 
# FOREWORD

Thanks for checking out _The Future of the Written Word_ , the collected blog posts of the _Always Write_ Blog from 2010. These posts cover developments pertaining to e-books, e-readers, the publishing industry, and my own writing endeavors. I strive to make my blog posts well-researched, well-written, and informative, and I hope you find them useful.

Please note what this e-book collection _is_ and what it _is not_. It is a collection of 103 blog posts (over 65,000 words, plus pictures) that were posted in the year 2010 on the "Always Write" blog, which I maintain at www.davidderrico.com/blog. That means that all of the content herein is available for free on my website, linked above; however, I have spent time proofreading, collecting, and formatting these posts into the proper e-book format (and added a table of contents, made sure all the images are included, re-formatted the links, and other such things), which I believe is worth the modest price of this e-book. But I wouldn't want anyone to misunderstand or feel ripped off.

The posts cover a variety of topics, but the main ones include:

  * E-Books: e-book sales figures, availability, reviews, and features (such as lending, text-to-speech, and DRM).

  * E-Readers: news, tips, and info on e-book reading devices, focusing on Amazon's Kindle (mainly the Kindle 2 and Kindle 3), with coverage of Barnes & Noble's Nook, Sony's E-Readers, the Kobo E-Readers, and Apple's iPad.

  * Publishing: commentary on the state of book and e-book publishing, and its future, including discussion of e-book pricing, the agency model, and the future of bookstores and printed books.

  * Writing: details about the self-publishing "indie" movement in general and my own writing endeavors in particular, including tips for fellow authors on formatting, retailing, and marketing.

The posts herein are displayed in chronological order, and can be navigated through the table of contents, or, on the Kindle, by flicking left or right on the 5-way controller to bring up the previous or next post. Each post includes the date originally published on my blog, and all the images are included. I might actually recommend starting with the last post, the "2010 Year In Review," as it is a nice overview of the topics discussed over the course of the year, with helpful links to other posts. (Note that I re-formatted links to my own blog posts to link to the proper post within this document; but other links are still external and will open in a web browser.)

I hope you enjoy the posts collected herein. For current posts covering ongoing news, to comment on any of the posts you read here, or to ask me any questions, please visit my online blog, at www.davidderrico.com/blog. Thank you, and enjoy!

\- David Derrico

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## The Future of the Written Word:

### Always Write Blog Posts from 2010

### By David Derrico

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**The Future of the Written Word:** _Always Write_ **Blog Posts from 2010**

Smashwords Edition

Find paperback and e-book editions of David Derrico's novels at:

<http://www.davidderrico.com/>

Publishing History

First digital edition published, Jan 2011

Copyright © 2011 by David Derrico

Cover art copyright © 2011 by David Derrico

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

v. 1.0S

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## Also by David Derrico

### RIGHT ASCENSION

### DECLINATION,

#### The Sequel to _Right Ascension_

### THE TWILLER

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# Right Ascension in the Top 500!

Jan 13, 2010

I'd like to take a moment to sincerely thank my readers, who have helped propel _Right Ascension_ and _Declination_ to new heights. _Right Ascension_ is now in the **Top 5** in the "Adventure," "War," and "Technothrillers" sub-categories. It also rose into the **Top 15** in the "Science Fiction" category, and up to **#479** in the entire Kindle store!

Lowering the price to just 99 cents each has certainly allowed more people to find and hopefully enjoy my novels. Although I was hesitant to price the novels so low at first, I'm certainly glad that I did it.

To those of you buying and reading my novels, I would be eternally grateful if you could spare a few minutes to post a review on Amazon.com. Thoughtful reviews from readers can really help people decide if a book is right for them.

If you don't have the time to write a review, perhaps you wouldn't mind just helping to "tag" my novels with tags like "science fiction" and some of the other tags that show up about midway down the Amazon page for each book. It really helps!

Thanks again for your continuing support... and please feel free to let me know your thoughts on the novels or if there's anything else on your mind!

\- David

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#  Kindle 2 Cover: M-Edge Platform Case Review

Jan 15, 2010

As a new Kindle 2 owner, the first thing I did was research and pick out a case to protect it. About a week ago, I decided to try out the M-Edge Platform case and have used it since then. This case flips open from the top, and can be opened to serve as a platform to prop up your Kindle on a table for hands-free reading. I decided on it because (a) I wanted something that was rigid (as opposed to padded) to protect the screen, (b) I wanted something small and light, (c) I wanted enough room for a pen and small notepad, and (d) I like the hands-free reading idea. Oh, and I didn't want to pay too much. I have to say the M-Edge Platform ($29.99) delivered what I was looking for.

First, a pic from Amazon:

The case is essentially two rigid flaps hinged together at the top. When closed, a tab is slid into a hole to secure it. The tab takes a few seconds to insert or extract, but it closes the case securely and doesn't seem like it would wear out like an elastic closure might. When you open the case, the top flap can be hinged backward and the tab can be inserted "in reverse" to create an A-shaped stand. This will hold your Kindle upright for hands-free reading (well, you still need to hit the next page button!). When opened and pressed flat, it doesn't add too much thickness to the Kindle, so you can still hold it and read easily in the case, and you can reach the next page buttons on either side. I also appreciate that it doesn't weigh too much, and I leave my Kindle in the case for reading.

The Kindle attaches with two leather (I elected the cheaper imitation leather model, but I am pleased with the feel of it) corner attachments at the bottom corners and two elastic attachments at the top. From pictures, I feared it wouldn't hold the K2 securely, but it does, I have no worry of it slipping out. I don't know if the elastic enclosures become less secure over time, however.

I also liked that there is a small pen loop at the top, and a business card pouch plus a thin pocket on the inside of the front cover. I like the idea of keeping a pen and small note pad to jot down writing ideas, but they add almost no bulk or thickness to the case. The inside covers are lined with a soft felt material.

There is also room along the left side of the K2 (and a pouch to slide the base into) designed to hold an M-Edge reading light (which I do not have). Some may not like that this causes the Kindle to be off-centered in the case, and it may be difficult for people with smaller hands to reach the left-side buttons, although I had no problems with it.

All in all, I have to say that the case exceeded my expectations, and I am actually a picky reviewer. The quality of the materials feels good (of course, it's fake leather, but I'm fine with that... they do make a more expensive real leather version). It is about as thin and light as possible while still affording good protection, and it feels supple on the outside but there is a rigid core in the front and back covers that appears to protect the K2 well. The A-frame reading platform may come in handy, I've used it while eating lunch a couple of times, although I normally read with the case folded all the way back.

Essentially, the case did everything I hoped for it to do. Those of you who like to carry more than a pen, business card, note pad, and light with your Kindle (like if you want to bring the USB cord/power adapter or keys) may not like this device. And it does not fully enclose the Kindle, so it would not protect as well from dust or spills as the zippered cases. But, if your needs are like mine, I can heartily recommend this case and give it an A.

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#  Interview by the Indie Spotlight

Feb 16, 2010

Please enjoy this interview conducted by our friends over at The Indie Spotlight.

**Title:** _Right Ascension_

**Author:** David Derrico

**ISBN:** 978-1-4486-8760-2

**Page count:** 216

**Genre:** Science Fiction

**Price:** $0.99 (Kindle), $9.77 (paperback)

Author Bio:

David Derrico was born just north of Miami, Florida, and developed his appreciation for complex moral issues while receiving a degree in philosophy from the University of Florida in Gainesville. He wrote his first novel, _Right Ascension_ , before attending law school at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall). Derrico has written two novels: _Right Ascension_ and its sequel, _Declination_ , and currently lives in South Florida where he is working on his next novel.

Tell us about your book:

_Right Ascension_ and its sequel, _Declination_ , are science fiction novels that blend action and adventure with philosophical and moral undertones. They invite readers to ponder difficult ethical dilemmas and question their own notions of fairness, honor, and the nature of justice. They ask the question: "What if humanity had to choose between honor... and our very survival?"

Set in the year 3040, _Right Ascension_ examines mankind's place in the Universe, how we ascended to that lofty position, and the horrifying price of that ascension.

Humanity's position of political and technological dominance within the galaxy is suddenly shattered when a sleek alien vessel arrives unexpectedly at Earth. Admiral Daniel Atgard and the crew of the _Apocalypse_ embark on a mission to find these enigmatic aliens, but the focus of the mission quickly turns from finding answers to exacting revenge. Meanwhile, a belligerent species of reptilian warriors, seeking to avenge a previous defeat at the hands of the human-controlled United Confederation of Planets, takes this opportunity to plan an all-out assault on Earth. Faced with overwhelming odds and the terrible knowledge of mankind's most horrifying secret, Daniel must choose between honor... and humanity's very survival.

How long did it take to write the book?

The first draft of the book took about 10 months to write, plus another solid month of editing. I'd say almost a year. However, several years later, I went back through and did a cover-to-cover proofreading and edit, including adding a couple of scenes.

What inspired you to write the book?

I have enjoyed reading and writing for as long as I can remember. I broke my arm when I was 2 1/2 years old, and my parents tell me it happened when I was climbing on a stool to reach a book on a high shelf. As a kid, I read lots of Piers Anthony and C.S. Lewis. I have always enjoyed creative writing, I enjoy storytelling and using the amazing diversity and depth of the English language. After getting a degree in philosophy from the University of Florida, I became interested in exploring ethical issues in a much more interesting and accessible way than what gets presented in philosophy textbooks. So, the idea of an action/adventure science-fiction novel that explored deep moral issues was born.

Talk about the writing process. Did you have a writing routine? Did you do any research, and if so, what did that involve?

I'm generally a night person, and I found myself often staying up all night writing until 8 AM or later. It helped that I wrote the book while working at a job that was not very demanding, as I'd find myself thinking about the novel all day, percolating ideas even when I wasn't writing. It was very helpful to be able to start writing pretty much whenever the inspiration struck me.

Before I started writing, I actually developed detailed character sketches of each of the main characters: physical description, history, family, background, morals, motivation, personality, etc. I found that having realistic characters caused many parts of the book to almost "write itself," as I found myself saying, "Well, this character would react to that by doing this..." After the first couple of chapters, I also realized that I needed an outline in order to maintain the pacing of the book, keep the sense of continuity, and foreshadow important elements that came to fruition later. Outlining was the hardest part for me; once I outlined a chapter or two, the actual writing came relatively easily.

As for research, I did a fair amount of research, mostly involving astronomy, physics, and astronomical distances. My book does not focus on the "hard sci-fi" method of describing technical details of things like hyperspace drives or force shields, so the research was not overwhelming, but enough to make sure everything was realistic.

What do you hope your readers come away with after reading your book?

I hope, first and foremost, that readers enjoy the book. That they are sad for the last chapter to end. I hope they identify with the characters and come to care about what happens to them. And I hope that maybe, just maybe, they think a little bit about their own ethics and morality and I hope it inspires them to do the right thing, even when it is hard to do.

Where can we go to buy your book?

My novels ( _Right Ascension_ and the sequel, _Declination_ ) are available through my own website, www.davidderrico.com, in both paperback and eBook formats. They are also available through  Amazon.com, Smashwords, and  Barnes & Noble.com.

Any other links or info you'd like to share?

I have a Facebook Fan page at www.facebook.com/NovelAuthor where I post news, discussions, and free giveaways.

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# #1 Amazon Best-Seller!

Mar 27, 2010

#1. Wow.

I am very excited to announce that Right Ascension has recently topped the charts as the **#1 best-seller** in Amazon's Kindle Store "Technothriller" category.

The sequel, Declination, is also selling better and better, so I am gratified to see that people are enjoying my first novel enough to purchase and read the second one.

I would like to sincerely thank everyone who has read, bought, enjoyed, reviewed, or told a friend about my novels. None of this would be possible without you. Thank you!

\- David

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# E-Books and the Agency Model

Apr 1, 2010

If you've been following e-publishing lately, you may have heard that today, 5 out of the "Big 6" publishers forced Amazon to agree to an "agency model" when selling e-books instead of the previous "retail model." Under the retail model, publishers set a "list price" for e-books (usually the same $25 or so they set for the hardcover), and retailers like Amazon pay them a fixed percentage of that price, such as 50%. Amazon would then pay the publisher $12.50 for each e-book sale, and price the book however they wanted: $12.51, $19.99, $25, or even $9.99 (as a loss leader).

As of today, 5 large publishers told Amazon they must sell their e-books under the agency model (physical books remain on the retail model). Under the agency model, the _publisher_ sets the final sale price, and Amazon gets a flat 30% cut of each sale. That means Amazon is not allowed to have "sales" on e-books, and that a particular e-book should be the same price everywhere. This shift was caused in large part by the entry of the iPad (which I am still not convinced will be a popular place for people who actually buy and read e-books) and Apple's embracing of the agency model (just like in their iTunes Store and App Store).

Apparently, the large publishers weren't happy about Amazon taking a loss and selling NYT bestsellers for $9.99 (even though they sent the publishers $12.50 per sale), because they are concerned Amazon is "devaluing e-books." If you ask me, the large publishers are terrified of e-books, since they require a massive shift in their business model (involving costly layoffs, restructuring, reduction of rent and other overhead, changing contracts and relationships, etc.). They know that some publishers _might_ adapt well and stay on top ... but not all of them will. So they seem intent on stalling e-book adoption as long as possible (as evidenced by them trying to raise prices in the face of clear consumer outcry, attaching invasive DRM to their titles, disabling TTS access, delaying e-book releases, and generally releasing poorly-formatted scans of physical books).

So, today, most large publisher e-books will go up in price from $9.99 to $12.99 or $14.99.

It's times like this that I'm glad to be an independent author ... while the idea of a huge book deal with a traditional publishing house had always been my dream, I'm thinking more and more of the benefits of being nimble in a quickly-changing e-book industry. I wonder if the big publishing houses read forums and blogs and comments like I do; I wonder if they have any idea what their customers are feeling or how they think. Sometimes I wonder if they "get" e-books at all. It sure seems like they see them as a threat to be fought, instead of an amazing opportunity to be embraced. "Let's delay releases! Jack up prices to double that of paperbacks! Infest books with DRM! Format them like crap!"

One thing I know for sure is that the vast majority of Kindlers are passionate **readers** (in a world where readers are an endangered species). In other words, the publishers' very best customers. Or, as I see it, the reason I write.

I hate to say it, but the big publishers jacking up prices can only make the prices charged by most indie authors look that much better in comparison ($0.99 vs. $14.99 -- wow). But, if they succeed in killing the fledgling e-book industry before it can really take off, then we all lose.

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#  E-Books: Gutenberg, You Had a Good Run

Apr 1, 2010

Go, baby, go.

Recently, I was shocked to receive a Kindle from a good friend for my birthday. This amazing device has impacted my life in multiple ways. First, I very quickly became an e-book reading convert: the reading experience on a Kindle is, IMO, superior to that of a printed book. Some of the advantages:

  * e-books are generally less expensive than printed books (they should be, since they cost nothing to print, ship, or store)

  * portability and convenience: I can download books instantly, wirelessly, and carry thousands around anywhere

  * the built-in dictionary is invaluable; I would miss the ability to look up or double-check words with a flick of my finger

  * I actually find it easier and more natural to hold the Kindle (which is lighter than a hardcover) and turn pages with one hand

  * I enjoy being able to set the font size to something more comfortable for my eyes

There are other advantages, but those are the main ones for me. After using the Kindle for a while, I do _not_ at all miss the "feel" or "smell" of paper books. And I can see how a wide variety of people, once they give e-books a chance, will come to depend on these features. Not to mention that, in the next few years, I expect e-book readers to offer:

  * color screens that play video

  * perhaps flexible or foldable screens that are unbreakable and allow for larger screens that can fit into a pocket

  * even lighter weight and more memory

  * greater selection of e-books (essentially every book in _or_ out of print)

  * improvements in text-to-speech

  * much easier lending capabilities: email a title to your friend to borrow, and it automatically reappears on your device in 2-4 weeks

I expect more and more people will fall in love with e-book reading. I spend a lot of time on e-book reader forums, and lots of people already _love_ their e-book readers. _Love_. Most of them say they will never go back to printed books, and that they are reading more than ever before. Not to mention that the last of the paper book converts will die off and the newer generations will consume everything electronically.

So, it comes as no surprise to me that the e-book market has tripled in 2009, after doubling in 2008. Or that it is on pace to double or triple again this year. Or that Amazon, the world's largest bookseller, sold more e-books than printed books last Christmas. E-books made up 3.31% of all book sales in 2009, and that number will likely increase to 6-10% this year. By 2015 or 2020, what will that percentage look like? 25%? 50%? 75%?

What does this mean for printed books, and the future of publishing? I'll get more into that in my next post. But I fully expect the acceleration of e-book sales to continue. The reading experience is just too good, and they just make too much sense not to.

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#  E-Books: the Future for Readers AND Writers

Apr 2, 2010

As I mentioned in my last post, e-books are surging in popularity, and for good reason. I mentioned that the surge in e-books has impacted me as a reader. But it has impacted me even more dramatically as a writer.

I wrote my first novel, Right Ascension, in 2000, and the sequel, Declination, was completed in 2002. While they enjoyed some early success and some sporadic pockets of sales, and received positive feedback from readers, they essentially sold about as well as most self-published books, which is to say: hardly at all. A few hundred copies over the course of several years.

Then, I learned about Amazon and their Digital Text Platform, and I published my novels to be sold through Amazon for the Kindle.

And people started buying it.

Not a ton, mind you, but some. And so I did some research. And I spent weeks learning how to perfect Kindle formatting. I spent time on Kindle boards, getting to know readers and what they wanted. I learned that the stigma against self-publishing is disappearing, just as it did for "indie" musicians and movies. In fact, people were sick of the same regurgitated tripe being spewed forth by the big publishers. Think about the three biggest hits of the past five years: Harry Potter, Dan Brown, and Twilight. Are any of those examples of _great writing_?

In December of 2009, I lowered my e-book prices to just 99 cents each. I debated back and forth for a while. _But they're worth more than that!_ I cried. But I did it, as a grand experiment, and it worked. While I had cut the price down from $5 to $1, my sales went up by a factor of 7. Cool.

Then, as I started becoming more active on various forums, and (I hope) started getting some positive buzz and word-of-mouth going, my sales more than doubled. Then doubled again. I sold more in a month than I had in the past decade. Then it happened again the next month. And, guess what? Readers didn't _care_ that my book wasn't printed by a big publisher. Heck, they didn't care if it was _printed_ at all. They didn't care that it wasn't in bookstores. Because over 98% of all those sales were e-books. And my e-books look just as good -- actually, better \-- than e-books from big publishers. In fact, mine are meticulously formatted and proofread and have a table of contents, while theirs are often error-filled scans of printed books. Mine enable text-to-speech, while theirs block the feature. Mine are not saddled with DRM (copy protection), and I offer them in multiple formats instead of tying you down to one device. And, while readers feel gouged by publishers raising prices from $9.99 to $14.99 and charging more for e-books than paperbacks, mine are just 99 cents.

Now, for the first time, I feel that there is a _possibility_ \-- certainly not a certainty -- but a _chance_ of actually making a living at writing. For a long time I was told that I had a real talent for writing, and I worked hard at it, but the only option was to send query letters into the black hole of agents' and publishers' "slush piles," sometimes getting a polite form rejection letter, sometimes a scrawled "NO" written in the margin of my own letter and sent back in my return envelope, usually no response at all, and never even once did anyone actually read the book they were rejecting.

So I've bypassed the gatekeepers, and am taking my work directly to the readers. Yes, it's taken a ton of time, but it's cost me very little money in the digital realm, and my books sit on Amazon's virtual shelves next to (and even above!) Asimov and Heinlein and Vonnegut. And maybe, if I continue to work hard and hone my craft, write more novels, promote like crazy, get great editors to help ensure the books meet or exceed the quality of "traditionally-published" stuff, and get a bit of luck, I just might eke out a living at doing what I love. And that chance, remote though it still might be, did not exist two short years ago.

I'm excited. Are you?

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# The Future of Bookstores

Apr 2, 2010

So, we've already established that e-books are taking over the world (yes, I use the term "established" somewhat loosely). What does this mean for bookstores?

Well, first of all, the smart bookstores are hedging their bets. Barnes & Noble (the largest physical bookstore chain) produces the Nook e-book reader, and Borders (the #2 chain) partners with Sony and the Sony e-book reader. Barnes & Noble already sells books and  e-books on their website. So, these companies are at least attempting to embrace the digital future and sell electronic content.

But e-books are still a relatively small percentage of print book sales, and bookstores are in dire financial straits as it is. People are reading less in general (with the notable exception of e-book readers, who are voraciously purchasing and devouring more content faster than ever) with the distractions of TV and iPhones and Twitter. What will happen to them?

While I have fully embraced the e-book revolution, I _do_ enjoy visiting bookstores (and libraries) and browsing the stacks of books, checking out magazines, and generally spending some time there. (I much prefer spending time in a bookstore to a mall, for example.) It would be a shame to see them disappear.

I don't think bookstores will go away, but I do think they will adapt -- for the better. Gone will be huge shops with three floors full of shelves carrying thousands of titles, one or two copies of each, spine-out on the shelves. Instead, what I think we'll find in your typical bookstore in 5 or 10 years is:

  * A display table with stacks of the latest big blockbuster release (hopefully not _Harry Potter and the Enlarged Prostate_ ).

  * More and more book-related accessories: mugs, notepads, gifts, journals, calendars, greeting cards, bookmarks, e-book cases, etc. (these constitute more and more of bookstores' current profits).

  * Coffee shops and cafes will continue to expand; perhaps we'll see wine bars and such as well.

  * The bookstore will be smaller, and will lack the upper floors of lesser-selling titles. Instead, there will be kiosks where shoppers can browse a virtually unlimited catalogue of books, order one, sit and sip a cappuccino, and their newly-printed book will be delivered to them in 15 minutes.

This last part is the real quantum shift (the other parts are just accelerations of current trends). Instead of devoting lots of space (which is expensive) to slow-selling titles, the bookstore will have a print-on-demand (POD) machine or two in back. Not only will it save space and help with inventory, shipping, and returns issues, but it will expand the bookstore's available stock exponentially. No more worrying if a store carries a particular title or if it's in stock. Just about any book ever written -- from the latest release to Shakespeare -- will be available.

(Note that, while I think e-books will become more and more popular, I don't think physical books will ever completely disappear -- some small percentage will still be useful as collector's editions, children's books, gifts, home decorations, etc.)

The bookstore will become more about browsing and hanging out and chatting and sipping coffee -- a place where book lovers can still go and shop and mingle and sample books (and grab that special edition hardcover they want for their shelf). They'll probably even browse the store catalogue and submit POD orders from their Nook 3 or Kindle 5 in addition to the kiosks. And the bookstore will save money with smaller stores, a wider selection of titles, and more focus on high-profit hardcovers, gifts, and food sales.

It's a win-win, and it's coming soon to a bookstore near you.

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#  iPad: Hands-On Review (Early Impressions)

Apr 4, 2010

You need something to read on your new toy, right?

Yesterday was my wife's birthday, and we somewhat spontaneously decided on her birthday present the night before: an **iPad**. We hadn't pre-ordered, so we stayed up all night and went to stand in line at the Apple Store at 6:30 AM. All went well, and we came home with a new iPad (Wi-Fi model) yesterday.

Many have touted the iPad as a "Kindle-killer" and the next big thing in e-book reading. Others say it's just a big, overpriced Apple iPhone / iPod Touch. Others consider it aimed at a totally different market than the Kindle. So, my early thoughts (after only using it for a day):

So far, I like it more than I thought I would. It's a good size for web browsing, pics, and stuff. And gaming on it is really fun (we did not have an iPhone or iPod Touch before). Now, we didn't leave the house yesterday, so the size and weight and lack of 3G connectivity has not been an issue. And it's still new and "cool" ... will we still use it as much in a few months?

One big reason I like it is because the battery is impressive. Reviews said it gets 11-12 hours of movie watching, and with heavy use yesterday it lasted all day, probably 12 hours or so before we recharged it. That's very good -- although not Kindle territory.

As for reading books, I poked around on the Apple iBook Store (and was pleased to see Right Ascension and Declination show up on there, for just 99 cents each, on the day of launch!). I haven't tried reading on it for any length of time (I've mostly been setting it up, downloading apps, and playing games). The bigger screen is nice, and a good battery is a plus, and the navigation seems simple (like the Kindle). Things like page turns, going to your library and picking a book, dictionary lookups, and changing font sizes are all easy and intuitive. On the minus side, it's heavier than a Kindle and 12 hour battery life is a far cry from 2-week battery life. Also, there is no text-to-speech, as there is on the Kindle. And I still think it will be much easier to read on the Kindle's e-Ink display.

Also, to compare apples to _Apples_ (as it were, capitalization intentional), you'd have to compare the Kindle 2 (at $259) with an iPad 3G with wireless built in ($629 + $720 for 2 years of service = $1,349). So it's really not in the same ballpark as a reader. Yes, you may be able to find other uses to justify the price differential, but I don't really see them as direct competitors, even though the media is obsessed with the comparison.

Now, will people read on the iPad? That remains to be seen. I don't really think so, although even a small percentage if there are tons of iPads out there could add up to something. I still think real readers will get a K2. I will say one downside for independent authors: Amazon is _great_ at helping people find stuff with their "people who bought this also bought," their genre best-seller lists, etc. But on the iPad, unless you're one of their 5 or 10 "featured" big-name books, you gotta search for what you want. So, I wouldn't expect nearly as many sales through the iPad as Amazon, since no one can "stumble upon" me ... they need to be looking specifically.

Anyway, those are my early thoughts. I'm gonna take it down to my family's place for Easter dinner tonight and see how it works on-the-go. I'll use it for a while longer and try reading a whole book on it and give you my further thoughts in a week or so.

What do you think? Is the iPad a "Kindle-killer"? An overpriced, but fun, diversion? A laptop replacement? The future of all things? Leave a comment below and let me know your thoughts....

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#  Around The Web: Smashing & Slanting

Apr 5, 2010

Kindle on the iPad

I was pleasantly surprised to find a couple of nice mentions of my novels around the web today:

• Mark Coker, founder of the wonderful author service Smashwords, posted about _Right Ascension_ as one of the first Smashwords books available on the iPad.

• Over at True/Slant, Roger Theriault  gave his thoughts about the new iPad, and reading on it compared to his Kindle. He also expressed chagrin at some of the high prices traditional publishers are demanding for e-books. He said:

Publishers want readers to pay more – but the alternative is the library or a used bookstore. Or independent authors...

David Derrico's sci-fi novels _Right Ascension_ and _Declination_ are both $0.99 in e-book format from Amazon or Apple. I've read the first and I'm working on the second novel. Both are excellent alternatives to expensive e-books. There are many self-published authors in various genres, both fiction and non-fiction, with affordable and highly readable e-books. I think established publishers are sinking their own ships (and their authors as well) with their pricing strategies.

Thanks for the mention, Roger, I'm glad you're enjoying them!

* * * * *

# What Makes A "Professional"?

Apr 7, 2010

As some of you no doubt know, I am an attorney. By this, I mean that I went to law school, graduated, passed the CA Bar exam, and worked as an attorney at a law firm for several years. That makes me an attorney. Pretty simple.

But I also write novels. I am an author. But, am I a "real" author? A "professional" author? What does that even mean?

It may surprise some people to know that only a tiny percentage of authors make a living solely by writing (obviously "make a living" is pretty vague). Most authors--yes, authors on the NY Times Bestseller List published by big publishers--teach on the side, have day jobs, freelance, or do other things to pay the bills. One estimate said that only 200 authors in the U.S. make a living solely from their writing. Let's put that in perspective: there are 1,696 players in the NFL (32 teams x 53 players). And their _minimum_ salary is $325,000 per year, much more than just "making a living."

Hell, there must be more than 200 state lottery winners each year in the U.S., and they probably make at least $1 million. Better odds than writing.

So, what defines a "professional" writer? When can an author call himself a "professional"? Is it if he "makes a living" (is one of the 200)? Is published through a traditional publisher? Sells X number of books? Earns more than a certain dollar amount per year by writing? Has written more than a certain number of books?

Let's say you get signed by a large publisher because it thinks your book will be profitable (not "good"--big difference). The standard first contract for an unknown author (i.e., not Sarah Palin, who doesn't actually write--is _she_ an author?) is a $5,000 advance and 8% of royalties after that. About 80% of books never make it to the "after that" stage--they don't earn the author anything beyond the initial guaranteed $5,000. And publishers give most first-time authors very little or no publicity, no big display at Barnes & Noble, and if your books don't sell well in the first month, they're yanked from the shelves and they go out of print. You just made $5,000, on a book you probably spent at least a year on. Most authors spend that $5,000 trying to promote their own books.

Is that guy a professional author? What if I make $5,000 selling books on my own this year? Am I a professional?

The good news is that the game is changing. Readers are starting to get sick of much of the "traditionally-published" stuff, which is often formulaic and appealing to the lowest common denominator. Just as with indie music and movies, people are looking for new voices and books that the big publishing companies didn't deem "marketable" enough to sell.

And now, with e-books, the self-publishing movement, and Amazon (the world's largest bookseller), all those lines are being blurred. For very little money (and a whole lot of time), an author can format their own e-books and distribute them on Amazon's virtual shelves right alongside Stephen King and Isaac Asimov. And, since print publishers are trying their best to kill e-books to protect their hardcover book sales, it gives little guys like me a chance.

  * So far in 2010, I've sold over 3,000 books (mostly e-books, and mostly through Amazon). Does that make me a "professional" author?

  * I'm completing my third novel, The Twiller, which should be out in a few months. Is that enough?

  * Stephen King said you're a "professional" if your royalty check doesn't bounce, and it pays the electric bill. My royalties this week already paid the electric bill for the month. But what about rent?

  * I made it to #1 on Amazon's "Technothriller" best-seller list, and #479 overall in the Kindle Store (out of almost 500,000 e-books), which puts me above 99.9% of all e-book titles. Do I qualify?

  * And what about, you know, actually being a good writer? Does that even matter at all? I can name plenty of best-sellers that are horribly written, but their authors rake in the cash.

I actually don't know the answer, and I'd love to hear your thoughts, so please leave a comment below. But I do know that I'm giving it a shot. More on that in my next post.

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# Introduction to E-Books

Apr 8, 2010

You may have noticed me talking a lot about e-books lately. That's because I'm excited about them, and the opportunities they present for readers and authors alike.

E-books have several advantages over paper books: they cost less to produce and distribute, they're better for the environment, they can be downloaded instantly, thousands can be stored on a single device, they never get old or have pages fall out, you can search them and pop up word definitions, etc. People who try them generally like them. A lot. And we realized we read for the _words_ , not the "feel" of paper or the smell of glue. But what if you don't know where to start?

It's easy to get started reading your first e-book. No, you don't _need_ a special e-book reader, you can read them on the computer or smartphone you already have. And they're generally cheaper than printed books. Since anything published before 1923 is in the public domain in the U.S., you can even read thousands of great classics ( _Hamlet_ , _Alice in Wonderland_ , _Sherlock Holmes_ , _Pride and Prejudice_ , etc.) for free. You can download them in PDF, plain text, or as a webpage (HTML), any of which are easy to read on any computer.

For selection and ease of use, you can't beat Amazon. The best way to read them is on a Kindle, of course, but Amazon makes free reading apps that let you read Kindle books on PCs, Macs, Blackberries, and iPhones/iPods/iPads. You can browse and purchase books (including free books) from Amazon, and you can read them with any of their reading apps. It will even "sync" your location, so if you get to Chapter 3 on your PC, you can pick up your iPhone or Kindle and start reading where you left off. Pretty cool.

**Ready to get started?** I may be biased, but I think there are worse ways to spend 99 cents than picking up one of my novels in e-book format. There are many ways to do it:

  * If you'd like to read on a computer or laptop, just click the "Buy Now" buttons in the column to the right and pick up a copy in PDF format, which can be easily read on any computer. Grab just the first, or splurge and get the "Combination Package," which is just $1.97. That's two novels for less than a cappuccino.

  * If you buy them through my site, I will also send them to you in any format you may need, now or in the future, so you can put them on that Kindle or iPad you get for your next birthday.

  * Want to read through Amazon, on your Kindle, computer, Blackberry, iPhone, iPod, or iPad?  One-click them from Amazon.

  * Do you own a Nook? Pick them up at  Barnes & Noble.

  * How about another e-reader: Sony, iRex, BeBook, CyBook, etc.? Smashwords has you covered in any conceivable file format.

  * Did you just get a shiny new iPad? Want to try out the iBook store? Annoyed that most e-books there cost $15? My e-books are still just 99 cents in the iBook store (just search for my name).

Once you get hooked on e-books, you may want to consider picking up an e-book reader. There are several options. My favorite is the  Kindle ($259), but Barnes & Noble's Nook or the Sony e-readers make fine choices as well. There's even a $99 e-reader on sale at Walgreens, although it's not as easy to use. On the other end of the spectrum, you can buy yourself a fancy iPhone or iPad and use those to read (if you can tear yourself away from games and Facebook).

E-books are the future. Sure, there will always be printed books, just like we still have radio and horses, even though TV and cars are quite popular. Why not try them out -- for free or just 99 cents -- and see what all the fuss is about?

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# Kobo E-Reader For $149

Apr 10, 2010

Just a brief post, as I thought it was important to highlight the new Kobo eReader. For those of you looking to make the jump to e-books, this device looks like it will make an excellent starting point. There is a good review over on Electronista, but the summary is that the Kobo eReader does a fine job at reading books, has a nice e-Ink screen and great battery life, and is a good value at just $149. The fact that it uses a simple interface and doesn't have wireless or other features can actually be a good thing -- as it makes it easier to simply focus on one thing: reading books.

Another point to note: the eReader comes with 100 free e-books pre-loaded onto the device. While those titles are all public domain, and thus freely available elsewhere, I think it's a great idea by Kobo: it makes the eReader seem like a better deal (that's like paying $1.49 per book and getting the eReader for free), and also makes it blindingly simple for a buyer to start reading right away.

A few tech specs:

  * 6" e-Ink screen (easy on the eyes, great in sunlight, 2-week battery life)

  * 1 GB internal storage (holds about 1,000 e-books)

  * USB connection (connect it to your computer and drag & drop files onto it)

  * Only currently reads ePub and PDF formats

  * Bluetooth built in

While you can get a cheaper $99 Delstar OpenBook or a more expensive $259 Kindle 2 (both of which I discuss here), the Delstar uses an LCD screen, not the easy-on-the-eyes e-Ink screen that most e-readers use. The Kindle is a better e-reader, has wireless access, a built-in dictionary, and uses Amazon, but it does cost over $100 more.

It's good to see more and more devices emerging at lower and lower price points. The Kobo will be sold at Borders stores and can be filled with e-books from Borders' upcoming e-book store (see Update 2, below).

One other quick point: there are  rumors that the Kindle 2 will soon be available at Target and Best Buy retail stores and the Nook will be available through Best Buy (in addition to Barnes & Noble). I think it's a great idea, since these devices have a "wow" factor and most people who try them out will be impressed. While Amazon allows a 30-day trial period (with no-questions-asked returns) on the K2, it's still much easier to play with one at Target than order one from Amazon and maybe return it.

UPDATE: Kindle at Target confirmed, on Apr 25.

UPDATE 2: The Kobo eReader is available for pre-order from Borders, shipping June 17. It should also be arriving in Borders stores in August. Borders is planning an online e-book store for June as well.

UPDATE 3: Kobo reduced the price of its e-reader to just $129, but compared to the $139 Kindle 3 Wi-Fi, I don't think the small price advantage justifies passing up the Kindle 3's more impressive specs and features.

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# Concentration And Intelligence

Apr 10, 2010

Could multi-tasking be making us dumber?

That's one possible conclusion based on  interesting neurological research performed on mice. The article discusses how intelligence could be more than just "how many facts someone can cram into their head," but also "how much someone can focus on a specific task."

It certainly rings true to me: I don't think that flipping between TV stations, or playing video games with lots of colors and sounds, or skimming pictures in a magazine makes me smarter. You know what _does_ make me feel smarter? Reading. The article points out specifically that reading long, difficult books ( _War and Peace_ , anyone?) is a great mental exercise, as it trains our brains to not only process information and contemplate its meaning on multiple levels, but also to focus on one thing for a long period of time. While it may be more _difficult_ to focus on simple words printed on a page (as opposed to moving TV images or a cool iPad game), that's precisely what makes it a better mental exercise. (Do you see bodybuilders lounging in chairs, doing bicep curls with 3-ounce cell phones?)

The fact that reading makes you smarter is hardly a revelation; I've known that for some time. But it's interesting to see research that highlights the importance of the ability to focus.

So, if you feel like some enjoyable mental exercise, something that will entertain you _and_ make you smarter at the same time, why not read a good book? I'm just saying .... ;-)

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# Reviewing Reviews

Apr 11, 2010

"Can I leave a zero-star review?"

For several years after I wrote my novels, I received mostly positive feedback about them. Even discounting encouragement from family and friends, the few reviews or emails I got were uniformly positive.

Now that I've sold a few thousand copies to complete strangers, I've been forcefully reminded that not everyone will like my novels. It makes me feel only _marginally_ better to remind myself that not everyone will like _any_ novel--just take a look at some classics and bestsellers on Amazon and all their 1-star reviews. But getting bad reviews still stings.

Now, when I say bad reviews, I don't mean balanced or somewhat critical 3- or even 2-star reviews. I'm talking about 1-star reviews filled with pure vitriol, slamming every aspect of the book and not mentioning a single redeeming quality. Reviews that question my regard for literature, hate the main character like he killed their dog, call it cliche, boring, predictable, terribly written, the whole thing. Reviews that say "DO NOT BUY" in all caps. Or a review, from a reviewer who only leaves 1- and 2-star reviews, saying he liked the first novel (but couldn't be bothered to write a positive review), but then found the time to come and slam the sequel with a 1-star review.

