OtterMommy

From what I've seen on the books I'm interested, the "full" price for an e-book is $9.99-$22.99. (And you had better believe I snatched up the $22.99 on the day it went on sale for $2.99!). Considering new hardcover prices are about $28-30, $14.99 is not terrible if it is a book I really want. But, when the paperback is $11.99 and the e-book is $14.,99, I have to roll my eyes. I was also a reluctant e-book reader. Now, I read both print and e-book, but digital reading is just SO MUCH EASIER on the eyes (I have some eye issues--thanks, Lasik!--that limit the amount of time I can read print in one sitting). I did fall prey to all the cheap and free books on Amazon when I first got my kindle. In fact, my paperwhite doesn't have the memory to hold all the downloads. I now primarily read on my Kobo. I'm fine selling my soul to Jeff Bezos for many things, but not books. Plus, I find the Kobo Libro to have a better interface for my eyes than the Paperwhite. Another interesting element with digital books is that they aren't subject to the printing "issues" we are currently having with big titles. I'm still not entirely sure what is causing that--if it is someone going on with the printers or publishers not printing enough copies, or what. But, I could get a copy of Babel right now on my kobo, even though it is currently sold out at my local bookstore. Honestly, I think I will be reading more and more on my e-readers as time goes on. While I don't think that reading in general is going that way--the trends certainly don't indicate that--I don't think that ebooks are going away. At some point, they are going to have to come clean or something about the pricing.

Yeah, I think once a book hits backlist, the pricing becomes trickier. As you said, no one has ever been clear of what the production cost of an e-book is. Not only is the e-book sometimes more expensive than the mass market or trade paperback, but at that point used copies of the book are in wider circulation and someone could pick up a like-new copy for $1 or $2. As for the free books in backlist, I have thoughts on it. As I said, I think authors should get paid, so I think permanently making a book free is a big mistake. But if you look at Jennifer Weiner, I can see the value of doing a book free (in her case, only on Kindle) for a limited time. I can't imagine that at this point Good in Bed makes up a large part of her sales. It's over 20 years old and, in some ways, and it's actually quite dated. However, it is also one of her better novels. While she may lose some money one having this one free, she might make it back with new readers picking up In Her Shoes or another later book after having "discovered" Jennifer Weiner via her free e-book. I can't speak for other readers, but I completely understand why books in series are priced differently. I read a fair number of mystery series and I've noticed that earlier books in the series will go on sale when a new book is released. It's all about hooking readers--I get it. It's a business and, in one of the worst analogies ever, it's kind of like drug dealing. Give 'em a cheap hit and you'll hook 'em. Yes, Colleen Hoover is an anomoly, but she isn't the only author to start from offering free books to becoming a publishing success. The entirety of The Martian (albeit an early version) was available for free on Andy Weir's blog as he was writing it. Then, IIRC, he offered a free ebook of it?

Not to get into the print vs. digital debate, but I'm not sure where else to put this little e-book rant(?). I recently saw a TikTok by Jennifer Weiner where she talked about the recent NYT piece on Colleen Hoover. (I am not a Hoover reader, and this rant isn't really about her) She was very gracious to Ms. Hoover but the point was that the NYT piece (I have not read it, but I've heard enough about it that I'm sure I could already recite it verbatim) pointed out that the key factor of Hoover's success was that, early in her career, so many of her books were free e-books. I'm not sure if Hoover was a KDP author, or not--but Weiner had a good point. Free or cheap e-books are a great way to reach readers. Personally, I think you should pay *something* for an e-book because I think artists should be compensated for their work, but I also feel that generally e-books are overpriced. I rarely pay full price for an ebook. Really, the only time I would is if it is a new release that I'm very eager to read and instead of waiting for a library hold to come in, I'd rather pay full price and let it sit unread on my kobo for a few months. Heh. I do, however, frequently check my Kobo wish lists for sales and end up buy a good number of ebooks at $1.99 or $2.99. I didn't blink when I put a pre-order on the next Louise Penny, but I'm not going to pay $14.99 or more for a debut novel unless it's been out for a while and I know from others who have read it that it is worth it. I don't know what share of the market is e-books, but I do know that the very, very best marketing out there is word of mouth. That not only includes the various social media platforms, but also one person reading a book and enjoying it and then telling others to read it. So, I think it would behoove publishers to make one form of the books more accessible. Both print books and audiobooks have a fair amount of overhead. E-books really don't. If you think about it, pricing a new release e-book at $4.99 or so, even for a limited time, could be more valuable in terms of marketing than a full-fledged book tour. Putting backlist on sale frequently at $1.99 or $2.99 can bring new audiences to established authors. Back to Jennifer Weiner. In this TikTok, she said she probably would have had a different career if she had debuted in a time of e-books and social media. However, her first book is over 20 years old and, after reading the Hoover profile, she asked her publisher to make her first novel, Good in Bed, available for free (as of this week, it is now available for free on Kindle Unlimited. It's still $12.99--which is far too much IMO--on Kobo. However, I'll save my Kobo vs. Kindle thoughts for another rant). It will be interesting to see what happens. Granted, there are other things in play with Weiner--I think her earlier books are generally better than her later books (I believe her problem right now is that she doesn't know what kind of writer she wants to be at this point in her life). She also already has a well-established fan base and social media presence. Still, it will be interesting to see if the Kindle Unlimited play has an impact on the sales of her backlist. Anyway, that's my rant. If anyone has another perspective on this, I'd love to hear it. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk...

