Am I Wasting My Time Requesting Books For The Kindle?

NVash · 11-20-2010, 06:20 PM

I was just requesting some books on the Kindle when I began to wonder. Am I wasting my time? Do any of these requests ever get fulfilled? What about with ones for books from publishers that are no longer around? And the main question, I keep requesting comics. You know, trade paperbacks of black and white comics, I havent bothered with color yet. Surely thats a waste.

I guess my main question is has anyone requested some books and actually seen them appear on the Kindle? And does anyone think the Kindle will ever hold comics? I know they can be converted to work for the Kindele but will it ever actually have the option to buy comics? Can E-ink withstand that?

Marc Johnson · 11-20-2010, 08:55 PM

I know how you feel. I do the same thing. I only do it for books though because I think comics look awesome and probably belong on tablets. I have no idea why they have a button for comics on the Kindle.

I'm guessing it's just an email notification they give to the publishers. The publishers then ignore it. I doubt there are many notifications they get. I could be wrong though. I have no idea how it goes.

I also have seen books appear on Kindle after requesting them. I don't know if it's because the publisher eventually got around to releasing them on Kindle because they didn't want it to interfere with hardcover sells.

Andrew H. · 11-20-2010, 10:42 PM

Possibly. But you're not wasting *much* time...and what else could you do that would be more effective?

Russell Brooks · 11-20-2010, 11:43 PM

If I was you, NVash, contact the author via email, or his/her publicist. Make the request.

NVash · 11-21-2010, 12:03 AM

Do they give that kind of info on Amazon? Ive never seen it there and after going back to find it I found literally nothing. It seems all Amazon has is the authors name and even some Bibliographies are wrong. How would I get that kind of information for publishers or authors? And how would I get that for publishers that no longer exist?

Russell Brooks · 11-21-2010, 08:14 AM

If the author has a webpage, and most of them do, just google it. Some authors are approachable, many aren't. Most of them are on Facebook and LinkdIN. It's the best advice that I can think of. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. BTW, which author are you looking for? Maybe I can help you.

Doug Huffman · 11-21-2010, 08:25 AM

If your rationale is frugality, then, yes, you are wasting your time. Whether or not the publisher sells in p-book or e-book, he will maximize his profit.

I imagine, also, that a publisher is like a legislator to whom the most effective communication is that one most burdensome to YOU, otherwise he just deletes it (e-mail), drops it straight to the shredder (fax), doesn't even open snail-mail based on the unfamiliar return address, but the most effective communication is registered USPS mail with return receipt.

Kali Yuga · 11-21-2010, 10:09 AM

Considering it takes all of 2 seconds, no it's not a "waste of time."

If you're passionate about it, I concur with others that you should contact both the author and publisher. Email should be as effective as any other means.

However, if it's an obscure backlist title and they only get a handful of requests, then a conversion is not likely to happen soon.

BWhite · 11-21-2010, 11:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marc Johnson

I'm guessing it's just an email notification they give to the publishers. The publishers then ignore it. I doubt there are many notifications they get. I could be wrong though. I have no idea how it goes.

The above is how I always figured it worked too. A monthly computer-generated report, probably e-mailed, each individual publisher getting a report for just his own offerings.

I used to do computer generated reports, so the above should have been no big deal for an individual at Amazon to accomplish. So I assume it exists.

For a book written in the past like
The Ship Who Sang by Anne McCaffrey
I always assume that Amazon reports an interest level of three times a month and the publisher does not care.

For a book like
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
I always assume that Amazon reports an interest level of 20,000 times a month and the publisher wants to speak with the author.

In Rowlings case it is probably a wasted effort on the part of the publisher, but you get the idea.

Doug Huffman · 11-22-2010, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kali Yuga

Considering it takes all of 2 seconds, no it's not a "waste of time." ... Email should be as effective as any other means.

Normative and prescriptive statements, characterized by would/should/could, have no intrinsic truth/value, cannot be falsified and are not 'scientific'.

I have been an elected official. Unsolicited e-mails are deleted. Consensus is leadership dismissed.

bjones6416 · 11-22-2010, 09:32 AM

I need to start keeping track when I click that little button. I know of at least one series that has come out in digital format after I clicked, though, and that was the Gregor the Overlander series by Suzanne Collins. It may have been because of the success of her other series, but I requested the Gregor series when my nephew read them a couple of years ago. They came out as e-books September 1 of this year.