First of all, I wonder what kind of a person has that much hatred, who wakes up in the morning and says, "Let's try to hurt the sales and smash the dreams of an aspiring indie author." Do they realize there's an actual person on the other end of the computer screen? One who takes his writing very seriously? Or is that the point? Is it simply "trolling" at its worst, designed just to elicit a response for the poster's own amusement?

The problem is that, to maintain a respectable 4-star average (on a scale of 1 to 5), a single 1-star review counteracts _three_ 5-star reviews. Even worse, a single 1-star review would require _twelve_ honest, solid, 4-star reviews just to inch back above 3.75 (which gets rounded up to display 4 stars).

Now, I can understand that some people may not like my book. Some people don't enjoy sci-fi, or romance, or thrillers, or certain writing styles or types of characters. I thought _Harry Potter_ kinda sucked (although I _didn't_ go leave a nasty review), but lots of people apparently loved it. And I realize my novels are not perfect or the greatest books ever written; truly, I do. But I've read enough books to know that they're _not_ 1-star novels. That the writing isn't "terrible." And that they can't be _all_ bad. So it makes me wonder about the motivation behind these 100% negative, strongly-worded, personally-attacking, 1-star reviews.

So, what can be done? Well, I can't do much about it. I'm not going to review my own novel, or give a troll just what he wants with an angry response. So, that leaves it up to my readers.

Reviews are important. Average star ranking is important. I _do_ notice a bump in sales when I get a positive review, and I thank all of you who have taken the time to leave one. Especially since it seems that most people who dislike the books feel strongly enough to go post a bad review, and most people who like it (and kindly email me to let me know that) don't really think about posting reviews--until I go beg them to do it. :)

So, anyway, if you did enjoy the novel, it would mean a lot to me if you could help out by posting reviews for one or both of them--and it doesn't cost you a cent. The main place to post is  Amazon, but please consider also posting it (you can even copy & paste) at  Barnes & Noble, Smashwords,  Kobo, and the Apple iBook store.

I do very much appreciate it, and it helps me ignore the trolls and the haters, and get back to concentrating on writing.

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# Pricing Digital Content

Apr 12, 2010

We are seeing more and more digital content, including:

  * E-Books

  * Downloadable & streaming movies and TV shows

  * Apps and games

  * Magazines

  * Newspapers

This digital content costs less to produce and distribute than the non-digital version. It eliminates printing costs, fabrication of DVDs and DVD cases, and shipping costs, just to name a few. So why isn't this stuff getting less expensive?

The problem is that the content providers are generally overcharging. Why can I rent a DVD from RedBox for $1, or unlimited movies for a month from Netflix for $9, but on the iTunes Store I'd have to pay $5 just to stream a movie one time, or $15 to download it? Why are you charging $3 for a single TV episode I could watch for free? Why are many e-books $9.99 and up, even when they have a paperback version out for several dollars less? Do they really expect me to pay $5 for a single issue of _Time_ magazine, or $20 a month for the _Wall Street Journal_? Don't they give it away for free on their website?

And, one thing I quickly noticed on my wife's new iPad: all those $0.99 and $1.99 and $2.99 iPhone apps have iPad versions that tack "HD" onto the title and sell for $4.99, $9.99, and $14.99. A tad greedy, methinks.

What these content providers don't seem to realize is that the great benefit of digital content is that there is no marginal cost. Once the content itself is created, you can sell an unlimited number of digital copies for essentially no cost. Yet, many of these providers are still stuck in the tangible retail model, where they need to make a certain profit margin on each book, or CD, or magazine that they print or produce. What they fail to realize is that they could cut prices in half and probably sell 3, 5, maybe even 10 times as much content, doubling or tripling their revenue and profits. (Also, to the extent that magazines and newspapers make a lot of money on advertising, even selling only twice the content at half the cost is a huge win for them.)

I grappled with pricing issues with my e-books. I first priced them at $4.77 each. I figured that was a "fair" price for an e-book, about half the cost of a paperback, so the readers were getting a good deal. But then a funny thing happened. I tried selling them for just 99 cents each. A little voice in my head cried out that I was "devaluing" all my hard work (those books took over a year each to produce) and that they were "worth" more than that. But when I sold 7, then 20, then 35 times more copies at $0.99 than I did at $4.77, it didn't take long for me to silence that tiny voice. But what I don't understand is that, if _I_ can figure that out, why can't the movie studios, large publishers, and newspapers?

Think about it. I'm not gonna pay $5 to digitally rent a movie I can get for $1 elsewhere. But if that movie was $1 or $2, I'd probably digitally rent at least a few a month for the added convenience. So, the movie studio can make $0 off of me, or $6 a month. Remember, it costs them almost nothing to actually stream the video to me. So who's winning with these high prices?

That doesn't even consider the fact that higher prices increase piracy. I don't think overcharging makes piracy okay (you're still illegally downloading something you didn't pay for), but it helps people _justify_ it in their own minds when they can say, "Screw these greedy movie studios. I'd never pay $15 for that movie anyway, so they're not really losing anything by me pirating it." When an e-book is just 99 cents, for example, the vast majority of people would rather just pay what they consider a fair price than resort to piracy. Apple figured that out with 99 cent music downloads ... and the greedy music studios forced them to raise prices to $1.29 ... and (prepare to be shocked) digital music sales declined for the first time ever.

On the other end of the spectrum is the "everything should be free on the Internet" model, which people are slowly realizing doesn't work (even newspapers are finally figuring it out as they lay off reporters and editors). The problem with everything being free is that the people who create quality content need to get paid, so you can get insightful commentary, professional journalists who can travel to report on stories, quality television and movies, and well-written novels. If even the people who are very _good_ at creating content can't make a living at it, they will take their talents somewhere else that pays the bills, and we'll all be poorer for it.

So, my belief is that people are willing to pay _reasonable_ prices for digital content (read: less than the old cost of physical content), and that lower prices (that are still above _free_ ) will result in more sales and more revenue, and will allow more people to enjoy more content. That's a win-win in my book.

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#  iPad Review: Introducing the "CrackPad"

Apr 13, 2010

Now that we've had the iPad for 10 days, I can give a more thorough review than my first one. Probably the best thing I can say about it is that it has kept us up even later than usual on more than one night ... and that we've started calling it the "CrackPad." Downloading apps, playing games, watching videos, and surfing the 'Net becomes more addictive on the touchscreen, hand-held device. Aside from games, some of the apps are really useful, like the excellent WeatherBug app (that auto-detects your location and gives hour-by-hour forecasts, moving radar images, and pictures from nearby cameras), talking to someone on Skype is more fun than on a computer (too bad there's no webcam), Shazam listens to songs playing on the radio and identifies them, and NetNewsWire lets me read my blogs and RSS feeds on-the-go. And my wife will no doubt be well entertained on her next flight.

On the down side, the iPad's 24-ounce (1.5-pound) weight becomes quickly apparent when holding it--it really needs to be rested on a knee or lap, which can necessitate a hunching posture. It gets even heavier when you add a sturdy case, a necessity for something so expensive, slick, and fragile.

Of special interest to me is the question: **How good is the iPad as an e-reader?** And the answer is a pretty good one, with some caveats. First of all, I find it better for shorter reading (under an hour), as the backlit LCD screen is simply not as easy on the eyes as e-Ink displays or actual paper. And the weight is quite noticeable when reading, especially compared to my Kindle 2. However, color covers look gorgeous, and the iBook reading app is very well done. The iBook app mimics the look and feel of a book, especially when turned sideways to display 2 pages at once. It is simple to purchase books, arrange them on your bookshelf, open them, change font sizes, look words up in the dictionary, and turn pages. One note: while the cool-looking page turns (you swipe your finger and the slightly see-through page will follow the movement of your finger) are fun to play with at first, I very quickly desired the Kindle's one-handed button press for page turns, which I'm glad to say you can do by tapping your thumb in the iBook app. It's funny: people talk about e-readers mimicking books, but I already find turning pages too "cumbersome" now that I'm used to one-handed operation!

As for where to buy books: while the iBook Store is not as well-organized as Amazon's, and doesn't have as many titles (30,000 to almost 500,000), this ironically becomes an iPad advantage because you can use the iBook store _and/or_ read Amazon books through Amazon's Kindle for iPad app, which is also excellent.

As for the inevitable comparison to the Kindle 2, I'll go point-by-point, roughly in order of importance to me ( **iPad advantages in bold** , _K2 advantages in italics_ ):

  1. The iPad's backlit LCD is like a computer monitor, not as easy on the eyes for long reading as the K2's e-Ink or paper.

  2. Reading is very simple and intuitive--I'd rate this one as a tie with the K2, both are excellent.

  3. Weight (24 ounces) makes the Kindle (only 10 ounces) feel like a feather.

  4. The iPad's $499 starting price is almost double the K2 ($259).

  5. The K2's 2-week battery life is in another league than the iPad's 10-12 hours.

  6. The iPad's color screen makes covers and your "bookshelf" look great.

  7. Although I've become used to the Kindle's "locations," the iPad's page count (and # of pages left in a chapter) is more intuitive.

  8. The current Wi-Fi iPads lack the K2's free 3G wireless coverage. The forthcoming 3G iPad will cost at least $629 + $30 per month.

  9. **The iPad starts with 16 GB of storage, while the K2 only has 2 GB.** But both are plenty for thousands of books (the iPad will undoubtedly get filled with other stuff).

  10. You can attach the K2 to your computer via USB and drag-and-drop e-books into it. The iPad requires fussing with iTunes, which is a huge hassle when trying to connect to computers other than your own.

  11. **Being able to purchase books from Amazon or the iBook Store may give you more options** ; however, most books should be the same price in either place.

In summary, it all comes down to what you're looking for, and how serious a "reader" you are. It's clear to me that the  Kindle 2 is a superior e-reader. It's much lighter, the e-Ink display is better for long reading sessions, it costs a fraction of the price, and the battery lasts forever. But the iPad makes a fine device to do a little light reading with from time to time. And, of course, the iPad plays games and movies and all sorts of legitimately cool stuff. But those cool things actually become a distraction as your "book" starts beeping and pinging at you when you get an email or Facebook update--the Kindle doesn't do that. And, if you're settled on the couch trying to escape into a good book, the lack of distraction can actually be a good thing.

UPDATE: No wonder we had been staying up later — according to researchers, using the iPad late at night  disrupts your ability to fall asleep. (Luckily, e-Ink displays like the Kindle's are safe.)

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#  Being Pointlessly Mean: Blocking Text-To-Speech

Apr 18, 2010

"20/20 vision only beyond this point"

I'd like to highlight an issue that has steadily become a bigger and bigger deal for me, and something that I think really exemplifies how several large print publishers are just taking the complete wrong tack when dealing with their readers. Instead of embracing readers (i.e., their customers) and thinking of ways to make their reading or purchasing experiences better, publishers have been raising e-book prices, delaying e-book releases, slapping on restrictive copy protection (DRM) that confuses and limits readers, blocking features like lending, and, perhaps most egregiously, blocking text-to-speech.

**Text-to-speech (TTS)** is a technology that allows printed words to be read aloud by a synthesized computer voice. While the quality of this artificial voice is acceptable to some but irritating to others, it as an option that Amazon spent time and money building into the  Kindle 2. Amazon partnered with Nuance (makers of _Dragon Naturally Speaking_ ) to build TTS into the K2. That means that, in addition to all the other advantages of e-books--like adjustable font sizes that make it easier for those with poor vision to read--now your Kindle can read _any_ e-book to you, which opens up the joy of books to the vision impaired, the elderly, or anyone else who can't read printed words. While I'm fortunate enough to still have (relatively) good eyesight, I'm glad to see such technologies emerge to help those who aren't as fortunate. And I'm in favor of anything that enables more people to read or enjoy the written word.

And what do I, as an author or publisher, have to do to enable this wonderful technology? _Nothing_. It's already built into the K2 and turned on by default. Talk about a win-win-win. More people get to enjoy books, I can reach a whole new market, and Amazon can sell more e-books and Kindles.

Right up until the part where  publishers demand that Amazon block text-to-speech on their titles.

This move just strikes me as so backwards-thinking, so antagonistic, and so _wrong_ \--considering which segment of the population will be harmed the most by the move: the disabled.

The publishers' argument is essentially that TTS-enabled e-books will cut into their (expensive) audiobook sales. To me, it's just another example of publishers alienating readers, and _fighting_ instead of _embracing_ technology. They're so worried about e-books hurting their hardcover sales and audiobook sales, they're forgetting that e-books are reaching new readers who are buying more e-books than they used to buy in print. They're forgetting all the cost savings inherent in e-books, since they don't have to print or ship or store books or accept returns or produce audio files. They're forgetting that technology marches on, and they can march along or be trampled underfoot along with the typewriter manufacturers and buggy-whip makers. Most importantly, they're forgetting the reason they exist: to provide literature to _readers_. Readers are not your enemies; please stop fighting them. How did it work out for the RIAA and the music industry?

In the meantime, all I can do (aside from posting about it here) is continue to try to embrace technology and provide value for my readers. To me, that means fair pricing, multiple formats, no restrictive DRM, and enabling text-to-speech on my novels.

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# Kindle Coming to Target Stores

Apr 22, 2010

 Target announced yesterday that Amazon's  Kindle 2 will arrive in select Target retail stores on April 25. This is big news for e-readers in general, and the Kindle in particular, since it was only previously available online through Amazon.com. E-readers are a new and still unfamiliar technology, and there are many people who would be wary of spending $259 on a device that they couldn't see and touch before purchasing (even though Amazon offers a no-questions-asked 30-day return policy on Kindles). Everyone I've shown my Kindle to has been impressed, some even amazed by the technology, readability, and light weight. So I think getting the actual product in front of millions of customers will only be a good thing for Kindle sales.

Unfortunately, the "select stores" that will initially get the Kindle 2 are Target's flagship store in Minneapolis, as well as 102 stores in South Florida ... which is where I happen to live. :) Hopefully they will expand the availability nationwide soon.

Another note: it is currently rumored that the Kindle may also be coming to Best Buy. That would be interesting, since Apple's iPad, Barnes & Noble's Nook, and Sony's e-Readers are already available there. That would make Best Buy a great one-stop-shop to try out and compare the various e-readers available.

Of course, the Nook is already available at most Barnes & Noble stores, and is similar enough to the Kindle to give customers an idea -- especially the 6" e-Ink screen, which is identical on both devices.

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# 25 Things About Me

Apr 23, 2010

Not mine yet. One day.

OK, I don't normally do these sorts of lists, but I'll give it a go.

1. I am a passionate (some say "crazy") Gator fan. I've been to all of our football (3) and basketball (2) national championship games.

2. I met my wonderful and very supportive wife my second night after moving to L.A. For a while after that, I called L.A. "The City of Angels." I don't anymore because I hate the city and the traffic, but still love my wife.

3. I've also lived in South Florida; Gainesville, FL; Berkeley, CA; Oakland, CA; Los Angeles, CA; and South Florida again.

4. I also visit Hawaii a lot because my wife is from there and her family lives there. It's a long flight.

5. My favorite city of all time is Rome, Italy. The combination of history, art, culture, food, and modern society is unparalleled. I was overwhelmed by the experience of sipping wine at a cafe overlooking the Pantheon and thinking "Julius Caesar hung out here a couple of thousand years ago." Oh, and the gelato is FANTASTIC.

6. I love animals. I have a bird (a conure, which is a small parrot) and my wife's cat, which is a _North American Shedder_ breed. I'm more of a dog person, but don't have one yet. My parents have 4, though.

7. One of our favorite places is Parrot Jungle (now called Jungle Island) in Miami, where we've held and played with lemurs, baby tigers, chimps, gibbons, parrots, and we volunteered for a while with their baby orangutans and baboons. Their male baboon, Pharoah, still goes nuts when I visit and likes for us to groom each other.

8. I grew up reading C.S. Lewis and Piers Anthony.

9. I got to drive a Ferrari F430 and have yearned to drive it again ever since. It is truly perfection on wheels. I finally understand when the car magazines call it "telepathic" steering and handling.

10. I once jumped out of a perfectly good airplane. OK, "perfectly good" may be a stretch, since the thing was held together by duct tape and love. But I did a solo skydive from 2 miles up in the air (about 11,000 feet). I could see both coasts of Florida.

11. I was a philosophy major in college, with a focus on ethics. I wrote my honors thesis on contemporary moral issues.

12. After college, my ethics courses inspired me to write a science fiction story that explored ethical themes and tried to entertain with action & adventure while also encouraging the reader to think about interesting and complex moral issues. So, Right Ascension was born.

13. I went to law school at UC-Berkeley and was editor-in-chief of the law school newspaper, the _Cross-Examiner_. It probably sounds more impressive than it was because we basically just made fun of everything, it's not like we examined cases or discussed any of that legal crap.

14. During law school, I learned a lot. I started drinking (yup, no alcohol before law school), learned to play golf, and wrote my second novel, Declination (which is the sequel to _Right Ascension_ ).

15. I once saw a lady walking a pair of llamas down the streets of Berkeley. I am not making this up. It was NOT the strangest thing I have seen in Berkeley.

16. Since I had gone to law school and taken the Bar Exam and all that rot, and since I had made approximately enough on my novels to buy a week's worth of ramen noodles (if you didn't count my expenses), I moved to L.A. to work for a big law firm as a lawyer.

17. Being a lawyer is ... not as much fun as it looks on TV.

18. Oh, except I did get to work on a case for "Girls Gone Wild" where I got paid to "review evidence" regarding whether certain girls did certain things on videotape or not. That part did not suck.

19. I recently "retired," moved back to South Florida, and started writing (and editing, and designing covers, and formatting, and promoting) full-time. I took a humorous short story I had worked on in bits and pieces and it kept growing until it turned into a novel called The Twiller. I am very nearly finished with it now, and I'm very excited to release it soon.

20. My favorite TV show of all time was _Firefly_ , and I still cry a little bit inside every time I think about how soon it was cancelled. I cry a LOT inside every time I see some of the crap on TV that has replaced it. ( _Amazing Housewives So You Think You Can Apprentice Idol in the O.C._ , I'm looking at you.)

21. My favorite movies are _Forrest Gump_ , _The Shawshank Redemption_ , and _Gattaca_.

22. I really enjoy reading Timothy Zahn. His _Thrawn Series Star Wars_ novels and his _Conqueror's Trilogy_ books were excellent.

23. I had a dream last night that starred Mila Kunis. No, it was NOT as dirty as you're probably thinking.

24. My father inspired the intelligence, leadership, and morality of Admiral Daniel Atgard from my novels.

25. This is the first "25 Things About Me" list I've ever done. I'm not sure what inspired me to do it. Probably the Mila Kunis dream.

* * * * *

#  What Is Facebook Doing With Your Info?

Apr 25, 2010

Facebook greed: do not like.

In Facebook's latest quest to  make even more money from its users' personal information, their newest ploy: the perversion of the "Like" button, which previously was an innocent way to give a virtual "thumbs up" to a friend's comment or photo, without "subscribing" to anything or making a permanent connection. Now, however, that same "Like" button — that Facebook has trained its users to click on so much it expects 1 _billion_ new "Likes" within the first 24 hours — "creates a connection" when used for interests, Fan pages, or other company websites. According to FB, "we believe this change offers you a more light-weight and standard way to connect with people, things and topics in which you are interested." In other words, they hope to confuse things and trick more people into clicking "Like" because people are used to it, and it sounds better than "Become a Fan" or "Subscribe" or "Let us Track Your Interests."

The new "Like" button not only extends its reach to Fan pages (which you used to "become a fan" of), but will now pop up all over the web on various company websites. An example FB gives is Levi.com; so, you visit Levi.com and see the ubiquitous FB "Like" button and click it. Assuming you are logged in to your FB account, you have now provided a piece of personal data that FB can sell to Levi's, Macy's, or some other jeans competitor. Also, the fact that you "Like" Levi's now shows up in the "News Feed," which means that you just spammed all 200 of your friends with an advertisement for Levi's. Great! Because advertising wasn't invasive enough, now FB is trying to trick your friends into doing the advertising for them.

In a similar vein, your "Interests" on the "Info" tab of your Facebook profile page are being  converted automatically into things that you "Like." So, if, under activities or interests you put "Unbuttoning my Levi's and eating at KFC," you will now be assumed to "Like" Levi's and KFC. And your name will show up as a "Liker" or "Fan" or "Friend" or "Follower" (or whatever they'll call it) on the new Levi's Facebook "Communities" page. So, anyone (friend or not) can visit the Levi's communities page and see you're a "Liker." Yes, even if you have your "Interests" set to "private." OK, that's not so bad, but what if you included "sex" under interests, or "marijuana," or "speeding." Now, all that information is instantly accessible in a neat database ... and how much would your car insurance company like that information?

Want to stop that from happening? FB says your only option is to "delete" all your interests. However, in a clever twist, that just prevents your interests from showing up on your profile (where you want them so your friends can see), yet FB _keeps_ that info and continues selling it to advertisers. It's the worst of both worlds. Nothing you can do; if you've entered something, it's too late, FB owns it. I've said it before: I don't care what your privacy settings are, don't put anything on Facebook that you wouldn't want to appear on the front page of the _New York Times_. That is more true today then ever.

Think your status updates and comments are safe? Nope, those can show up on "Communities" pages too. So if you say, "I hate the FBI," that post will show up on the "FBI" Communities page. Nice.

Facebook has explained recently that they are trying to "monetize" their user base ... that translates to "get you to spend more money" and "advertise to you more" and "sell more of your information and purchasing history." They're trying to take a personal site where people share info with friends, and needle into that info and those exchanges and make money from them. I understand they are a business and are seeking to profit, but this method is so at odds with what their users want, I don't think they can pull it off. At least I hope not.

I'm sure there are less invasive ways for them to harvest all that user info and make money from it without violating the trust and privacy of their users. For example, they could aggregate "trends," things people are talking about or searching for, and sell that compiled info to companies. "Mentions of _Twilight_ are up 12% this week," "instances of the phrase 'going to buy an iPad' are down 27%," "72% of users who discuss it claim they refuse to pay over $9.99 for e-books." Isn't that info valuable? And, providing that sort of aggregate (not personally-identifiable) info wouldn't alienate FB users.

Facebook needs to seriously re-think their disregard for users' privacy. I'm sure, when you have hundreds of millions of users, the temptation is great to see them all as nice plump dollar signs. These sorts of moves have backfired on Facebook before, spawning protests over privacy concerns, but they keep trying. Facebook is a company, and wants to make (more) money. Hey, look, I get it. I wish I could give my novels away for free and not worry if they sell or not. But I'm trying to make a living here, and the grocery store doesn't give me food for free, and my landlord keeps bitching about rent. But I'm not taking anyone's personal data and selling it -- let alone tricking them into giving it to me. But hey, what do I know? I'm not 25 years old and the owner of a company worth over $35 billion. But my free advice is: stop pushing, Facebook, before your users turn on you and leave Facebook for good.

Maybe they'll even sit down and read a good book instead. ;-)

UPDATE: Nice article from Wired, first line: "Facebook has gone rogue, drunk on founder Mark Zuckerberg's dreams of world domination." Another nice tidbit, FB now  adds apps without your permission when you visit certain websites (I just checked, and had 4 installed on my profile).

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#  The Twiller Is Nearing Completion

Apr 27, 2010

Just a quick note because I'm excited to say that I finished the first draft of my third novel late last night. _The Twiller_ is a departure from the _Right Ascension_ series (my first two novels); it is a much lighter read, a comedic romp through the galaxy with a hapless hero and his strange marshmallow-shaped twiller friend. It is funny, or at least meant to be, without the serious ethical undertones of my first two novels. I _do_ manage to include some social commentary beneath all the jokes, as our hero visits faraway planets with names like El Leigh, Bez Erkeley, York, WMD, Fleur Ida, and Huh, Why E? And I just _might_ make fun of things like traffic, airport security, law firms, and some other things I've had experience with in real life. And, fine, truth be told, you _may_ even notice some friends from my personal life making guest appearances.

Anyway, I'm very excited about this book, as I think it will appeal easily to non-science-fiction fans. It's a little shorter than my first two books, and it's a more light, fun, casual read. And, hey, who doesn't like to laugh?

The only thing tempering my excitement for being "done" is that I still have a few other things to do before the book is ready:

  * Go back through and flesh out a couple of scenes and fix a few things.

  * Start from the beginning and make several passes through with a fine-toothed comb, editing the heck out of it and trying to eradicate all typos.

  * Bug my three noble editors for their help in editing the thing.

  * Design a cover. This part scares me, since I have no artistic ability whatsoever and need to find a way to draw/design the twiller. Any artists out there?

  * Write the back cover blurb.

  * Do the interior design and formatting -- things like page size, headers, chapter titles, paragraph spacing, indents, ellipse dots, em dashes, etc.

  * Write the "front matter," including the flyleaf page, some quotes for the front, copyright page, dedication, etc.

  * Create the "back matter," including the about the author page and pic.

  * Figure out what to do with the footnotes, since e-books don't handle them very well.

  * Format it for print and the various types of e-books out there (which involves converting it to HTML, adding tables of contents, etc.).

  * Upload it to various channels like Amazon and CreateSpace and create the description and categories.

  * Put it up on my own website and create new purchasing buttons through PayPal.

  * Promote it like heck, try to get reviews, and hope someone wants to buy the thing.

So, there's quite a ways still to go. But I hope to have it all done within a couple of months. Until then, check out the Twiller page here for excerpts and updates and to leave a comment if you'd like to be notified when it's completely finished and ready to go!

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# Sony Reader Pocket now $140

May 3, 2010

Sony Reader Pocket Edition

The  Sony Reader Pocket Edition PRS-300 is now selling from Amazon and Buy.com for just $139.95. The Sony readers are normally considered the third of the "Big 3" e-readers (behind Amazon's  Kindle and Barnes & Noble's Nook) ... perhaps "Big 4" if enough people actually start reading on Apple's iPad.

This follows an interesting trend as e-reader prices seem to be coming down. The original Kindle sold for $399, which was reduced to $359, then $299, and is currently $259. There are now several competitors in the $150 range as well. Will this bring more people into the e-reader and e-book fold? Or do people prefer to pay a little more for e-readers with more features? Personally, I like to see options available at different price points.

The Sony reader has an easy-on-the-eyes 5" e-Ink screen (note that the K2 and Nook's screens are 6" diagonal). It comes with 512 MB of memory (enough for several hundred e-books), and boasts the 2-week battery life that e-Ink displays are known for. It reads ePub, PDF, and text files. It is quite small and light: at only 4.2 x 6.2 x 0.4 inches and 7.8 ounces, it is smaller and lighter than most paperback novels and should slip into a sport coat pocket.

It does without some of the features of its more expensive siblings, as it does not include a touch screen, keyboard, wireless downloads (you attach a USB cable to your computer), expandable memory card slot, a built-in dictionary, or the ability to play music or show pictures.

You also should consider that the main avenue to purchase e-books for the device will be Sony's E-Reader Store, which has a lower selection and higher prices than Amazon or B&N. On the other hand, many bestsellers are being sold for the same price everywhere now, and it can read ePub files from other sources (including libraries).

I don't think I would prefer it over my Kindle 2, even for the lower price, but for someone looking for a very small, light, and inexpensive e-reader, it's certainly a serious contender.

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# Win A Kobo E-Reader

May 4, 2010

Win Me!

Just a quick note to point out that Kobo is running a contest (ending May 6) to win a free Kobo E-Reader. To enter, just buy an e-book (each purchase is one entry) -- there will be 5 winners this week.

Until you win your e-reader, you can read Kobo books on a Mac, PC, or various smartphones (software downloads here).

If you're looking for a cheap way to enter,  Right Ascension and  Declination are discounted 20%, down to just 79 cents each on the Kobo website. ;-)

In other news, the Kobo eReader is currently available for pre-orders from Borders for $149.99, shipping June 17. It should start arriving in Borders bookstores in August as part of an "Area-E" section in the stores. Borders is also readying its online e-book store for June.

More info about the Kobo eReader in an earlier post here.

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# "Free" As In Beer

May 6, 2010

No such thing as a free lunch.

The enticing title of this post refers to a phrase created to distinguish between two meanings of the word "free." There is "free as in beer," meaning free of charge, and sometimes referred to as " _gratis_ " (from the Latin). This is contrasted with "free as in speech," meaning free from restriction or censorship, and also referred to as " _libre_." (As one who loves language, the conflation of two separate ideas into one word strikes me as an odd quirk and a fascinating bit of inefficiency in English, but I digress.)

Sadly, we're not talking about beer today. What we're talking about is the commonly-held idea that information on the Internet "should" be free -- free as in beer. (Most of us reading this from outside the halls of the capitol at Pyongyang would agree that most information and news should be _libre_ : free as in speech.) Visit any forum or online discussion about digital content (such as e-books, TV shows like Hulu, online newspapers, etc.), and dozens of people will tell you that information "wants" to be free, "needs" to be free, or "should" be free on the Internet. They will point out that hosting a website and transmitting data across the globe is a relatively trivial expense -- and they're right.

What many fail to realize is that _producing_ quality content (whether it's a well-written and well-edited novel or a well-researched news story) takes plenty of human labor, and that content is worth more than just the cost of the paper and ink to print it. Let's look at newspapers for a moment. Newspapers everywhere are struggling. For about a decade now, most newspapers have spent a great deal of time, money, and effort developing slick websites to bring you all the news from their print versions -- with additional perks like videos, more color pictures, and discussion forums -- in order to enable their customers to stop paying for newspaper subscriptions. (Sure, you could argue this wasn't the best business model, but hindsight is 20/20.) The idea was to make enough money on online advertising to recoup the lost subscription revenue plus pay for the additional web design and hosting costs they incur.

That idea has failed. Ad revenue is not enough to keep newspapers running right now. Internet advertising is just not very effective anymore, and advertisers are paying less and less per impression (how many of us totally ignore web banners and block pop-up windows?). Newspapers are taking big losses, laying off editors and reporters (which reduces the quality), and going out of business.

Of course, it's a vicious cycle. Newspapers lose money, reduce the pay of journalists, lay off editors, stop sending reporters on fact-finding missions, and the quality of their writing goes down to the point that many are just regurgitating articles from the Associated Press -- which we can get for free at dozens of places online, so why would I pay for access to _The Miami Herald's_ website? Now that newspapers have trained Internet users that information should be free (as in beer), it is proving very difficult to convince anyone to pay for online or digital content. Especially so long as other avenues keep giving it away for free. (Note that the continued chorus of Internet users in support of the "free" model is based on the fact that 95% of Internet users are content _consumers_ and maybe 5% are content _producers_ trying to pay rent. It's kinda like having 9 wolves and a sheep vote on what's for dinner.)

The problem is that quality, well-researched, neutral, accurate information is worth paying for. Good writing, good editing, investigative journalism, flying reporters to locations to uncover stories -- that's worth paying for. What some random blogger thinks about something he may or may not know anything about -- that should be free. :)

On the other hand, the _Wall Street Journal_ (to pick one example) seems to be making the same mistake LOTS of digital media (news, books, music, movies, etc.) producers are: overcharging. Customers know that it costs less to stream a TV show than create, package, and ship a DVD. It costs less to email an e-book than to print and ship a hardcover. And the _WSJ's_ costs go down if they can get rid of their printing presses and stop buying paper and ink by the ton.

Digital media producers are very slow in understanding that the marginal cost of selling 1 more digital download is close to zero. So it's better to sell 5x as many (e-books, subscriptions, streaming movies) at 1/2 the cost. It's a win-win. But, when I can get a DVD for $1 from Redbox, I'm not gonna pay $5 to stream it online. When the library is free and bargain books are a few bucks, I won't pay over $10 for fiction e-books. When a print mag is $2 an issue, why am I paying $5 for a digital download? And why does a $3.99/week iPad _WSJ_ subscription cost more than a $2.99/week print newspaper (that takes paper and ink and trucks and delivery people)? People aren't stupid. I like my iPad, but I didn't all of a sudden forget basic math.

There is a middle ground: free is an unsustainable model if you want quality content, and overcharging will kill the model just as quickly. Higher volume at lower prices is the great opportunity of digital content.

Now, if only things worked the same way for beer ....

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# Right Ascension at Barnes & Noble

May 7, 2010

Available at B&N

I'm pleased to announce that _Right Ascension_ is now  available at Barnes & Noble in paperback format (for those of you who haven't hopped aboard the e-book train yet). It is currently on sale there for 10% off the cover price, and is just **$8.79**. Barnes & Noble also offers free shipping for its members, or if you spend over $25.

(Of course, you can also buy it direct from me from the links in the column to the right, but I can't beat free shipping!)

The print version is a "trade paperback," which is larger in size (mine is 6x9 inches), and higher in quality than the "mass market paperbacks" you usually find in the under-$10 price range. It also has higher quality, whiter paper than the gray pages you'd find in a mass market paperback.

Now that _Right Ascension_ is in the various databases it needs to be in, this also means that you can walk into your local Barnes & Noble or Borders or library (or wherever) and request that they order a copy for you. Hey, if enough people request it, they may even decide to stock a few extra copies in the store....

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# Self-Publishing Options: Print

May 11, 2010

A few friends have recently asked me about self-publishing, and it's clear there are still several misconceptions out there. Most people think about self-publishing or print on demand (POD) services, and they think of high prices, large minimum order sizes, and the term "vanity publishing." True, numerous companies still exist that are looking to make a buck by preying on the aspirations of new authors. It is important to do your research to avoid paying for overpriced services and "self-publishing packages." But, the good news is that there now _are_ ways to get your new novel, your family's history, or your local cookbook into print for very low cost. In fact, you can print up a single copy of your book (and even make it available online and at Amazon so others can order additional copies if they wish) for literally ZERO in set-up fees -- you just pay the cost of a single print copy plus shipping, which is under $10 for most books.

The service I most highly recommend is called CreateSpace. CS is a subsidiary of Amazon, and they offer a very low cost print on demand service that is suitable for printing small runs of trade paperback books (even just a single copy). While CS does offer optional, expensive author services packages (which I do _not_ recommend), there is no charge to upload your work and make it available. You simply pay for a single proof copy and a reasonable rate per additional copy that you want to order. The price is based on the number of pages in the book, and includes a full-color glossy cover, perfect binding, high-quality white paper, and unlimited black-and-white interior photos.

Does it sound too good to be true? There is one "catch." Since you're not paying them anything (except the cost to print however many copies you order), you have to do all the formatting yourself. That means you have to create a PDF that is the right size with proper margins for the interior of your book (they offer numerous print sizes; my novels are 6x9 inches). Doing this is relatively easy, and you can use Word or pretty much any word processing or page layout program and save it as a PDF (even easier if you have a Mac). The more difficult part is designing a cover file. The cover will be a "full wrap" cover, which is the back cover, spine, and front cover all saved as a single PDF:

The full-wrap Right Ascension cover

Making a cover like this isn't the easiest thing in the world. I did mine with Photoshop, and it took a LONG time to figure out and get it just right. CS does provide some templates to help you out, which are based on the page size of your book and the spine width is calculated based on the number of pages. Even still, I had to find a high-resolution cover image (you want 300dpi or more for it to look its best), fiddle with the text and all the effects, mess with the color, etc., etc. There are easier ways to do it, and you can find simpler cover templates where you pretty much just add a photo and some text, if that's enough for your needs. There are artists who will offer cover design services for a fee, but that only becomes worthwhile for commercial books where you think you can sell several hundred copies or more to justify that up-front cost.

Assuming you can come up with your cover and interior PDF files, you simply upload them to CS. So far, you haven't spent a cent. Now, CS will ask you to order a proof copy of your book to make sure it looks good. If you only want a single copy, the "proof" copy can be it. Your book is priced based on the page count, and a 200-page novel (70,000 words or so) costs $5.50, with another $3 or so for shipping.

Once the proof arrives, you check it out, and if it looks good, you log into CS and "approve" the proof. Then you can order additional copies (as many or few as you want). If you're buying more than 17 or so, it becomes worthwhile to pay $39 for the "Pro Plan," which reduces the per-book printing cost: our same 200-page book would drop to $3.25. (Do this before ordering the proof to save a couple bucks on the proof copy as well.) Shipping is more economical on larger purchases, as a single book may cost about $3 to ship while a 20-book shipment may cost around $10. Obviously, if you order more, your total per-book cost will decrease. For example, 50 books ($162.50) with the Pro Plan ($39) and shipping ($15) should cost about $4.33 per book.

Once you've approved the proof, you can decide if you'd like to make the book available for purchase through CreateSpace, Amazon, or Expanded Distribution. If you're just ordering a few copies of something for yourself and your immediate family, there's no reason to select these options. However, you may want to offer a family history book, but don't want to order 50 copies and possibly be stuck with them, or deal with shipping them or collecting money. In that case, you can enable CS distribution (which is free), and just email people the link where they can purchase however many copies they want, CS will print them up and ship them directly when ordered. CS takes 20% of the purchase price for CS sales, and you can set the "list price" so you make zero royalty (at 20% more than the per-book printing cost), or price it higher and even make a buck or two for your trouble.

Similarly, you can make your book available on Amazon or through Expanded Distribution, although Amazon takes 40% and ED sales take 60% of the list price. The ins and outs of selling on Amazon and ED (which makes it available for order in bookstores and libraries) are beyond the scope of this post, but leave a comment if you're interested in more info and I may devote a later post to it.

Anyway, there are low-cost options to create your own printed books for family reunions, your short story collection, or anything else you'd like to see in print. You do have to put in some effort, but the cost is very low, and there are no set-up or other up-front fees (you just pay for the books you have printed). I recommend CreateSpace for their low prices and high quality, but some other solid possibilities include Lightning Source and possibly Lulu. I would avoid Author House, iUniverse, and xLibris, as each charges several hundred dollars or more for what you can get through CS for free.

