Tag: eBook Piracy

Posted on in Blog, Books, eBook Piracy, eBooks, Indie Author, Literature, Self-publishing, Social media, Writing

Don’t @ Me

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Reading reviews can be a bit of an emotional roller coaster. The warm and fuzzy feeling when someone has connected with your characters; understood what you were trying to do and are happy they bought a ticket to your show. The shock and anger when someone dismisses your work, casually labels it ‘boring’ or the real killer, ‘light reading’. Some authors choose not to read their reviews, which is completely understandable. But for a lot of us, this is the only kind of feedback we get and so we cross our fingers, keep one eye closed and dive in, hoping for the best.

Over time, you come to realise that your book is no longer your private property. It belongs to anyone who hands over their hard-earned cash to buy it and their experience of reading it is unique to them and something you have no control over. This knowledge has given me a certain amount of detachment from reviews. As someone once said, reviews are for the readers and that is as it should be. But does that mean that authors don’t read their reviews?

I remember when I published my first book, The Heirloom. I hoped that people would buy it, read it and with any luck, enjoy it. It took roughly two years to research, write and rewrite. As a newly, self-published author, it took a very long time to get off the ground. If someone had told me back then that people would not only read it, but contact me to say how much they enjoyed it, well, I would have felt like my dreams were coming true.

That’s why I think the recent discussion on Twitter, sparked by an author who said it was ‘rude’ to tag them, is confusing a lot of people. On a basic level, writers write because they want to share a story with the world. Now, they might not care what the world thinks about their story (I’m thinking of Sally Rooney who said in an interview that she doesn’t read reviews or let them hold any sway for her) and that is their right. Writing a book does not automatically lock you into a contract where you have to be open to everyone’s’ opinion on it.

However, this is social media. It’s where you come to interact with people and if you’re an author (especially a well-known author), people are going to @ you. I see that Sally Rooney no longer has a Twitter account, which is really the only way to go if you don’t want to be involved in the conversation. I also noticed that Gail Honeyman, author of one of my favourite books, has also been inactive on her account since 2017. Now, I don’t know the reason for this (she’s probably writing another amazing book!) but prior to that, she responded to everyone who tagged her.

Which makes me wonder about the other part of the tweet – how we are limited ‘professionally’. Does this mean that publishers preclude authors from engaging with reviewers? Perhaps that’s a valid point – but I’ve never heard of this being the case and it certainly isn’t for me. In fact, the more interaction the merrier. But I think saying ‘thank you’ or liking a tweet is hardly going to create any conflict of interest. Or is the author referring to negative reviews and the unwritten rule that authors should not engage in online spats about their books (are you listening John Boyne?!) Maybe that is what she meant – it is so difficult to have a nuanced conversation on Twitter.

But speaking of negative reviews – I think it’s safe to assume that most authors do not want to be tagged on those! I saw Erin Morgenstern had to ask people to refrain from tagging her in conversations about how they didn’t really enjoy her new book. That’s just …. shit, really. I don’t know why anyone would want to call an author’s attention to their negative opinion of their book. Where is that conversation going to go? Is the author supposed to apologise? Give up writing?? Of course not. I like to use Goodreads to write my reviews, but I’m always cringing that an author might see the negative ones. Yes, it’s my honest opinion, but I’m not going to draw their attention to it by tagging them.

The fact is, everyone is entitled to make their own boundaries and I respect that. Judging from the comments, most people don’t expect a response from the author anyhow, but it’s nice when it happens. I tag other authors when I’m in love with their book – you can bet your butt I tagged Gail Honeyman with a link to a gushing review on my blog and she said something along the lines of Yay! thanks and we all went home happy. But I have tagged one or two authors who haven’t responded, for whatever reason, and that’s cool too. Maybe we should just agree that it’s not rude to tag and it’s not rude to not reply. Simples.

However, I don’t like the idea of self-appointed spokespeople making sweeping generalisations on behalf of all authors everywhere. We have all taken different paths to this place and some of us see it as a validation of sorts when someone has taken the time to say, hey, nice work.

