used books | CW Hawes

Bookmans

Tucson has the most wonderful used bookstore. It’s called Bookmans, and this privately owned company is amazing. It’s a used book superstore.

In fact Bookmans is an Arizona treasure, with 3 locations in Tucson, 2 in Flagstaff, and 1 each in Phoenix and Mesa. The company’s been in business since 1976. Check them out at bookmans.com!

The other week I was visiting my dad who lives in Tucson, and set aside one morning to go to Bookmans. Of course I came away with some exciting new gems to add to the library.

The Mad King by Edgar Rice Burroughs

I like Burroughs. He knew how to write a rousing adventure yarn. In fact, he was the model many editors pointed to when advising new writers on how to write.

The Mad King is new to me and I’m looking forward to the read.

Prisoner’s Base and The Black Mountain by Rex Stout

I love the Nero Wolfe series by Rex Stout. In fact, the books are among the very few I re-read. Once upon a time I had the entire series. Today I’m in the process of rebuilding my collection. These two are very welcome. Very welcome indeed!

The Lost Wagon Train by Zane Grey

When a kid, I used to watch Westerns on TV. Shows such as Gunsmoke, Wagon Train, Bonanza, The Lone Ranger, Have Gun — Will Travel, and many others. But I didn’t read Westerns until recently.

Zane Grey is still considered one of the kings among Western writers. So I added this one to my growing Western collection.

The Girl with the Deep Blue Eyes by Lawrence Block

Lawrence Block is an incredibly amazing and versatile writer. I very much like his fiction, and his books for writers are nonpareil. Block can entertain you like few others, and teach you everything you need to know about the writing game. Block delivers, so this one I added to my collection and have already started reading it.

Those were my Bookmans “purchases”. I put that in quotes because that day was my very lucky day. I was one of two winners to get my books for free! How can you not love a bookstore that gives away books?

Reading is the best entertainment. Books are portable storytellers who are always with you. I have many hundreds of physical books and over a thousand on my iPad. Plenty of stories to take me to places and times I could never visit in person.

To me, the person who does not read fiction can only experience the here and now. And as wonderful as that can be, it’s a life devoid of imagination — and that’s only half a life.

Comments are always welcome! And until next time — happy reading!

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You Don’t Own Your Ebooks

Cthulhu reading an ebook he discovered he doesn’t really own.

I was surprised to learn I don’t own my ebooks. And neither do you. I know that’s no surprise to most of you. However, I’ve always been a late bloomer and I just came to the realization this past weekend that I don’t actually own my ebooks.

How did I come to this revelation? My wife and I are preparing to move and I was looking at all my books and taking mental inventory if I wanted to move all of them. Suddenly my mind made the leap to my ebooks. How do I resell the ones I don’t like or have no further use for? The answer I came to was I can’t.

Further investigation revealed that I don’t buy ebooks, and Amazon, Apple, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, don’t sell them. I am buying a lifetime use license, in effect. And at present there is no mechanism for me to resell the license. When Amazon, et al, sell me the license it is with the understanding I won’t resell.

So what do I do with all the ebooks I no longer want. I have dozens that I’ve read or started to read and don’t like. Sure I can delete them. But that is like throwing a five dollar bill in the toilet and pulling the lever to flush it. Why on earth do I want to do that?

The short answer is, I don’t. But right now, I’m stuck with all those ebooks I no longer want. Unless I just flush them down the toilet.

Some people have made the argument that buying an ebook is like going to the movie theater. If I don’t like the movie, I’m just stuck with a bad experience. The same with ebooks. I’m just stuck with a bad book.

Most young people, it seems, don’t find this strange. I think this is because the entertainment industry has brainwashed them (because they grew up with all this digital content) into thinking that reselling digital content is wrong. But how is digital content any different than a paperback book? There is no difference, really. It’s all content.

Oh, sure the argument is made that books are fragile and deteriorate. Which is hogwash. I have perfectly readable books that are over a 100 years old. However, I have all manner of digital content I can no longer use because I no longer have the readers to read it. Digital content is extremely fragile.

Just think about what happens when mobi and epub books can no longer be read. And since technology is rapidly advancing, that could be in my lifetime — and I’m 65. Remember floppy discs?