UPDATE: For info on self-publishing for e-books, check this post.

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# The Twiller Cover Is Here

May 16, 2010

The Twiller, coming in June!

Now that I've finished The Twiller and sent it off to my editors, I've been working on designing the new cover for it. Cover design is one of the toughest parts of being an independent author, and actually takes a very long time, or a lot of money, or both. Many authors hire cover designers, and spend hundreds or thousands of dollars for a cover. As an indie, writing a novel is just the beginning, as I'm also responsible for editing, interior layout, cover design, formatting, and promotion (to name a few). I am fortunate to be pretty computer literate, so I can do most of those tasks on my own, although some, like editing, require some outside help since you always need a second (or third, or fourth) set of eyes. Having a quality cover is critically important (people can, and do, judge books by their covers every day), so I had to spend a great deal of time teaching myself Photoshop and creating something I could be proud of. I hope you are as pleased with the results as I am. :)

In designing the cover for _The Twiller_ , I had a couple of challenges. One is that I wanted to maintain a consistent theme or "brand" for my books, where the new cover would be instantly recognizable to people who have read and enjoyed the first two novels -- even if the cover is seen at a tiny thumbnail size. On the other hand, unlike my second novel, this book is not a sequel to the first two, but a different story and a different type of book: a fun, humorous adventure as opposed to an action-packed, cerebral story with underlying ethical themes. So I didn't want to make the cover _too_ similar to the first two, yet I still wanted to maintain some similarity. To that end, I kept the theme of using a phenomenal background pic of a nebula (courtesy of NASA), and kept the font color and placement of my name and the title the same, but I changed the title font to something more casual and appropriate, and added the graphic of the twiller, our title character. I think he adds a nice splash of color and serves as a whimsical element that helps differentiate the cover from the first two, gives a hint as to the humorous nature of the book, and helps readers visualize the title character. And he pops out quite nicely even on a small thumbnail-sized picture.

That brings me to my second challenge: designing the twiller graphic. While I had spent a lot of time getting proficient with text effects in Photoshop, and I mask my lack of artistic ability by using (literally) billion-dollar background images, now I had to actually _draw_ something. The problem is: I can't even draw stick figures. Seriously. Nonetheless, I persevered with Photoshop, and found that (fortunately) graphic design is much different than drawing freehand. And after many hours spent creating a 3-D cylinder, working with shading, global light sources, gradients, paths, beveling & embossing, outer glows, drop shadows, dozens of layers and masks, and more, I'm quite happy with the result.

Anyway, I am getting more and more excited by the day about the imminent release of _The Twiller_ , which will almost certainly be released next month. So I wanted to share the new cover with you (larger pic here) and get your thoughts. It's not 100% done (and I still need to work on the spine and back cover!), but I think it's pretty close. I hope you like it -- please let me know what you think in the comments!

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#  Refurb Sony Reader Pocket Just $110

May 19, 2010

For today only, Woot.com is offering a refurbished Sony PRS-300BC Digital Reader Pocket Edition for just $109.99 (compare to my mention last week of a new model for $140). Woot's motto is "One Day, One Deal," so this deal will be up today only (May 19), and will end at midnight central time (23 hours and 33 minutes from now). Woot lets you buy up to 3 units with $5 flat rate shipping.

If you're in the market for an inexpensive, small, light e-reader and you don't mind it being refurbished, this could be a tempting deal. (Check out the post I linked above for more info and specs.) It's good to see the cost of e-readers continuing to fall.

UPDATE: Deal expired.

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#  Barnes & Noble Announces Self-Publishing

May 19, 2010

B&N Announces "PubIt"

Barnes & Noble announced today that they will be opening their doors to independent publishers and self-published authors through their "PubIt" program, expected to launch in "Summer 2010." While this move isn't exactly groundbreaking (my novels are already  available at Barnes & Noble), it's still a welcome step forward. Currently, self-published e-books are made available on B&N.com through an intermediary: Smashwords, which is a fine company that offers a great service to independent authors. Soon, however, we will have the ability to upload our work directly to B&N, which will presumably offer us more control, a faster turnaround (it can take months to get your books or any changes to show up on B&N), and possibly higher royalties. B&N says royalties will be announced within a few weeks, and promises they will be "competitive." It is hard to imagine how they could offer less than the 70% that Apple offers and that Amazon will offer starting July 1.

Amazon led the way for the self-publishing revolution with its Digital Text Platform, which allows any author to upload their work in e-book form to be sold on  Amazon.com. So while one could argue that B&N has been following rather than innovating (releasing the Nook 2 years after the Kindle and arriving over a year late to the self-publishing scene), I'm glad to see B&N moving toward and embracing the future, unlike some businesses I could mention. I would expect a direct upload channel to B&N will enable me to create a higher-quality, better formatted source file (with Smashwords, it's best to upload a simple, generically-formatted file that gets converted to multiple formats), quicker upload and revision times, better control over the description and category, and -- hopefully -- a higher royalty rate.

Another big benefit might be quicker sales reporting: currently, Amazon Kindle sales are reported instantly... which leads to incessant checking several times a day. ;-) B&N sales, on the other hand, get reported through Smashwords, and are currently on a 3-5 month delay. I started selling on B&N at the very end of January, and I haven't even received my first sales report yet \-- all I can do is watch my sales ranking and guess. So I don't know if B&N is turning into a worthy second sales channel, or if B&N sales are still just a tiny fraction of Amazon's. It would behoove B&N to get this info to me more quickly, so I would know whether or not it's worthwhile to devote more promotional efforts their way.

My only concern is whether the new file I upload will replace or sit alongside the Smashwords version that's  already active on B&N. I'd certainly like to keep my description, reviews, and sales ranking ( _Right Ascension_ has made it into the Top 7,500 there!).

Anyway, it's an exciting development, and having both the #1 and #2 booksellers in the world throwing their weight behind self-publishing is certainly an encouraging sign. I still have more questions than answers (How many am I selling on B&N? What will the royalties be? When will it launch? What format do they want me to upload? Can I migrate over my existing product details?), but I remain hopeful.

P.S.: I seem to get most of my feedback from Kindle users, so I'd love to hear from a few B&N / Nook users: Have you purchased my books from B&N? Have you enjoyed them? How did the formatting look on the Nook? How many of you are out there??

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#  Subscribe to the Always Write Blog on Kindle

May 21, 2010

Get posts delivered wirelessly

I've recently made my blog  available on Amazon, so Kindle users can subscribe and receive wireless updates that deliver new posts directly to their Kindles. Pretty cool stuff.

One of the big advantages of Amazon's  Kindle is that lifetime, unlimited wireless access is included, for free. (By comparison, an iPad 3G's unlimited data plan will cost you $30 a month, which is enough to buy a $259 Kindle 2 in less than 9 months, and comes to $1,080 over 3 years.) The Kindle's wireless access can be used to browse, buy, and download books; surf the Internet or check e-mail (slowly, in black and white); sync your bookmarks, notes, and your position in books you're reading across multiple devices; or subscribe to newspapers or blogs and get daily issues or new posts sent to you throughout the day.

While Amazon provides the wireless access for free, they do charge for blog subscriptions. Interestingly, they choose the pricing of the blogs they offer (I have no say in the matter), and they've chosen to price mine at $1.99 a month. (I get 30% of that.) They also offer a free, 14-day trial subscription if you want to check out the functionality.

Anyway, I'm obviously happy to provide my blog through my website or RSS feed for free, but I figured this gives people another option -- getting wireless updates throughout the day from blogs you subscribe to is a pretty cool feature. Even if you don't have a Kindle, feel free to head over to my blog's Amazon page and leave a review or just help click on the "tags" halfway down the page so people can find me. Thanks!

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# What Are They Thinking?

May 22, 2010

What A Deal!

There have been numerous complaints from readers about unreasonably high e-book prices. Consumers rightfully feel that e-books, which have zero printing, storage, shipping, or returns costs, should cost less than printed books. Publishers have responded by claiming that all those costs only add up to 10% of the total cost of a book (which raises the question why we're being charged 10x that amount, and why $2.50 hardcovers are sold for $25?). Even if we believe that 10% figure, the e-book should still cost less than the cheapest printed version (and most e-books do), no matter what kind of creative math publishers try to use.

However, a distressing number of e-books are priced at the same price as the paperback equivalents, or are often discounted from the _hardcover_ price, but cost the same or more than the available paperback version. Also, publishers like to compare e-book prices to hardcover _list prices_ , which almost no one pays (that $25 hardcover costs $9-$12 at Amazon, Costco, or Walmart, and even B&N offers 30% or 40% off bestsellers).

However, I recently came across an absolute abomination of pricing, one that shows just how badly the big publishers don't get it. The book is the "authorized" sequel to Douglas Adams' hilarious _Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy_. It's called _And Another Thing_ , by Eoin Colfer. The book was OK, but I was a little disappointed by it (true, Adams _is_ a tough act to follow).

Anyway, check out the following price points of this book, which I bought in hardcover from a bargain bin a few months ago for just **$4.48** at B&N.

  * Hardcover, new, from Amazon: **$9.87**

  * Paperback, new, from Amazon: **$10.19**

  * E-Book (Kindle version), from Amazon: **$14.29**

Now, let me get this straight: the e-book, which you don't have to print or ship anywhere, costs almost 50% _more_ than the _hardcover_ , over $4 more than the paperback, and more than _triple_ what I paid for the hardcover in a bookstore? (By the way, the prices are similar over at B&N and elsewhere, so it's not just Amazon that's wonky here.) If this isn't proof that some large publishers are trying their best to kill e-books before e-books kill them, I don't know what could be.

My question to the publisher (Hyperion), with all due respect, is: _What the hell are you thinking??_

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#  Kindle in Targets Nationwide June 6

May 24, 2010

Demo unit not functional, indeed.

It seems that Kindles in Target's test locations have been "flying off the shelves," so Target will roll them out in stores nationwide on June 6.

I went by my local Target today (since I'm fortunate enough to be in the South Florida test location), and, sure enough, there was a K2 display on an aisle end cap in the electronics section. There was a large picture of a huge Kindle alongside a woman sipping coffee and reading, a demo  Kindle 2 unit, and a page describing its features (books in 60 seconds, free 3G wireless, paper-like display, 2-week battery life, etc.). Below the unit were several types of cases for the device ($30-$40 each).

Unfortunately, the demo unit at the location I visited was damaged: the screen had been cracked (note: the pattern you see in the above photo is indicative of the Kindle's screen cracking on the _inside_ ). For some reason, this made me kinda sad, as it hardly seems like they're putting the Kindle's best foot forward with a display with a broken unit, which is not only useless (and ugly) to look at, but reminds potential buyers that you _do_ have to be more careful with a Kindle than with a paper book. That scene in _Modern Family_ where the kid sits on Al Bundy's Kindle and breaks it didn't help either!

(For the record, I hear Amazon's customer service is _extremely_ helpful and generous with replacement units if you're unfortunate enough to crack your Kindle's screen, but I'm not taking the chance.)

On the plus side, all the Kindles at the location I visited were sold out (though they did have stock at other nearby locations). It also appeared that several of the cases were sold out as well (there were stickers and spaces for 6-8 different types of cases, but there were only 4 cases of 2 different types remaining).

It looked like the demo Kindle was set to cycle through a few different pages of text and images (it was hard to tell with the broken screen). As the sticker on the demo unit warns that it's "not functional," I doubt you can open books or play with menus, but it is attached by a retractable cord that allows people to feel its weight and note how thin it feels in their hands. I still think the Kindle is a "wow" device, and that most people who see one in action (with, hopefully, a working e-Ink screen) will be impressed and tempted to buy one. Check it out for yourself at Target starting on June 6. And try not to drop it. :)

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#  E-Book Sales Continue Rapid Growth

May 25, 2010

Quarterly E-Book Sales, Q1 2008 -- Q1 2010

The sales data is in for book sales in March, and the news for e-books continues to impress. Year-over-year sales of e-books are up a staggering **251.9%**. This, after e-book sales nearly doubled from 2007 to 2008 and then more than _tripled_ from 2008 to 2009.

According to estimates by the Association of American Publishers, e-book sales totaled $28,500,000 in March, for a total of **$89,300,000** for the first quarter of 2010.

Keep in mind two things: first, that these numbers do not include sales of independent authors (like myself). True, I won't move that bar much by myself, but with tens of thousands of authors like me, the effect could be significant. Second, these numbers do not include any sales from the Apple iBook store or through the Kindle for iPad app, since the iPad wasn't released until April 3.

Even when comparing e-books to print books, the news is still promising. Two major publishers (Hachette and Simon & Schuster) reported that e-book sales for Q1 2010 constituted 8% of their total revenue. Keep in mind that (a) not all printed books currently make sense as e-books (children's books, cookbooks, picture books, etc.), (b) not all books that do make sense have been released in e-book format yet, and (c) that e-books generally sell for less than printed books, so 8% of revenue would mean a higher percentage of unit sales. It is reasonable to conclude that, of books with both a printed and e-book counterpart, e-books could make up anywhere from 10 to 20% of unit sales. Amazon has already reported that their e-book sales account for about 40% of their total book sales (for titles with both versions available).

Just to keep the numbers in perspective, let's look at overall print book sales compared to e-book sales. While it's true that the percentage increases for e-books have been very impressive, they had started from such a small fraction of print book sales that they still paled in comparison. Well, what if I told you that, in March 2010 (the latest month data is available), total e-book sales were over 53% as much as total _mass-market paperback_ sales. Then, what if we compare the year-over-year 251.9% increase in e-books with the 18.1% _decrease_ in mass market sales from last year. Which would you bet on being higher next year? How about this Christmas?

Here's the full chart (with year-over-year growth percentage over the columns):

Total March 2010 Book & E-Book Sales

True, e-books have a ways to go before they surpass combined print sales. But comparing the rate at which those numbers are changing (e-book sales exploding while print sales stagnate or decrease), considering the proliferation of new e-book readers like the iPad, and keeping in mind that more bookstores close every day, what do you think this chart will look like next year? How about 3 or 5 years from now?

Exciting times....

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# Publishers vs. E-Books

Jun 1, 2010

400 more years! 400 more years!

I've known for some time that the large print publishing companies are not fans of e-books. Many people wondered how publishers could be so silly, pricing e-books above (sometimes well above) the price of paperbacks, delaying e-book releases, providing simple OCR scans of paper books (instead of properly formatting or often even proofreading their e-book releases), blocking useful features like text-to-speech and lending, and infesting e-books with invasive copy protection (DRM) that annoys legitimate users. But I knew it wasn't that publishers didn't "get" e-books... OK, it wasn't _just_ that publishers didn't get e-books: they are actively trying to forestall e-book adoption as long as they can. Why? Because there are 6 huge, multinational publishing conglomerates on top of the current food chain, divvying up the lion's share of the $25 billion/year book industry, and a change as dramatic as the switch to e-books threatens to shake up their industry. Some publishers, by undergoing lots of painful downsizing, restructuring, giving up large New York offices, and doing some long-term thinking at the expense of this year's profits, _might_ remain relevant in the publishing landscape of the future. But not all will. So I've said before that they are forestalling that day of reckoning as long as they can. (They must understand how typewriter manufacturers and buggy-whip makers felt.)

But I've never before seen them admit it. See, they've always claimed to be in favor of e-books, since it's clear that more and more authors and readers (their supposed allies and customers) like them. But now, David Shanks, CEO of Penguin Group (one of the "Big 6" publishers) came right out and  admitted that **"We need to protect as long as we can the apparatus that sells physical books."**

In other words, it's not about innovating, or even keeping up with changing times and technologies. They've stopped pretending they're doing this for authors. They're no longer claiming that they're just trying to "preserve the value of e-books" or create "sustainable pricing" -- for the authors, of course. They've finally admitted they not only don't care about the readers, but they'll do whatever they can to hold onto their position, at the expense of authors and readers and progress. As I said all along, it's really just about protection. Not protecting literature or the future of books, just protecting themselves and their bottom lines.

When big publishers (like Jonathan Galassi) start talking about how they need to "maintain the value of time-honored roles," I think it's safe to say the writing is on the wall. (Although they probably get a sympathetic look from alchemists, blacksmiths, and cave-painters.) Companies that look to the past and seek to maintain the status quo don't even notice the innovators (the Amazons and the Googles) as they rush past them and into the future.

As one last example of the "e-books are the enemy" attitude, consider this exchange between author Scott Turow and Galassi:

Turow: "Why did publishers agree to allow e-books to be available at the same time as paper books?"

Galassi: "It was a mistake to let Amazon put out e-books simultaneously and charge the price it did [$9.99]. It will have a negative effect on the paperback."

So, there you have it. It was a mistake to let the largest bookseller in the world sell books to readers who wanted to buy those books (publishers should have delayed them and charged readers more instead). Why was it a mistake? Because it was bad for readers? For authors? No, bad for the paperback. Which really means: bad for the current crop of the Big 6 publishers, whose entire business model isn't about selling literature, it's about moving paper. The only thing that confuses me is, if they clearly care more about paper than they care about authors or readers, why are we supposed to care about what happens to them?

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#  Tampa High School Trades Textbooks For Kindles

Jun 2, 2010

Kindles in the classroom

At Clearwater High School (near Tampa, FL),  students will receive a shiny new Kindle 2 instead of stacks of textbooks next school year. While other schools have dabbled with e-readers for specific classes or even started digitizing their libraries, Clearwater High will be the first to transition completely to electronic textbooks, providing one for each of its 100 teachers and 2,100 students.

The benefits of such a switch are obvious: a student can carry a single, 10-ounce Kindle instead of seven textbooks that each weigh a couple of pounds (or more) each. The Kindle could end up saving schools lots of money, considering that the K2 costs them $177.60 (the school apparently got a small bulk discount from Amazon) and typical textbooks cost about $80 each (7 books x $80 = $560). E-textbooks typically cost much less than the printed versions. Heck, students might not even need lockers any more (which could save money, time, and space for additional or larger classrooms).

Students can also use the convenient dictionary lookup feature (even more useful in a classroom setting than for fiction), which is like carrying seven textbooks plus a dictionary. The K2 also allows for highlighting, bookmarking, and note-taking... instead of having students mark up textbooks that will be re-used next year. Students can also use their Kindles to download free and lower-cost versions of all those books they need to read in English class: all of the classics (anything written before 1923) are free in e-book form. And they'll probably be much more likely to do pleasure reading if their novels are already with them all day at school -- why not read a few chapters of _Harry Potter_ on the bus or at lunch?

Some things to consider, though, are the inevitable thefts and damage to the Kindles that the school hands out. The article linked above mentions that parents will be able to purchase insurance for damage that happens off school property. I guess parents/students can already be charged if they lose or damage textbooks, so maybe it's not all that different. But still, students horsing around and breaking a $177 K2 wouldn't be pleasant for the kid, parents, or school. On the plus side, all the e-textbooks can simply be re-loaded onto a new device.

Maybe the cost savings will even be enough to _give_ each incoming student their own K2 (to last them all four years), and, if they keep it in good shape, it's theirs to keep when they graduate (and _only_ if they graduate!). If they lose it, they have to pay $177 (or put down a deposit) for a replacement, which they can either keep or turn back in when they leave school and have their money refunded.

There are certainly some issues to iron out, but I think the advantages and cost savings outweigh the concerns, and I hope the program is successful. I think schools will continue to follow suit in the future, as more and more reading is done on electronic devices.

UPDATE:  This article says the Kindle experiment is going pretty well, with most students and teachers finding them to increase productivity. There have been a few glitches, but students have been using them to read textbooks, take notes, and look up information on the Internet.

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# B&N Nook With Free $50 Gift Card

Jun 2, 2010

"While supplies last," receive a  free $50 gift card with the purchase of a $259 Nook e-book reader. (Supplies of Nooks or gift cards? Can they run out of gift cards?)

The Nook is one of the most popular competitors to Amazon's Kindle. Both sell for $259, and both include a 6" e-Ink screen, free 3G wireless downloads, and the ability to store and read thousands of e-books.

The Nook comes with a small color LCD touchscreen below the main B&W e-Ink display. The color screen can show book covers, various menus, and an on-screen keyboard. On the plus side, it is helpful to see covers in color or browse the Internet. On the minus side, it can sometimes slow down the device and it drains the battery much more quickly than the e-Ink screen.

The Nook also comes with an SD memory card slot, and includes WiFi connectivity. Barnes & Noble gives you some freebies (cookies & e-books and such) when you bring your Nook into a B&N bookstore. The Nook reads the more-standard ePub format (along with PDFs and text files), and can borrow e-books from some libraries using the Overdrive system.

A large part in any Nook vs. Kindle decision might be whether you prefer shopping at Barnes & Noble or Amazon. Amazon is known for having the largest selection and lowest prices for e-books, but B&N is probably a close second.

The $50 gift card gives the Nook a significant advantage, so it's like getting the Nook for just $209. That's a heck of a deal for a dual-screen e-reader with free lifetime 3G wireless coverage included.

UPDATE: The  Nook is now priced at $149 for the Wi-Fi model and $199 for the 3G model.

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#  Apple News: iPhone 4, iOS 4.0, iBooks Update, 5M E-Books

Jun 9, 2010

Apple claims 5M e-books sold, 22% market share

A couple of days ago, Apple held its yearly conference and announced the new **iPhone 4** , to be released June 24. At the same time, modern iPhones will also be able to update to the new **iPhone OS 4.0** (now called "iOS"). The new iOS offers multitasking and other new features, and also brings the iBooks e-book reading app and the iBooks Store to the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Apple also announced that they have sold **2 million iPads** in the first 65 days, and had **5 million e-book downloads** in that time. Now, Apple is famous for hype and the "Steve Jobs Reality Distortion Field," and they like throwing out impressive numbers that may or may not mean what they seem. For example, Apple neglected to mention how many of those 5 million e-books were paid vs. free downloads. If they've sold 3 or 4 or 5 million e-books in their first 2 months, that's a big deal. But if they sold 500,000 and gave away 4.5 million free downloads... not so much. Also, the numbers work out to 2.5 books per iPad -- or only about one book a month, which suggests that iPad owners are not generally voracious readers.

Apple also announced that the publishers they work with claim Apple already accounted for a staggering **22% of their e-book sales** , but this number also wasn't explained and must be taken with a grain of salt. First, many publishers don't release sales numbers, nor do big e-book sellers like Amazon. Second, Apple only has 5 of the 6 largest publishers' titles in the iBook Store, but lack the largest (Random House) and most smaller publishers; the "Apple 5" account for less than 50% of all e-book sales. The iBook Store currently has about 30,000 paid titles, whereas the Kindle Store has over 600,000 (20x more). Also, one of the "Big 6," Penguin, had a disagreement with Amazon for much of the last 2 months and its new titles weren't available in the Kindle Store. So maybe Penguin told Apple that they accounted for 22% of Penguin's e-book sales (when its newest, most popular titles weren't available on Amazon)? But I have a hard time believing that the iPad could do so well against Amazon (who had a 70%-90% e-book share), B&N, Sony, Kobo, and all the other established e-book retailers and jump out to a 22% share right out of the gate. Keep in mind that not only does Amazon have an estimated 3 million Kindles sold, but people can read Kindle titles on Kindle for PC, Mac, Blackberry, iPhone... and iPad. In any event, the numbers _sound_ impressive, even if they are exaggerated a bit. I'm interested to see if people will really read much on the iPad. I've talked about reading on the iPad before, and concluded that I prefer the Kindle for pure reading, and that the iPad's many distractions seem to appeal to a different demographic than serious readers.

Whether people will read or not on iDevices will soon become a huge question in the industry, because **iOS 4.0 will bring the iBook reader app and iBook Store** (where you can sample, purchase, and download e-books) to the iPhone and iPod Touch. I don't know how many people read novels on their phones, although surveys always surprise me with how many people do it (personally, I prefer a larger, e-Ink screen to read on). But, even a relatively small percentage of iDevice owners could be huge, since there are nearly **100 million iPhones and iPod Touches** out there, and Apple has 150 million credit cards in its 1-Click database.

In other news for the iBook app, a forthcoming update will add features that Kindle (and Kindle for iPhone/iPad app) users already have: bookmarking, highlighting, and syncing your position in your books across all your devices -- so you can read to Chapter 4 on your iPad, then grab your iPhone and automatically pick up where you left off. Another cool feature is that the iBook app will also read PDFs and store them on a separate virtual bookshelf from your e-books.

In any event, it's exciting news, since the reach of e-books has just expanded from a few million people (who owned Kindles, Nooks, and iPads) to 100 million iPhone users. With the ability to browse the iBook Store, make a 1-Click purchase (from a trusted source and without having to make a new account), and get instant wireless e-book downloads, will this be the tipping point for the wide-scale adoption of e-books? Time will tell....

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#  Barnes & Noble Kicking It Up A Notch

Jun 10, 2010

Get free e-books at B&N stores

In addition to Barnes & Noble's recent promotion offering a free $50 gift card with the purchase of a Nook e-book reader, they're now offering a pair of new promotions: a different **free e-book every week** , and a **free "tall"** (which is Starbucks lingo for "small") **hot or iced coffee** \-- just for showing them that you're reading an e-book on your Nook or Barnes & Noble app for the PC, Mac, Blackberry, iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad.

For the past few weeks, B&N has been offering  a different free e-book each week. To qualify, just bring in your Nook or laptop / phone running the free B&N e-reader app. Show it to any B&N employee and they'll give you a voucher to download a free e-book (which you can do right there in the store with their free Wi-Fi connection). This week's book is _Home Safe_ by Elizabeth Berg, and next week's book (starting June 14) is _The Long Tail_ by Chris Anderson.

Free coffee too from B&N Cafe!

While you're there, head over to the B&N Cafe (that looks like a Starbucks, but is technically not) and show them that same Nook or device running the B&N app, and they'll hook you up with a free tall coffee. The fine print says you get a non-customized hot or iced coffee, and can only redeem it once. They also point out that this _only_ works at B&N Cafes, not at Starbucks, or at any Starbucks Cafe inside a B&N store. Confusing? Yeah, I didn't even know most cafes inside B&N stores were "B&N Cafes," I just thought they were all Starbucks. So you may want to call and check your local B&N before you head over.

Anyway, that's three pretty incredible deals from Barnes & Noble. A free $50 gift card is nothing to sneeze at, and the other two deals are even better since you don't have to buy anything to qualify. You can just download the free B&N app to your laptop or phone, bring it in, and get a completely free e-book and free coffee. It's a bold move by B&N to (a) get people into e-books and (b) drive foot traffic to their stores where they hope you browse and buy other stuff. It's interesting that B&N is trying to increase business at its existing retail locations (that sell mostly paper books but increasingly sell gifts, cards, and accessories as well), but is also firmly committed to the future with the Nook and focus on e-books. I hope these moves pay off for them, because they seem well thought out, forward-thinking, and very customer-friendly.

So,  download the free B&N e-reader app for your favorite portable device, maybe pick up an inexpensive e-book or two (this one is just $2.99, and get another free e-book and some free coffee on your next visit to a Barnes & Noble store.

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# How-To: Buy An Amazon E-Book

Jun 17, 2010

Amazon is far and away the #1 e-book seller, and it's easy to see why: they have the largest selection (over 600,000 titles, plus millions of public domain works), generally have the best prices, the #1 e-book reader (the Kindle), and software that allows you to read their e-books on multiple devices including PCs, Macs, Kindles, iPhones, iPod Touches, iPads, Blackberries, and Android cell phones (coming soon).

To buy your first e-book from Amazon, it only takes 3 simple steps:

**Step 1: Create an Amazon account.** (Already have one? Great, proceed to step 2!) To create your Amazon account, simply visit www.amazon.com and click the link at the very top where it says, "Hello. Sign in to get personalized recommendations. New customer? Start here." It will ask you to enter an email address and ask if you have a password. You'll select "No, I am a new customer." Then, simply enter the requested information and create your Amazon account.

**Step 2: Download and activate the Kindle App on the device you'd like to read on.** Visit this page and download the app for the computer or smartphone you'd like to read your e-book on. Once downloaded, you will need to run the application and "register" it to your Amazon account. Just enter the email address and password for the account you created in Step 1.

**Step 3:** Shop and buy your e-books! Amazon sells countless e-books, most costing far less than printed books. Just use the search function near the top of the page (select "Kindle Store" from the drop-down menu) to find what you want. Or, go straight to a particular book (perhaps my new novel, The Twiller, coming out June 18?). Click on the big orange button in the upper right that says "Buy now with 1-Click." It will ask you which device you want to deliver your purchase to. Choose the device you registered in Step 2. Then, complete the checkout process.

That's it! Enjoy your e-book! Just email me or leave a comment if you have any questions.

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#  The Twiller Virtual E-Book Release Tomorrow!

Jun 17, 2010

The Twiller, coming June 18!

I am extremely excited to announce that my third novel, _The Twiller_ , is complete and the e-book will be available from Amazon **tomorrow** for **just 99 cents**!

**Update: Available NOW!**[Click here! **]**

Unlike my first two novels, _The Twiller_ is a comedy, a much more casual and fun read that I hope you'll find entertaining. I drew inspiration for the book from my own experiences, so you may very well find a character you recognize (maybe even you!), a city that seems a bit familiar, or a scene at a law firm that you can relate to. A brief description:

_The Twiller_ is a comedic novel that follows Ian, our hapless hero, as he's whisked around the Universe after his abduction from Earth. His companion, the Twiller, is about the only alien being who treats humans better than toenail lint. Ian is faced with a series of humorous and bizarre experiences on the worlds he visits, utterly failing to realize the _slight_ similarities to places here on Earth.

I'd like to thank everyone who has supported me in the past by buying my books or e-books, leaving a review on Amazon, or telling a friend. Thanks to you, my first novel broke the Top 500 (out of over 600,000 titles) in the Amazon Kindle store, and reached #1 in the "Technothriller" category.

Moving up the Amazon bestseller charts does a lot to increase a book's visibility and sales, and I'd sincerely appreciate your help with my virtual e-book launch of _The Twiller_. Amazon's rankings change hourly, and a good hour or two can shoot an e-book up the lists. So I will be eternally grateful to anyone who helps me out by purchasing _The Twiller_ , for just $0.99. If possible, the closer each purchase is to the launch tomorrow **(Jun 18) at 6 PM** Eastern, the more it will help my ranking. Each sale really does make a big difference when they're clustered together. I'll update this post with a link tomorrow when the e-book is available.

If you'd like to read a few excerpts while you wait, please click here. And, if you need any help setting up an Amazon account or downloading the Kindle app for your computer, iPhone, or Blackberry, I've posted some instructions here (or just shoot me an email). Thanks again for your time, and thank you VERY much in advance for helping me out!

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#  The Twiller, My Third Novel, Available NOW!

Jun 18, 2010

The Twiller, available NOW!

I am _extremely_ excited to announce that my third novel, _The Twiller_ , is available **now** from Amazon for just $2.99!

Click here:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B003SE7LPW

I am hoping for a great launch that shoots it up into Amazon's Top 100 overall bestseller list for Kindle books. I just hit #400, so I'd be extremely grateful for your support!

I'd also like to take the time to thank all my readers who have bought _any_ of my three novels, and those of you who have posted reviews on Amazon or commented on this blog. Your support means a great deal to me, and my success is all thanks to you.

One other word of thanks to my friends over at the excellent "I Love My Kindle" and "Kindle Review" blogs, who were kind enough to give a shout-out for today's launch.

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#  Price Cuts: Kindle $189, Nook $199, Nook Wi-Fi $149

Jun 21, 2010

Kindle 2 now just $189

A huge day today as Barnes & Noble lowered the cost of its  Nook e-reader **to $199** (from $259) and also introduced a **Wi-Fi only model for only $149**. The $199 version gives you Wi-Fi + unlimited 3G wireless coverage, while the $149 Wi-Fi only model comes with coverage at Wi-Fi hotspots including B&N stores, and is a great deal for a full-featured e-reader.

The Nook comes with a 6" e-Ink screen, as well as a 3.5" color LCD screen across the bottom, which can be used to show color book covers and surf the Internet. It has an expandable memory card slot, reads ePub books, and is connected to B&N's e-book store.

In response, Amazon reduced the price of the  Kindle 2 **to $189** , which is a $70 price cut and a great deal for the leading e-reader and unlimited 3G wireless coverage. (Note: Amazon will provide a $70 refund if you purchased one in the past 30 days.) The Kindle 2 has a 6" e-Ink screen, 2-week battery life, and text-to-speech, among other features. It reads books in MOBI format, and is connected to Amazon's e-book store, which has the greatest selection.

Any of these three options (Nook Wi-Fi at $149, Kindle 2 at $189, or Nook WiFi+3G at $199) is a great deal and great value. I had previously mentioned a couple of low-cost e-readers around $100-$150, but the Kindle and Nook have more features and are connected to larger e-book stores. While I was very impressed with the Kobo E-Reader for $149, at these lower prices, I'd recommend sticking with a Kindle or Nook.

I don't normally comment on rumors, but there has been speculation of a Kindle 3 coming out in August with a slightly improved screen (better contrast and faster page turns), or perhaps the introduction of a Wi-Fi only model at that $149 price point. But it looks like B&N's price drop has forced Amazon to lower prices sooner than they had planned. Personally, 3G wireless coverage isn't a big deal for me, as I buy all my e-books through my computer and transfer them with the USB cable -- I usually leave the 3G switched off on my K2. But, if you like the idea of wirelessly buying and downloading books right from your K2/Nook while away from home, then another $40 or $50 for lifetime, unlimited 3G coverage is a phenomenal deal (compare it to the iPad 3G, which costs an extra $130 + $30 / month!).

This is an exciting step for e-readers -- being able to get the two most popular e-readers for under $200 should expand their audience dramatically. If you're still on the fence, I'd recommend heading into a Target to see a K2 or a Barnes & Noble store to play with a Nook. If you like to read more than a few books a year, I think you'll be very happy with an e-book reader, and the price cut means you might even pay for your new K2 in a year through the lower cost of e-books compared to paper books (not to mention all the free classics out there!).

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#  Bookstores "Get It;" Publishers, Not So Much

Jun 24, 2010

Borders and the digital future

I've spent a great deal of time discussing the emerging digital future of books on this blog, as it's a topic I'm passionate about as both a reader and an author. But I've also spoken before about how bookstores don't need to die alongside the decline of printed books, they can evolve and remain relevant, useful, and even profitable. And I also mentioned how Barnes & Noble seems to "get it," and is doing a good job focusing on e-books and e-book readers (like their Nook), and is even offering a number of generous promotions for free e-books, coffee, and cookies -- and they just lowered the price of the Nook to $199 and the Nook Wi-Fi to just $149.

There's also evidence that Borders, America's #2 bookstore behind B&N, "gets" e-books and is serious about embracing the digital future. Borders partnered with Kobo, which makes a nice entry-level e-book reader for $149, and which offers a nice selection of e-book titles in its online store. Borders is also coming out with its own e-book reader and e-book store. Today, I read  this article in Fortune magazine by Michael Edwards, CEO of Borders. He talks about how he sees the direction the market is heading and the growth of e-books -- it's good to see someone who doesn't just stick their head in the sand -- but argues that bookstores can remain relevant in the digital age. He claims that "There will always be plenty of people who welcome the opportunity to read words on paper rather than staring into yet another glowing screen." (Of course, that's what I like about my Kindle compared to an iPad -- the e-Ink screen mimics paper and doesn't glow.) He talks about how bookstores are still a place for social interaction, discussing books, sipping coffee, browsing magazines, going to author signings, and more. He ends with a surprisingly forward-thinking paragraph:

"Ultimately, there's no reason traditional bookstores and digital booksellers can't co-exist; for all their common ground, each offers a substantially different value proposition. Of course, the onus is on booksellers to prove their continued relevance in the digital age. If they continue to innovate in the services and experiences they offer and the ways they engage the community, consumers will continue to make bookstores a vital part of their lives. If they fail to adapt to changing market conditions and consumer needs, they'll deserve the empty aisles -- and cash registers -- that result. The next chapter is up to them."

While I've heard that Borders is in financial trouble, I'd like to see a company with such a forward-thinking attitude pull through the tough times and stick around. Contrast the realistic, modern, and customer-friendly words and actions of B&N and Borders with the "Big 6" book publishers -- who seek to "protect physical books as long as we can" by raising e-book prices, blocking lending and text-to-speech, delaying releases, and other anti-customer tactics.

Although I've gone over almost exclusively to reading e-books, I still enjoy bookstores and would like for them to continue to exist as places devoted to readers. It's through forward-thinking and innovative ideas like developing their own e-book readers and e-book stores, and offering free e-books and other incentives to get people into bookstores, that bookstores can remain relevant long into the digital age.

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#  Twiller Review From the "I Love My Kindle" Blog

Jun 26, 2010

I was very fortunate to receive a nice  review of The Twiller from the I Love My Kindle Blog, a very popular and well-respected blog about all things Kindle. Be sure to check it out to find Kindle tips and tricks, free / inexpensive book finds, reviews, and other news and information about the Kindle in particular and e-books in general.

The blog's author, Bufo Calvin, starts by noting what type of book _The Twiller_ is:

Science fiction can be profound, using a speculative framework to show us the deepest secrets in our collective psyche, and to perhaps serve as a warning of what our worst natures may bring, and an inspiration as to how the human imagination can bring about a better existence.

Or, you know, it can be silly and full of puns. ;)

_The Twiller_ , by David Derrico, is very solidly in the second camp.

His "first camp," by the way, is what I was going for with my first two books, Right Ascension and Declination. I wanted to try something different for The Twiller, and "silly" and "whimsy" and funny were definitely what I was going for.