Julie Powell, the author of Julie and Julia, and who was played by Amy Adams in that movie, has died. I was recently wondering what had happened to her. Her writing career seemed to come to an abrupt end after her disasterous (in so many ways) second memoir. I can't say that I was a fan of hers, but 49 is too young. Cause of death is reported as cardiac arrest, which could really mean anything. ETA: Her husband (same husband she had in Julie and Julia, which is surprising if you’ve read Cleaving) said that she had Covid earlier this year, which may have been what led to cardiac arrest.

I just finished Comfort Me with Apples by Catherynne M. Valente. I know people love this book, but it just didn't work for me. Part of the problem was mostly due to me being swayed by the hype and having expectations that were too high. I also figured it out far too early (in the first couple of pages) and I think the success of the book may hinge on being surprised by the reveal.

I finished Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney. This is the first of her books I've read and I really liked her writing style. I know this is a divisive book and I know why it is divisive, but I have to say that I enjoyed it. There were some details that didn't quite make sense, but overall it was a success for me.

I just finished The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson and absolutely loved it! It's about an Indigenous woman who had been put in foster care (with non-native foster parents), eventually marries a white farmer, and then has to find her way back to her Indigenous community. I was completely sucked in and I adored every minute of it.

I received an email from SheReads (a book webpage) that included the synopsis of this show: It appears that this is not a direct adaptation from the book, which was Tembi Locke's memoir. My guess it will be along the lines of the Netflix production of Unorthodox, which used the basic structure of a memoir, but basically created a fictional story within it.

While the Royal family may be celebrities in our eyes, they aren't actually in the entertainment business. Fortunately, we have an entire thread devoted to them where you can share your thoughts about the passing of Queen Elizabeth.

I didn't like The Midnight LIbrary either. Everyone I know loved it, but I just couldn't get on board.

I do remember that, now that you mention it. But when I watched it I never actually thought that Lynn was more than friends with him. I guess I'm just an innocent! But, yeah, that must be who Lynn was talking about.

I don't think Grace has/had any interaction with Fr. Ignatius. It seemed like they whisked her off to the Vatican before she even crossed paths with Fr. Ignatius. However, I am a little confused as to why Grace never said and no one pressed her for the identity of the man who killed the Monsignor. I found that all confusing. I agree that Lynn's interest in taking orders was out of the blue, but I also believe it could have been (or could be) and interesting plot element if it had been handled better. Also, I don't even remember Lynn having a boyfriend. Did I totally miss that? I'm not sure what is so special about Kristen and/or her egg. Previously, I thought that all the devilishness came from the fertility clinic, but apparently not. It was implied a while ago, maybe season 1, that David was "the prize" and Kristen was the tool to get to him, but that doesn't seem to play well with the magic ova. As for Sheryl, I would be surprised if she knew it was Kristen's egg. Sheryl may be horrible, but she ultimately does love her daughter and granddaughters. That may be the line that is too far for her that Leland has just crossed. Maybe. I hope so! I adore Wallce Shawn! Maybe it is because she learned earlier in the season that admitting she sees demons doesn't always go over well? However, she doesn't seem to have a problem talking about it with David and, oddly enough, Lynn. My husband and I waited to binge this season, which I think is really the best way (for us, at least) to watch this show. We enjoyed it, but it did feel strange to be watching it in July/August and not October.

Please keep in mind that users visiting this thread may not have seen the entire series, so please play it on the safe side and use spoiler tags. Thanks!

Here is a good article that talks about the issues around The Satanic Verses and Salman Rushdie.

In 1989, the Ayatollah Khomeini put a bounty on his head for his book The Satanic Verses. For quite some time, he was big news over these death threats. Then he went on Goodreads and didn't make his profile public and outraged many by saying he didn't really like To Kill a Mockingbird. (Okay, maybe that wasn't BIG news, but it was the first time I remember him being in the news and it not having to do with the death threats). He wasn't exactly hiding in the years following the fatwa. I mean, he was on Goodreads. He also made an appearance in the first Bridget Jones movie. He has also published many books since then. I can only guess that this attack was stemming from the fatwa, which everyone seems to have forgotten about. I've never been a fan of Rushdie's books, but I hope that he recovers quickly from this attack.

TBA Streaming Date: August 12, 2022

TBA Streaming Date: August 12, 2022

TBA Streaming Date: August 12, 2022

TBA Streaming Date: August 12, 2022

TBA Streaming Date: August 12, 2022

TBA Streaming Date: August 12, 2022

TBA Streaming Date: August 12, 2022

Streaming Date: August 12, 2022

Nope, Netflix canceled the series after season 3.

Hey all! This is just a gentle nudge to get us back on topic for things that happen on television (and not in real life). We do have a small talk thread for non-TV related chat. Thanks!