What guarantee do I have that my latest tablet will let me read the old digital content? I have none. Because someone somewhere will probably want to make money to convert my old books into the new formats. And if publishers want to convert their old digital format content to new formats, that will be up to them. If they don’t, that content is lost and gone forever. Just think of all those books, that are ebooks only, and they don’t get converted. Gone. At least with paper, they still exist. All the books. The good, the bad, the ugly.

So the argument that digital files don’t deteriorate is misleading. They might simply become unreadable. Which is tantamount to deterioration. It has the same end result.

Now what to my wondering and searching eye should appear? But that Amazon (as of at least 2 plus years ago) is working on creating a used ebook market. And in 2014, a Dutch court ruled that Dutch company Tom Kabinet could continue to resell digital content because the company actually was operating in a gray area of the law.

This is how it could work if Amazon created a used ebook market for Kindle. I have an ebook I no longer want. I offer it for sale in the used marketplace. When I get a buyer, Amazon takes a cut of the sale price — and may pass a cut onto the publisher, as an inducement to get their agreement to resell — and then deletes the item off my Kindle and transfers it to the new owner of the use license. In effect, I’m selling my use of the book to someone else.

Personally, I like this idea. The main argument against a used ebook market is that it will drive down the cost of new ebooks. But I don’t see the Big 5 lowering book prices simply because there are libraries and used bookstores. So I’m inclined to think the argument is a non sequitur that ebook prices will fall by force if there is a used market. After all, new books have to be sold for there to be used books.

As a publisher of my own content, I would get paid for the sale of the new book AND get a cut of the resale price. To my mind, that is a win-win. Sure I wouldn’t get the new book price on the resale, but maybe that person wouldn’t buy my book new to begin with. But if they buy my book used and like it, I could reap benefits down the line.

I hope Amazon goes through with this project. I think it will benefit readers immensely. And, if publishers get a cut of the resale price, it will help indie author-publishers as well.

As always, comments are welcome; and, until next time, happy reading!

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The High Cost of Books

I love to read. Reading provides a joy few things can match. If you follow this blog, you’re aware of that. However, books are expensive to buy. And when I tally up my outlay for the printed page, whether physical or digital, I go into a bit of sticker shock.

Perhaps that’s one reason subscription libraries such as Scribd and Kindle Unlimited are popular. For a monthly fee, you can read as much as you want. And if you are an avid reader, the service can easily pay for itself. Of course there are the public libraries, which your tax dollars pay for. The only problem I have with public libraries is that you have to return the books. And I suppose that goes for subscription libraries too.

Awhile back, Amazon gave me a 60-day free trial of Kindle Unlimited. However, once the trial was over, I dropped it. Even though I did end up reading at least $20 worth of books, that’s $10 for each month, I found that I had to sift through a lot of chaff to find the wheat.

For me, I find it a better use of my wallet and time to go the sample route. Download a sample. After all, they’re free. I can read it at my leisure, and if I like the sample, then I buy the book. I spent an awful lot of my reading time on KU partially reading books I didn’t like, all the while feeling the pressure to tally up $10 worth of reading for the month. I’m retired. I don’t want or need pressure.

Since I discovered subscription libraries (and public libraries) aren’t my cup of tea, what alternatives do I, and you, have?

Free Books

The world is awash in free books. Indie writers trying to secure a fan base have given away lots of books. They are everywhere. Some are very good, others not. Many are short stories, or novellas (which I happen to like, but many don’t), and some are just samples.

For the voracious reader, the free stuff can be good.

Another source of free books can be found at places like Faded Page, Project Gutenberg Australia, and Project Gutenberg. These places offer books that are out of copyright. Which means the books are older. And you can usually find many classics in their lists.

I recently downloaded Raymond Chandler’s novels from Faded Page. A great deal.

There are plenty of free books available. Which can keep us reading for a long time.

Used Books

I love used books. Great deals can be found in used bookstores, and especially garage sales, where the books are often close to being free.

Libraries often have sales of the books they discard. They are another source for good cheap reads.

For a long time now, I’ve only purchased used copies of traditionally published books due to their high cost when purchased new. Paperbacks selling for $15 and up. I simply can’t afford that. And let’s not even discuss hardbacks.