The review also notes that:

_The Twiller_ is as error-free as any novel from a traditional publisher that I've read. The author also understands formatting for e-books: the clickable Table of Contents is in the back (and reachable through the menus), which is also where you'll find the author bio. Why is that better? So you can get a better sample. You can also flick right (on any Kindle except a Kindle 1) to move forward through the parts of the book...a convenience many large publishers seem to ignore.

Since advanced Kindle formatting (like a clickable table of contents in the back, "flickable" waypoints, etc.) takes a fair amount of research and time and work, it's especially rewarding to see someone appreciate it. Bufo Calvin is, of course, a Kindle connoisseur, but I do hope that readers like those extra touches. I think it's worth spending the time and effort to put them in.

The review concludes with a pithy description I have to be pleased with:

So, if you are looking for a light and airy entertainment, a popcorn book with an intergalactic setting, _The Twiller_ is a button-pusher that will keep you smiling.

Thanks, Bufo, for the review -- I'm glad you enjoyed it!

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#  Kindle 2 Just $150 at Woot Today Only

Jul 1, 2010

Woot! Just $150!

If you're quick about it, you can grab a new Kindle 2 at woot.com for just $149.99 (plus $5 shipping). But if you're interested, I'd act fast since (a) they'll probably sell out quickly, and (b) Woot.com is known for "One Day, One Deal," and they have a new deal up each day at midnight (Central time). So this deal will only last until the end of today (July 1) at the latest.

Considering that the Kindle was $259 just a week or so ago, and is currently $189 at Amazon, this is a pretty phenomenal deal. Remember, the price includes free 3G wireless coverage (for e-book downloads and basic web browsing) for life. If you're an avid reader, or know one with a birthday coming up, this post is for you.

Apparently, Amazon bought Woot.com yesterday, and this is how they chose to celebrate.

P.S.: In somewhat related news, the larger Kindle DX 2 was also announced today, with a graphite casing, better screen contrast, and a price cut down to $379.

UPDATE: It sold out 5,000 units in only 8 hours! But Amazon has been listing refurbished K2s for only $109 lately... but they sell out quickly at that price as well.

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# Amazon and 70% Royalties

Jul 8, 2010

The big news this month for independent authors and publishers is that Amazon has unveiled a new 70% royalty option for e-books published directly through their DTP service. (The old rate was 35%.) Doubling the royalty percentage is a big step (and matches what Apple offers in its iBook and App stores), but there a few catches; to qualify, books must:

  * Be priced between $2.99 and $9.99

  * Be priced at least 20% less than the cheapest print version

  * Enable text-to-speech

  * Be made available in all worldwide territories where the publisher/author has rights

There are a few other important differences: first, your list price must be the same across all sales channels, so you can't list a book for $2.99 on Amazon but $1.99 on Barnes & Noble or your own web site. Second, books sold at the higher royalty rate receive 70% of the SALE price, not the list price you set, and Amazon checks other retailers and will discount your titles to match the lowest prices it finds elsewhere. B&N and Kobo both customarily discount e-books by 20%, and if Amazon matches those prices, you will only get paid 70% based on the discounted price. Finally, Amazon now deducts 15 cents per MB, based on the file size of your book (most books are about 368K, so this is only about 5 cents).

Authors can choose either the 35% or 70% option, and can switch back and forth.

There have been a few hiccups: most indie authors' books show up on B&N, Kobo, Apple, and Sony through a distributor called Smashwords, and updating the price at Smashwords can take weeks or months to trickle down to the retailers (The Twiller JUST went up on B&N three weeks after release, and isn't up elsewhere yet; Right Ascension took _eight months_ to hit Sony). So, you could change the Amazon price (which takes 1-3 days), and Amazon may de-list your book because there's a lower list price elsewhere. Also, other retailers may decide to discount your book (we have no control over this), and that would affect your Amazon price and how much they paid you in royalties.

Due to these and other delays, Amazon hasn't yet updated the price of Right Ascension to $2.99, but it should be done shortly.

Nonetheless, these details should be ironed out soon (the e-book revolution / indie author resurgence is new territory for everyone, after all), and earning $2.05 on a $2.99 e-book compares very favorably to earning $0.35 per sale (at 35% of $0.99), or even the $0.50 - $0.80 most traditional authors earn on an $8.00 paperback. This new system at least allows talented indie authors a _chance_ to earn a living writing books, and possibly to improve them by paying for cover design, proofreading, or formatting help. I would like to live in a world where authors who are very good at writing novels are compensated enough to continue to hone their craft and write more books for me to enjoy. As a reader, I'd rather they earn a living writing than go write ad copy or do something else to pay the bills, and I consider $2.99 a very reasonable price to pay for a high-quality e-book. I think it's a win-win for readers and authors, and I'm excited to see if the general public agrees.

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# May 2010 E-Book Sales: $29.3M

Jul 16, 2010

May 2010 e-book sales: $29.3M

May 2010 e-book sales data is in from the Association of American Publishers, and they are up 162.8% over last May, totaling **$29,300,000 for May 2010**. Year-to-date, e-book sales are up 207.4% from Jan - May 2009.

The most interesting tidbit is that, at this time last year, e-books comprised 2.89% of all trade book sales. This year so far, they've almost tripled, **up to 8.48%**. That's not only a huge jump, but we're really starting to approach very significant percentages (to put that in perspective, New York & Massachusetts combined account for 8.42% of the U.S. population). Some popular books are seeing even higher numbers -- e-books accounted for almost 30% of the first-week sales of the #1 NYT Bestseller _The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest_. Those numbers are even more impressive when you consider they're measuring dollar figures, and e-books generally cost less than paper books, so e-books' percentage of total copies sold would be even higher.

The monthly e-book sales numbers so far this year:

  * Jan 2010: $31.9 M

  * Feb 2010: $28.9 M

  * Mar 2010: $28.5 M

  * Apr 2010: $27.4 M

  * May 2010: $29.3 M

I was surprised to see even the small dips in March and April, but May appears to be back on the upswing. Perhaps e-book sales are stronger over the winter when people would rather curl up with a good e-book than brave the snow to head to a bookstore. But, for comparison, the first 5 months of 2010 total $146M, whereas the _total_ for all 12 months of 2008 was only $56.5M.

Please see this older post for earlier numbers and a more detailed breakdown on e-book sales vs. hardcover, trade paperback, and mass market paperbacks.

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#  Formatting for Smashwords and ePubCheck

Jul 17, 2010

I've just spent the day trying to figure out why my latest novel, The Twiller, hadn't been uploaded to the Apple iBook Store through Smashwords, even though I had uploaded it over a month ago. Mark Coker was kind enough to email me back and let me know that the ePub file (which Smashwords' "Meatgrinder" automatically generates from a Microsoft Word .DOC file that I upload) wasn't passing the dreaded "epubcheck" utility. And Apple doesn't accept e-books that don't pass epubcheck.

After a good amount of research and frustration, I thought I'd share my findings (and simple solution!) here in the hopes that another author might stumble across this and save some time.

The errors that epubcheck was returning were:

ERROR: the-twiller.epub/tmp_03d606bf0366e819944069e10952257f _Mh81jI.fixed.tidied.xfixed_split_000.html(12): bad value for attribute "name"  
ERROR: the-twiller.epub/tmp_03d606bf0366e819944069e10952257f _Mh81jI.fixed.tidied.xfixed_split_000.html(33): bad value for attribute "name"

(These were repeated several times, for each chapter or section in my e-book.) By opening the ePub file in Sigil, I was able to figure out that line 12 of each section was the "Author" attribute, and line 33 was an attribute called "Matter No." The simple fix involves opening your Word document and clicking on File ——> Properties. Somehow, the "Author" name was set as "( )", which epubcheck didn't like. So make sure at least your title and author name are filled in, and they should probably be only letters (no weird symbols).

The second attribute, "Matter No." appeared under the "Custom" tab of Word's Properties window. For some reason, Word had added a whole bunch of custom fields into the document, including "Matter No.", which I don't think epubcheck liked due to the period. Maybe I had opened some legal document that had all those weird legal fields added, and Word saved them (I told you being a lawyer was frustrating!). Anyway, I removed all of these custom fields by highlighting them and clicking "delete."

Since I didn't have this problem with my first two e-books, and I recently "upgraded" (yes, I use the term loosely) from Word 2004 for Mac to Word 2008 for Mac, I figure that might be the culprit. In any event, fortunately, the solution is simple -- just tidy up the "Title," "Author," and any custom fields your document has under Word's "Properties..." dialog in the "File" menu.

I just uploaded the new version to Smashwords, and it passed epubcheck, so it will hopefully show up in the Apple iBook Store soon!

UPDATE: That did the trick! _The Twiller_ is now available in the Apple iBook Store. :)

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#  E-Books Out-Selling Hardcovers at Amazon

Jul 19, 2010

Amazon  announced today that their e-book sales have overtaken hardcover sales. The numbers are actually quite staggering: for the latest quarter, **Amazon sold 143 e-books for every 100 hardcovers** they sold. The numbers for the past month are even more impressive: **180 e-books for every 100 hardcovers** \-- nearly double. Even more impressive is that they aren't juicing the numbers, as they are _not_ including free e-book downloads (like Apple probably did), and are even including hardcover sales where there is no corresponding Kindle version. Wow.

A few other tidbits:

  * Amazon's e-book sales from the first half of 2010 were **triple** that of the first half of 2009.

  * Amazon **exceeded** the impressive industry sales stats I mentioned yesterday of 163% increased sales year-over-year in May, and 207% year-to-date.

  * It was recently announced that James Patterson was the first author to sell a million e-books, 1.14 million, to be exact. Of those, **Amazon sold 867,881** of them (over 76%).

  * The growth rate of Kindle sales has tripled since the recent price drop from $259 to $189, and have **increased each month** in the quarter (April, May, and June). Perhaps now we can stop hearing about how the iPad (released April 3) will "kill" the Kindle?

One interesting note is that Amazon didn't specify how many of its e-book sales are through the Kindle for iPad app. But considering that Kindle 2 unit sales have been increasing each month, and that the Kindle is better suited for hard-core readers than the iPad, I doubt that Kindle book sales on the iPad were more than a minor percentage.

Either way, very impressive numbers that paint a very positive outlook for e-books and readers.

* * * * *

#  Two Ends of the Pen & Spalding's Racket

Jul 20, 2010

I'm pleased to point you over to the blog of fellow indie author Debra Martin, who runs the _Two Ends of the Pen_ blog, where she conducts author interviews and relays e-book news. Debra was kind enough to invite me to be interviewed for her blog, and I really enjoyed the creative questions and the interesting responses they evoked. Here's a snippet:

Finally, one agent asked for a few more chapters, then the first 100 pages, then the whole manuscript, and then even offered to represent me! I went out and celebrated with my friends, drinking more than was strictly good for me, and then the next morning I actually did some research on this agent. In my hungover state, I learned that the agent had a terrible reputation in the industry, and didn't have any successful clients to speak of. That was not a happy morning.

Head on over and check out my interview and the rest of Debra's blog here:

 http://twoendsofthepen.blogspot.com/2010/07/interview-with-david-derrico.html

And a big thank you to fellow indie author Nick Spalding, author of _Life... With No Breaks_. His new _Spalding's Racket_ blog highlights work by other independent authors -- take a look here:

 http://spaldings-racket.blogspot.com/2010/07/right-ascension-by-david-derrico-sci-fi.html

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# Self-Publishing Options: E-Books

Jul 22, 2010

To follow up on my earlier post about print-on-demand paperback self-publishing options, here is a primer to help you create, format, upload, and distribute your writing in e-book format. The best part is that the process I detail below is **100% free**. Always be wary of anyone charging you money in relation to publishing your book -- not that it's _never_ a good idea to get some professional help, but you should know exactly what you're paying for and whether it's worth it.

The down side to spending zero money on your e-book is that you have to do all the work. Cover design, editing, formatting, uploading, promoting, etc. Don't expect to spend an hour and have a nice-looking, professionally-formatted e-book. I've spent many, many hours getting my e-book files just right (ensuring proper indents, special characters, interior images, and tables of contents in various electronic formats). Hopefully, my experience can save you some time.

The first thing you'll need is a novel (or short story) in electronic format, probably in Microsoft Word. For purposes of creating an e-book, you generally want to strip out all the fancy formatting you might use in a printed book: get rid of fancy fonts (just put everything in Times New Roman), strange indents or block quotes, and weird symbols. You can keep bold and italics, and smart quotes and em dashes _should_ translate properly, although they sometimes cause problems. It's generally better to use first-line paragraph indents in Word (instead of hitting the tab key -- and _never_ use spaces to indent paragraphs). Do _not_ leave blank lines between paragraphs, since some e-book readers add them and you'll end up with triple spacing! The basic rule is: the simpler, the better. Various e-book readers will display your text in different ways, and users can adjust font sizes at will, so just forget about the idea of controlling every aspect of how the text will look and where pages within a chapter break (like you would in a printed book), and keep the formatting clean and simple. Do _not_ use multiple line breaks, those look terrible on the screen -- use 1 or 2 blank lines and a row of asterisks to indicate page breaks instead.

The second thing you'll need is a front cover, which should be in 2:3 ratio. It should be at least 800 pixels tall, although you'll be using the same image (along with a spine and back cover) if you make a paperback, and that requires at least 300 dpi, so it's best to make it high-resolution to begin with (1800x2700 pixels for a 6x9 paperback). Any interior art (like an "about the author" photo) should be black and white and at least 150 dpi. The less interior art, the simpler it will be.

Amazon

Amazon is the most important e-book distributor; it still probably accounts for somewhere between 50% and 80% of all e-book sales. You publish e-books to the Amazon Kindle store using Amazon's free Digital Text Platform (DTP) service at dtp.amazon.com. There, you can enter info about your book (author name, description, price, etc.) and upload your e-book cover and interior file. Amazon pays either 35% or 70% royalties; there's more info in my recent post here.

You can upload the interior file in MOBI (the Kindle's native format), or DTP will convert it for you if you upload an HTML or Word file. MOBI is best; HTML should be OK, Word is iffy. You can create MOBI files using the free Calibre (Mac or PC) or MobiPocket Creator (PC only) programs. A full MOBI or HTML tutorial is beyond the scope of this blog post -- but see below for an easier, non-technical solution.

Smashwords

You'll probably also want to upload your e-book to the free Smashwords e-book seller/distributor service. Smashwords sells e-books through its own website, but also will distribute them for you to be sold on B&N.com, Kobo, Sony, and the Apple iBook Store. They charge nothing up front, but they take a 15% cut of royalties.

Smashwords has an excellent free Style Guide that will help you prepare your Microsoft Word document for upload. It basically explains how to do what I said above: simplify and clean up your Word document, remove line breaks and extraneous formatting that translates poorly to e-books, etc. You can then upload your Word file and Smashwords will convert that file to all the e-book formats you need, including MOBI and ePub.

The Easy Way

The simplest way to get your e-book distributed as widely as possible and looking pretty good is to: (1) read and follow the Smashwords Style Guide, (2) create a Word document with simple, clean formatting, (3) upload that Word document to Smashwords and let them convert it for you, and (4) take the MOBI file that Smashwords creates and upload it to Amazon's DTP. You should end up with a nice-looking e-book, and it will be available on Amazon and all the major e-book sellers.

The Perfectionist's Way

Some of us, especially after you start selling more than a handful of copies, want to craft the most pristine, best-looking, and most full-featured e-books possible. It's a lot of work and takes a lot of time and effort and research (it's also beyond the scope of this blog post). But it's possible to create a proper cover, page breaks, special formatting, interior photos or artwork, a table of contents, and other useful e-book features. This involves creating an HTML file, which is trickier than it sounds, since Word's "Save As HTML" produces code that needs a significant amount of manual cleaning up. That HTML file is then fed into an e-book creation program (like the two I mentioned earlier) and tweaked to produce a MOBI file that can be directly uploaded to Amazon, and that should retain all your exact formatting and features.

Conclusion

Basically, the aspiring e-book publisher (make no mistake: if you're doing this yourself, you now become a publisher, not merely an author, and must take on all the duties of a publisher) has three choices: (1) go with a simple, clean e-book that will be OK but not spectacularly formatted, (2) spend a lot more time and effort producing perfect MOBI (and possibly ePub) files, or (3) hire a professional to format the e-book for you. Which option you select (I went with #2) depends on your budget, your technical ability, how much time you have, and how many e-books you realistically expect to sell.

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# My Favorite Things

Jul 24, 2010

I've been meaning to start reviewing some books and movies that I enjoy on this blog, which has so far mostly concentrated on e-book news, e-book readers, and changes in the publishing industry. While I'm still passionate about those things, I'd also like to help spread the word and review other books I've been reading and particularly good movies I've seen. Sadly, in finishing my latest book (and editing, formatting, promoting, blah blah), I haven't had much time for reading, but I plan to get back to it soon.

Until then, I just felt like highlighting some of my all-time favorite books and movies (and a TV show thrown in for good measure). Perhaps these will give you a feel for my tastes and inspiration as a writer, or maybe they'll just help you pick your next book or movie to rent. So, here are some of my favorite things:

Books

  1. _The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy_ series, by Douglas Adams: I've read this series of books cover-to-cover at least 5 times. Hilarious, witty, irreverent, poignant, and sometimes just plain silly, this book always manages to make me laugh. Aside from writing about funny situations and ideas, Adams was the greatest at using language itself to make me laugh; he wrote about funny things in a funny way. Some of his dialogue was pure genius. I'm saddened that he left us far too soon.

  2. _Lamb_ , by Christopher Moore: Another example of great humor writing, _Lamb_ was so sacrilegious, it probably would have started a new round of Crusades, except it had all the zealots doubled over and howling in laughter. It chronicles "the missing years" of Jesus Christ's young adult life, and tells the story of his childhood companion, Biff. A taste: as Moore re-tells the famous story of the adulteress (inviting "he who is without sin to cast the first stone"), Biff gallantly volunteers to see the nice lady home safely. Jesus gives Biff a disapproving look that probably only the Son of God can really pull off. As Biff sulks away from the departing woman, he laments that "it just seems like such a waste of a perfectly good adulteress." Comedy gold.

  3. _The Conqueror's Trilogy_ , by Timothy Zahn: This series hooked me in with a stunning scene of first contact with an alien species -- which served as inspiration for the start of Right Ascension \-- and continued to explore fascinating ideas regarding assumptions we'd make about a new species and how changes in ability or technology could radically reshape an entire civilization and their viewpoint. The first book is from the humans' point of view, the second from the aliens', and the third goes back and forth. Zahn's characterization and the depth of the alien society he created made it seem as if he had visited this alien place and come back to report on it, instead of inventing it in his mind. I could just as easily recommend his _Thrawn_ series (set in the _Star Wars_ universe) or many of his other excellent novels.

Honorable Mentions: The _Incarnations of Immortality_ series by Piers Anthony, _Memoirs of a Geisha_ by Arthur Golden, and anything by Dave Barry.

Movies

  1. _Forrest Gump_ : This is the movie I've watched more than any other. I probably saw it about 100 times in college, to the point where I could recite every line, and knew obscure trivia like dollar amounts or all the different ways you could prepare shrimp. Partially from overload, I haven't seen it in years now, but I was still moved by the story and how the title character overcame obstacles and made his place in the world.

  2. _The Shawshank Redemption_ : I was surprised to learn that this movie was based on a novella by Stephen King, _Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption_. I found this movie to be powerful, moving, and it contained the perfect combination of outstanding acting (Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins), phenomenal directing, and a superb musical score. This may be the only movie I enjoyed more than in book form -- which I'm sure was only possible because they fit all the essential stuff from the novella into the movie, which is impossible with longer novels.

  3. _Gattaca_ : An underrated but intelligent and thought-provoking science fiction story about genetics and genetic testing gone awry. It explored questions regarding how much of our lives is determined by genetic factors, the morality of using genetics to screen for jobs or social status, and how the indomitable human spirit can overcome all obstacles (notice the parallels to _Forrest Gump_ ). Particularly relevant now as our understanding of science and genetics rapidly advances, this movie wasn't so much sci-fi as "here's a taste of some issues you'll be dealing with in 5 or 10 years."

  4. _Serenity_ : Oh man, just don't get me started on _Firefly_ , the foundation for _Serenity_ and the best TV show of my generation, which was cancelled in less than a season so they could squeeze in another version of _Surviving the Amazing Apprentice Race with Real Kardashian Housewives_. The TV series and movie were witty, well-written, and starred a great cast with phenomenal chemistry, led by Nathan Fillion, who I'm happy to see doing well on one of my favorite recent shows, _Castle_.

Honorable Mentions: Several of the _Star Trek: The Next Generation_ movies (and TV series), _Top Gun_ (hey, all males my age liked that movie when it came out!), and _Rain Man_.

So, there you have it, some of my all-time favorite books and movies. Please don't read too much into the exact order, the point is just that I very much enjoyed and highly recommend everything on this list.

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#  Kindle 3 Announced: 3G for $189, Wi-Fi for $139

Jul 28, 2010

Kindle 3

Amazon today announced the new Kindle 3, and it's quite an improvement. The price for the 3G model remains at $189, and the new Wi-Fi only model is only $139 (narrowly edging out B&N's new $149 Nook Wi-Fi). They should be available August 27, and both include free 2-day shipping.

The $189 3G + Wi-Fi model ads Wi-Fi connectivity to the free, lifetime 3G wireless coverage of the Kindle 1 and 2 models. Both new models have:

  * **50% better screen contrast** (darker black and a lighter gray background), with E-Ink's new "Pearl" display (also used on the graphite Kindle DX 2).

  * A choice of **graphite** (pictured) or white casing. The graphite may make the screen background seem lighter.

  * **Smaller size** and **lighter weight** : with the same 6" screen, the new Kindle 3 is 21% smaller and 15% lighter -- **only 8.7 oz** (3G) or 8.5 oz (Wi-Fi).

  * **20% faster page turns**.

  * **Double the internal storage** , now **4GB** (enough for about 3,500 books).

  * An even **longer-lasting battery** ; Amazon claims a full _month_ with wireless off and 10 days with wireless on.

This is really a killer list of features. What strikes me is that they took what the Kindle was already great at, and made it even better. As the owner of a Kindle 2, I can attest that the device is already small and light enough for easy one-handed reading -- it's as light as most paperbacks. Now, it's even smaller and lighter: only 1/3rd of an inch thick and about half a pound. And the battery life was already phenomenal -- I'd get 2 or 3 weeks out of it -- but a full month without recharging is absurd. The page turns were also fast enough (about 1/2 a second) so they weren't obtrusive, but faster is even better. And the extra storage is also nice, although 2GB is more than enough for most users: not only can you hold thousands of books, but you can always back up extras on your computer and Amazon backs up all your purchases through the "cloud," so you can delete them to free up space and can always re-download them when necessary.

They've also made important improvements in areas that could use them: the contrast of the screen, for example. If I had one gripe about my K2, it's that the background looks more like the gray, newspaper-like paper of mass-market paperbacks than the clean white paper in higher-quality trade paperbacks. I haven't seen it myself, but the new "Pearl" display is supposed to be a slightly lighter shade of gray.

Additionally, they changed around the layout and button placement a bit: mainly, they've redesigned the 5-way controller, added "home" and "back" buttons, removed the number keys (you now have to hit ALT + the top row buttons), and re-designed the next page and previous page buttons (supposedly making them quieter as well). There will also be three user-selectable fonts (with, of course, the existing 8 font sizes), support for Asian language fonts, and software improvements including a better web browser, text-to-speech on menu items (for better accessibility), and support for notes and the built-in dictionary with PDFs.

I think it's also a _great_ move to make a lower-cost model: the Kindle Wi-Fi for just $139. This was partially to compete with B&N's $149 Nook Wi-Fi, and it makes the new Kindle 3 very affordable -- it's several times less expensive than Apple's $499 iPad. Consider that the original Kindle was $399, and the Kindle 2 was still $259 just a few months ago, and you can see how aggressively they've driven the prices down. It makes the value proposition that much better, as anyone who reads more than just occasionally can almost certainly recoup the cost of the device through the fact that e-books are generally less expensive than hardcovers or paperbacks \-- and many great, classic e-books are free. It doesn't take very many free and $2.99 e-books (compared to $10 paperbacks, let alone $25 hardcovers) to recoup the initial cost of the device. And the extra $50 for the 3G model seems quite reasonable, considering that it includes free, lifetime, global 3G wireless (compared to $30 a month on the iPad 3G!).

I think Amazon did a great job with this update. I wasn't expecting so many features -- just the graphite casing (ho-hum) and Pearl screen (which is nice). Now I'm a little jealous... ;-)

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#  E-Book Market Share: Amazon At 75%

Aug 2, 2010

The new, smaller K3 next to the K2. This pic would be better for my previous post, but I really like it.

Apple claims they could have up to 22% of the e-book market. Barnes & Noble claims a similar share. And what about Sony, or Kobo? And what does that leave Amazon, presumably still the largest e-book seller?

Despite all the numbers being tossed around, I've known for a while that Amazon had the lion's share of e-book sales. Well, today I saw official confirmation from Amazon, which announced that it owns **70% to 80%** of the e-book market. When asked about Apple's 22% claim and B&N's 20% claim, Ian Freed (Amazon VP in charge of the Kindle) essentially said that he wasn't calling anyone a liar, but he's sure of Amazon's numbers. Well, how can Amazon have 75%, and Apple and B&N both claim about 20%? Freed says that "something doesn't add up," but that Amazon is pretty sure the 75% is right. Now, he's not gonna say who's _wrong_ , just that (a) Amazon's numbers are accurate and (b) therefore someone else's aren't.

It's pretty clear to me the exaggerating culprit is Apple. I won't go so far as to call their figures _lies_ (what's the saying about "figures don't lie, but liars figure"?), but their "5 million e-book downloads" number and their "22% of e-books sold" number deserve a second look. First of all, they didn't specify whether that 5 million figure included free e-book downloads, so it probably did. Maybe they only sold 1/10th that amount. (Which would amount to 500,000 sales across 2 million iPads over two months... or only 1.5 e-books per iPad per _year_.) As for the 22%? The consensus is that Apple was referring only to sales from Penguin for the month of April... which is coincidentally when Penguin was negotiating new terms with Amazon and _their titles were not available on Amazon_. Hardly a representative figure for the overall e-book market.

So what are the real numbers? Let's work from what we know.

Amazon announced last month that it sold 867,881 out of James Patterson's 1.4 million e-book sales (Patterson is the #1 e-book bestseller). That equates to 76%. Combine that with Amazon's recent "70 to 80 percent" statement, and I think it's safe to say that **Amazon owns about 75% of the overall e-book market**.

As a second data point, I can tell you about my own e-book sales. Now, I'm not James Patterson, but I have sold several thousand copies of my e-books this year, and they are available at Amazon, B&N, Kobo, and Apple (also Sony, but too recently for me to have reliable sales data). And my figures back up Amazon's; in fact, I sell more than 75% of my e-books through Amazon. Here are my percentages, for the most recent month (June 2010) and quarter (Q2, including April, May, and June):

  * **Amazon:** June (84.7%), Q2 (87.3%)

  * **B &N:** June (13.4%), Q2 (11.2%)

  * **Kobo:** June (1.4%), Q2 (0.9%)

  * **Apple:** June (0.5%), Q2 (0.7%)

I think it's safe to say that Amazon is still comfortably on top, and that Apple might be exaggerating just a tad, since they don't even account for 1% of my e-book sales, and my books were on the iBook Store from day one (April 3).

Of course, my numbers won't match up to industry totals exactly: some places (Amazon) are more friendly to indie e-books and their stores make it easier to find our works than others (*cough* Apple *cough*). And the percentages for Kobo and B&N are generally increasing. B&N in particular surprised me with very strong numbers: in June, I sold almost 1/6th as many books through B&N as I did through Amazon, and my books have been up on Amazon longer (and thus have more reviews, etc.).

Taken together, it's clear to me that Amazon has the dominant share of e-book sales: about 75%. I believe B&N when they say they're close to 20% of the market -- probably somewhere around 18%. That leaves Kobo, Sony, and Apple fighting over the last 7% or so. And my guess is that Apple is in no better than 5th place right now.

Another interesting tidbit from Ian Freed: **80% of Amazon's e-book sales are to customers who own Kindles**. So much for those "Sure, Amazon is selling e-books, but mostly to people who read on their iPads" articles. Maybe finally people can stop pretending the iPad is an e-reader and start considering it as a tablet computer that's cool to play games on?

Finally, Freed commented on the agency model and how several large publishers forced Amazon to raise e-book prices from $9.99 to $12.99. According to Freed: "Since some of the publishers have decided to price their e-book above $9.99, we've definitely seen a shift of customers going to e-books that are $9.99 or less." And, I might add, e-books that are just $2.99 as well. =)

UPDATE: B&N released confirmation that their e-book share just surpassed its print share, which is 17%. Sounds like 18-20% to me!

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#  E-Ink vs. LCD: What's The Difference?

Aug 4, 2010

The iPad vs. the Kindle 2 in sunlight

While I've compared the e-Ink screen of the Kindle and Nook with the LCD screen of the iPad before, I might have glossed over the differences too quickly. Today, I was struck by a conversation with a friend who wasn't really aware of the differences between the e-Ink screen used in the Kindle and the LCD screen of the iPad; he thought the iPad had a "reading mode" that made it easy on the eyes and as pleasant to read on as e-Ink.

Ladies and gentlemen, the Steve Jobs Reality Distortion Field is in full effect.

Let me start off by saying that I am a HUGE fan of Apple; I've had Apples since my Apple IIe, and have always preferred Macs over PCs. Heck, Apple should cut me a check for influencing my wife, mother, father, sister, in-laws, and multiple friends and other relatives to buy Macs instead of PCs over the years. But, in this case, Apple seems to be overhyping the abilities and performance of the iPad as an e-book reader.

Simply put: the iPad is a portable computer. It is closer to a laptop than to an e-book reader. It is smaller and lighter than most laptops, but is also more limited in performance and capabilities. But it can be used to check email, surf the Internet, watch movies, and run a variety of apps -- many of which are games. Its defining characteristic is its 9.7" touchscreen LCD display. An LCD (liquid crystal display) is the same type of screen used on your computer monitor, a laptop screen, cell phone, or even most flat-screen TV sets. It is backlit (meaning it produces its own light and you can read/watch it at night), and displays pictures and video in full color.

All current Kindle versions (including the Kindle 1, Kindle 2, Kindle DX, and the new Kindle 3) use an e-Ink screen. Quite simply, you have to see an e-Ink screen in person to understand it (I recommend going to Barnes & Noble to see a Nook, or to Target to see a Kindle), but I'll try to describe it. e-Ink screens are black and white, and mimic ink on a printed page. Imagine a series of tiny dots of black ink, suspended in little tubes. The Kindle moves the ink drops around -- it moves some to the top to create a black dot on the screen, and moves some to the bottom where you can't see them (this isn't perfectly accurate, just a visualization to give you a general idea). There is no backlight -- meaning that you can't read it in the dark. e-Ink screens currently can't show video -- it takes about 1/2 a second to switch what's showing on the display (like to change pages).

While e-Ink lacks color and video, it has some important advantages when it comes to reading. First, it is much easier on most people's eyes than LCD screens. Since it's not backlit, it's more like reading a newspaper than like staring at a computer screen (which can cause eyestrain). I know when I work in front of a computer monitor all day, the last thing I want to do when I get home is stare at another backlit LCD screen. Reading a Kindle feels like reading a book.

Second, e-Ink screens are easy to read outdoors and in bright sunlight (just compare in the picture above). In fact, the more light, the better for an e-Ink screen. Conversely, have you ever had to shade your cell phone screen to read it at the beach? LCD screens (like on the iPad) are hard to read in bright sunlight.

Finally, e-Ink screens take _much_ less power than LCD screens, so the battery in the Kindle 3 can last for a _month_ , while the iPad's only lasts for 10 hours. The reason for this is that e-Ink screens take no power at all to display an image -- they only take a little power to change an image (for example, to turn a page in a book). In fact, my K2 arrived in the box with a welcome message and graphic on the screen that I first thought was a sticker! But you could literally put something on an e-Ink screen and _take the battery out_ , and the image would remain on the screen.

Here's a quick chart of LCD vs. e-Ink advantages and disadvantages:

LCD

\+ Full color

\- Harder on the eyes

\+ Can display video (movies)

\- Takes more power (battery doesn't last as long)

\+ Backlit, so you can read in the dark

\- Hard to read outdoors or in bright sunlight

e-Ink

\- Black & white

\+ Easy on the eyes; like paper

\- Can't display full video

\+ Takes very little power (battery lasts longer)

\- Can't be read in the dark (like a regular book)

\+ Easy to read outdoors, the more light the better

\+ Very crisp and sharp

You may notice a pattern: e-Ink screens mimic many of the strengths and weaknesses of ink on paper, which isn't a coincidence, considering it was designed to emulate printed books. On the other hand, LCD has many of the same strengths and weaknesses of your TV set. But which one would you rather read a book on? ;-)

There are a couple of other reasons why the Kindle makes a superior e-book reading device than the iPad: it costs a small fraction of the price ($139 vs. $499), it weighs 1/3rd as much (8.5 ounces vs. 24 ounces), and it's smaller and more portable. But in this post, I wanted to focus on the displays, and hopefully I've been able to dispel some misconceptions and describe the differences between e-Ink and LCD screens. I really highly recommend that you try to see an e-Ink screen in person at a Barnes & Noble store, Target, or Best Buy -- or find a friend with a Kindle or Nook. Most people are amazed by how "paper-like" and easy to read an e-Ink screen is.

If you're still a bit confused by the differences between the Kindle and iPad, I've included this handy chart I found, which I thought was pretty clever. =)

Rock, paper,... iPad?

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# Amazon Kindle UK

Aug 5, 2010

Amazon.co.uk

Amazon today announced the availability of Kindle titles on **Amazon's UK store** , amazon.co.uk. While our friends "across the pond" were previously able to buy Kindle books, they were often hit with large international surcharges, currency conversion, and VAT (European tax). Kindle books often cost international customers $2 or $3 more than they cost here -- which is especially significant on $0.99 or $2.99 e-books! Even "free" e-books carried extra charges over there. Ugh.

So, I'm glad to see Amazon bring Kindle titles to their UK-based store. The good news is that the prices seem quite reasonable: Right Ascension is only £1.97, which seems pretty fair. (True, they do tack on a small percentage for VAT, but it seems they price the titles appropriately based on the exchange rate and don't add extra fees -- the price works out to $3.13 at today's rate.) For comparison, the old price would have been at least $4.99, maybe more, for England-based shoppers on Amazon.

The only bad news I can see is that the books' reviews, sales rankings, and "tags" (helpful keywords, like "science fiction" that users can associate with books) from the US versions don't transfer over to the UK site, so mine are starting from scratch. Amazon also doesn't let you shop around: if you're registered with a US address, you can only shop at the US store; at the UK store, you'll see "Pricing information not available" and "The Kindle Store at Amazon.co.uk is for UK customers only." (I believe non-US customers trying to shop in the US store can do so, they just see different -- usually higher -- prices.)

Anyway, this is another great opportunity and another great benefit of e-books: without doing a thing or shipping anything across the Atlantic, my e-books are now available (at fair prices) to readers all over the world. Judging by the limited information I get from my sales reports, a fair amount of my Amazon sales (on the order of 1/6th or even 1/4th) are from international customers already, and this should only help. To all my readers, wherever you happen to be, thanks for giving my books a chance!

The links to my titles in Amazon's UK store are below:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001V9K6ZS

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001V9K7WU

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B003SE7LPW

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# Do I Need An E-Book Reader?

Aug 6, 2010

Amazon's Kindle 2 and Barnes & Noble's Nook

I thought I would present this **E-Reader Buying Guide** for people who may not know much about the different e-book readers out there (like the Kindle and Nook). I'll try to explain the benefits and drawbacks of e-readers in general, and help you figure out if you'd benefit from owning one or not. Then, I'll also look at which one might be right for you.

To decide if an e-reader might be right for you, let's first ask a few questions:

Do you enjoy reading?

The first thing to figure out is whether or not you even like reading. Do you enjoy curling up with a good novel? Do you fondly remember books you've read? Do you get sad when you come to the end of a good book, and re-read the last page a couple of times, because you don't want it to end? (Yeah, I do that.)

If so, odds are that you will enjoy an e-reader -- we'll find out in more detail below. If, however, you just don't enjoy reading books and never did, then an e-reader isn't the device for you. It won't magically make you like reading if you hated it before. You may prefer an iPad (where you can play games and surf the web and watch movies), but it doesn't make sense to buy a device designed for reading if you don't enjoy reading at all.

How often do you read?

Are you an avid reader, reading a book (or several books!) a week? Are you an average reader, reading a book or two a month? Or just an occasional reader -- maybe you read a couple of hot books a year or read a bit when you're on a flight or on vacation?

For avid readers, I almost can't see NOT having an e-book reader. There are many benefits. First, you'll probably save enough money on less expensive (and free) e-books to pay for the device several times over; e-books typically cost less than printed books, and millions of classic books (anything published before 1923) are free. Second, you'll probably enjoy the reading experience more, as e-readers offer adjustable text sizes, the ability to search and bookmark and write notes, a built-in dictionary, text-to-speech, and ultimate portability. Third, truly avid readers often have issues with storage space, and run out of bookshelves (and closets, and storage units) to keep all their old books. Imagine carrying thousands of books with you anywhere you go (including on a trip), yet it takes up the space of a single paperback. And you can find any book (or even a favorite passage hidden somewhere in your library) with a quick text search. Nice.

