Books: What Price Value?

Okay, folks, today I’m ranting. Just letting you know!

Recently, my 4800 word story, Ancient History: A Modern Ghost Story, received a 1 star review on Amazon. Here is the review in its entirety:

23 pages long

The story was going along great. Then it just stopped! I wish I had looked at the length of the story before I bought it. Even .99 is too much for a book that’s only 23 pages!

My immediate takeaway was:

• • • He liked the story
    • He didn’t like that it was a short story
    • He thinks short stories should be given to people for free
    • He admitted that it was his own fault he didn’t look at the length before he bought

Yet, reviewer Thomas thinks it’s totally fair to punish me for his oversight and dislike of short stories! An interesting approach to life that. Blame others for your own mistakes.

Our reviewer thinks 99¢ is too much to pay for a short story — and he is certainly entitled to his opinion. However, by way of comparison, Lawrence Block charges $2.99 for his short stories.

Now granted, I’m not Lawrence Block and I certainly don’t pretend to be in his league. But then I don’t charge $2.99 for my short stories or five bucks for my novels either.

I do however put a price tag on my work that is, I think, fair given my writing ability and the entertainment value of the stories.

After all, reviewer Thomas, there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch — in spite of what you think. Everything has a cost. Everything.

For an indie author to put a book in your hands, Mr Thomas, that writer has to spend time writing the story. And who wants to work for free? I don’t and I doubt you do either.

Then there is the cost of getting a cover for the book. There is the cost of editing and proofreading the book. There is the cost of formatting the book. And there is the cost of marketing the finished product.

From that 99¢, I get a mere 35¢. Amazon gets the rest. 

Ancient History was published 1 July 2016. I have yet to even make back the cost of the cover — let alone all of the other costs associated with the book.

I’m not grousing about the 1 star. Win some, lose some. What I find insulting is Thomas’s attitude that I should give my stuff away for free. How about this, Mr Thomas, tomorrow you tell your boss you don’t want to get paid. You’ll put in your 8 hours for free. Bet you my pension you’ll never do that in a million years. Yet, you would deprive me of a lousy 35¢. Thanks, pal.

I don’t believe in free. I think the laborer is worthy of his hire. When authors want to give me a free book to review, I tell them it’s my policy to buy the book. If I like the book, I’ll review it and promote it. In spite of that, sometimes I get free books. But my policy still holds. Because if I like the freebie, I will buy a copy — so the author gets his money. The money he is due for entertaining me.

At the end of the day, I think we indie authors are our own worst enemy. We have trained readers, like Thomas, to expect something for nothing due to all the freebies we give out. And I admit, I used to be in that camp. But I ain’t no longer.

Hear ye, hear ye! I am not giving out free books or free anything except to those who sign up for my mailing list or are on my mailing list. Because a mailing list is like a club, and with club membership comes benefits.

You want free stuff, Thomas? Join my mailing list.

Okay. Rant over.

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

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