However, over the past couple years, I’ve noticed used books going up in price. Especially on Amazon and Amazon-owned ABE. And ever since Amazon bought bookfinder.com, the search results have deteriorated. The cheap books seem to have disappeared and the search results appear to be skewed towards Amazon and its affiliates.

Of late I’ve gone directly to ThriftBooks, bypassing their selections on Amazon and ABE. If I buy $10 worth of books, I get free shipping and that is a big help. The free shipping is not available if you buy Thrift Books offerings on Amazon or ABE.

All in all, used books remain a great bargain for the avid reader.

Ebooks

Deals on new ebooks are possible if you are willing to read indie authors.

I rarely buy new ebooks from the Big Five Publishers. They’re too expensive. The same goes for the regional, university, and small presses. An ebook of 100 pages for $15? Seriously? I saw that recently. And the author is dead. So who’s benefiting?

However, over the past couple years, I’ve noticed indie authors up-pricing their books. It’s now not at all uncommon to see self-published ebooks going for $4.99 and up, when just a short while ago the norm was $2.99 and $3.99.

Nevertheless, very good reads are available for $3.99 and less. It just takes a bit of looking. It also helps to stay away from authors bragging about their books being “bestsellers”.

Personally, I don’t spend more than $3.99 for an ebook. I just won’t do it. I self-publish. And I know for a fact one does not have to spend a dime to put out a book these days. If self-published writers think they need to spend hundreds and thousands of dollars to produce a book, and pass the cost onto me, then I’m not going to subsidize their poor judgment. And what’s more, I own a bridge in Brooklyn I’d like to sell them.

Recap

The prices for new books are only going to continue to go up. Those 35¢ and 50¢ paperbacks I knew as a kid aren’t ever coming back.

But there are still plenty of inexpensive options available to those of us who are avid readers. We just have to think smarter and quit buying the high-priced books.

So, what are our options?

Free books. There are plenty out there, both new and out of copyright.
Used books. Don’t buy new, if you can buy used.
Don’t pay more than $3.99 for an ebook. Because in reality, they cost nothing to produce. That gives the author, if self-published, about $2.75 for royalty. As a self-published author, I’m telling you no one needs to pay big bucks to produce an ebook. So don’t go out of your way to make someone else rich and subsidize their unnecessary production costs.

Comments are always welcome, and, until next time, happy reading!

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Where Do You Buy Your Books?

Bookstores are dying! Print books are making a comeback! Men don’t read fiction! The publishing world is full of fake news.

The truth of the matter is that in the US, bookstores are on the ropes (along with many other brick-and-mortar stores), the Big 5 aren’t dead, print books aren’t making a comeback, and men do indeed read fiction.

Yesterday, I received Mary Rosenblum’s email. I subscribed quite a while ago because of friend found her critique of his book very helpful. She offers interesting insight into the world of publishing.

Her email contained a link to her blog post on which publishing venues are crushing it in the various genres. Her information was drawn from Author Earnings. I found the data and her speculations of interest. Hence my question

Where do you buy your books?

For myself, I buy all of my books online. And I can’t actually remember when I last bought a book in a store. Maybe 20 or 30 years ago. Possibly less than that. I honestly don’t remember.

Why online? First, I’ve always loved mail-order. Second, it’s easy. I don’t have to go anywhere to buy the product and only to the mailbox to pick it up. The cost of shipping is negligible when compared with the value of my time, wear and tear on my car, and sales tax. Although some online stores now charge sales tax.

For books, I buy ebooks mostly from Amazon. A few from Apple. Never from Barnes & Noble because they are usually higher-priced and their search engine is lousy.

When I retired, my team gave me a Barnes & Noble gift card — and I was very happy to get it. But trying to find something to buy on B & N’s website was a trip through Dante’s Inferno. Their subject search is pathetic when compared to Amazon’s. In the end, I searched for an author’s name and got what I wanted.

Physical books, I buy used from online vendors. But even there it’s difficult to get away from Amazon since they now own ABE and bookfinder.com.

Unfortunately, Amazon gets the lion’s share of my book business. And perhaps most people’s. Mostly because the competition is either on life support (Barnes & Noble) or doesn’t really care to compete (Apple) or is just very small (Smashwords and Kobo). I wish it wasn’t so, but it is. Quite honestly, along with Walmart, Amazon is the evil empire.

So where do you buy your books? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time, happy reading!

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