For the average reader, e-book readers are compelling for many of the same reasons listed above. Depending on how many e-books you buy and what types of printed books you used to buy ($25 hardcovers, used books, or the library?), you may or may not save a lot of money by going electronic. On average, e-books cost less: new releases are $10–$13 (instead of $20+ for hardcovers), older titles are $5–$8 (instead of $7–$12 for paperbacks), there are lots of low-cost options (like $0.99 to $2.99 emerging authors), and millions of free classics like Shakespeare, _Pride and Prejudice_ , _Sherlock Holmes_ , etc. And it's still convenient to throw your entire library into your purse on a trip, to adjust text sizes so every book is easy to read, to have any word definition at your fingertips, and to wirelessly download books in 30 seconds instead of making a trip to a book store or waiting for shipping. For these reasons, people who enjoy reading but don't read as much as they'd like to, often find that they read more on an e-reader since it's more convenient and less expensive to buy books, and it's easier to bring their entire library with them and sneak in more reading time on the subway or at a doctor's office.

For the occasional readers, it's a tougher call. You probably won't save enough money on e-books to pay for the cost of the device, unless you read mostly free classics or very low-cost e-books. You'll still get the portability and readability benefits I mentioned above, and you can use your e-book reader to do some light Internet browsing, book shopping, or Wikipedia lookups. But if you prefer watching movies or surfing the Internet to reading books, you may prefer a device like the iPad, which is more multifunctional (but more expensive and worse at actually reading books), as that will give you the option to buy an e-book or two through the iBook Store or Kindle for iPad app if you ever get the urge.

Are you attached to paper?

I hear this a lot, even from the biggest reading fanatics, people who I KNOW would really enjoy an e-book reader if they got one. People talk about the "smell" and "feel" of books -- which I quickly realized was nonsense when I got my Kindle 2. Look, I've always loved reading, but it's the words on the page that move me, not the smell of paper and ink and glue. I don't bury my nose in a book -- I immerse my mind in the words. And the words are still there -- better than ever, since they're whatever size I want them -- on an e-book reader. I literally have not heard of a single person who tried an e-book reader and didn't like it because they missed the "smell" or "feel" of paper.

But if you're still not sure, Amazon is very generous: order a Kindle and try it free for 30 days. If you don't like it, send it back and get a full refund -- including shipping \-- no questions asked. What do you have to lose?

What will happen to my e-books? Will they become obsolete?

Since e-books are digital, like MP3 music files, they can theoretically remain perfect forever -- the pages will never turn yellow or fall out. You can back up your e-book files on a DVD or hard drive (just like you might back up other computer files) and retain them forever. And Amazon and B&N store your purchases online for you as well -- even if you lose or break your e-reader, you just download them again. You can also read your e-books on PCs, Macs, and smartphones, and none of those are going away anytime soon.

Some e-books (like the free classics, and many inexpensive e-books by independent authors -- like mine) do not have copy protection, or "DRM" attached to them. This means you can always convert them from one e-book format to another, and can easily read them on any device made now or in the future. E-books are digital, so they're not like a VHS tape or LP record that gets replaced by a new physical format (DVDs or CDs). If a new e-book format emerges, there will also be software to convert your books into the new format for you.

On the other hand, most best-selling books by large publishers do have DRM attached, and you can only read them on the family of devices you bought them for: so e-books bought from Amazon will work on any Kindle (or Kindle 2, 3, or 10), and B&N e-books will work on the Nook. I recommend Amazon and B&N partially because I have confidence those two companies will be around and selling e-books and e-book readers for a very long time.

Can you afford an e-reader?

But how practical is it? I've talked above about how an e-book reader could pay for itself, or even save money in the long run for avid book readers. Even if that's the case for you, there's the initial outlay of $139–$199 to contend with. I don't have access to your bank account, so I can't answer the question for you. All I can say is that I am a pretty frugal guy (I don't even have a TV, let alone cable), and I think the Kindle is a phenomenal value at $139.

Which e-reader is right for me?

This could be a whole separate article (or 3), so I'll be brief. The bottom line is that my only recommendations for serious readers would be Amazon's Kindle or Barnes & Noble's Nook. Both are more similar than different, and both make excellent e-readers. Both are roughly the same price and size, and have similar e-Ink screens (see this post for the difference between e-Ink and LCD screens). But Amazon just came out with the new Kindle 3 (which I review in more detail here), which has a better screen, and is smaller, lighter, and a little cheaper than the Nook. The Nook does have certain advantages: a small color LCD screen in addition to the main e-Ink screen, support for free library e-books through Overdrive, an SD memory card slot, and a user-replaceable battery. On the other hand, the Kindle 3 is faster, has text-to-speech, has generally better software, and the battery lasts longer. Another factor is whether you prefer shopping at Amazon or Barnes & Noble. UPDATE: I cover this topic more thoroughly in this Holiday E-Reader Buying Guide.

Both the Kindle and Nook come in two versions: Wi-Fi only, and Wi-Fi + 3G. The Wi-Fi only versions can connect to wireless networks the same way your laptop can: you may have Wi-Fi access at home (if you have a wireless router), at work, at Starbucks, McDonalds, or some hotels and airports. The Wi-Fi + 3G models can connect through Wi-Fi _or_ through the AT&T 3G cell phone network -- so they can connect pretty much anywhere a cell phone gets signal, and they include free lifetime 3G service. Keep in mind you don't _need_ any sort of connection -- you can read books without it, and you can buy books on your computer and transfer them to your e-reader with the included USB cable. But wireless access allows you to shop, buy, and download books on-the-go, connect to the Internet, and sync your place in the book across your e-reader and Kindle for iPhone or B&N eReader apps. The Kindle 3 Wi-Fi costs $139 and the Kindle 3 Wi-Fi + 3G costs $189 (with free 2-day shipping). The  Nook Wi-Fi costs $149 and the  Nook Wi-Fi + 3G costs $199 with free shipping.

At the end of the day, my bottom-line recommendation is for most people who enjoy reading to purchase the Kindle 3 Wi-Fi for $139. At that price, you're getting the newest and best e-reader on the market, the device with the best screen, longest battery life, best software, lightest weight, and best e-book store. If you prefer the flexibility of free 3G coverage and can afford another $50, the Kindle 3 Wi-Fi + 3G for $189 is also an excellent value. Finally, if you prefer B&N, or if one of the Nook's advantages (like library e-books) is a "must-have" feature for you, then I'd recommend one of the two Nook models. People who like to read won't go wrong with any of those 4 choices.

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#  Musical Theme to Right Ascension (.mp3)

Aug 16, 2010

Inspired by a reader who found the Right Ascension Theme and enjoyed listening to it on her Nook as she read the e-book, I thought I'd highlight the musical score that my good friend John Main created to accompany the novel. (You can find a synthesizer version and a guitar version at the link above.) John delivered a haunting score that mirrored the plot arc of Right Ascension: from the mystery surrounding the discovery of a new alien species, to the suspense and buildup as the story progressed, and the climactic showdown at the end.

Please feel free to visit my website to listen online or download it to listen on your computer or mp3 player -- or even on your Kindle or Nook while you read the e-book version of _Right Ascension_. And please be sure to leave any comments you might have below -- I'll be sure to forward them on to John.

The "Right Ascension Theme"  
Original musical score composed by John F. Main ©

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#  E-Book Sales: June $29.8M, Q2 2010 $88.7M

Aug 19, 2010

June 2010 E-Book Sales Rise Slightly

I've been tracking e-book sales statistics here for a while, following the rise of e-books from less than 1% of the market, to about 1% in 2008, 3% in 2009, and over 8% so far this year. The latest figures are in for June 2010 (and the second quarter of 2010), and they represent a slight increase from the past couple of months. Retail e-book sales clocked in at **$29.8 million dollars for June 2010** , and **$88.7 million for Q2, 2010** (April, May, and June). The June sales are an increase of 118.9% over last June's numbers, and sales year-to-date are 204.2% higher than the first two quarters of 2009.

I should point out that the monthly and quarterly figures don't seem to correlate exactly -- it seems the IDPF (which releases quarterly figures) adds something to the monthly figures that come from the Association of American Publishers. Please keep in mind that e-book sales figures are only an estimate, and an incomplete one at that. They don't get their data from e-book retailers (like Amazon, B&N, and Apple), which are notoriously secretive about their e-book sales, they get it from publishers. But they only include figures from certain large publishers, and ignore sales of e-books through smaller channels, such as small presses and independent publishers. For example, I'm just an unknown indie author, but I've sold over 6,000 e-book copies in the first 6 months of this year, and they aren't counted in the numbers above. So it's safe to say these numbers are inexact and underrepresented.

Those caveats aside, the monthly sales totals so far this year are:

  * Jan 2010: $31.9 M

  * Feb 2010: $28.9 M

  * Mar 2010: $28.5 M

  * Apr 2010: $27.4 M

  * May 2010: $29.3 M

  * June 2010: $29.8 M

And the quarterly figures given by the IDPF, with the totals of the monthly numbers above in parenthesis for comparison:

  * Q1, 2010: $91.0 M ($89.3 M)

  * Q2, 2010: $88.7 M ($86.5 M)

On a positive note, June sales continued to increase over May, which itself increased over the low point in April. On the down side, the strong May and June sales weren't enough to overtake the Q1 numbers, which were mostly buoyed by huge numbers in January. There are a few possible explanations and observations I draw from this data:

  1. Millions of e-readers were sold over the holiday season at the end of 2009, and all those new Kindle and Nook owners needed something to read, and may have bought a lot of e-books in January.

  2. The combination of new e-reader owners stocking up on e-books and terrible winter weather may have accounted for very strong e-book sales in the early part of the year, which cooled off as the weather warmed up and more people ventured outside (doing non-reading activities or visiting physical bookstores).

  3. Publishers' insistence upon the agency model (where they forced retailers to raise e-book prices) at the start of April seems to have caused a dip in e-book sales, which are now recovering and possibly continuing their upward trend.

  4. The introduction of the iPad (in April) didn't seem to help e-book sales much, and may instead have hurt them, as some people debating between a dedicated e-book reader and a multi-function device chose the iPad, and then ended up playing more games, watching movies, and spending time on Facebook instead of buying and reading e-books.

  5. The trend in May and June is positive, and sales in those two months are higher than any other month except January, which may have been a post-holiday / winter weather spike.

  6. On the other hand, Q2 sales are down (or at best roughly flat) from Q1, and e-book sales certainly don't seem to be increasing at the blistering pace they showed for the past several years (where they doubled or tripled each year). Is it just a temporary dip (due to the agency model and the iPad), or the sign of a leveling off of e-book market share?

To expand a bit on the last point, e-book sales have been increasing so rapidly, that the first 6 months of 2010 have already exceeded all of 2009 ($175.8M vs. $165.8M). And 2009's sales are over triple 2008's ($165.8M vs. $53.5M). This is the first quarter where sales have declined in the past three years, but they have bounced around a bit and then continued their upward momentum before, so I think it's too soon to say that e-book sales have plateaued. Looking at the chart below, it looks more like Q1 2010 was abnormally _high_ than that Q2 2010 was abnormally _low_. Most estimates still have e-books steadily increasing their market share, and most industry insiders expect e-books to account for 25% of book sales within the next 2-4 years.

Q2 2010 E-Book Sales Cool Slightly From Q1 Pace

I think it's encouraging to see June's sales continue the upward trend from May, and hopefully April will just prove to be a one-time dip, caused by agency model pricing. One stat I'd _love_ to get my hands on: what percentage of e-book sales are independent authors responsible for, and how quickly is that number increasing? Maybe the book sales of traditional publishers are flat, but that doesn't mean overall e-book sales are flat as well. ;-)

UPDATE: A few industry analysts confirm my explanations for the dip in Q2 sales.

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# Problems With DRM

Aug 23, 2010

Does DRM Prevent Piracy Or Cripple Legitimate Users?

DRM, which stands for **Digital Rights Management** , is a form of copy protection sometimes embedded into electronic media (like e-books, MP3 music files, etc.). Its purpose is generally noble: prevent piracy (unauthorized copying and distribution of copyrighted material) so that the content creators (authors, musicians, publishers) can earn the money they deserve for their work.

NOTE: If your stance is that copyright is evil and "all information wants to be free" and that people shouldn't get paid for creating music or writing a book or researching a newspaper article (but that you _should_ get paid for fixing people's computers or writing car dealership advertisements or whatever _you_ do for a living), then I don't think we'll see eye to eye and you may as well move on to another blog.

But here's the problem with DRM: it generally doesn't prevent piracy, since almost all forms of DRM have been hacked, and it just ends up annoying legitimate, paying customers. So the pirates strip out the DRM and continue sharing files illegally, and the actual customer (who we as content creators should be bending over backwards for) is annoyed, limited in how they can use the music or e-book they purchased, and sometimes has to buy it again just because they got a new computer or e-book reader. Lame.

Let me give you a simple example to explain why DRM is broken: I have a few MP3 songs on my computer. Most of them came from old CDs that I had bought. I bought a few from Apple through iTunes several years ago. They're all mixed together, and I don't really remember which songs came from which source -- except that I was forcefully reminded of it when I tried to do something as simple as transfer the songs to my wife's iPod.

Now, let's make this clear: I own the music. I own the Mac. I own the iPod (OK, I'm borrowing my wife's iPod for a trip). I listen to the music on the Mac, and now want to listen to it on the iPod. No piracy is going on.

I go to copy over all my music onto the iPod and get an error -- iTunes tells me that certain songs (the ones I had purchased through iTunes) are copy-protected and can not be used on my wife's iPod. Now think about this for a second. Had I _pirated_ (stolen) the songs, I could copy them over no problem. But since I _paid_ for them, I can't do something as simple as listen to songs on an iPod? What? (NOTE: there might have been a way to authorize the iPod or blah blah, but at that point I was just frustrated and didn't want to troubleshoot and figure out something that shouldn't be that difficult.)

Now, when I offer a product (like my e-books) for sale, I want to provide a quality product at a fair price. I want my customers to get a pristine file, the best one available. I ensure that it looks good, has no formatting problems, no typos, and it's the newest and best version. If someone is paying me money, I want them to have a pleasant, easy experience. I want them to get value for their money -- so even if there were a pirated version of my e-books floating around out there, I want the customer who buys from me to get a superior product. I want their $2.99 to buy them peace of mind (knowing they're doing the right thing and supporting the author), a pristinely-formatted file, "tech support" if they have issues with it, and the ability to legitimately use that file and enjoy it -- even if they trade in their Nook for a new Kindle 3.

And that's why I don't put DRM on my files (NOTE: e-books you buy directly from my website have no DRM, and neither do my e-books at Amazon,  B&N, or Smashwords. Apple, Kobo, and Sony currently put DRM on files and there's no way for me to opt out of it, like I did with Amazon.) If a customer asks, I'm also happy to send them my e-books in any other format they'd like. It's not that I support piracy -- in fact, I think many "anti-DRM" arguments are actually "I want stuff for free" rationalizations. And I'm not supporting taking DRM off files that have it -- that's against the law. But I personally generally avoid buying files that have DRM attached -- there are plenty of DRM-free e-books out there that I choose to buy instead.

So, back to my song problem. I have the iPod connected, and my choice is now: (a) buy another copy of these songs through my wife's account or figure out how to "authorize" her iPod, (b) not have the songs I paid for on the iPod, (c) find a way to download something to strip the DRM off the files (against the law), or (d) download pirated copies of the songs I paid for and not have to deal with DRM at all (also illegal, but by far the easiest and quickest solution). This is why, in my opinion, DRM is broken: it doesn't actually stop piracy, it just annoys legitimate customers -- even to the point of pushing them _toward_ piracy! Maybe someday they'll invent some better, less invasive form of DRM, but the way it is today just sucks.

So, what would you do? And why should DRM force purchasers to make that choice?

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# Kindle 3 Reviews Roundup

Aug 23, 2010

The New Kindle 3 (in charcoal gray): Lighter, Smaller, Faster, and Less Expensive Than The Kindle 2 (white).

Amazon's new **Kindle 3** debuts in a few days, and reviews are starting to roll in. Below are links to some early reviews. The consensus? Most reviewers agree it's the best e-reading device out there. The average ranking is 8 or 9 points out of 10 (or 4 to 4.5 out of 5). Most agree that it combines a number of evolutionary improvements (as opposed to one or two huge new features) to make it much more refined, and a significant improvement over its predecessor, the Kindle 2 (which was already the most popular and best e-book reader available). Many of the reviewers also expressed the opinion that the Kindle 3 was "ready for prime time" or "the first e-reader they'd recommend to the general public" -- not just the most avid readers (who probably already have an e-reader and are yearning to trade up).

The basics: the new Kindle is less expensive, smaller & lighter, faster, has increased contrast on its 6" e-Ink screen, has longer battery life, more memory, more font choices, better PDF support, and several other improvements. It weighs only 8.5 ounces (Wi-Fi model) or 8.7 ounces (3G + Wi-Fi model). It has 4 MB of internal storage, good for 3,500 books. And the battery lasts a month. Both models come with free 2-day shipping from Amazon and a no-questions-asked 30-day return policy (they're pretty confident you'll like it). Your two options are:

  * Kindle 3 (Wi-Fi) for $139

  * Kindle 3 (Wi-Fi + 3G) for $189

One other quote that jumped out at me:

These days, when anyone who enjoys reading tells me he doesn't want a Kindle, my answer is simple: "That's only because you haven't tried one."

Enjoy the links to the reviews below!

  1.  Kindle Nation Daily says _"This Kindle 3 is a Triple Wow. Five Stars. Two Thumbs Up."_

  2. Len Edgerly has a 12-minute YouTube video explaining _"What's So Great About The Kindle 3."_

  3.  PC World's Melissa Perenson says the K3 _"feels ready to meet the mainstream masses."_ (4.5 / 5)

  4. PC Mag's Dan Costa calls the K3 an _"Editor's Choice"_ and _"the best dedicated ebook reader you can buy."_ (4 / 5)

  5.  CNET says the K3's lower price makes it _"a solid value for readers looking to make the jump to e-books."_ (4 / 5)

  6. Wired calls it _"something readers will want to carry around with them, even in the emerging age of tablet computers."_ (9 / 10)

  7.  Telegraph UK calls it an _"excellent device"_ that _"is the first ebook reader that has a credible chance of cracking the mass market."_

  8. * * * * *

# Follow-Up: B&N 20% E-Book Share; Q2 Sales Revisited

Aug 24, 2010

Just to follow up on a couple of posts from earlier this month:

Barnes & Noble has around 20% of e-book market share.

As I estimated in my post on market share on August 2, Amazon probably has about 75% of the e-book market, and B&N has most of the rest: I pegged the figure around 18-20%. Today,  B&N confirmed (without giving exact specifics, of course!) that their e-book market share is now "higher" than their print market share, which is 17%. Sounds like 18-20% to me!

Explaining the slight dip in Q2 e-book sales.

Last week, I took a look at June's e-book sales figures and the Q2 2010 numbers, which were slightly below Q1 2010. (While they were still double last year's numbers, any dip is unusual, as e-book sales have been consistently increasing at a rapid pace.) I looked at a few possible explanations for the dip, including:

  1. Lots of people receiving e-readers for Xmas 2009 and buying lots of e-books for their new toys in January 2010.

  2. Publishers insisted on agency model (read: higher) pricing starting in Q2, and raising new release e-book prices from $9.99 to $12.99 and $14.99 shockingly _decreased_ revenue (who could have ever seen that coming?).

  3. The industry e-book sales figures don't include sales from independent authors (like yours truly), who are probably earning a larger slice of the pie.

Well, today I see a pair of articles analyzing the dip in Q2 e-book sales and attributing it to: post-Xmas buying and agency model pricing, and that indie author retailers like Smashwords weren't being included in the data.

Sorry for the "I told you so" post, but it was nice to see affirmation from several different sources of e-book trends I've been predicting on this blog for months. :)

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# The Real "Kindle Killer"

Aug 25, 2010

Please excuse me for poking a bit of fun at all the "iPad or whatever magical device] is a Kindle Killer" article headlines, but it seems to me that the only real device with a chance of "killing" reading is the television. I just saw [ this report by Bowker, which proudly announced that " **More than 40% of Americans over the age of 13 purchased a book in 2009**."

Now, not to delve too deeply into the math, but if 40% of Americans bought a book in 2009, then that means **almost 60% of adults didn't buy even one single book all last year**. That's a pretty depressing number to me. I mean, I know reading isn't "cool" anymore, but I would have thought more than half of Americans would buy _a_ book in a whole year.

It's especially depressing when you compare it to TV statistics: 99% of American households own a TV, and on average, watch it between 4-6 hours a day. Hours a _day_ vs. not even one book in a _year_. I couldn't even find statistics for the percentage of people who watched at least _one_ show on TV last year, presumably because everyone knows it's 100%.

The sad thing is, most of the crap on TV is just, well... _crap_. Anything even remotely good (*sniff* _Firefly_ *sniff*) gets cancelled anyway. If it wasn't for Gator football games, I'd have pretty much no use for TV. As it is, I don't own one (my wife has a small one hooked up to rabbit ears \-- no cable), although we do watch a few shows on Hulu.

Anyway, I need to head back to some reading / e-book forums to restore my faith in humanity, by hearing more stories of people who read 10 books a week and have a "to be read" list of 500 titles on their Kindles. Until then, feel free to leave a comment below telling me how often you read instead of watching TV.

Yes, I guess I can wait until the next commercial. *sigh*

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#  Kindles at Staples; Kobo $129 at Borders

Aug 31, 2010

Staples announced today that they will be carrying the new Kindle 3 e-readers in their retail stores "this fall." They will carry the $139 Kindle 3 Wi-Fi, the $189 Kindle 3 Wi-Fi + 3G, and "in late fall," the larger $379 Kindle DX 2. This should offer more people the opportunity to see in person how easy on the eyes and paper-like e-Ink displays really are. Until then, you can still see the older Kindle 2 models at Target, or see the Nook at Barnes & Noble or Best Buy.

In other news, on the heels of the introduction of the lower-price Kindle 3 Wi-Fi for just $139, Kobo has wisely discounted its own Kobo E-Reader (which trails the Kindle and Nook in speed and features) to $129 to compete. While I like the Kobo's light weight and focus on reading, I still think the new K3 is a better value. But the lower price is a step in the right direction -- you can go check out a Kobo at a Borders store near you.

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# New Sony E-Readers

Sep 1, 2010

The New Sony E-Reader 350

Today, Sony refreshed its line of e-readers, bringing the new e-Ink Pearl screen (used in the Kindle 3) to the Sony line. One could argue that Sony started the modern e-reader revolution (as its first model came out before the Kindle), but it wasn't until Amazon's Kindle 2 came out in 2009 that e-reader sales really took off. Since then, Sony has been the forgotten one of the "Big 3" (Amazon, B&N, Sony) -- and has even taken a back seat to Apple (which doesn't even _make_ e-readers) in the eyes of many.

Like with much of their other technology, the Sony hardware is impressive, but somewhat quirky, expensive, and lacking in ease of use.

First, the good news: the new Sony e-readers have the higher-contrast e-Ink Pearl screen we've discussed when covering the Kindle 3. They are also very small and light -- even smaller and lighter than the K3. They all sport new touchscreens that use infrared sensors built in to the edges of the screen, so it doesn't impede reading (the old touchscreen layers made the screen harder to read and thus kinda sucked). And they support DRMed ePub files, so you can read library books on them (although it's a bit of a hassle).

On the down side, they're considerably more expensive than the Kindles, their entry-level version only has a 5" e-Ink screen (compared to the 6" one found on Kindles and Nooks), and only their most expensive model (not yet available) has wireless connectivity -- the 2 models available now don't even have Wi-Fi, let alone 3G. That means you have to use your computer to purchase, download, and transfer books to your device.

There are three models: the 5" Sony PRS-350 ("Pocket Edition") for $179, the 6" PRS-650 ("Touch Edition") for $229, and the 7" PRS-950 ("Daily Edition"), due out before the holidays for $299.

All 3 models use the new e-Ink Pearl displays and improved touchscreens. The Touch Edition adds the larger (standard-size) screen and memory slots. The Daily edition adds an even larger screen and Wi-Fi + 3G wireless connectivity.

**The 5" PRS-350 Pocket Edition** has 2GB of built-in storage (no memory card slots), weighs only 5.64 oz (the Kindle 3 Wi-Fi weighs 8.5), measures just 5.71 x 4.11 x 0.33 inches, and costs $179. Compared to the Kindle 3 Wi-Fi, you pay $40 more to get a touchscreen, ePub support, and smaller size, but you lose out with a smaller screen, no wireless connection, no Internet, no text-to-speech, worse battery life, less storage, and you don't get to use Amazon's Kindle e-book store: Sony's E-Reader Store is far inferior. For just $10 more, you could even splurge for the Kindle 3 Wi-Fi + 3G, and get unlimited 3G connectivity for life.

**The 6" PRS-650 Touch Edition** (does that name make sense when they all have touchscreens now?) costs $229, and brings you the larger screen and expandable memory in a slightly larger but still light (at 7.93 oz) package. For $90 more than the K3, you get the same size (and type) screen, so it's more of an apples-to-apples comparison. Unfortunately, the library book support (an important feature), touchscreen (which I don't think adds much to the reading experience), and slightly lighter weight don't outweigh the $90 cost savings and other advantages of the Kindle.

**The 7" PRS-950 Daily Edition** adds wireless (Wi-Fi and 3G) connectivity, along with a larger 7" screen. At 8.99 ounces, it's fractionally heavier than the K3, but still light enough for easy one-handed reading; that's probably a good trade-off to get a larger screen (which means more words per page and fewer page turns when reading, especially if you like to read at larger font sizes). The problem is the $299 price tag, which pushes it almost into the 9.7" Kindle DX2 territory ($379).

Sony is known for making great hardware, but they tend to drop the ball on customer experience (why are they still forcing us into Memory Sticks instead of letting us use the SD and MicroSD cards we have lying around?). Here, Sony doesn't offer a way to buy and download e-books wirelessly, whereas the Kindle lets you buy any book you can think of in 30 seconds, without a computer. Even when using your computer, you'll find the Sony E-Reader store almost an afterthought, with lower selection, worse prices, and an inferior browsing experience to the Kindle store. I'd only recommend the Sonys to someone a bit computer-savvy and who enjoys the hassle of finding e-books from other sources (like Project Gutenberg and libraries).

And, as with most Sony products, the bottom line is that they're too expensive compared to the competition. I just can't see paying close to double the price (compared to the $139 K3 Wi-Fi) for the $229 Touch Edition, and not even getting Wi-Fi connectivity.

But, if you really like touchscreens or library books, and are OK with using your computer to find, organize, and download e-books, the new Sony E-Readers are nice devices with great screens. They also offer options, if you prefer a slightly smaller or larger screen. Just don't look too closely at the prices. =)

* * * * *

#  Apple iPod Touch and iPod Refresh

Sep 1, 2010

Apple's New iPod Line: the Shuffle, Nano, and Touch

Apple today announced a refresh of its iPod line, with new models of the iPod Shuffle, iPod Nano, and iPod Touch.

The iPod Touch adds the iPhone's 960x640 IPS "Retina" display, A4 processor, and gyroscope. It also adds front- and rear-facing video cameras, designed for use with Apple's "FaceTime" video chat software. Prices are $229 for the 8GB model, $299 for 32GB, and $399 for 64GB.

The iPod Nano has the most drastic change: its size was cut roughly in half so only the screen remains (no more click wheel). The screen is now a touchscreen and has a home screen with specialized "apps" (like audio and photo players), but it won't run normal iPhone apps and games. It gains FM radio capability and Nike+ pedometer support, but it loses its camera and the ability to display video. The prices are $149 for the 8GB version and $179 for the 16GB. It now has a clip like its smaller Shuffle sibling.

Finally, the iPod Shuffle actually gets its clickwheel back, but otherwise remains largely unchanged from the last version. It holds 2GB and costs $49.

Of note, the iPod Classic hums along unchanged, at $249 for a model with a 160GB hard drive.

* * * * *

# Kindle Cheap Reads; Red Adept

Sep 13, 2010

Thanks to the fine folks over at **Kindle Cheap Reads** , who featured yours truly yesterday. They run a very prolific website, featuring inexpensive (under $5) Kindle books and have recently started adding a sampling of independent authors to the mix. Check them out!

 http://kindlecheapreads.com/2010/09/12/indie-author-david-derrico/

Also, here's a shout out to the famous **Red Adept** , who tirelessly reviews Kindle books to help you find your next great read. This month, she's been running an ongoing series of author interviews asking: "Which came first, the character or the plot?" Check out some responses by me and some other great indie authors:

<http://redadeptreviews.com/?p=3029>

While Red Adept hasn't chosen to review one of my novels yet, I've sent them her way and am keeping my fingers crossed. ;-)

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#  Book Review: Empire From The Ashes by David Weber

Sep 20, 2010

I recently read Empire From The Ashes, an omnibus edition of the three novels of the so-called " _Dahak Trilogy"_ by David Weber: _Mutineer's Moon_ , _The Armageddon Inheritance_ , and _Heirs of Empire_. I had read several other of Weber's works, including most of his Honor Harrington novels and _1633_. A reader had suggested these books to me, as an example of science fiction that "got the science right."

The story begins 50,000 years in our own past, with the human captain of the Imperium starship _Dahak_ in the midst of a mutiny. Realizing he can't fend off the mutineers, he orders the advanced computer running the ship to give a countdown, then release deadly radiation into the ship, forcing all the mutineers off the ship -- and killing himself in the process. He also orders the computer to destroy any mutineers trying to return to the ship before his loyal crew members restore control.

His plan removes everyone from the ship, but the mutineers have sabotaged _Dahak_ and left it too helpless to retrieve the loyal crew members' lifeboats, but with automated systems that will destroy the mutineers' warships if they come close. So the mutineers and other crew members descend to a nearby planet named Earth where they populate the planet. With the aid of "stasis fields" and bio-enhanced longevity, they mostly sleep through a 50,000-year stalemate. _Dahak_ rebuilds itself, but is stuck between its captain's last command to suppress the mutiny and the prerogative not to destroy half the Earth while doing so.

Fast-forward 50,000 years, and humanity's recent forays to the moon -- did we mention that _Dahak_ is a "planetoid," a stupendously colossal starship somehow posing as Earth's moon for all these millennia? -- enable _Dahak_ to capture Colin MacIntyre, an astronaut and descendant of _Dahak's_ loyalists from so many years ago. Thus begins the battle between _Dahak_ (commanded now by Colin) and the mutineers.

The first book chronicles the fight against the mutineers; the second follows humanity's attempts to contact the remainder of the Imperium and fight off the advances of a hostile alien race; the third book details a madman trying to take over the new government.

I really enjoyed the first two books. While I found the premise a little implausible (our moon is actually a giant, camouflaged, unimaginably powerful, semi-sentient starship waiting 50,000 years to suppress a long-dead mutiny?), there was plenty of action and I enjoyed some of the philosophical questions a semi-sentient computer posed. In fact, as the book went on, _Dahak_ quickly progressed to full sentience, to the point where it could think on its own, make decisions, philosophize, and tell the difference between right and wrong (even if it _did_ lack a bit in human intuition). It even learns to feel emotions, and becomes one of the main characters in the story.

The second book was probably my favorite -- it focuses much more on space combat and the threat of a destructive alien race. The characters from the first book grow and take on positions of power in the new unified Earth government that must race to catch up to the "Imperial" technology of _Dahak_ before the aliens arrive in a couple of years. It's a story of combat and strategy and individual bravery, with the survival of Earth at stake. There is plenty of tension and a surprise twist at the end.

The third book, unfortunately, fell apart a bit for me. First of all, the conflict is wholly internal, and the thought of so much mayhem and death being sown by one crazy human just doesn't appeal to me as much as the idea of a threat from a warlike alien species. Also, I knew with 100% certainty the identity of "Mister X" (yes, that's what he's referred to) literally the first time he was introduced. (Big hint: he's the only new guy in a position of power that wasn't a proven veteran from the first two books.) Therefore, the book lost most of its punch, and I found it hard to believe this guy could orchestrate so many things that obviously required the highest levels of clearance (like destroying an entire planetoid starship by sabotage and killing 80,000 people) \-- and all the smartest people on the planet and this super-smart sentient _Dahak_ never even ONCE considered him as a suspect... to the point where they put him in charge of the operation to find himself. Ugh.

The other glaring problem with the third book was that Weber stuck a whole extra book in the middle of it. Weber is clearly a military history buff (like his book _1633_ , which detailed pre-industrial battles of pikes and cavalry and cannons -- but with the twist of modern technology thrown in to tip the scales). However, this book suffers from a bad case of Weber exulting in his hobby: the book is twice the length of the previous two, and at least half is taken up by a side adventure of the main characters' young adult children marooned on a primitive planet... and details how they use modern ideas and technology to raise an army and tip the scales in fights against pikes and cavalry and cannons. (Sound familiar?) A one-chapter diversion may have been OK... but this is a whole BOOK with detailed accounts of multiple battles -- an entire campaign, actually -- and I just found myself wanting to get back to the "real" action and finding out what was happening in the main storyline. The whole thing just felt like a huge pointless diversion, and out of place in the book I thought I was reading.

I think Weber is at his best when he's describing epic space battles and tactics -- I'm personally less interested in the pre-industrial footmen and artillery battles he likes so much, which is part of why I didn't finish _1633_. But his space battles are done very well, and I enjoy the epic scope of his stories, the heroism of his characters, and the moral issues he often grapples with... which isn't surprising, since those are elements I use in my own books.

I've heard Weber's works described as "hard sci-fi" with a focus on detailed science and technology, but that's not really the case (I'd call most of his books "military sci-fi"). In this series, Weber mentions "gravitonics," "Enchanch drives," "warp grenades," "hyperspace," and other science-fiction hand-waving... and it doesn't bother me a bit. Weber simply gives something a cool name, tells us what it does, and doesn't bother with pages of pseudo-scientific "explanation" for technologies that humanity's best minds don't know how to create and that might even be impossible. The important thing to me is how he USES his technological framework to advance the story, play out large space fleet battles, and place his characters in dramatic situations, and Weber does that very well (there _are_ a couple of minor problems, like heroes dodging laser beams). I do have to admit that I found the idea of a monstrous "planetoid" starship orbiting Earth and passing, undetected, as our moon for millennia hard to swallow.

All in all, I'd recommend the series, with the huge caveat that half of the third book seemed extraneous (if you feel the same, I'd recommend you skip all the side-story chapters, as I wish I had -- there's not even a satisfying payoff at the end to make it worthwhile). I'd give _Mutineer's Moon_ 7 out of 10, _The Armageddon Inheritance_ 8 / 10, and _Heirs of Empire_ only 4 / 10.

* * * * *

#  July 2010 E-Book Sales Figures: $40.8M

Sep 22, 2010

July 2010 E-Book Sales Surge To $40.8M

The latest industry e-book sales figures are in (see previous months' reports here), and July was a record month for e-book sales. The AAP and IDPF are reporting **July e-book sales are a whopping $40,800,000** , almost a 37% increase from June's numbers, and a 150.2% increase (well over double) compared to July 2009's numbers. E-book sales are up 191% year-to-date (for one point of comparison, the entire second _quarter_ of 2009 was only $37.6 M).

I've spent more time analyzing these trends in my last few posts, but July's very strong numbers seem to confirm the continuation of the strong upward long-term trend and prove April's weak numbers to be an aberration (which is looking more and more like the fault of publishers raising e-book prices through the agency model). It also blows away the previous high: January 2010, an outlier I believe is due to e-book shopping driven by e-book readers received as Xmas gifts, and the cold weather keeping people indoors and downloading new books to read wirelessly. For convenience, here are all of this year's monthly figures again:

  * Jan 2010: $31.9 M

  * Feb 2010: $28.9 M

  * Mar 2010: $28.5 M

  * Apr 2010: $27.4 M

  * May 2010: $29.3 M

  * June 2010: $29.8 M

  * July 2010: $40.8 M

As you can see, July's figures are a _huge_ jump for e-books after a relatively sluggish (mostly flat) first six months of the year. I wonder if the enormous jump from the prior month has anything to do with Amazon raising royalty rates on self-published works to 70% on June 30. Perhaps that attracted some small publishers that are being counted in these sales figures to release more Kindle books. I know most self-published authors saw increased revenue when raising their prices from 99 cents into Amazon's $2.99 to $9.99 range to qualify for the higher royalties (I, for one, sold half the books at three times the price and six times the royalty), but we aren't included in these sales numbers \-- the AAP never asks me for my sales info. =)

I suppose the bump could be due to summer reading, but that large a jump seems like it should have a more tangible explanation -- and it's probably not the Kindle 3, which was only made available for pre-order July 28 (and started shipping in August). I'll keep an eye out for possible causes, and it will be interesting to see if August sales match July's torrid pace.

In any event, monthly sales of over $40 million demonstrates e-book sales creeping ever-closer into print book territory: for comparison, adult mass-market paperback sales were $60.6 M (and are down 13.1% year-to-date, so e-books are definitely closing the gap). Adult trade paperback sales are still a hefty $111.1 M (but down 8.6% for the year), and adult hardcover sales are $74.1 M. E-books still have a ways to go to reach the combined $245.8 M of adult print book sales (e-book sales are about 1/6th of that number), let alone the $1.5 billion per month of the entire book industry (which includes children's books, professional books, and educational textbooks). The big question is whether e-books will continue to accelerate at their rapid pace (doubling or tripling each year) -- and, if so, how long before they overtake print book sales.

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# Kindle 3 at Best Buy, Target

Sep 23, 2010

I've been hearing reports around the Internet of new Kindle 3 demo units available in some Best Buy and Target stores. While Target has carried the Kindle 2 for a while, it appears some stores now have the new, lighter Kindle 3 in stock.

