.

The stuff Tim sells can hardly be called coffee. Anything that's done via dripping is not coffee, but dirty water. For true coffee, Italy or Spain are the right places, a tiny cup with way more stuff in it than the largest of cups at Tim's.

[Belfaborac]

I think you'll find there's a lot of filter coffee being served in Italy and Spain too....

[afv011]

Originally Posted by Belfaborac

I think you'll find there's a lot of filter coffee being served in Italy and Spain too....

I have yet to find it. Every single bar, restaurant or coffee shop I tried sells the real thing. Italians and Spanish don't want a half litter cup of dirty water, they want a tiny cup that is really strong. The way it should be. And it only costs about 1 euro.

[Belfaborac]

Hey, I wasn't arguing against your premise. It's just that I've been served filtered coffee and coffee from cafetières (which I generally use myself) in both Italy and Spain, as well as in Turkey and across the Middle East (where the perception is that they also don't drink the stuff). Anyway, in my opinion the raw material is far more important than the method used to brew the stuff. Get me a bag of properly roasted first quality beans and I'll brew you a nice cup of coffee no matter what method you want me to use. If the beans are first class, the rest is just a matter of preference.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Belfaborac

Get me a bag of properly roasted first quality beans and I'll brew you a nice cup of coffee no matter what method you want me to use. If the beans are first class, the rest is just a matter of preference.

This is what I think of all coffee

[Kumabjorn]

No banana spiced moccha latte frappuccino venti for monkey then.

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

No banana spiced moccha latte frappuccino venti for monkey then.

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