DiapDealer · 11-22-2010, 09:45 AM

I've always believed that the "I want to read this book on my Kindle" button usually results in a Topaz ebook. If the publisher has no inclination to create an ebook -- but sees that there's enough interest in one -- they may take the easy route and allow Amazon to create one for them... which does result in a Topaz ebook.

Just a theory, but I'm sticking with it.

bjones6416 · 11-22-2010, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

I've always believed that the "I want to read this book on my Kindle" button usually results in a Topaz ebook. If the publisher has no inclination to create an ebook -- but sees that there's enough interest in one -- they may take the easy route and allow Amazon to create one for them... which does result in a Topaz ebook.

Just a theory, but I'm sticking with it.

I hope not!

At least the Gregor books aren't in Topaz, I'm happy to say.

Kali Yuga · 11-22-2010, 10:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doug Huffman

Normative and prescriptive statements, characterized by would/should/could, have no intrinsic truth/value, cannot be falsified and are not 'scientific'.

Feel free to contact the publishers and retailers and ask them whether or not they pay attention to consumer inquiries. Go ahead, I'll wait.

I used the less definitive "should" instead of "will" because I'm offering an opinion, not presenting a scientific statement -- though clearly I'm viewing my opinion as a reasonable one. Nor do I feel a strong requirement for all my utterances to be definitively falsifiable, unless I'm specifically discussing facts or scientific propositions.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doug Huffman

I have been an elected official. Unsolicited e-mails are deleted. Consensus is leadership dismissed.

Perhaps this is no longer why you are an elected official?

Mind you, I don't expect my senator to ask "how high?" when I send an email request for him/her to jump. However, good elected officials do, in fact, keep track of "unsolicited" communications, as one way of keeping track of what their constituents expect and/or want.

Plus, if they're going to ignore customer emails, they're just as likely to ignore snail-mail requests. So, you might as well save yourself a stamp. Since none of these activities require significant efforts, the amount of potentially wasted effort is so minuscule, I see little harm in clicking the link and sending an email.

NVash · 11-22-2010, 12:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Russell Brooks

If the author has a webpage, and most of them do, just google it. Some authors are approachable, many aren't. Most of them are on Facebook and LinkdIN. It's the best advice that I can think of. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. BTW, which author are you looking for? Maybe I can help you.

At this moment? David Westheimer for the second Von Ryan book, 'Von Ryan's Return'. Im looking for more than a few however and it seems most of them are nowhere to be found. Then again, most of these books have been swept under then table and forgotten about.

Id also like to know why there are two different Kindle versions of 'Von Ryan's Express'.
http://www.amazon.com/Von-Ryans-Expr...=cm_cr_pr_pb_t
This one came out in 2002 and is cheaper.
http://www.amazon.com/Von-Ryans-Expr...m_cr_pr_sims_t
This one came out earlier this year. Im not going to bother the author or publisher about that but does anyone know why there are two versions? I figure they might have updated it, hence the newer version but whats up with having two? Wouldnt they ordinarily just replace the older one with the newer one?

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

I've always believed that the "I want to read this book on my Kindle" button usually results in a Topaz ebook. If the publisher has no inclination to create an ebook -- but sees that there's enough interest in one -- they may take the easy route and allow Amazon to create one for them... which does result in a Topaz ebook.

Just a theory, but I'm sticking with it.

What is a Topaz ebook exactly? Is that a bad thing?

11-20-2010, 06:20 PM	#1
NVash Wandering Vagabond Posts: 282 Karma: 350000 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: iPod Touch	Am I Wasting My Time Requesting Books For The Kindle? I was just requesting some books on the Kindle when I began to wonder. Am I wasting my time? Do any of these requests ever get fulfilled? What about with ones for books from publishers that are no longer around? And the main question, I keep requesting comics. You know, trade paperbacks of black and white comics, I havent bothered with color yet. Surely thats a waste. I guess my main question is has anyone requested some books and actually seen them appear on the Kindle? And does anyone think the Kindle will ever hold comics? I know they can be converted to work for the Kindele but will it ever actually have the option to buy comics? Can E-ink withstand that?