I had also heard about Kindles being scheduled to show up in Best Buy as well, but I didn't expect them to be available so quickly. I've heard multiple reports of the new Kindle 3 at various Best Buy locations around the country (although I can't say for sure if they've arrived at all locations yet). Of note, you can now visit a Best Buy to see the Kindle 3, Nook, the Sony line of e-readers, and the iPad, to compare all the major e-readers in the same place.

Two caveats: first, the Kindles at both Target and Best Buy are only demo models, which are set to run through a fixed presentation. So you can see the e-Ink display and handle them to see the size and weight, but you can't access the menus or play around with it to get the full experience. Second, don't be surprised if the employees at your particular Best Buy have little or no accurate information on these new Kindle arrivals: the best place for info is still directly from Amazon.

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# iPad at Target Stores on Oct 3

Sep 24, 2010

Target announced today that the iPad will be available in nationwide Target stores starting on October 3. Target will have all 6 iPad models (the 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB models in both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G configurations). Pricing will be the same as Apple's official pricing, although it appears Target store credit card users can get a nice 5% discount on the iPads, starting October 17.

Target also carries the Kindle 3 and Sony e-Readers, so you can compare and contrast them with the iPad there. (Note: Best Buy has -- or will soon have -- the Kindle 3, Nook, Sony e-Readers, and iPads all in one place.)

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#  New Kobo Wireless E-Reader For $139

Sep 29, 2010

The new Kobo E-Reader adds wireless connectivity, faster page turns, a better screen, and a dictionary. It sells for $139.

Kobo announced today that it has updated its Kobo E-Reader device (should we call it the Kobo 2?) to add Wi-Fi wireless connectivity, a faster processor (which enables faster page turns), a better e-Ink screen, and a built-in dictionary (finally!). It is available from Kobo for pre-order now for $139.

Kobo says the other features / improvements include:

  * Wi-Fi wireless connectivity

  * A faster processor that enables "2.5x faster" page turns (an impressive claim; the original Kobo was chastised for slow page turns)

  * A "new sharper 16-greyscale, 6" eInk screen," perhaps the higher-contrast e-Ink Pearl screen being used in the new Kindle 3?

  * A built-in dictionary to look up word definitions -- a must-have feature notably missing from Kobo's original offering

  * 1 GB of built-in memory, with an SD card slot for additional storage

  * Longer battery life

For more info, please see my post about the original Kobo E-Reader. As before, the Kobo 2 is lightweight, at just 7 ounces, and has relatively simple controls. On the minus side, it is missing some of the advanced features of the Kindle 3 or Nook -- including text-to-speech, 3G wireless connectivity, or a keyboard/keypad for note-taking.

The Kobo reads e-books in ePub format and is compatible with free library e-books, which is a big plus. Kobo is affiliated with Borders, and this new e-reader will be sold in Borders stores. Readers can buy compatible e-books from the Borders or  Kobo online stores, and can read e-books not only on the Kobo, but on a variety of reading apps for computers and Apple iOS devices.

When the Kindle 2 and Nook were $259, the Kobo came in as an appealing alternative that lacked some features, but was small and light and easy to use and cost only $149. At that price, it made a reasonable entry-level model that might appeal to some readers, even though some reviews chastised it for very slow page turns and its missing features. Now, the page turns appear to be much faster, and the addition of Wi-Fi and a built-in dictionary go a long way to leveling the feature playing field. Unfortunately for Kobo, Amazon drastically improved the Kindle 3, made it smaller and lighter, and slashed the price of the Kindle 3 Wi-Fi to just $139, so Kobo's pricing advantage is gone. For the same price, I can't see getting the Kobo 2 over the Kindle 3, considering the Kindle's extra features and better e-book store and support from Amazon.

On the other hand, readers who are loyal to Borders, or who want to read library e-books can consider the Kobo 2 against the new Sony E-Readers, and the Kobo compares fairly well against the Sonys, considering the Kobo 2's lower price and Wi-Fi connectivity.

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#  Cost Breakdowns: E-Books vs. Printed Books

Sep 29, 2010

Where is your money going?

I was inspired to write this post by a couple of recent articles lamenting how the e-book revolution is making things tougher on authors: a  WSJ article about the plight of authors, and a  Futurebook description of a panel discussion about the future of books. My first thought was that the e-book revolution has increased my sales and income almost a thousandfold (OK, so it wasn't very high to begin with!), and that the lower costs of e-books, the worldwide digital distribution they afford me, and the ability to reach readers without going through layers of middlemen (publishers and agents) has allowed me to price my e-books competitively and sell more books in a month than I used to in a decade. How can this be bad?

My second thought was that the two articles I read, and the dire predictions and "woe-is-me" lamenting therein, were mostly coming from those same middlemen: publishers and agents.

Let's start off with some facts about where your money goes when you purchase a print book or an e-book:

  * **Hardcover:** These books retail for around $25, yet cost about 1/10th that amount -- about $2.50 to print.

  * **Trade Paperback:** Retail for about $14, cost about $1.

  * **Mass-Market Paperback:** Retail about $8, cost about $0.75.

  * **E-Books:** Retail anywhere from $0.99 to $14.99, but most new releases from large publishers are $12.99. No printing costs, although they share the editing, cover design, and other costs of print books, and do have some formatting costs as well.

One interesting thing is that, as customers have clamored for lower e-book prices -- rightfully claiming that there are no printing, shipping, or returns costs for publishers to account for -- publishers have claimed these costs are only a small fraction of the cost of a print book (about 10%). Now, I think they've underestimated the costs of shipping and warehousing books, and the tremendous cost of accepting returns (for full credit) of unsold books by bookstores -- sometimes paying for return shipping, sometimes having the books simply destroyed, and other times selling them in bargain bins for a fraction of the cover price. But I've seen enough data to convince me that the _printing_ costs of a book are roughly in the ranges I spelled out above, when printed in large offset print runs.

One thing that jumps out at me is that hardcovers only cost a buck or two more than paperbacks, but can sell for $10 or $20 more. When Macmillan's CEO John Sargent laments that "the value proposition goes ever downward when on screen... the perceived value decreases without a physical object," I think what he's really saying is that publishers can't rip readers off for paper any more. I don't think most readers understand that the extra $17 they pay for a hardcover is only $2 for the extra cost of the physical object (the paper and cover) and $15 as a "you want it first, you pay way more" tax. In other words, publishers were successfully able to charge triple the cost of a paperback for the hardcover version by combining the "it's new, so it costs more" and the "look at how much nicer and more durable the hardcover book is" costs -- without people realizing that the vast majority of the extra cost was the former, and the nicer paper and stiff cover was only a small fraction. With e-books, such intermingling is impossible, since the format of the book doesn't change -- not only are you getting the same words, but there's no longer a different physical format to throw you off. And I think customers have said, "OK, I don't mind paying a few bucks extra when a book is new, but there's no way I'm paying _that_ much more."

Since I believe most readers overestimate printing costs, a related effect is that, once readers understand that printing costs of an e-book are zero, publishers can no longer exploit that lack of knowledge. Instead of being able to combine "new book tax" with "nicer, more expensive to print hardcover" costs, readers now understand there are no print costs with e-books, and can see the new book tax for what it is. Unfortunately for publishers, their industry had evolved to the point that the huge profits of hardcovers were what had kept them afloat.

So, let's break down where your money goes a little more closely, shall we?

Your typical **hardcover book** costs around $25. The retailer (Barnes & Noble or Borders) typically pays the publisher about half the list price, so the publisher gets $12.50 (assuming the book sells, otherwise the bookstore sends it back!). Of that $12.50, it costs $2.50 to actually print the book, and the author gets a 15% royalty, which is $4.20. That leaves $5.80 to the publisher, from which they have to pay for their editors, proofreaders, cover designers, print layout people, CEOs, lawyers, advertising, and rent for big offices in New York City. Whatever is left over, is profit.

The numbers for a **mass-market paperback** book that sells for $8 would include about 75 cents for printing, an 8% royalty to the author (64 cents), and the same 50% ($4) to the retailer. That means the publisher is left with $2.61 for all their costs and profit.

**E-Books** used to be sold under a similar model: publishers priced them the same as hardcovers (!!!), retailers paid 50% of that price to the publishers, and then sold them for whatever they wished (list price, or some discount from list price, like how Amazon sold e-books at a loss for $9.99). Publishers insisted on the agency model, where the _publishers_ set the sales price (not the retail price), and get 70% of the proceeds. Under this model, a $12.99 e-book garners 30% to the retailer (like Amazon or B&N.com), 70% ($9.09) to the publisher, and an author royalty of 25% of the publisher's net proceeds (instead of the cover price), which works out to 17.5% of the cover price, or $2.27 in our example. Since the publisher has no print costs, you subtract the $2.27 due to the author from their $9.09, and the publisher is left with $6.82.

To recap, a hardcover nets the publisher $5.80 (or 23.2% of the cover price), a paperback $2.61 (32.6%), and an e-book $6.82 (52.5%).

Wait, and publishers are complaining about e-books? They just found a way to earn more money on each $13 e-book than they used to make on a $25 hardcover. The _percentage_ of your money they're ending up with has more than _doubled_ in the e-book world -- and that's the really important number, because don't you think they can sell a lot more e-books for $13 than hardcovers for double that price?

And what about the author? Well, I may be biased, but it seems to me the author isn't getting all he deserves here on e-book sales. First of all, publishers justify giving authors only 8-15% royalties in the print world because publishing a novel includes a lot of financial risk: to get those low per-book printing costs requires large print runs, and that involves up-front capital and the risk of paying for a bunch of books that never sell or get returned. There are also costs of storing and shipping all those books (along with the costs of editing and preparing the book), almost all of which occur before the first sale is made -- and the publisher doesn't even get paid for print sales until a month or two later! On the other hand, with e-books, there will be some editing and preparation costs, but there are NO printing costs or other huge up-front outlay of money for shipping or warehousing. There's no way to lose money by printing more books than you sell, and publishers get paid much quicker on e-books as well. It seems to me that if publishers deserve the lion's share of the revenue from books because of all their up-front financial risk, then the corollary is also true, and they don't deserve as much if their financial risk is lower, as it clearly is with e-books. Instead of doing editing and cover design work, printing tens or hundreds of thousands of copies, and using their vast distribution, storage, and shipping network to get their books into thousands of bookstores across the country (and thus earning their share), publishers are now just doing the same editing and cover design work and a relatively-painless e-book conversion and upload process, and are taking 75% of the proceeds.

Now, I've done a lot of proofreading and editing, and designed my covers, formatted my e-books, and uploaded them to Amazon and elsewhere. And it takes a good deal of time and effort \-- but it does NOT take 3x as long as writing the book in the first place! For a large publisher especially, the formatting effort should be minimal -- I know my third book took a lot less time to format than my first once I got the hang of it. More importantly, these jobs don't require huge publishers with lots of money: authors can hire editors and cover designers by the hour or for flat rates, without giving up the majority of their books' revenue forever!

I find it interesting when literary agent Simon Lipskar chides readers that they "should feel guilty if they buy a Kindle edition versus a hardcover, but not versus a paperback, in terms of what the author gets." Whoa. Who determines how much the author gets? Right, the publishers. And, besides, even at 17.5% of gross, an author's e-book take is still better than their hardcover take, let alone the measly 8% they get from paperback sales. (Of course, for an independent author like myself, I get the full 70% of e-book revenue after Amazon takes its 30%, so I have no complaints -- I can charge readers much less for an e-book and still make a higher royalty than on a paperback, which is a win-win in my book.)

The bottom line is, e-books not only cost a lot less to produce (no printing costs, shipping, warehousing, or returns), but also require far less up-front investment and risk. Since those are costs and risks borne by publishers in the print world (and they are compensated for it), it only makes sense that removing those costs and risks should reduce the cut publishers are fairly entitled to take. Instead, publishers want the best of both worlds: reduced costs and risks, _and_ they want to keep more of the purchase price for themselves.

Now, I do understand the publishers' current dilemma: they're caught between the new economic realities of e-books and their old business models, and 92% of book sales are still print. So, they may need to do a lot of painful downsizing and re-organizing, but they can't do it all just yet and abandon their print sales model. But what frustrates me is that publishers aren't telling us this, they're not saying, "This is a tough transition time and we need to do certain things for the next few years and then here's how we see things shaking out." They're not offering authors 17.5% of e-book royalties for the first 5 years, to increase to double that once e-book sales overtake print, or whatever. They're not moving forward with their transition plan, they're just trying to protect the status quo by fighting e-book adoption. And, like lots of businesses, it seems they're more interested in protecting their own short-term profits and salaries and bonuses than in working on a long-term, sustainable business plan that's fair to readers, authors, and publishers in the new digital world.

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#  Barnes & Noble PubIt Self-Publishing Now Live

Oct 3, 2010

Barnes & Noble's **PubIt** self-publishing platform just went live over the weekend (I don't know if October 1 still counts as "summer" -- maybe here in South Florida it does?) and  my e-books are now live on B&N.com. It's a very exciting development, as B&N now matches Amazon and allows authors to bypass gatekeepers, publishers, and even intermediaries like Smashwords: authors can upload their own e-book files for sale on B&N.com. Since Amazon is the clear #1 e-book seller and B&N is solidly in the #2 position, this allows indie authors to reach the vast majority of the market directly.

**How It Works:** Authors or copyright holders can upload e-books in various formats, although it's best to upload in the Nook's native ePub format, so B&N doesn't need to do the conversion for you. I believe you can also upload in HTML or text, but your results may vary. You upload your file and a cover image (in JPG format), enter your info (title, author name, book categories, etc.), and enter your book's description, editorial reviews, and an "about the author" blurb. Once you submit, your title will go live on B&N.com (it took about 12 hours for my title to show up, but 2 days for the cover art to appear).

There are several advantages to uploading directly with B&N (over having your e-books distributed there by Smashwords):

  * More control over the final format: I can improve the quality of the reader's experience since I can upload the finished ePub file and know it looks perfect, with a working table of contents, etc.

  * More control over the categories the books appear in, their descriptions, etc.

  * Quicker speed of updating: Smashwords would take anywhere from a couple weeks to several months to update prices or an e-book file on B&N; now, if I need to fix a typo or change a price, I can upload it and the new version should be live in a day or two.

  * Higher royalties! :) B&N pays a very respectable 65%.*

  * Instant sales reporting: I can't tell you how useful this is (to see the results of marketing efforts, etc.) compared to waiting for several months to find out sales data. It's also great for us obsessive author-types who check sales 10 times a day! ;-)

  * B&N's "LendMe" feature is enabled, so users can loan the book to friends (once per book, for 14 days).

  * No DRM! I was able to opt-out of DRM (copy protection), which can cause problems for consumers; now users can backup their e-book files on their computer or convert them to a new format if they get a Kindle or whatever.

* Note that Amazon pays 70%; however, Amazon takes off a small fee based on the e-book's file size and only pays 35% on foreign sales, so the true average rate is closer to 60%.

I'm very excited by this development: it provides a better experience to readers (a better-formatted e-book file, quicker updates and fixes, LendMe, and no DRM), and is better for me as well (instant sales reporting, more control and quicker updates, and higher royalties). I love win-win scenarios like that.

Also in the plus column: my ratings and the great reviews that I was fortunate enough to receive on B&N transferred over to the new versions as well. A HUGE **thank you** to all my readers who have rated or reviewed the books on either B&N or Amazon: it really does help me out more than you'd probably expect, and I do appreciate it greatly.

The only negative so far is that my sales ranking hasn't transferred over, and that I now have two versions of my e-books up on B&N. I've requested they be removed by Smashwords, but I don't know how long it will take for them to actually come down from B&N.com (see what I mean about being frustrated by how long it takes to update things?). But the new versions are up and ready to go -- you can find them at the B&N links below. Each are in ePub format, costs just $2.99, and can be instantly downloaded to your Nook or B&N Reader app for your computer or iPhone/iPad:

  *  Right Ascension

  *  Declination

  *  The Twiller

**WOW!** Before I even finished typing this post, I just checked my B&N sales and see a couple of sales showing up already! To my mystery shopper: THANK YOU, and I hope you enjoy the novels! Please come by and let me know what you think when you're done!

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#  Kaimuki Middle School Presentation

Oct 4, 2010

My presentation at Kaimuki Middle School

Last month, while visiting Hawaii, one of my wife's friends asked me to come in to Kaimuki Middle School in Honolulu, Hawaii, to talk to the gifted & talented Language Arts class there. She wanted me to speak about writing and what it's like to be an author. At first, I was nervous, and wasn't quite sure what to say, or if I'd have enough to talk about, or if anyone would ask any questions. Well, I shouldn't have been concerned: the class was very receptive, asked a number of very intelligent and perceptive questions, and I think the 45-minute presentation went very well.

Mrs. Hansen (in the photo above) welcomed me to her classroom, and the children gave me the nice lei you can see around my neck in the photo. She had read parts of my newest (and most young adult-friendly) novel, The Twiller, to the class, and they seemed to like the chapters that took place on the exotic planet of "Huh? Why E?"

While I was worried that I wouldn't have enough to talk about, the time really flew by -- which is odd, since I remember sitting as a student in many classrooms and feeling like the class period would _never_ end! So, before I knew it, half of the period had gone by, and I asked the students if they had any questions.

Not only were the students very eager and inquisitive in asking a number of questions, but many of the questions were very intelligent and insightful. My favorite was probably: "If you enjoy writing so much, why did you go to law school and become a lawyer?" -- which is a difficult question to answer! Students also asked me about the title of my first novel (Right Ascension), how I designed the covers of my novels (which led to discussion of the Hubble Space Telescope and the observatory on Mauna Kea, Hawaii), about the writing process, how I came up with my characters, and plenty of other excellent questions. I was very impressed by how intelligent, mature, curious, and eager the students were -- I had to remind myself that they were only in middle school!

I definitely got a lot out of the presentation, and I hope the students did as well. Several students expressed interest in reading and writing, and I tried to help fuel their passions by explaining how much enjoyment I've derived from reading and writing in my life. I even got a couple of requests for my next book, including "something with vampires." ;-)

At least one student went home and asked his father to order _The Twiller_ from my website -- so thank you for that, Chance, and I hope you enjoy the book! (Since he ordered express shipping and I was still nearby in Honolulu, I hand-delivered his signed book to him the next day.)

Once I returned home, I was pleasantly surprised to receive 25 hand-written thank-you notes from the students! I am very grateful to each of you for writing me, and it was my pleasure to come by and speak to your class. Several students asked questions in their letters, so I'll try to answer them here:

  * Aileen K.: Keep writing! And, yes, I do all my writing on the computer too.

  * Aileen Z.: You're right, the Twiller does help someone in the book!

  * Quinn: _Could you give me some tips on being a lawyer?_ Let's see, I'd say that you should practice doing research and debating (both written and oral).

  * Alyssa: You're very welcome, and I encourage you to keep expressing yourself through writing.

  * Colin: I'm glad you like "Huh? Why E?"

  * Emily: I hope you enjoy _The Twiller_ , and please thank your aunt for me for buying a copy of _Right Ascension_!

  * Joseph: I will definitely remember my visit to your school!

  * Madeline: I hope my tip about studying your characters before you start writing helps you in your own stories. And I'm glad you liked the covers!

  * Caryssa: I'm overjoyed that anything I said helped inspire you to write and helped you learn how to grab the reader right from the start.

  * Kaycee: I'm glad I was able to motivate you, and I'm sure you can become an author someday, if that's what you put your mind to.

  * Rei: I'm glad you found the event "interesting and fun" instead of boring! Good luck with your singing and dancing career.

  * Nathan: I'm excited to hear that I helped set your brain "alight" and provided a "spark." Great imagery!

  * Leslie: It did take some balancing and time management to write my second novel while I attended law school...

  * Moriah: I'm thrilled to hear that you've already read two of my novels! I'm glad you found them "cool and sci-fi-ish."

  * Joy: _Is it harder to write a series or a single book? What is the glossy coating on your book covers?_ When writing a series, you can use some of the same characters and elements of the same "universe" that you've already created, so in that sense it's easier. But, that challenges you to explore new aspects of the characters and have them grow and develop, and come up with enough new material to keep the story interesting, so that aspect is challenging. As for the book covers, the printer I use does the glossy coating on the covers, and I really like the way they look.

  * Korynn: I'm very glad to help inspire you, and I liked your drawing of my book covers!

  * Hiroyo: Thanks for the idea to write my next book about vampires! I wish I could speak Japanese like you can, but all I know is: nihongoga wakarimasen.

  * Anya: It was my pleasure to meet all of you and answer your questions.

  * Parker: I'm glad you learned about the importance of creating good characters, and I hope that helps your writing.

  * Chance: Thanks again for having your dad buy my book, and I'm glad to hear that you want to write.

  * Jocelyn: I'm happy to hear that some of what I said was useful for your Uncle Phil. I have more info about the electronic publishing process on my blog here.

  * Justin: It can easily take a year to write a 75,000-word novel, but I started out by writing short stories and newspaper articles that took much less time!

  * Raellis: I'm glad you enjoyed the places I used in _The Twiller_ \-- they're mostly the places where I've lived or spent a lot of time (like Fleur Ida, El Leigh, and Huh? Why E?).

  * Kalena: I do enjoy visiting "Huh? Why E?" And I'm sure if you continue to "work hard and think hard," you'll make a great fashion designer.

  * Celine: I've always been fascinated by NASA pictures and astronomy -- you can find a lot of great NASA pictures at their website.

Thanks again to Mrs. Hansen and everyone in the class for the very kind letters and for making my experience in your classroom a great one!

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#  Book Review: His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik

Oct 12, 2010

His Majesty's Dragon, by Naomi Novik.

I recently finished the Kindle edition of His Majesty's Dragon, by Naomi Novik. The book is the first in the _Temeraire Series_ , named after the dragon introduced in the first book. While the series was originally supposed to be a trilogy, I believe it has grown to at least 7 books so far.

The novel takes place in an alternate history universe, in the 19th Century, and centers on the battle between England and Napoleon's French army. As in our own history, the English navy reigns supreme, but the twist in Novik's universe is the existence of dragons: intelligent, powerful, flying creatures that pair up with human riders and form a powerful air force that turns the tides of battles and the course of history.

The book starts out with a naval battle and an English ship captain, and after the battle is concluded, the English captain captures a rare dragon egg headed for France; before they can return to port (where the dragon hatchling could be paired with an appropriate "aviator"), the egg hatches and the dragon chooses Captain Laurence as its human companion. At first, Laurence is despondent (the sailors each had drawn lots for who would be forced to give up their entire lives to live in isolation as a dragon rider), but he quickly comes to realize what an intelligent and extraordinary companion the dragon, which he names Temeraire, is.

The story continues through the growth of Temeraire into a large, powerful, agile, and extraordinarily intelligent dragon. The bond between Laurence and Temeraire quickly becomes unbreakable, and Laurence joins the cadre of aviators and brings Temeraire into battle against Napoleon and the forces of France.

I enjoyed the book very much. Temeraire becomes a fascinating character, and the human-dragon interaction that permeates the book makes for a fascinating "what if?" scenario. The intricacies of dragon combat (including the dragon's chosen captain and a crew of aviators who attach themselves to the dragon's harness and help out in battle) are interesting and well-done. There are numerous types of dragons detailed, each of different size and speed, and some of which have powerful abilities like being able to spit acid or breathe fire. As you can imagine, the dragons are powerful military weapons, and shape the course of the war.

While I enjoyed the book and the main characters (Temeraire and Laurence), I didn't find the story particularly groundbreaking or original. The dragons were as you would expect: intelligent, noble, awe-inspiring creatures, who bond with humans and are capable of human speech (from birth!). Captain Laurence is bold, honorable, and likable, almost to a fault. While he is originally conflicted over leaving his fiancee and naval career, experiencing life with Temeraire quickly (as you would expect) converts Laurence into Temeraire's closest friend and soulmate. I found that aspect of the book a bit predictable -- _of course_ he's going to fall in love with being a dragon rider! Who wouldn't? In fact, that premise (that most of us secretly wish for the splendor and adventure of befriending and riding a dragon) is the whole reason the book is so likable. It's an enjoyable escape and a scenario that's quite a bit of fun to imagine.

The book was well-written, with few or no typos, grammatical issues, or formatting quirks on the Kindle version I read. There was a good combination of action, human drama, and a touch of historical military strategy. The pace of the book was good, as even the "slower" parts (without action or battles) kept my attention as Temeraire grew and matured and the bond between dragon and human grew. Ultimately, the book served as a good escape, a fun diversion, and a peek into the possibility of living among dragons in all their incredible majesty.

Overall, I'd rate the book **8 / 10** , and look forward to reading more in the series. For anyone looking for a solid dragon adventure with a bit of an alternate history / military twist, you will probably enjoy this one quite a bit.

_His Majesty's Dragon_ is currently **$6.39** on the Kindle Store, although I nabbed it when it was free a couple of months ago (presumably, Random House / Del Rey planned to get readers hooked on book 1 so they'd buy the remainder of the series). It currently averages 4.5 stars (out of 5) over 340 Amazon reviews, which is excellent. One note: the publisher blocks the text-to-speech feature, although they do not currently support the agency pricing model.

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#  Enhanced E-Books? Do Books Need Video?

Oct 14, 2010

Enchanced E-Books Combine Print and Video

A hot-button topic in the e-book world is the idea of **enhanced e-books** , books that combine text with pictures, hyperlinks, and videos. Certainly, this would be similar to the Internet, where people routinely read articles with a video embedded at the top, photos in the middle, and hyperlinks throughout to other articles or information. But is that what readers want in a book?

I think there are certain areas where enhanced e-books might make sense: educational reference books or textbooks, with diagrams or videos of the subject matter; cookbooks, with videos showing how to cook the dish and links to buy ingredients or cookware; or history books that include photos or videos of famous events. But what about for fiction?

Publishers seem interested in bringing "enhancements" to fiction books, by adding videos of author interviews, links to online content, photos, or other "bonus material." I think publishers are seeking to create "special edition" e-books that they can sell for more money to replace their hardcover business model.

But is that what readers want in their fiction e-books? I, for one, am not really interested, especially if those bonus features (which will cost something to create) are used to justify hardcover-like e-book prices of $20 to $25. I read books for their words, and don't want videos interrupting my reading. If I liked an author enough to want to see extra content and interviews, I'd just hop over to their website, where I'd expect to find photos and that sort of thing for free.

It reminds me of the "CD-ROM" craze of the 1990s, when publishers spent a lot of effort and money trying to bring enhanced versions of books and bring bonus video and features to games, music, and other products. It turned out that customers didn't really want those enhancements, at least not enough to pay extra for them.

This discussion also highlights the current state of technology in e-book readers and highlights the differences between black and white e-Ink (that's easy on the eyes) and color LCD screens (that can show video and such), and the difference between a Kindle and a tablet computer like the iPad. Kindles are really just focused on displaying text: they can't show color photos or videos, and, while they can connect to the Internet, it's not a great experience. The iPad, on the other hand, seems designed for interactive, enhanced e-books, as it can play video, show color photos, and easily link to the Internet. For enhanced e-books, something like the iPad would be the way to go. But is that what we need for the majority of fiction novels?

I suppose I can see some places where "enhancements" might arguably be useful. A nice photo of a map in a fantasy novel, for example (although Kindles handle black-and-white photos just fine). Links back to the author's website or Amazon to buy the next book in a series (which the Kindle also handles OK). What about links peppered throughout the book? What if a character's name were hyperlinked to a web page about them, with photos, a description, maybe even other short stories about them? What if that info wasn't online, but was embedded directly in the book (maybe a new window pops up, and you go back to your book when you're done)? Would that be useful, or just distracting?

Certainly, I don't want to fall into the trap of thinking that just because books exist a certain way today, that's the best possible way for them to exist. Those enhancements didn't exist before because technology didn't permit them, not necessarily because they were a bad idea or unwanted by readers. For example, we didn't have e-books before, but I enjoy their added convenience, cost savings, and features. Would the same be true of videos and links and other e-book enhancements?

I tend to think not. The difference is that e-books still allow readers to immerse themselves in the author's _words_ , which, to me, is the essential part of the book-reading experience. I was never swayed by the argument that the physical object is what's important, and I never "missed" the smell of glue or the "feel" of paper. My Kindle gives me the same words, but in any font size I want, with a built-in dictionary, and I can get new books in 60 seconds, save money, and carry an entire library with me. And there aren't any extraneous distractions like movies, animations, or Facebook alerts. Enhanced e-books would interrupt the reading experience that I enjoy -- the act of getting lost in a world of imagination based only on _words_ \-- and that's not something I'm interested in.

But what do you think? Are you interested in seeing videos and links in your fiction e-books? Do you want extra "bonus features," even realizing that they're not free and would increase the cost of e-books? Would you find an embedded video or link to extra content useful, or distracting? Please let me know your thoughts in the comments, below....

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# August 2010 E-Book Sales: $39M

Oct 15, 2010

August 2010 E-Book Sales Still Strong, Cool Slightly to $39M.

The latest e-book sales figures are in (see previous posts and analysis here), and e-book sales have pretty much continued their strong performance from July. They cooled off just slightly, totaling **$39.0 million in revenue in August 2010** , compared to the record $40.8M in July. That performance still puts e-book sales well above their pace from the first half of the year, and considerably above last year's figures. For comparison, e-book sales for the first 8 months of 2010 total $263M,* compared to $165.8M for _all_ of 2009, or $89.8M for the first 8 months of 2009 only -- an increase of 193% year-to-date. August 2010's numbers are an increase of 172.4% from August 2009.

* The AAP's numbers don't quite add up, as I've been tracking them each month (see below), and their monthly totals only add up to $255.6M. Perhaps they're now including some late-reported sales stats or something. (Sorry, I like for math to add up precisely!)

Another interesting stat: **e-book sales now constitute just over 9.0% of all consumer book sales** : $263M for 2010 year-to-date, compared to $2.91 billion in trade printed book sales. This is up slightly from May of this year, when the AAP reported that e-books comprised nearly 8.5% of total consumer book sales. And it's up dramatically from 2009, when e-books were at about 3.3%.

E-Books' percentage of the overall book market increased from a small fraction, to 1.19% in 2008, 3.31% in 2009, and 9.03% in 2010. It has more than doubled now for 3 years in a row.

One last tidbit: August's $39.0M figure for e-book sales is over 71% as large as the $54.9M of mass-market paperbacks for the month. E-books are up 172.4% from last August, while mass-market paperbacks are _down_ 21.9% from August of last year. Any guesses which figure will be larger in August of 2011? Or maybe even by December of this year?

For review, the monthly sales figures so far this year:

  * Jan 2010: $31.9 M

  * Feb 2010: $28.9 M

  * Mar 2010: $28.5 M

  * Apr 2010: $27.4 M

  * May 2010: $29.3 M

  * June 2010: $29.8 M

  * July 2010: $40.8 M

  * Aug 2010: $39.0 M

After a great start in January, but little growth for the first half of the year, Q3 2010 is on pace to jump a staggering 38.4% over Q2 2010's numbers (38.4% quarterly growth over 4 quarters would equate to 267% yearly growth). I am tempted to attribute the strong August numbers to the debut of Amazon's Kindle 3, but it wasn't announced until July 28 and didn't ship until August, so I didn't see how it could account for July's strong numbers. But _something_ seems to have given e-books a huge shot in the arm this summer, and the strong sales numbers have continued for a second straight month...

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#  Amazon Says Agency Pricing Costing Publishers Sales

Oct 15, 2010

Amazon UK today made an  announcement on its UK forums, apologizing to customers for higher prices by some publishers, who have insisted upon an "agency" pricing model. Under the agency model (described in further detail here), publishers set the final sale price of an e-book, and the retailer (like Amazon, B&N, or Apple) collects a cut, usually 30%. Under the retail model, which print books are all sold under and some e-books are still sold under, the publisher sets a "list price," charges the retailer some percentage of that price (usually around 50%), and the retailer is then free to sell the book for the price they choose: at the list price, at some discount, even at a loss if they want.

When switching to the agency model, publishers almost universally raised prices on e-books across the board: Amazon had sold new releases at $9.99 (often taking a loss, paying publishers about $13 for e-books with a $26 "list price"), and backlist (older) titles around $6.39. Those prices have increased to about $12.99 and $7.99, respectively, increases of around 30%. (Note: 5 of the 6 largest publishers in the U.S., with the exception of Random House, embraced the agency model when Apple's iBook Store opened in April as a way to break Amazon's dominance of the e-book market).

Was this just a business decision to maximize revenue? A campaign to humble Amazon, as publishers were fearful it was gaining too much power in the book-selling (especially the e-book-selling) world? Or a way to slow down the adoption of e-books and keep people buying printed books, which is, after all, what large print publishers are best at? I'll let you decide.

In any event, how did the agency model work out for publishers? According to Amazon, not so well:

Unsurprisingly, when prices went up on agency-priced books, sales immediately shifted away from agency publishers and towards the rest of our store. In fact, since agency prices went into effect on some e-books in the US, unit sales of books priced under the agency model have slowed to nearly half the rate of growth of the rest of Kindle book sales. This is a significant difference, as the growth of the total Kindle business has been substantial - up to the end of September, we've sold more than three times as many Kindle books in 2010 as we did up to the end of September in 2009. And in the US, Kindle editions now outsell hardcover editions, even while our hardcover business is growing.

So, the **growth of agency model books are less than half the growth of non-agency-model books**. (Since e-books are growing so rapidly, an outright decrease in sales would be a true disaster -- imagine two boats on a fast-moving river, one going with the current, and the other fighting it and being dragged more slowly along.) While some have hypothesized that publishers are intentionally shifting those sales away from Amazon and to Apple, I have serious doubts that many Kindle users are willing to buy a $499 iPad and change their reading preferences if they consider a book overpriced on Amazon -- just to read the book for the same price on the iPad's eyestrain-inducing LCD screen. No, I think they just find another book to buy instead. And, as the most recent sales figures show, e-book sales took a dip when the agency model was announced, but continue to show strong growth since then. So Amazon Kindle readers are buying e-books, just not as many e-books from agency model publishers as they used to.

Will this mean the upcoming end of the agency model? Do large print publishers even care if their e-book sales decrease, or only what happens to their print sales, which are still 91% of their total sales? (Note: August 2010 hardcover print sales are down 24.4% from August 2009, trade paperback sales are down 18.3%, and mass-market paperback sales are down 21.9%; so much for "protecting print sales.") I think what publishers miss is that, once a reader switches to an e-book reader, they prefer the e-reading experience strongly enough to pretty much stop buying printed books (I know I've stopped buying print books, and a quick perusal of the Amazon forums will assure you I'm not alone). Further, they're pretty much only going to buy e-books from the e-book store associated with their device -- it's just too convenient to get Amazon e-books on a Kindle in 60 seconds, not have to break DRM or convert files, have your e-books backed up for you, Amazon syncs your place in your books across reading devices, and Amazon already has Kindle users' credit card info. Once a user buys a Kindle, the vast majority would never even consider the iBook Store, or any other e-book retailer. Why, when Amazon has the largest selection, all the benefits I described above, and the agency model ironically guarantees that, while Amazon can't beat other retailers on price, neither can anyone else offer e-books cheaper anywhere else?

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# Kindle Apps and Games

Oct 18, 2010

Scrabble for the Kindle.

While it's no secret that Apple's iPad is generally better for games than the Kindle (due to its color LCD screen), Amazon has recently released a number of  Kindle Games & Apps and leveled the playing field a bit. The games I've tried have been surprisingly good -- even limited by the slow refresh rate and black-and-white nature of the Kindle's e-Ink screen -- and have proven fun and surprisingly addictive!

So far, most of the Kindle games are word games or "thinking" games of some sort: Scrabble, Sudoku, and strategy games, for example. These games usually work on the Kindle 2, Kindle 3, or Kindle DX models -- sorry, Kindle 1 users, it seems you're out of luck here. Please do check the requirements before buying one of these games.

Amazon earlier this year announced an upcoming "App Store," which would allow programmers and developers to create their own Kindle applications and games (similar to Apple's App Store). So far, however, we've only seen a trickle of games released by Amazon itself or a couple of big names, like Electronic Arts. Presumably, sometime soon the floodgates will open and anyone can write an app for the Kindle -- and not just games, but also perhaps productivity apps (calendars, to-do lists, etc.), RSS readers, custom screensavers, weather apps, etc.

The good news so far is that several of the already-released apps are completely free -- and I'd recommend you give them a try. I've played Shuffled Row and Every Word -- both Scrabble-like word games -- and both are excellent. After a couple of games, they quickly became pretty addicting, as I tried to beat my high score. Playing them felt more "Kindle-like" than your average game: while they were both fun, they also have a solid educational, vocabulary-building element. And the performance on my K2 is great -- there's obviously no color, but the graphics are well-done and there aren't any issues with the animation speed. The Kindle's full physical keyboard comes in very handy here.

There are a few paid apps too, including Solitaire (a compilation of 12 solitaire card games), Scrabble, and Sudoku by Electronic Arts. Each of the Kindle games is highly placed on the Kindle best-seller lists: Solitaire is #1 on the list of paid Kindle books (yes, the apps are mixed in with e-books), and Mine Sweeper is #1 on the free list.