Neil Gaiman added his tuppence worth, giving credence to the belief that authors do not want to read their reviews. Again, it came off a little patronising and, as happens on Twitter, we all have knee-jerk reactions. Later, he qualified his comment with the following:

This just goes to show what I believe to be the crux of the issue. Most of us would struggle to get reviewed in the mainstream media. Our aim is to be read by regular readers, not critics. So yeah, of course we want to hear from those people! The day I have a bad review in the Times and someone tags me in it, maybe then I’ll understand the annoyance these writers feel. But you know what? Maybe I won’t, because I’ve had to grow a very thick skin over the years – something all those articles written by publishers and agents tell us we need to do if we want to be authors!

It sometimes feels like all of this advice for writers is being sent in the wrong direction. I’m a fan of Neil Gaiman, but he does not speak for all of us. Just like he didn’t speak for me when he said eBook piracy was ‘an incredibly good thing’. Illegal downloads are having a seriously adverse affect on authors trying to establish a career in the digital age, affecting sales and creating an environment where readers no longer see the value in paying for books. You cannot assume that everyone in this industry is on a level playing field. We are a diverse ecosystem and one of the most integral parts of it are book reviewers/book bloggers. Elizabeth Bear’s tweet was especially dismissive of bloggers who read/review/promote book reviews and naturally tag the author as an FYI.

Whatever the intention was (and I’m learning that your intention can be very much misconstrued on Twitter) it has again highlighted the amount of unpaid work bloggers do with little or no credit. Another tweet (oh my God, I’m spending so much time on Twitter!! Help!) from a book blogger laid out how much time it takes and commitment to keep a blog going and how a simple high five from an author can make it feel worthwhile. It strikes me that in a multi-million euro industry, the people who do all the work get the least reward. Authors receive tiny royalties, have to do their own marketing and bloggers work for the price of a free book.

Anyway, I don’t want to end on a bum note. No-one is forcing us to be here, we do it because we love it, but as in life, it only takes some small courtesies to make it better for everyone. Try to not to illegally download books – I know we’re all on tight budgets, but please borrow from a library instead and if you can, leave a review. Show book bloggers some appreciation by liking their reviews – yes they love books anyway but I can’t imagine having to read loads of books I didn’t choose and then promoting them and promoting other bloggers, all for free! And do tag authors – most of us are not guaranteed newspaper reviews or even book deals. So it’s a lovely boost when someone takes the time to review your book (just don’t share the negative ones with us – no good can come from it!)

As Rebecca Solnit said, a book is a heart that only beats in the chest of another. We need each other.

Posted on in Blog, Books, Current Affairs, eBook Piracy, eBooks, Writing

eBooks – The Illegal Download

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Fame costs, as the 80’s TV show Fame once claimed, in all its leg-warmer glory.  You know what else costs?  Illegal downloading of books.  They might not cost the person downloading them, or the scumbags who stole the content in the first place, but it costs the one person who should really be rewarded for their work, the author.

Rowan Coleman is the most recent author to raise the issue, with this tweet:

 

There can hardly be a more disheartening moment for an author, than seeing years of hard work made available for free on the Internet.  But what, if anything, can be done about it?

I was scrolling through Rick O’Shea’s Bookclub on Facebook when I came across a post where someone had just bought their first Kindle and was asking how it all worked.  People were responding with useful information like how much eBooks cost on average, where to get good deals, bundles and even how to borrow from the library.  However, to my absolute horror, someone recommend an illegal downloading site where they get all their books for free.  How could anyone who values books, reading and consequently the people who write them, support a system that steals their work?

This followed on from another Facebook post, where the author Louise Jensen revealed how she came across her book on an illegal website (you can read her post on eBook piracy here).  I felt her pain.  I’ve also discovered my books available via torrent sites and let me tell you, the feeling is absolutely gutting.  My overriding sense was one of powerlessness – what could I do to stop this piracy on my own?  I shut down the page and just tried to pretend I hadn’t seen it.