11-21-2010, 12:03 AM	#5
NVash Wandering Vagabond Posts: 282 Karma: 350000 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: iPod Touch	Do they give that kind of info on Amazon? Ive never seen it there and after going back to find it I found literally nothing. It seems all Amazon has is the authors name and even some Bibliographies are wrong. How would I get that kind of information for publishers or authors? And how would I get that for publishers that no longer exist? Last edited by NVash; 11-21-2010 at 12:50 AM.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
iPad Scribd: Publishers Are Wasting Time, Money, Effort In Creating iPad Apps	kjk	Apple Devices	0	06-11-2010 02:27 PM
noobie requesting your thoughts and opinions	rabt	Which one should I buy?	5	08-14-2009 12:45 PM
Kindle Books - Time Travel	ToeRag	Amazon Kindle	8	03-24-2009 10:27 AM
requesting review of ECTACO jetBook e-Book Reader	kren	Which one should I buy?	0	05-15-2008 10:36 PM
PRS-500 Letter to Sony requesting LRF format	cmumford	Sony Reader Dev Corner	9	01-08-2007 06:02 PM

11-20-2010, 08:55 PM	#2
Marc Johnson Member Posts: 22 Karma: 124 Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Bay Area, CA Device: Kindle	I know how you feel. I do the same thing. I only do it for books though because I think comics look awesome and probably belong on tablets. I have no idea why they have a button for comics on the Kindle. I'm guessing it's just an email notification they give to the publishers. The publishers then ignore it. I doubt there are many notifications they get. I could be wrong though. I have no idea how it goes. I also have seen books appear on Kindle after requesting them. I don't know if it's because the publisher eventually got around to releasing them on Kindle because they didn't want it to interfere with hardcover sells.

11-20-2010, 10:42 PM	#3
Andrew H. Grand Master of Flowers Posts: 2,201 Karma: 8389072 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Naptown Device: Kindle PW, Kindle 3 (aka Keyboard), iPhone, iPad 3 (not for reading)	Possibly. But you're not wasting much time...and what else could you do that would be more effective?

11-20-2010, 11:43 PM	#4
Russell Brooks Fanatic Posts: 538 Karma: 569642 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Montreal, Quebec Device: none	If I was you, NVash, contact the author via email, or his/her publicist. Make the request.

11-21-2010, 08:14 AM	#6
Russell Brooks Fanatic Posts: 538 Karma: 569642 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Montreal, Quebec Device: none	If the author has a webpage, and most of them do, just google it. Some authors are approachable, many aren't. Most of them are on Facebook and LinkdIN. It's the best advice that I can think of. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know. BTW, which author are you looking for? Maybe I can help you.

11-21-2010, 08:25 AM	#7
Doug Huffman Banned Posts: 102 Karma: 7860 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Washington Island, across Death's Door, Wisconsin, USA Device: KINDLE 3 WiFi	If your rationale is frugality, then, yes, you are wasting your time. Whether or not the publisher sells in p-book or e-book, he will maximize his profit. I imagine, also, that a publisher is like a legislator to whom the most effective communication is that one most burdensome to YOU, otherwise he just deletes it (e-mail), drops it straight to the shredder (fax), doesn't even open snail-mail based on the unfamiliar return address, but the most effective communication is registered USPS mail with return receipt.

11-21-2010, 10:09 AM	#8
Kali Yuga Professional Contrarian Posts: 2,045 Karma: 3289631 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Kindle 4 No Touchie	Considering it takes all of 2 seconds, no it's not a "waste of time." If you're passionate about it, I concur with others that you should contact both the author and publisher. Email should be as effective as any other means. However, if it's an obscure backlist title and they only get a handful of requests, then a conversion is not likely to happen soon.

11-22-2010, 09:32 AM	#11
bjones6416 ↓↓ Skirt!! Earrings!! Posts: 3,394 Karma: 17432172 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Georgia, USA Device: Acer netbook, JetBook Lite, Sony PRS-300, Kindle 2, Kindle Fire	I need to start keeping track when I click that little button. I know of at least one series that has come out in digital format after I clicked, though, and that was the Gregor the Overlander series by Suzanne Collins. It may have been because of the success of her other series, but I requested the Gregor series when my nephew read them a couple of years ago. They came out as e-books September 1 of this year.

11-22-2010, 09:45 AM	#12
DiapDealer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 28,341 Karma: 203719646 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD	I've always believed that the "I want to read this book on my Kindle" button usually results in a Topaz ebook. If the publisher has no inclination to create an ebook -- but sees that there's enough interest in one -- they may take the easy route and allow Amazon to create one for them... which does result in a Topaz ebook. Just a theory, but I'm sticking with it.

Advert

Advert