There should be something on this list for everyone:

  *  EA Solitaire (12 card games): $3.99, rated 4.5 stars on 11 reviews

  *  Triple Town by Spry Fox (a board/strategy game): $2.99, rated 5 stars on 13 reviews

  *  Panda Poet by Spry Fox (a word game): $2.99, no reviews yet

  * Scrabble by EA (the word game): $4.99, rated 3.5 stars on 57 reviews

  *  EA Sudoku (grid numbers game): $3.99, rated 4 stars on 5 reviews

  *  Mine Sweeper (popular computer tile game): FREE, rated 3.5 stars on 7 reviews

  *  Every Word (letter-rearranging word game): FREE, rated 4 stars on 114 reviews

  *  Shuffled Row (fast-paced word game): FREE, rated 4 stars on 75 reviews

Good luck, I hope you find something on the list you enjoy. Just remember not to let these games distract you too much from reading! :)

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#  E-Readers At Retail Stores Roundup

Oct 22, 2010

More and more brands of e-book readers are showing up in more and more retail stores (such as Wal-Mart and Target) nationwide. This gives people who may be unfamiliar with e-book readers or the benefits of e-ink a chance to see one hands-on and understand what e-readers are all about. I've posted before about various e-readers becoming available in retail stores, but with the recent news that the Nook and Kobo E-Readers will soon be available at Wal-Mart, I've decided to make a summary post detailing when and where each of the popular e-readers are available. I'll try to update this post with new info as it becomes available. I hope it's useful.

(Links go to posts giving more info on that brand of e-reader. E-readers should be currently available at listed stores unless noted otherwise -- but calling your particular store to double-check might be a good idea.)

  * Kindle (latest versions are Kindle 3 for $189, Kindle 3 Wi-Fi for $139, and Kindle DX 2 for $379)

  1. Direct from Amazon.com

  2. Target

  3. Best Buy

  4. Staples

  * Nook (latest versions are Nook for $199, Nook Wi-Fi for $149, and Nook Color for $249)

  1. B&N bookstores or direct from  Barnes & Noble.com

  2. Wal-Mart

  3. Best Buy

  4. Books-A-Million

  * iPad (latest versions range from $499 for 16 GB Wi-Fi to $829 for 64 GB 3G)

  1. Apple stores or direct from Apple.com

  2. Wal-Mart

  3. Target

  4. Best Buy

  * Sony Reader (latest versions are Pocket for $179, Touch for $229, and Daily for $299)

  1. Sony Style Stores or direct from Sony.com

  2. Wal-Mart

  3. Target

  4. Best Buy

  5. Staples

  6. Office Depot

  * Kobo E-Reader (latest version is Kobo Wireless for $139)

  1. Direct from Kobo.com

  2. Wal-Mart

  3. Borders bookstores

Of note, you can view and compare Kindles, Nooks, iPads, and Sony Readers at Best Buy, making it a good choice for a one-stop shop if you're unsure which one you'd prefer. Most e-book readers are now available in most large retail stores: the notable exceptions being no Kindles at Wal-Mart and no Nooks at Target yet. Please let me know in the comments if I've missed any large retail stores where these e-readers are available.

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# Kindle To Add E-Book Lending

Oct 22, 2010

Amazon matches B&N's Nook, brings e-book lending to the Kindle.

Amazon  announced today that they will bring lending to Kindle e-books "later this year." This is a feature that many users had been clamoring for: after all, they reason, you can lend printed books to whomever you want for as long as you want. With e-books, the process can theoretically be even simpler: instead of arranging to physically meet up with someone (or mail the book back and forth, which might cost more than the book!) or worry about getting your book back, you can just input a user's email address and zip the e-book to them wherever they are. Even better, you could set a time for that e-book to "expire" and it would automatically come back to you -- I'm sure we all have paper books we've lent out and never gotten back!

This is also an important move by Amazon, as it matches the Nook's existing "Lend Me" feature, which enables e-book lending for some Nook titles (if approved by the publisher).

Of course, publishers aren't generally too keen on the idea of unlimited lending, so there are understandably some limitations (which happen to be identical on both the Kindle and Nook): first, once you lend an e-book, you can't read it while it's lent out -- so only one person can read the book at a time. Second, each e-book can only be lent _one time_ , period. Third, the lending period is exactly 14 days, no more, no less.

Even with these limitations (which seem a _bit_ too stringent for my tastes, but some limitations are perfectly understandable), it's a cool and useful feature, and one that negates a previous Nook advantage. One of the reasons I am a fan of all e-book readers (not just my beloved Kindle 2) is that advances in one e-reader's hardware or software capabilities generally trickle down to all e-readers soon enough. So far, the existence of the Nook has at least motivated Amazon to lower Kindle prices and add this lending feature, so that's a win in my book.

One other note on lending: with Amazon's Kindle, you have the option of registering multiple devices to a single account, including multiple Kindles or Kindle DXs, the Kindle for iPad/iPhone app, or Kindle for Mac/PC apps. Most Amazon e-books allow you to read them on up to 6 devices simultaneously (look for the part on the e-book product page where it says "Simultaneous Device Usage," and there will either be a number or "Unlimited"). That means that you can register multiple devices to your Amazon account (including devices used by your family members or friends you trust to be on your account), and e-books you purchase can be read _at the same time_ on your Kindle 3, your wife's Kindle 2, your son's Kindle for Mac program, and your daughter's Kindle for iPhone app (as one example). Even better, the 6-device limit is only a _simultaneous_ limit and is _per e-book_ , so you can read an e-book on your Kindle, and then de-authorize it from that device and authorize it on your 7th device and read it there too. For certain families or close friends, this system is far better than any lending feature, and allows for multiple people to easily share the same e-book purchases, even if they live in different parts of the world. Try doing _that_ with a single copy of a printed book!

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#  Borders Discounts: Kobo E-Reader For $99, More

Oct 25, 2010

Borders sale: $30 off e-readers, free e-books, more.

Through October 31, Borders is aggressively discounting the e-book readers it sells, offering $30 off, 5 free e-books, discounts on accessories, and other perks.

Of note, the Kobo E-Reader is $30 off, and now costs only $99.99 from Borders.com. That's quite a deal for an e-Ink based e-book reader. Of note, it's the older model of Kobo E-Reader, not the new Kobo Wireless E-Reader, which adds Wi-Fi connectivity (the new model is "coming soon" and still $139.99).

The Kobo also comes with 5 free e-books:

A total value of $75, the free eBooks include "Slow Death by Rubber Duck" by Bruce Lourie and Rick Smith; "Soccernomics" by Stefan Szymanski; "Phantom of Pemberley" by Regina Jeffers; "Eye of the Raven: A Mystery of Colonial America" by Eliot Pattison; and "Wingnuts: How the Lunatic Fringe is Hijacking America" by John Avlon.

Borders also offers a free cover with built-in light with the purchase of the Sony Touch or Sony Pocket e-readers. They're also offering 20% off all e-reader accessories (including cases and covers) with the purchase of any device.

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#  Kindle Sales Increasing, Bestselling E-Books Overtake Print On Amazon

Oct 25, 2010

Today's Amazon  press release contains a number of Kindle milestones and sales figures, although Amazon does get a bit cute with the wording:

  * Sales of the "new generation Kindle devices" since their introduction surpassed "total Kindle device sales" for Q4 2009. This has a bit of tricky wording: are they talking just about the Kindle 3, introduced July 28, or the Kindle DX 2 (introduced July 1) as well? Removing the DX from both sides of the equation, this would mean the Kindle 3 sold more in its first 2 months and 28 days (July 28 through today, Oct 25) than the Kindle 2 over the last three months of 2009. True, holiday sales are Amazon's busiest time of the year, but this one isn't as impressive as it first sounds, since we're comparing almost equal time periods and I'd expect a sales bump when a new model is introduced.

  * Over the past 30 days, Amazon sold twice as many Kindle editions of books in the Top 10 on Amazon.com as it did of print books (paperback and hardcover combined). They also sold more e-books than print books for the Top 25, 100, and 1,000 Amazon bestsellers. This statement is also a little clever, and notable because they DON'T just say they sold more e-books than print books over the past month. Clearly, their e-book sales are stronger on their bestselling titles, while print books have a more robust "long tail." Still, it's an impressive statistic that for the Top 1,000 bestselling titles on Amazon, more were sold in electronic form than printed form in the past 30 days.

  * Amazon also notes that they sold more than 3 times as many Kindle e-books in the first 9 months of 2010 than they did for the first 9 months of 2009. An impressive growth rate that pretty much equals (or slightly exceeds) the growth of e-books in general.

  * On a similar note, those same industry e-book sales figures claim that e-book sales increased 193% from January of this year to August of this year, and Amazon says their Kindle e-book sales surpassed that figure (although they don't say by how much).

Overall, solid stats and figures, although I wish Amazon (and Apple, to name another culprit) would be a little more direct with their statistics, instead of couching things in intentionally-confusing language that requires decoding and sounds better than it really is.

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# Nook: Color Me Disappointed

Oct 26, 2010

The Nook Color: not really an e-reader, more like an iPad Lite.

Well, B&N's big announcement today turned out to be as expected (since it was leaked a few days ago): the **Nook Color** , a tablet computer with a 7" LCD touchscreen display. As I've said many times before (also here and here), backlit LCD screens just aren't as good _for reading_ as e-Ink screens: LCD screens cause more eyestrain (for most people), use much more battery power, wash out and are unreadable in sunlight, and even make it harder to fall asleep.

So why use them? Well, LCD screens (like your cell phone, computer monitor, or many TV sets) display color and video, two things the current crop of e-Ink screens can't do yet. That's great for surfing the Internet and watching videos, but for reading books, I'd rather stare at a screen that is easy on my eyes and mimics paper, instead of my TV set.

The  Nook Color, which is $249 and will be available in B&N stores and online at B&N's website starting November 19, promises more interactive e-books (such as cookbooks with color photos and videos), a whole new specialty section for children's interactive e-books, a built-in web browser (using the Wi-Fi wireless connection), and various games and apps, including Sudoku, crossword puzzles, chess, and Pandora Internet radio to start. It will also focus more on color newspapers and magazines. It runs Android 2.1 (to be updated to 2.2), and can view Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint) files. It can also view photos, and play audio and videos. It will supposedly support Flash-based web content in the 2.2 Android update.

But I think it's more important to look at what the Nook Color, by virtue of choosing to go with an LCD screen, does _not_ have:

  * It **costs $249** , compared to $149 for the comparable Nook Wi-Fi or $199 for the Nook with Wi-Fi _and_ 3G.

  * It **does not include 3G wireless** connectivity (which connects to the cell phone network), and can only be connected at Wi-Fi hotspots, like you might find in some homes, offices, and coffee shops.

  * It **weighs 15.8 ounces** , or just about 1 pound. Compare that to the 12 oz weight of the original Nook, the 10 oz weight of the Kindle 2, the 8.5 oz weight of the Kindle 3, or the Sony Pocket at just 5.6 oz. At almost double the weight of its main competitor, the Kindle 3, it's closer to the 24 oz weight of the iPad, which I find too heavy for comfortable reading for any length of time.

  * The battery life, already a weak point for the Nook as compared to the Kindle, **only lasts 8 hours** , even with the wireless off! (So, figure 4-6 hours using Wi-Fi to surf the Internet.) Compare that to the Kindle 3, which lasts for up to a _month_ on a single charge. Do you see why we like e-Ink screens in our e-readers yet?

I'm a bit baffled, to be honest. Compared to the K3, I think it's a disaster. For $139, you could get a Kindle 3 that's much less expensive, easier on the eyes, can be read in sunlight, weighs half as much, and has a battery life measured in weeks instead of hours. For $189, you get all that and throw in free-for-life 3G wireless connectivity to browse and download books almost anywhere -- still $60 less expensive than the Nook Color.

I think a better comparison is to the iPad. For half the price of the $499 iPad, you get a smaller (7" screen vs. 9.7"), lighter (15.8 oz vs. 24 oz) tablet computer with less memory (8 GB vs. 16 GB, but the Nook Color does come with a Micro SD card slot, so this is about a wash). I haven't seen the processor specs of the Nook Color yet, but I'd be surprised if it was as fast as the iPad. It runs the Android operating system instead of Apple's iOS, and some people might prefer that, although Apple still has a strong lead in the number of apps available for its platform.

I'm still a little baffled by the direction B&N is going -- I thought they "got it" and understood what we readers wanted: an inexpensive, light, easy-on-the-eyes non-backlit screen with a battery that lasts forever. Instead, they seem to be chasing the "hype" of color -- something _non-readers_ have been clamoring for, claiming the iPad will "kill" the Kindle for some time now -- even going so far as to make "Color" a large part of the name. It seems to me like they've given up on competing with the K3, and have decided to branch in a different direction instead. Well, time will tell if it's successful, and I hope they at least keep updating the original Nook line (which is now a generation behind the Kindle 3 and is in desperate need of a refresh), so those of us who have no interest in a Nook Color tablet computer can just ignore it. But I was looking for a Nook 2, a worthy competitor to the K3 that would push the e-reader market forward. Instead, we got the iPad Lite. Color this reader disappointed.

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#  Where Can I Read My E-Books? DRM and Format Issues Explained

Nov 6, 2010

Look at all the colors.

One aspect of e-books that can be confusing is the question of which e-books can be read on which e-reader device. E-books from Amazon, B&N, and other vendors can come in different file formats, and Kindles, Nooks, Sony Readers, Kobos, and other e-readers may each read certain e-book formats and not others. It's a mess that's similar to where digital music was 5 or 10 years ago, with various confusing file formats (thankfully, music has pretty much standardized on the MP3 file format now).

**There are three major e-book formats** : PDF, ePub, and MOBI, along with a host of minor ones.

**PDF** is a file format you may already be familiar with; it's not specific to e-books, but was designed by Adobe as a "Portable Document Format" that retains formatting and can be read on many different kinds of computers or other devices. It's useful because PDFs can be read on almost any computer or e-book reader, and because the formatting and any pictures or charts should be well preserved. However, it's not an ideal format for e-books because it doesn't normally allow for re-flowable text: a PDF is like a photograph of a printed book page, so you can't adjust the font size or style.

**ePub** is the closest we have to an industry standard e-book format, as it's used by Barnes & Noble, Sony, Kobo, Apple, and others -- pretty much everyone _other than_ Amazon. ePub is based on HTML, and allows for re-flowable text (so you can increase or decrease the font size, which is an important feature for e-book readers) and other e-book features.

**MOBI** is the other big e-book file format, and may be the most popular of all since it's the format used by Amazon and read by the Kindle -- the most popular e-book platform. MOBI, also called PRC, is quite similar to ePub, as it's also based on HTML and has many of the same features, like re-flowable text. (There's really no advantage or disadvantage to ePub vs. MOBI, they're essentially the same.)

There are a few other minor formats, like LRF (the old Sony Readers used this), PDB (Palm Pilot format), and regular old TXT (plain text) or RTF (rich text) formats -- like you might see on your computer.

While all of that sounds confusing, the part most people don't realize is that _the format doesn't really matter_. There are plenty of free computer programs that will quickly and easily convert one file format to another (my e-book file format conversion / organization program of choice is called Calibre, and it's free). So, if you can convert ePubs to MOBI and PDFs to LRFs, what's the problem? (Sure, it's an extra step and a bit of a hassle, but really not that big of a deal.)

The problem lies in another acronym altogether: **DRM**. DRM stands for Digital Rights Management, and it's a type of copy protection that many publishers and retailers add to e-books in order to prevent piracy (unauthorized copying and distribution). DRM has plenty of plusses and minuses I've discussed before and won't get into right now, but publishers are pretty enamored with it for the moment, so the fact is that most best-selling e-books from most retailers have DRM attached.

When DRM is added to an e-book, it prevents that e-book from being converted from one file format to another. So, if it has DRM, you'd be blocked from converting a MOBI e-book you bought from Amazon to the ePub format to read on a Nook (and vice versa).

Even worse, it also prevents e-books from being read on a different e-book reader -- _even one that reads the same format_! So, while Nooks and Sony eReaders both read the ePub file format, an e-book bought from B&N that has DRM attached can _not_ be read on the Sony eReaders! There are a few exceptions (I believe Sony e-books _can_ currently be read on Nooks but not vice versa), but generally e-books with DRM attached that are bought from one retailer can only be read by that retailer's corresponding e-book device:

  * **Amazon**.com e-book store: **Kindle** e-reader

  * **BarnesandNoble**.com e-book store: **Nook** e-reader

  * **Sony** eReader Store: **Sony** eReaders

  * **Kobo**.com e-book store (also Borders.com): **Kobo** e-reader

  * **Apple** iBook Store (currently only available through iDevices): Apple **iPad** , **iPhone** , & **iPod**

Wait, it gets even better. You can't read a DRMed, ePub-formatted e-book purchased from B&N on your Sony e-reader... even though both e-readers (the Nook and Sony) both read ePub files... and _both use the same type of DRM_ by Adobe. But B&N uses a newer version of the Adobe DRM that the Kobo doesn't support, so you're out of luck. It's madness.

Now, I've probably made clear my stance on DRM (if it's this confusing and restrictive for _legitimate, paying customers_ , I can't be a huge fan of it), but one important thing I hope you get from this article is that it turns out the e-book _format_ isn't really important: it's easy to convert any e-book format to any other e-book format with the right free software. But books with DRM attached -- no matter what format and no matter where you buy them -- can cause issues if you try to read them on a different device than they were originally intended for. That means, for most e-books sold by large publishers, you're stuck in one e-book "ecosystem."*

* Note: Amazon, B&N, and Kobo each make e-reading apps that allow you to read their e-books on various devices, including Macs, PCs, Android phones, and iDevices, so this alleviates the problem somewhat.

There is some good news here. As I said, most best-sellers from large publishers have DRM attached. But there are literally millions of e-books out there without DRM attached -- which means that, no matter what format you find them in, you can easily convert them to any format you need, even years later if you get a new e-book reader. (Of course, since it's so easy, most DRM-free e-books will already come in multiple formats, and you can just pick the one you need anyway.) So, where can you find DRM-free e-books?

  1. Project Gutenberg. They have hundreds of thousands of _public domain_ titles -- books that were written before 1923 and are no longer under copyright. This includes many of the greatest works of literature of all time, including _Pride & Prejudice_, _Sherlock Holmes_ , _The Odyssey_ , _The Count of Monte Cristo_ , all of Shakespeare's works, and many more.

  2. Smashwords. Looking for something a bit more modern? Notice how I said earlier that most books _from large publishers_ have DRM attached. Many smaller publishers and independent authors decide not to attach DRM to their e-books. Smashwords specializes in inexpensive, DRM-free e-books (in multiple formats) from independent authors.

  3. Amazon and  B&N allow independent authors to upload their own e-books for sale -- and they give us the option to use DRM or not. I've chosen to release my books in both places **without DRM** , so you can buy my e-books from Amazon and convert them to read on your Nook or wherever you want. (Hint: if the e-book says "Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited" on Amazon.com, it's DRM-free.)

  4. Directly from authors. I, and several other independent authors, will sell e-books directly through our own websites in multiple formats, with no DRM attached. (A Google search of your favorite indie author's name should pull up their website.) With books bought directly from me, I'll not only send you whatever format you need, but you can always email me down the road if you end up needing another format and don't want to fuss with converting it yourself. ;-)

There are many other places to find legal, DRM-free e-books (both free public domain books and paid newer releases), these are just a few to get you started. Of course, if you're sure you're going to stick with one e-book / e-reader "ecosystem" (maybe you love Amazon and your Kindle and plan to stay with them forever), then DRM might not matter to you. But hopefully you're now more aware of the interaction between e-book file formats and DRM, and what you can and can't do with the e-books you purchase.

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#  Red Adept Reviews Eulogy Contest

Nov 8, 2010

Hi all, just a quick plea asking you to take a quick detour to the Red Adept Eulogy Contest to vote on this week's entries (I am _slightly_ partial to **Entry #5!** ). ;-)

Voting is free and quick (no registration or anything), and the eulogies are pretty entertaining. You can read the entries (and read about the Twiller's tragic accident) and vote here:

Please Vote For The Twiller Here!

This contest is pretty important, since the winner gets some great advertising on Red Adept's very popular book review blog.

I'm currently in second place, so I can definitely use your help! Voting ends this Sunday, November 14.

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#  Amazon Kindle Store Surpasses 750,000 E-Book Titles

Nov 10, 2010

I guess the above headline kinda says it all, but Amazon just surpassed three quarters of a million e-book titles available for purchase on the Amazon Kindle store -- up to 750,814 as of today. (This is in addition to the millions of free public domain e-books available at Project Gutenberg and other places that can be read on a Kindle or any other e-book reader.) Amazon has the most in-copyright, new release, and best-selling e-book titles available (compare it to the Apple iBook store, which only boasts 30,000 paid titles). And they've steadily added to their total, more than doubling the number of titles since a year ago -- adding about 1,000 titles a day. Check out this handy list, courtesy of the excellent I Love My Kindle Blog:

November 1, 2010: 743,692  
October 1, 2010: 714,663  
September 1, 2010: 687,246  
August 1, 2010: 659,479  
July 1, 2010: 627,343  
June 1, 2010: 596,300  
May 1, 2010: 509,229  
April 1, 2010: 476,653  
March 1, 2010: 450,625  
February 1, 2010: 415,100  
January 1, 2010: 401,773  
December 1, 2009: 385,484  
November 1, 2009: 368,813  
October 1, 2009: 342,865  
September 21, 2009: 355,805  
July 28, 2009: 332,813  
May 16, 2009: 284,491

Bottom line: sure, some e-book titles still aren't available (like the _Harry Potter_ series), but I'm never short of something to read on my Kindle.

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# Hands-On With The Kindle 3

Nov 10, 2010

The smaller, graphite K3 next to the white K2

I got my first chance to see a Kindle 3 in person yesterday at Target, and I have to say I was impressed. Even though I've talked about the K3 before, and pointed out how it's 21% smaller and 15% lighter than the K2 that I own, seeing (and feeling) it felt like a bigger difference than the numbers indicate. The K2 is already thinner and lighter than most paperback books (at 10.2 ounces), but the K3 felt feather-light and paper-thin in comparison. Weighing in at only 8.7 ounces (8.5 ounces for the Wi-Fi-only model) and less than 1/3rd of an inch thick, the K3 really felt absurdly easy to carry around and read one-handed. Yet, it still felt solid, not flimsy at all, just the right weight to feel sturdy but not heavy. The rubberized back had a nice feel to it as well.

The other thing I was impressed with was the new page turn buttons and 5-way controller. Some people have complained about the thinner page turn buttons on each side of the K3, and how they depress toward the edge of the device. But I thought they felt great: quiet, just the right amount of resistance, and easy to press while holding it one-handed. Similarly, I was concerned about the new controller pad, which replaces the little 5-way joystick knob on the K2 -- the K3's control pad has 4 directional buttons surrounding a center button, and it looks like you could accidentally press one when you meant to hit the other. But I found that not to be the case, and I never accidentally hit the wrong button or any of the adjacent buttons. In fact, in my limited testing, it felt a little better than the K2's joystick, which can (rarely) be accidentally pressed in when you mean to move it in one of the 4 directions.

Unfortunately, the units at Target are just demo units that aren't fully functional, so I couldn't play around with the functionality much or read on it or comment too much on the new e-Ink Pearl screen. Next time, I'll bring my K2 to compare side-by-side.

The only downside: it made me want a K3 again, after I had _nearly_ convinced myself that I'm fine with my perfectly-functioning K2. :)

UPDATE: I visited a different Target and, after resetting the frozen demo Kindle by holding the bottom slider to the right for several seconds, it went into a demo mode where it cycled through 10-15 different screens of info. It also invited me to "Press any button to stop demo," after which it takes you to the home screen and lets you select and start reading some books, adjust the font size, and generally play around with it. That's a big improvement from the un-interruptable demo cycle of the K2. Oh, the e-Ink Pearl screen looked very impressive: I still need to bring my K2 for a side-by-side comparison, but the improvement in sharpness and contrast seemed significant.

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#  September E-Book Sales Stats: $39.9M

Nov 11, 2010

September 2010 E-Book Sales Stay Strong at $39.9M.

The September industry e-book sales statistics are in, and sales have remained strong, coming in very close to July and August's strong figures. Sales increased a bit from the previous month, hitting $39,900,000 in September 2010. This is down slightly from the record $40.8M sales of July 2010, but well above the pace from the first two quarters of this year.

These numbers constitute a 158.1% increase over last September, and year-to-date e-book sales are up 188.4%. This, amidst print book sales declining 12.1% from last year.

For review, the monthly sales figures so far this year:

  * Jan 2010: $31.9 M

  * Feb 2010: $28.9 M

  * Mar 2010: $28.5 M

  * Apr 2010: $27.4 M

  * May 2010: $29.3 M

  * June 2010: $29.8 M

  * July 2010: $40.8 M

  * Aug 2010: $39.0 M

  * Sep 2010: $39.9 M

Q3 2010 Sales Up 38.4% Over Q2 2010, Up 157.4% over Q3 2009.

After averaging $28,833,333 in sales for April, May, and June, e-book sales have now averaged $39,900,000 for July, August, and September, a 38.4% increase in just 3 months' time. The $119,700,000 Q3 2010 total easily surpasses the previous record of $89,300,000 in Q1 2010, and it puts e-books on pace to be nearly a half-a-billion-dollar per year industry.

Of note: Q2 2010 marked the only decrease in quarterly e-book sales in at least the past 3 years. Back then, I wondered if the Q2 dip was caused by agency model pricing, and predicted it would be merely a "one-time dip" on an overall upward trajectory. My predictions were confirmed, and then re-confirmed by Amazon. Will it be enough data to convince publishers to abandon the agency model? Or are they _hoping_ to slow the ascension of e-books to protect the printed book as long as they can?

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# Texas Hold 'Em on the Kindle

Nov 13, 2010

Texas Hold 'Em comes to the Kindle.

I thought this was interesting enough to merit a quick post: Electronic Arts has released a Texas Hold 'Em poker game for the Kindle. It's available for download now for $3.99.

I've posted before about Kindle apps, but what makes this one so interesting is that it's one of the few Kindle apps available so far that's not a word game or strategy game -- previous games included Scrabble,  Every Word, and  Sudoku, although EA also released a  Solitaire card game last month.

Texas Hold 'Em is obviously a hugely popular game, so I think a lot of people would be interested in this. It makes me wonder what else we'll see on the Kindle, and if it will soon become a full-featured game machine that will get more and more cool apps. I was wondering if Amazon intended to keep the apps and games reading-related, or at least "cerebral." Well, poker can certainly be cerebral, but this seems like more of a "mainstream" game than Amazon's first two app offerings, which were both word games that really seemed to "fit" the idea of a Kindle.

Texas Hold 'Em on the Kindle 3.

Of course, the types of games and apps are limited by the Kindle's black & white e-Ink screen, but I've been impressed so far by each of the Kindle games I've seen -- the screen wasn't a hindrance, and the games were easy to play (the Kindle's full keyboard helps).

Anyway, we'll see if this starts a trend toward more "casual" or "mainstream" Kindle games. And I'm also keeping my eyes peeled for apps -- weather, note pads, a thesaurus or translation app, etc. Kinda cool that this capability didn't exist when I got my K2, so it's really come as a bonus (although, sadly, these apps don't work on the older K1).

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# Give Kindle E-Books As Gifts

Nov 19, 2010

Kindle e-books can now be given as gifts.

I've been waiting for this one for a while: you can now buy Kindle e-books and give them to friends as gifts through Amazon's Kindle store. The process seems pretty easy:

  1. Choose from 1 of over 750,000 e-books available through Amazon's Kindle Store

  2. Click the "Give as a Gift" button in the upper right of the screen

  3. Provide your friend's email address so he/she can collect their gift

What's cool is that your friend doesn't even have to have a Kindle -- they can download one of the free Kindle Apps (for Mac, PC, iPhone/iPad, Blackberry, or Android) to read their e-book. Presumably, if I know Amazon, they'll provide all that information in the email sent to the gift recipient.

It seems this option is available for every book in the Kindle store -- it's enabled for all three of my books, and every other one I checked.

One note: the recipient has the option to accept the e-book gift, or apply the amount to an Amazon gift card instead (which they can use on anything available at Amazon.com, which is, well,  pretty much anything). This is what would happen if your recipient already owned the e-book you're trying to give them, for example.

I think lots of people will be getting a Kindle 3 (or the $139 Kindle 3 Wi-Fi) as gifts this holiday season, and even more people will get a few e-books as gifts to get them started. This is a feature that was long overdue.

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#  Kobo Wireless E-Reader $129 at Wal-Mart

Nov 23, 2010

The Kobo Wireless E-Reader.

The new Kobo Wireless E-Reader, Kobo's second-generation e-reading device, is now available at Walmart and at  Walmart.com, for just $129 with free shipping. That's $10 less than Kobo charges directly from its own website. It is available from Wal-Mart in black, lilac (that's a light purple, for the guys out there), and silver.

The Kobo Wireless E-Reader, which I discuss further here, connects with both the Kobo and Borders  e-book stores. It features a 6" e-Ink screen and Wi-Fi wireless access.

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#  Red Adept Eulogy Contest Final Round

Nov 23, 2010

Just a quick note that, thanks to everyone who voted for me in the first round, my entry for The Twiller has made the final round in the Red Adept Reviews Eulogy Contest. The three great finalists are vying for free advertising on Red Adept's book review blog -- and I could definitely use it! Anyway, please head over and vote -- no registration or anything is required, just a click. (Mine is Entry #2.)

<http://redadeptreviews.com/?p=3739>

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#  Holiday & Black Friday E-Reader Buying Guide

Nov 24, 2010

'Tis the season... for Kindles, Nooks, and iPads.

In anticipation of Black Friday and the upcoming holiday gift-giving season, I thought I'd put together a post for anyone thinking of picking up an e-book reader for themselves or as a gift this holiday season. I'll discuss the different e-readers out there, give my experiences and recommendations, and tell you the best places to pick up a copy of each (in-store and online) -- making sure to cover special Black Friday deals, which mostly consist of older models on sale for under $100.

If you're not yet sure if an e-reader is the right gift, you may want to take a moment to consider my "Do I Need An E-Book Reader?" post, which details the types of people who would enjoy and get the most use out of e-readers.

I anticipate that e-readers will be a very popular holiday gift this year, as prices have come down and the technology has improved pretty dramatically from even a year or two ago. There are now more choices than ever, from black & white e-Ink-based devices specialized for reading, along with color LCD multi-purpose tablet computers that can read books along with checking email, going online, and watching videos.

The first decision to make is whether you want a device focused on reading, or more of a multi-function device. For avid readers, e-Ink screens are generally preferred, as they are easier on the eyes and the batteries last much longer (click here for more information on the difference between e-Ink and LCD screens). For those who only read occasionally (1 book a month or less), they may prefer a device that does lots of other things, like play games and run apps and watch videos. Here is a rundown of the leading e-readers available this year, with links to more detailed reviews, as well as links to purchasing information:

Kindle 3

**Amazon's** Kindle 3 is the most popular e-reader, and for good reason. It comes in two versions: the $189 Kindle 3 Wi-Fi + 3G, and the $139 Kindle 3 Wi-Fi. The $189 version comes in two colors: white and graphite, and the $139 version is graphite only. Each model has a 6" e-Ink screen, a full keyboard, and a battery that lasts for a _month_. The difference between the two models is that the $189 Wi-Fi + 3G version can connect wirelessly through AT&T's cellphone network (with no monthly fee, as lifetime 3G access is included) _and_ where you have access to a Wi-Fi hotspot (like at your house or office or coffee shop), while the $139 Wi-Fi only model can only connect at a hotspot.

I own a Kindle 2, and I strongly recommend the new Kindle 3 to anyone who enjoys reading fiction books: it is the most full-featured e-reader, with a built-in dictionary, adjustable font sizes, text-to-speech, notes & highlights, limited Internet browsing, some apps and games, and more. It also comes at a very reasonable price, has the newest and best e-Ink Pearl screen with increased contrast, is very small and light (only 8.5 ounces), the battery lasts for a month, and Amazon has the world's largest e-book store, with over 750,000 titles. My recommendation: avoid sales tax and buy it from Amazon.com (with free shipping), their customer service and generous return policy is legendary.

Almost a separate animal, Amazon also offers the large-screen $379 Kindle DX 2, which offers a huge 9.7" e-Ink Pearl screen. It's great for reading PDFs, and much better at browsing websites than its smaller sibling. Of course, it's far heavier (18.9 oz), less portable, and more expensive -- I personally don't think it's worth double the price of the K3.

_Black Friday Special:_ So far, there aren't any Black Friday deals on the K3 and I don't think we'll see any, since the K3 only came out in August and has been selling very well; in fact, there are signs it may sell out before Christmas. But the Kindle 2 will be on sale for just $89 from Amazon.com on Black Friday, which is a great deal on what is still an excellent e-reader (one I use every day), and the best of the Black Friday e-reader deals, in my opinion.  It goes on sale here, starting at 9 AM Pacific on Nov 26, and I'd expect it to sell out quickly.

The Barnes & Noble Nook.

**Barnes & Noble's** Nook and Nook Color is the second-most-popular e-reader brand, behind the Kindle. The Nook has recently split into two product lines: the new  $249 Nook Color, an Android-based tablet computer with a 7" color LCD screen that B&N is marketing as a tablet "focused on reading," and the original  $199 Nook 3G + Wi-Fi and  $149 Nook Wi-Fi, which each have a 6" e-Ink screen along with a small LCD touchscreen below it.

The Nook Color is marketed as being a device focused on reading, and able to read color magazines and interactive children's books, browse the Internet, and run certain (but not all) Android apps and games. However, I find that its LCD screen means it suffers from a number of drawbacks, including that it's heavy (15.8 oz), expensive ($110 more than the K3), has a short battery life (8 hours), and lacks 3G connectivity. However, when considered as a tablet that can also read, it _is_ half the price of an iPad. For pure reading, I'd definitely recommend one of the original Nooks (and their e-Ink screens) instead. They share many of the same features as the Kindle 3, although they add an LCD touchscreen, a memory card slot, and the ability to read free library e-books; however, they are heavier, slower, have shorter battery life, and lack the new e-Ink Pearl screen. As the Nook "Classic" line is now a generation behind the Kindles yet they cost slightly more, I can't recommend them any more, unless library books are a _must-have_ feature for you.

_Black Friday Special:_ Best Buy will have the $149 Nook Wi-Fi model on sale for just $99 on Black Friday, which is a great deal if you are a Nook fan.

The New Sony E-Reader 350

**The** Sony E-Reader **Line** includes the $149 PRS-350 Pocket Edition with a 5" e-Ink touchscreen, the $199 PRS-650 Touch Edition with a 6" e-Ink touchscreen, and the $249 PRS-950 Daily Edition with a 7" e-Ink touchscreen. Each uses the new e-Ink Pearl screens, with a touchscreen technology using infrared beams instead of an extra screen layer that would make the screen less crisp. The Sonys have the advantage of reading library e-books and some people may prefer the touchscreen, but their prices are a little high compared to the Kindles.

Unfortunately, only the expensive Daily Edition comes with wireless (Wi-Fi + 3G) connectivity; the other two models have none, and need to use a memory card or be hooked up to a computer with a USB cable to transfer books. One good thing about the Sonys is that you get to choose the size of your screen: you can pick the 5" screen of the Pocket Edition, which gives you ultra portability and light weight at only 5.64 ounces; you can stick with the "standard" 6" screen size of the Touch Edition, which is still only 7.93 oz; or you can opt for the nice 7" screen of the Daily Edition, which is only a tad heavier than the Kindle at 9 ounces. As I said, the downside is price, although Sony just reduced prices and made their lineup _much_ more competitive. For $249, the Daily Edition is $60 more than the K3, which may be worth it for a larger screen. If you like library books and the touchscreen, or want a slightly larger or smaller screen, the Sonys are your best choice.

_Black Friday Special:_ Dell offers the  5" PRS-350 for $119, or if you're OK with last year's model, the 5" PRS-300 Pocket Edition (no touchscreen) will be on sale for $99 at Wal-Mart on Black Friday.

The Kobo Wireless E-Reader

**The** Kobo Wireless E-Reader is a simple, no-frills e-reader that lacks some of the extra features of the Kindle (no keyboard, Internet access, notes, text-to-speech, etc.) or Nook (no LCD touchscreen or e-book lending feature). While the $139 Kobo Wireless (their second-generation e-reader) added Wi-Fi connectivity and a built-in dictionary to match the Kindle and Nook, and does read library e-books, it still falls short in the feature department, considering that it is roughly the same price.

On the plus side, the Kobo is simple to use and focused on reading, with fewer distractions (some people might consider the lack of games or Internet access a good thing -- parents, for example). But the bottom line is, unless you're a die-hard Borders fan (the Kobo interfaces with both the Kobo and Borders e-book stores), I think the Kobo falls behind the competition.

_Black Friday Special:_ Wal-Mart lists the Kobo Wireless for $129, and the previous-generation Kobo E-Reader (without wireless or a built-in dictionary) is still $99 from Borders.com.

Apple iPad

**Apple's** iPad is an interesting device: far more than an e-reader, some love its ability to do many other things (run apps and games, surf the Internet, play movies, etc.), while some don't consider it an e-reader at all, since its 9.7" LCD screen makes it much harder on the eyes, heavier, more expensive, and it has much shorter battery life than the e-readers listed above. Starting at $499 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model, and ranging up to $829 for the 64GB Wi-Fi + 3G model (which also carries a $30 per month fee for 3G wireless access -- so a whopping $1,549 for a 3G iPad with 2 years of service), it is in a completely different price range than the other e-readers described here.

The iPad is really a tablet computer that can surf the Internet, play all the cool apps and games on Apple's App Store, watch videos, perform light computing work, and -- oh yeah \-- read e-books. Personally, I never read on my wife's iPad -- I far prefer the e-Ink screen (much easier on my eyes), light weight (much easier to hold with one hand), and superior battery life (measured in weeks instead of hours) of my K2 for reading. However, the iPad's full-color LCD screen lets it do things the Kindle either does poorly or can't do at all, and I find myself using the iPad for playing games, using apps, surfing the Internet, checking email, and watching movies. To me, the question becomes: are you (or the person you're buying a gift for) an avid reader, or not? For someone who reads more than a book a month or so, I'd recommend a dedicated e-reader over the jack-of-all-trades iPad. For someone more interested in all that other stuff -- and who might like to check out a few books a year, or maybe read some magazines -- I'd recommend the iPad, or possibly the less expensive Nook Color, described above.