In this digital age, there is no escaping the reality that file sharing has become a part of the landscape.  But does that mean we shouldn’t try to change the culture and prevent it becoming even more mainstream?

It’s not just about the potential loss of earnings (which is bad enough in itself) but what people don’t realise is that years of work have gone into making that book.  The chances of getting published are similar to those of winning the lottery, so most authors spend years writing, submitting, editing, honing, resubmitting, receiving rejection letters, giving up, starting again, writing, writing, writing.  If you are lucky enough to get published, or choose the independent route and publish the book yourself, there is still more work (and expense) involved in promoting and getting the finished product to the reader, but all of those long hours are worth it to see your book on the shelf.  Even a digital one.  So to see someone take all of that hard work, without your permission and make it freely available online… it’s indescribable.  It’s theft.  Yet, people don’t seem to care, as long as they’re getting a free book.

But there’s always a cost.  Most writers are already struggling to make a living out of writing and many have full time jobs outside of writing.  We don’t earn a wage; we work for free and hope that someone (many someones!) will buy our book once its published.

If people aren’t prepared to pay for books anymore, what will that mean for the future of writing?

An author’s career depends on sales and if the figures don’t add up, they get dropped.  Becoming an author will be relegated to the hobbies and other interests section of your CV.  And without fresh new writing voices coming through, our shelves will be dominated by celebrity autobiographies and cookbooks!  Of course some people assume that writers are making lots of money already and a couple of free downloads won’t hurt, but nothing could be further from the truth.  The average income for authors in Ireland is about €1,000 per year.  I can see the logic in thinking that big name authors won’t be affected by a few lost sales.  I can see the logic, but I don’t agree with it, because it’s still theft.

Digital publishing has democratised the industry in such a way that the majority of authors now are lower to middle class, ordinary people who one day hope to making a living from selling their books.  It can take years to start seeing any kind of income from writing, so to see someone swoop in and profit from your hard earned success, is infuriating.  I know money is tight, but as a society, I think we really need to consider the long-term implications of expecting something for nothing.  To add insult to injury, eBooks are often priced cheaper than a cup of coffee and yet they still wind up on these sites.

I understand that new releases can be expensive, but there are so many other ways to read cheaply.  Join NetGalley.  Get free books and in return, leave a review (another way of paying an author for their work).  Borrow from the library.  Use a subscription service like Amazon Prime.  Pick up some second-hand books in a charity shop.  Use the ‘Look Inside’ feature on Amazon to get a free preview of the book, if you don’t want to waste your money on a book you won’t like.  Just please don’t support these pirate sites and their illegal content.

Don’t make free books the norm.

I have read articles where some authors say they don’t get upset about illegal downloads anymore, because it means people are reading their books.  They also argue that it’s not a lost sale because these people would never have paid for their book anyway.  Neil Gaiman sees it as the modern equivalent of people lending books and that it’s a good way for readers to discover authors; a kind of reverse marketing strategy.  Perhaps they have achieved some kind of quasi-religious detachment that I’ve yet to master, but I can’t see how anyone can be okay with having their work pirated.  Maybe it’s more to do with the fact that there doesn’t seem to be anything that can be done to stop it and so they’ve just resigned themselves to the inevitability of it all.  I have even see people argue that, if you’re being pirated, you must be doing well.  So an author should be flattered at having their work stolen?

So what can be done about it?  There are websites and apps out there, similar to Google Alerts, that will let you know if your book has been pirated.  But, as an author, do you really want to spend a big chunk of your time and energy chasing down these sites, trying to get your book removed, only to have it reappear a few hours later?  Should publishers be doing more or the industry as a whole?  Could the removal of DRM (digital rights management) have an impact, freeing up readers from being locked into one format?  Or is education the key to preventing readers from downloading books illegally?    Whatever your position, it is copyright infringement; it is illegal and it is a crime.

 

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