_Black Friday Special:_ Apple's Black Friday sale (online or at your local Apple store) knocks $41 off the iPad and $21 off the iPod Touch line. Of note, some T.J. Maxx and Marshalls stores have the 16GB Wi-Fi iPad for just $399 -- but stock appears to be limited, and quite random.

**Final Thoughts:** In addition to the e-readers detailed above, there are several other brands of e-readers out there, although I don't recommend any of them for several reasons. The Kindle, Nook, Sony, and Kobo e-readers are the 4 most popular brands, and for good reason: they have e-Ink screens, the best prices, and the best e-book stores. There are a bunch of other e-readers out there (including the Aluratek Libre, Velocity Cruz, Augen Book, Pandigital Novel, Cybook Opus, Ectaco JetBook, Sharper Image Literati, and a bunch of Android-based tablet computers), but each suffers from serious problems: many use LCD screens that are harder on the eyes, yet don't even have the redeeming features of the iPad or Nook Color; several are overpriced; most of them lack features; and many don't interface easily with a decent e-book store.

In summary, my recommendation depends on two things: your budget, and whether the person you're buying an e-reader for is an avid fiction reader or not. For those who read a book a month or more, I recommend the $189 Kindle 3 Wi-Fi + 3G, as I think it's the best e-reader out there and a great value for the money (the $139 Kindle Wi-Fi is an excellent choice as well if you can live without the 3G). For those on a budget, I recommend Amazon's Black Friday special, the $89 Kindle 2. And, for those who aren't all that interested in reading and really want a mini-computer that does lots of different things (and can read e-books in a pinch), the iPad is the way to go.

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#  Kindle 3: Hands-On First Impressions

Nov 30, 2010

My old white Kindle 2 next to my new graphite Kindle 3.

A few days before my birthday, I got a pleasant surprise in the mail today: a new Kindle 3 from my wife. I own (and am quite happy with) a Kindle 2 already, but after reading and writing about the Kindle 3 for almost 5 months now, and seeing photos and being able to play with one at the local Target, I finally decided I wanted the upgrade -- and I'm glad I did.

I decided on the $189 graphite 3G + Wi-Fi Kindle 3 \-- while the $139 Wi-Fi-only version is a great deal, only $50 extra for 3G connectivity _and_ free-for-life 3G wireless service was too good a value to pass up. For $50, I'd rather have it and not really need it than need it and not have it.

The first thing that struck me is just how small, thin, and light it is. While my old Kindle 2 is hardly enormous or heavy -- only 10.2 ounces -- the Kindle 3 is smaller in every dimension and only weighs 8.7 ounces (about half a pound). It's very easy to hold and read one-handed, especially since I haven't gotten a case for it yet.

The second thing I noticed is the new e-Ink Pearl screen, which promised increased contrast. It definitely delivers. Just check out the photo above: see how much darker the blacks are on the K3 compared to the K2? On the K3, I find the blacks to be noticeably darker (almost a true black), and the background to be slightly lighter (still not a true white, but a lighter shade of gray than on the K2). In combination, the text really pops off the page on the K3. While the K2's contrast was fine by itself, when I look at it compared to the new K3, it seems a bit "muddied" in comparison.

Helping text readability even more is the K3's new support for 3 different fonts (normal, condensed, and sans serif) and 3 line spacing options -- in addition to the 8 font sizes shared with the K2. After playing around with them a bit, I like the sans serif font (which is bolder than the normal) with the medium line spacing option, on the 4th text size. Check out the difference in the photo below:

Notice the bolder, darker text of the K3 (click pic to read more...).

The text on the Kindle 3 is significantly darker than on the K2, and the background is lighter. The combination makes for a noticeable improvement in readability. Another nice improvement: notice how much more text you get on the K3 screen -- an extra 5 lines of text. This is from a combination of the font being more condensed (but more readable), and the location bar being moved all the way down to the very bottom edge of the K3's screen. Even better, once you click the next page button on the K3, the title bar (that shows the name of the book and the battery indicator) disappears, giving you more room at the top _and_ bottom. Even with the same font type and size, the K3 will get several extra lines of text per page. In total, it seems like I'll get 25-33% more words on the K3 screen, which is great for a few reasons: having to press the page turn button less frequently (which is nice in itself) also means I should be able to read faster, and the battery will last longer, since e-Ink screens only use power when you change pages (you should get about 10,000 page turns per battery charge, regardless of how many words are on each page). In other words: a book that used to take 1,000 page turns (and use 1/10th the battery life) might now only take 750 page turns (and 1/13th the battery life).

A few other notes: the K3 has a few improvements I haven't really noticed yet, including longer battery life (both will last for weeks), more storage space (I'm nowhere near filling up either one of them), and faster page turns. I did a side-by-side test, and the K3's page turns are a little faster, but this is honestly a non-issue for me, as the K2 is plenty fast enough anyway \-- faster than turning a page in a physical book. Whether the K2 is 0.8 seconds and the K3 is 0.6 or whatever, they're both fast enough that I don't notice any delay.

I played around a bit with the K3's improved web browser (and Wi-Fi connectivity, which for some reason didn't "see" my network, but once I entered the network name and password it connected with no problem), and it does seem to be much improved. Using the web browser on the K2 could be described as frustrating at best: you could do it, but only if you really had to. The K3 browser is still far from pleasant (compared to a computer or iPad), but it's much faster, more usable, and seems to render more sites properly. It had no problem with my Yahoo portal, Yahoo mail, this blog, and Amazon's DTP book sales reports... which I'm embarrassed to admit that I check way more often than I should. ;-) (Ironically, Amazon's DTP page had problems loading properly on the K2.) The K3's zooming and panning functions (a necessity due to the 6" screen) worked pretty well, and the "article mode" (which strips out extraneous stuff and just presents the main text from some web pages) works great so far -- this blog came up looking great in article mode. Of course, the Kindle's e-Ink screen is 16-shade grayscale, and it doesn't do video, so certain sites are just not going to look that great. And the speed is so-so over Wi-Fi; I think it's slower over 3G but haven't tested that yet.

I do have to include a few early nitpicks: I miss the number keys (both have full keyboards, but the K3 loses the top row of number keys from the K2 -- instead, you need to press ALT + the letters on the top row). I think this will turn out to be minor, since I hardly ever use the number keys normally, but I had to use them a few times in the initial set-up (mainly punching in location numbers to get to the right place in certain books). But it seems like they could have fit the number keys, or at least printed the corresponding numbers on or near the top row of letter keys. My second nitpick is that I hit a few buttons accidentally: the page turn buttons (which now depress toward the edge instead of the middle like on the K2) and the buttons near the new 5-way controller. I think the side button issue will go away once I get a case, and hopefully I'll just adjust to the 5-way button and it won't continue to be an issue.

What else? I'll have to read more on it (I just got it a few hours ago) to give you more detailed thoughts on the reading experience, and I'll write a follow-up article in a couple weeks when I can give a more thorough review. But my early impressions are very favorable: the main reason I wanted the K3 was the improved screen contrast, and it delivered. I think the combination of better contrast, more words per page, and lighter weight are going to combine to make the reading experience -- which I already found superior to a printed book with my K2 -- even better.

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# Kindle How-To: Tips & Tricks

Dec 2, 2010

So, you just got a Kindle? Looking for set-up instructions, trying to figure out how to get e-books on your Kindle, or just want some Kindle tips and tricks? With this Beginner's Guide to the Kindle, I'll do my best to give you a starter course:

Preparing For Your Soon-To-Arrive Kindle

After you click the "Buy Now" button for your new Kindle, while you're waiting for it to be delivered, you can already  start buying or downloading e-books from Amazon in preparation, and start reading them as soon as it arrives. If you bought the Kindle for yourself, it will show up already registered to your Amazon account, and you can start downloading any e-books you bought from Amazon right away. (If you're receiving the Kindle as a gift, it's a quick process to register it once it arrives.)

If you prefer to get e-books from other sources in addition to Amazon (for example, Project Gutenberg has thousands of free, public-domain classic e-books), and if you're the type of person who likes to organize and back up all your computer files, you may want to consider downloading the free program Calibre. With Calibre, you can manage your e-book library, convert e-books from various formats, back e-books up on your computer, and transfer them to your Kindle.

Another place you can find e-books for your new Kindle? Right here \-- just use the links on the sidebar to the right, or click the tabs at the top of the page for more info on my novels, which are just $2.99 each. When you buy e-books from my website, I'll happily send them to you in Kindle format (or any other format you request).

Kindle 3 Initial Set-Up

So, your new  Kindle 3 just arrived in the mail, what now? When you take it out of the box, you'll notice what appears to be a sticker on the screen instructing you to use the USB cable that came with your Kindle and plug it into your computer (or into a wall outlet with the included adapter) to charge. What took me a moment to realize when I first saw it is that it's not a sticker: that message is displayed on the e-Ink screen, which takes zero power to display that message -- so the Kindle could sit in its box for months, happily showing that image and waiting to be opened. E-Ink screens, unlike LCD screens, only require power to change the image -- you could take the battery out and whatever is showing on your screen would stay in place.

So, once you plug your Kindle in and let it charge, what can you do? First, let's quickly look at the buttons on the Kindle:

The Kindle 3 displaying a menu from within a book (note the "Menu" button on the upper-right corner of the keyboard below the screen).

On the left and right of the screen are long buttons marked with arrows, the "next page" and "previous page" buttons. Below the screen is a full keyboard, used for typing notes, names of folders (called "collections"), website URLs, etc. To the right is a 5-way controller (arrows for up, down, left, and right surrounding a center button). Near that are "Home," "Menu," and "Back" buttons. Also of note is the "Sym" key, used to type numbers and symbols, and the "Aa" key, used to change the text font and size, change the screen orientation, and use text-to-speech. At the bottom of the Kindle, from left to right, are a volume button, a headphone jack, the micro-USB charging port, and the power slider. (Note that the K2's buttons are in different places, but generally do the same things.)

When you first get your Kindle, slide the power switch to the right and release it to turn your Kindle on (sliding it again puts it to sleep, and holding it to the right for several seconds restarts it). Press the Menu button and use the 5-way controller to select the "Settings" option (your current selection in the menu will be underlined). Press in on the center button of the 5-way controller to activate your selection. The Settings screen will come up, and you will see "Registration," "Device Name," "Wi-Fi Settings," and other options (at the bottom, it will say "Page 1 of 3," use the previous page and next page buttons to see the rest). The word "register" should be underlined. If you haven't registered it yet, press the center 5-way button again, and enter the email address and password associated with your Amazon account.

Once your device is registered, you can change your Kindle's name, connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot (on the Kindle 3; the Kindle 1, 2, and DX only have 3G connectivity), set a password, and change other options. Press the "Home" button when you're finished.

This will take you to the home screen, where you'll see a list of all the books on your device, as well as an entry for "Archived Items," and any collections you may have. Use the previous page and next page buttons if you have more books than fit on the screen at once. Use the 5-way controller to select books and open them. If you've purchased books from Amazon, they should download to your device if the 3G or Wi-Fi wireless is turned on -- if not, press the Menu key and select "Sync & Check for Items." In that menu, you will also see an option to "Turn Wireless On (or Off)" (turning it off when not needed -- like when reading a book \-- saves a lot of battery life), "Shop in Kindle Store" (which lets you browse and buy e-books from Amazon straight from your Kindle when wireless is turned on), and "Experimental" (which is where you can access the Web Browser, MP3 player, and text-to-speech function).

Getting Books Onto The Kindle

You'll want something to read. As mentioned above, any books you purchased from Amazon can be downloaded by selecting "Sync & Check For Items" when you have wireless access. You can also use Calibre (mentioned above), or simply drag & drop e-books you have on your computer. If, for example, you've downloaded some free e-books from Project Gutenberg and want to put them on your Kindle, just use the USB cable that came with your Kindle and attach it to your computer. It will show up just like a USB flash drive or external hard drive that you've attached to your computer, and will be called "Kindle." If you double-click to open it, you will see folders, including one named "documents." Simply drag any e-books (in the appropriate format, like .PRC or MOBI) into the documents folder and eject your Kindle -- your new books will show up on your home screen. The Kindle 3 comes with 4 GB of memory -- plenty for several thousand e-books. The Kindle 2's 2 GB should be plenty as well.

Reading And Organizing E-Books

Once you have the e-books you want on your Kindle, return to your Kindle's home screen (slide the slider if your Kindle has gone to sleep, and press the Home button if necessary). You'll see a list of all your e-book titles, along with "Archived Items" and probably a dictionary or two (which you could -- but wouldn't normally -- read like a book; they're used for the Kindle's built-in dictionary look-up feature). At a minimum, you should see a Kindle User's Guide and a Welcome Note. You can use the previous page and next page buttons if you have more e-books than can fit on a single screen.

If you press the Menu button, you'll have the option to "Create New Collection," which is like a folder, or a tag for a book. You can organize your e-books by making collections ("Science Fiction," "Romance," "Read," "Favorites," etc.). You can then select those collections and press the center 5-way button to open them, or press to the right on the 5-way controller, where you can open, rename, or delete your collections, or add e-books to them.

Similarly, you can select an e-book from the home screen and press the 5-way to the right to see options about that book ("Add to Collection," "Go to Last Page Read," "Go to Beginning," "Search This Document," etc.). You can press the 5-way to the left to remove the book from the device -- for books purchased through Amazon, this will send them to the "Archives," where Amazon backs them up for you. You can re-download them whenever you have wireless access by going to your "Archived Items." For books you have "side-loaded" through your computer with the USB cable, it will delete them from the Kindle and Amazon won't back them up.

At the very top of the home screen will be a bar that shows the name of your Kindle in the upper left, and the wireless status (bars for 3G, Wi-Fi, or "OFF") and battery life indicator in the upper right. Just below this bar, it will say "Showing all 35 items" (or however many you have on your device), and "By Collections." Press up to select this line, and press to the right if you'd like to sort by "Most Recent First," "Title," "Author," or "Collections."

Back on the home screen, use the 5-way controller to select one of the e-books on your device (the "Kindle User's Guide" will work), and depress the center button to open the e-book.

The e-book will open on your device, and you'll see the bar at the top, this time with the name of the book in the upper left. At the bottom is the location bar, which shows you your place in an e-book visually, by percentage, and by "locations." Since you can change the text size and other aspects of an e-book, there are no fixed "pages" like in a printed book, so "locations" are used to track your progress in a book instead (as a rough guideline, _about_ 15 locations would correspond to the average printed book page, so a decent-sized e-book novel would have 2,500 - 7,500 locations).

The screen will show the text of the e-book, bringing you back to the last spot you've read, or perhaps the e-book's cover or a table of contents (if it has them) if it's your first time opening that particular e-book. To navigate through the book, use the next page and previous page buttons on either side of the screen. The bar at the bottom will show your progress, and, in a nice touch, the bar at the top disappears to provide more room for text. (Press the Menu button to bring back the bar, along with a clock.)

Another method for navigation is to press the Menu button, and one option will be "Go to..." Select this, and you can either type in a particular location number then press the 5-way down to select "location," or use the 5-way to select "cover," "beginning," or "table of contents." From the table of contents (which most, but not all, e-books have), use the 5-way controller to select the chapter and press the center 5-way button to go there. To back out of a menu without selecting anything, just press the "Back" key in the bottom right.

General Usage And Tips

Dictionary: when in an e-book, press the 5-way directional buttons to select a word, and the definition will pop up in a little window on the screen (press "Back" to make it disappear, or press the Enter key just left of the 5-way controller to get a full-screen definition; from the full-screen dictionary, press "Back" to return to the book). I find the dictionary very convenient, and use it often.

Font Size: press the "Aa" button just right of the space bar, and a menu will come up that allows you to select one of 8 font sizes, three typefaces ("regular," "condensed," and my favorite, "sans serif"), line spacing ("small," my favorite "medium," or "large"), and words per line (which sets the side margins; I use "default"). Note that typefaces and line spacing are only available on the K3.

Text-to-Speech: to turn on the text-to-speech feature, which is a God-send for people who like to listen to e-books in the car or for the visually impaired, press the "Aa" button and select "turn on" where it says "Text-to-Speech." Unless the publisher has disabled the feature for that particular e-book, the Kindle will start reading the words to you in a robotic voice (use the volume buttons on the bottom of the device to adjust). The voice isn't like an audiobook read by a real human voice actor, but it's still a nice feature. Press the "Aa" button again and select "turn off" to stop.

Notes, Highlighting, & Bookmarks: from within any e-book, use the 5-way controller to move to where you'd like the note or highlight to begin, and simply start typing with the keyboard to create a note, or click the center button to start a highlight. To add a bookmark, press the Menu button and choose "Add a Bookmark," or just press Alt + B.

Battery: you'll see the battery life in the upper right of your Kindle. With normal usage, your K3 should last about a month, reading an hour or two a day. You should be able to get through several books on a single charge. For best battery life, turn the wireless off from the Menu whenever you're not using it; with wireless on, the battery won't last nearly as long. Amazon recommends you simply put your Kindle to sleep when you're done reading (just slide the slider switch briefly to the right and release, or just leave it alone and it will go to sleep automatically in 10 minutes). They also recommend you aim to keep your battery above 25% if possible -- unlike some batteries, it's not great to let this one run all the way down before recharging. Just plug it in from time to time (it will charge when connected to your computer through USB), and aim to keep it between 25% and 75% charged.

Cases: you may want to protect or show off your Kindle with a  functional or stylish case, or use a reading light for night reading, or even get a case with a built-in reading light.

Final Thoughts

I hope this Kindle beginner's user guide and tips & tricks have been helpful -- the post got quite long even though there's lots more I could talk about! Please just leave a comment below if you have any specific questions, and I'd be glad to answer them for you. Enjoy your new Kindle, and happy e-reading!

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# Google E-Books Launches

Dec 6, 2010

Google E-Books joins the e-book party.

Finally, after announcing its intent over a year ago, Google arrived on the e-book scene today with **Google E-Books** (formerly "Google Editions," formerly the "Google Partner Program"). Before today, Google's book service ("Google Books") existed as a place to locate books and search the text therein, where Google would merely provide links to other retailers that sold the books you found, but now Google is selling e-books itself. So, how does Google compare with the existing e-book retailers (Amazon, B&N, Sony, Kobo, Apple, etc.)?

Google E-Books probably fields the world's largest single e-book library, of 3 million titles or so. Perhaps you've heard about the ongoing Google Books class-action lawsuit and settlement? Essentially, Google grabbed up a bunch of library books and scanned them into its archives, where users could find them using Google's search engine tools (search results could find not only book titles and author names and other metadata, but could actually find passages from within books). In collecting books for its archives, Google essentially grabbed every book it could find _unless_ the rights-holder (the publisher or author) learned about it and complained to opt out. So, Google captured large numbers of out-of-copyright public domain books, in-copyright books where publishers explicitly gave permission, and a whole gray area of books of indeterminate copyright status. This enabled Google to scan and have access to about 3 million texts, more than any other platform; however, over 2.5 million of those titles are public domain, leaving only a few hundred thousand modern, in-copyright titles (for comparison, Amazon has over 750,000 mostly in-copyright titles available in the Kindle Store, and Apple has only 30,000 in the Apple iBooks Store).

Another interesting feature of Google E-Books is that it is device-independent: Google doesn't make an e-reader (like a Kindle or Nook), but allows you to read e-books purchased from Google in multiple ways. First, you can read e-books online, through a web browser (accessed through your computer or smartphone). Second, you can download PDFs to read on your computer or tablet computer. Third, you can use the Google for Android or Google for iOS (iPhone, iPod, iPad) apps to read from your smartphone or tablet. Finally, you can use Adobe Digital Editions to read e-books in DRM-protected ePub format on compatible e-readers, including the Nook and Nook Color, Sony E-Readers, and Kobo E-Readers -- but notably _not_ the Kindle (which uses the MOBI file format and does not support Adobe DRM). Google E-Books has a "buy once, read anywhere" focus, and touts how you can read e-books purchased from Google without downloading anything -- just start reading right in your browser. Personally, I prefer to download and own the e-book files I purchase, but the simplicity may appeal to some people who enjoy reading on LCD computer or smartphone screens.

The ability to download and read purchased Google e-books (some public domain titles remain free) on various e-reader devices is the most interesting feature to me -- I have no interest in reading novels off my computer screen (let alone a tiny smartphone screen). But being able to use Google E-Books as a source for content, and reading that content on an e-Ink based e-reader has a certain appeal, especially since you can switch from a Nook to a Sony to a Kobo and keep reading from your same e-book library. Of course, Amazon and all the other e-book retailers already offer apps for various platforms (PCs, Macs, iOS, and Android), allowing you to read your e-books in multiple ways and sync your progress in each of them, but this adds another level of interoperability.

So what does this mean for readers? Well, if you have a compatible e-reader, or feel like reading off a computer screen, you may want to give Google E-Books a try. A quick check showed that most books are similar in price to Amazon and B&N, but a few are slightly more or less expensive. On the plus side, you'd be able to read any e-books you purchase on almost any e-reader you eventually decide to buy (other than a Kindle -- although Google says they "are open to" eventually being compatible with Kindles). There haven't been many details yet, so we'll have to wait and see how well the e-books are formatted, if they allow returns, or how many new releases show up for sale through Google. (I uploaded my books months ago, and they are now available through Google E-Books at launch.)

Google also eventually plans to allow third parties (other websites, or independent bookstores) to sell Google e-books and keep a cut of the revenue. That might be an interesting twist, and forward-thinking independent bookstores might jump at the opportunity to suddenly have a full-fledged e-book store through their own websites.

As for the balance of power in the e-reading world, it remains to be seen if Google will make crossroads into the market. While the interoperability is impressive, it doesn't include Amazon, which owns roughly 75% of the market. That cuts both ways, of course -- but I think it hurts Google more than Amazon. Amazon doesn't have much incentive to make it easier for its millions of Kindle users to start buying all their e-books from Google instead of Amazon.

On the one hand, Google is a well-known brand with lots of money and talent, they have a huge library of e-books, and they offer unprecedented interoperability amongst multiple e-book devices (for anyone out there who happens to own a Nook Color, a Kobo, and an old Sony E-Reader, you're probably off buying e-books from Google already). On the other hand, Google is very late to the e-book game (which started way back in the late 1990s, and really took off in earnest with Sony and Amazon in 2007), and I can't help but think that a whole lot of avid e-book readers have already started building an e-book library and have allegiance to someone else. Not having a dedicated device may also hurt Google, as it's definitely easier to shop on Amazon from a Kindle, or on Barnes & Noble from a Nook. Another demerit: while Google search and Maps are pretty user-friendly, every other Google service I've used (especially Google AdWords, AdSense, Analytics, and the Partner Program set-up) are incredibly difficult to use and the help documentation is confusing and contradictory -- they have a long way to go to match Amazon's ease of use and customer service.

I also wonder how seriously Google will take the e-book business: they still can't even seem to figure out their own name (the website will bounce you from Google E-Books to Google Books to the Google Partner Program with a tab for Google Editions), they haven't yet announced lots of details (like how rights-holders will get paid), and you have to wonder what took them so long and why they don't have their own e-reader. My advice: keep an eye on them, but I'd take a wait-and-see approach on this one for a while.

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# Amazon's Kindle For Web Expands

Dec 7, 2010

Read Kindle e-books in any web browser.

In what can hardly be a coincidence (considering the launch of Google E-Books yesterday with its focus on reading in web browsers), Amazon  announced today that they are expanding Kindle For Web, allowing users to not only preview and purchase Kindle books from web browsers, but read full e-books as well.

Kindle For Web currently allows any website to embed previews of Kindle e-books, where users can read the first chapter or two and click through to purchase the book from Amazon (you can see an example of Kindle for Web in action here). Presumably, users can now read the sample, click to purchase the e-book, and continue reading right from the website they were already on. I'd imagine users will also be able to visit a Kindle For Web page on Amazon.com and be able to read any e-book in their Kindle e-book library.

Amazon seems to enjoy stealing other companies' thunder -- anyone remember Amazon undercutting B&N's Nook price-cut within hours of the announcement? While Google trumpets the ability to read e-books from its new e-bookstore in any web browser or multiple other devices, Kindle e-books can now be read on a Kindle, in a web browser, on a desktop or laptop Mac or PC computer, any iOS device (iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad), Blackberries, or any Android smartphone.

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#  Oct 2010 E-Book Sales Stats: $40.7 M

Dec 9, 2010

October 2010 e-book sales: $40.7 M.

Continuing last quarter's trend, e-book sales in October 2010 reached $40,700,000, just below the record $40,800,00 in July, but trending upward from the last couple of months. This figure represents a 112.4% increase over October 2009, when sales were $19.2 M. year to date, January - October 2010 e-book sales ($345.3 M) increased 171.3% over the same period in 2009 ($127.3 M).

In comparison, print book sales were down across the board. Adult hardcover sales were down 6.5% to $242.9 M (down 7.7% year-to-date), adult paperback sales were down 11.8% to $115 M (no change year-to-date), and adult mass market paperback sales were down 1.1% to $60.2 M (down 14.3% year-to-date).

Of note, e-book sales for October were more than 2/3rds as much (67.6%) as mass market paperback sales ($40.7 M compared to $60.2 M).

For review, the monthly sales figures so far this year:

  * Jan 2010: $31.9 M

  * Feb 2010: $28.9 M

  * Mar 2010: $28.5 M

  * Apr 2010: $27.4 M

  * May 2010: $29.3 M

  * June 2010: $29.8 M

  * July 2010: $40.8 M

  * Aug 2010: $39.0 M

  * Sep 2010: $39.9 M

  * Oct 2010: $40.7 M

E-book sales so far in 2010 are 8.7% of trade book sales.

So far this year, e-book sales figures are 8.7% that of printed trade book sales ($345.3 M compared to $3,969.7 M). This number is down slightly from a couple of months ago, when year-to-date e-book sales were 9.03% of print's figures, but is still up dramatically from previous years (0.58% in 2007, 1.19% in 2008, and 3.31% in 2009).

It will be interesting to see the holiday sales in December 2010, and maybe even more so, the post-holiday sales in January 2011, when millions of people unwrap their Kindles and other e-readers and go looking for new e-books to buy.

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#  Will Amazon Remove Books From My Kindle?

Dec 17, 2010

The behemoth known as Amazon.

The short answer is **no**.

Let me back up a bit. Amazon allows independent authors, like me, to upload e-books for sale on the Amazon Kindle Store. They don't read each of the 750,000 titles they currently have for sale (nor does the manager at B&N read every book on the shelves). In July of 2009, Amazon discovered that someone had uploaded a copy of George Orwell's famous book _1984_ to offer it for sale on Amazon. The problem was that this person didn't own the rights to Orwell's book (which had fallen into the public domain in Australia but not here in the U.S.), so it would be like if I scanned in a copy of _Harry Potter_ and tried to sell it on Amazon and make money off it.

Of course, Amazon couldn't continue doing that once they found out about it (or they would be in violation of Federal copyright law), so they decided to:

  1. Give everyone who had purchased a copy of that e-book a full refund,

  2. Remove the (illegal) title from their servers, and stop selling it through the Kindle Store, and

  3. Remove the file from the Kindles of people who had bought it (this is the part that ticked people off).

After the brouhaha (which spread mainly due to the incredible irony of the deleted e-book being perhaps the best-known book about government repression and censorship), Amazon apologized profusely, and offered its customers their choice of either (a) having the book re-sent to their Kindles, or (b) a $30 Amazon gift card. They also promised to never remove e-books from their customers' Kindles again, going so far as to have Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos issue this statement:

This is an apology for the way we previously handled illegally sold copies of _1984_ and other novels on Kindle. Our "solution" to the problem was stupid, thoughtless, and painfully out of line with our principles. It is wholly self-inflicted, and we deserve the criticism we've received. We will use the scar tissue from this painful mistake to help make better decisions going forward, ones that match our mission.

Personally, I think Amazon bent over backwards to make things right. They saw that someone had uploaded and was selling an e-book illegally, so they stopped selling it, refunded everyone's money, and made the books go away, as if it had never happened. I'm sure they thought they were just "righting the wrong" -- censorship never enters the equation here, just doing the right thing under copyright law and not letting someone make money off a book they don't have the rights to. In fact, Amazon  currently sells many different versions (paperbacks, hardcovers, and Kindle) of _1984_.

On top of that, Amazon not only issued refunds, but then gave everyone who bought that e-book an extra $30, and promised to never remove any e-book from customers' Kindles again. So why are we still talking about this?

Because I've heard a poorly-understood version of the _1984_ facts above used as a reason not to get a Kindle. And because the issue has cropped up again recently, when Amazon decided to stop selling a book called _The Pedophile's Guide to Love and Pleasure: A Child-Lover's Code of Conduct_. Amazon itself agonized over the decision, at first defending the sale of the book on free speech grounds, but ultimately bowing to pressure and removing it from sale. The problem is that numerous articles and forum posts are claiming that Amazon "removed" the e-books from people's Kindles, which is not the case. They've promised not to do that again, and (as far as I know, but I hadn't purchased that book) they haven't. There's also a lot of brouhaha about evil Amazon "censorship."

But claims of "censorship" and "removal" are both factually inaccurate. Only _governments_ may censor material, not Amazon. Amazon is not "banning" anything: they're not prohibiting you from getting that book elsewhere, and it's not like Amazon is anywhere near a monopoly. B&N could still choose to carry it, your local indie bookstore could, and the author could sell it direct from their own website. You could even put it on your Kindle if the author sold a MOBI version directly, or through Smashwords. Amazon is only deciding what they want to and do not want to carry/sell, for business reasons. The local B&N store does not stock a copy of my books, but that is not censorship, just a business decision on their part.

Here, Amazon is damned if they do and damned if they don't, because some people will be very upset if Amazon is helping to distribute, _and profit from_ , a book on such a topic, which most people find morally repellent. Those people will stop buying ALL books from Amazon -- and that will cost Amazon much more than whatever they'll earn from sales of one indie title with (hopefully) a very small niche audience.

The titles of articles claiming that Amazon is "removing" e-books from people's Kindles is misleading, and uses the "fear-mongering" tactic I've seen people use as their #1 argument against using Kindles: that Amazon will swoop in and steal your books away from you. Everyone knows about the _1984_ thing (although usually not all the facts, just some exaggerated and incomplete version), and Amazon has stated they won't do that again. They are not doing that here (to the best of my knowledge) \-- they are just removing the books from their servers. Local copies will stay on your Kindle (and your computer, if you backed it up there -- if you're paranoid, Amazon can't touch what's on your computer). It will no longer show up in your "Archived Items," which is just a list of what Amazon is storing on its servers for you, but they're not "removing" anything from anyone's Kindles.

* * * * *

# 2010 Year In Review

Dec 31, 2010

As 2010 comes to a close, it's a good time to take a moment to reflect on everything that's happened this year with e-books, e-readers, the publishing industry, and writing. I've included plenty of links to posts with more detail on individual topics you may be particularly interested in.

E-Books

In 2010, e-book sales roughly tripled, increasing from about 3% of total book sales to about 9% -- a figure that finally seems to have the publishing world sitting up and taking notice. As we transition from paper books to a paper + digital world (and perhaps eventually to a primarily digital book world), we'll see many changes in the centuries-old print publishing industry: bookstores will close, publishers will struggle, and new companies will step in and pick up the slack. In the digital world, in 2010 we've seen a proliferation of available e-book titles (the Amazon store roughly doubled its catalogue to over 750,000 e-books), e-books starting a global expansion (including the launch of the Amazon UK Kindle Store), and we've even seen e-book sales on Amazon overtake hardcovers and overtake all print books for best-selling titles.

We've also seen a battle over e-book features -- with publishers generally fighting some of the very things that make e-books so useful and convenient for many of us. Publishers lined up to block text-to-speech functionality (which lets your Kindle read e-books aloud to you); add restrictive, annoying, and mostly ineffectual DRM copy protection; provide many e-books as poorly-formatted, non-proofread scans of print books; and we're still stuck in an era where readers in many countries can't buy the e-books they want to pay good money for, as geographic legal restrictions serve to partially negate the huge e-book advantage of instant, inexpensive, global distribution.

In 2011, I predict e-book sales to continue to increase (perhaps continuing the trend of doubling or tripling each year for another year or two), especially considering the technological advances in e-readers (and lower price points) and how many people probably just unwrapped new e-readers last week. I'd expect slow improvement in worldwide e-book availability and improved formatting of e-books, as publishers realize that they're losing money and start to take e-books more seriously. But I'd expect large publishers to continue fighting certain e-book features, as they're still in the mode of protecting print book sales, not fully embracing e-books yet. However, the pressure will continue to increase on them next year.

E-Readers

2010 brought us the introduction of Apple's iPad, Amazon's new Kindle 3, a new round of Sony E-Readers, and the Nook Color, among others. We've seen improvements in technology, including the new e-Ink Pearl screen with better contrast, and a battle between tablet computers with LCD screens (like the iPad) and dedicated e-readers with easy-on-the-eyes e-Ink screens (like the Kindle); at the same time, we've seen prices come down from $259 for the Kindle 2 to only $139 for the Kindle 3 Wi-Fi. This has combined to make e-readers much more affordable and a better value for more and more people. Estimates put e-reader sales from about 5 million in 2009, to 12 million in 2010, and predict 27 million in 2011.

Personally, I've tried the iPad, and found it better suited for Internet surfing, movie watching, and game-playing than for reading. I also recently upgraded from a Kindle 2 to a Kindle 3, and I am very, very pleased with the Kindle 3 \-- I think it's the best device available for e-book reading, and I am finding it considerably better than the already-quite-good Kindle 2. I especially appreciate the increased contrast (much darker blacks and slightly lighter background) of the e-Ink Pearl screen, which is why I wouldn't recommend either an LCD-based device (which has short battery life and is harder on the eyes), or an older-generation technology like the e-Ink screen in Barnes & Noble's Nook. I've written a Holiday E-Reader Buying Guide here that compares and contrasts the options available, if you're still trying to decide which one is right for you.

Next year, we can expect to see (a) more tablet computers being introduced, and many of them will masquerade as "e-readers," although they are really Jacks-of-all-trades that are better suited for other tasks, (b) continued improvements and refinements in e-readers, and (c) perhaps even lower prices, as we're approaching the $99 price point for e-readers -- remarkable when the Kindle 1 debuted just 3 years ago for $399.

Publishing

As I mentioned above, the continued rise of e-books will have a profound effect on the publishing industry. First, print book sales declined in 2010, being replaced by e-book sales. This shift has strained the margins of publishers and bookstores, who are finding it difficult to adapt to an online e-book-selling world. Publishers have long-entrenched ideas, facilities, processes, and business models that can't turn on a dime, and they're seeing increased competition from online retailers (like Amazon and B&N) and smaller publishers, who don't need the huge economies of scale and financial capital that the print book business requires. Predictably, these businesses have responded by trying to fight e-book adoption, trying to protect their print book business for as long as they can, and squeeze out a few more profitable quarters. They, so far, don't appear to be interested in making the tough changes and painful downsizing required to succeed an an e-book world, and they (rightfully) fear that their spot at the top will be jeopardized during the upheaval, as newer, leaner, more forward-thinking companies replace some of the "Big 6" publishers at the top of the heap.

To that end, publishers, fearful of Amazon's e-book dominance, in April embraced the agency model, which stopped Amazon from selling best-selling e-books for $9.99 and allowed publishers to retain control of e-book pricing (most best-selling e-books then increased to about $12.99). This caused a temporary dip in e-book sales, which have since recovered. Publishers complained that low e-book prices "devalued e-books" and were unsustainable, while many independent authors (like myself) argued that selling more units at a lower price was a win-win scenario.

2010 will also be remembered as the year of the rise of self-published authors, with a couple I know of in particular (Joe Konrath and Amanda Hocking) selling over 100,000 e-books and earning a very nice living -- without traditional publishers. Several other indie authors joined Amazon's "Encore" publishing program, competing directly with large publishers. In 2010, we saw e-book royalties for self-published authors (through Amazon, B&N, Apple, and most other outlets) increase from 35% to 70%, which compares quite favorably to the 8% authors used to get from publishers for paperback sales, or the 25% they normally pay for e-book royalties.

As large publishers continue to decrease the amount of advances paid, hold the line on e-book royalties, overprice their e-books, block features, and reduce marketing services, my question to best-selling authors in 2011 is: why give 90%+ of the profits to a large publisher, when you can hire someone to do your covers and formatting for you, and keep 70% for yourself? I think we'll see more and more big authors strike off on their own \-- and do very, very well. After all, when you buy a Stephen King or J.K. Rowling or Dan Brown book, you're buying the book for the author, not the publisher (quick: who can even name the publishers for those 3 authors without looking it up?).

Writing

2010 was a milestone year for me personally, as I finished writing and editing my third novel, The Twiller, and released it for sale in June. Of course, being independent, I was also responsible for doing my own formatting and creating my own cover, along with doing my own marketing, which can take more time than actually writing the book! I was very pleased by the launch of _The Twiller_ , which had the following results:

  * Ranked #1 on Amazon's "Movers & Shakers" List.

  * Ranked in the Top 5 in both "Humor" and "Science Fiction" in the entire Kindle Store.

  * Ranked #188 overall in the Amazon Kindle Store.

My other novels also exploded in sales in 2010 (I only made them available through Amazon for the Kindle in late 2009). I ended the year with several new sales records, selling several thousand copies and earning several thousands of dollars from my writing for the first time -- not yet enough to make a living, but certainly a nice start. More importantly, I reached thousands of readers, received dozens of positive reviews, and interacted with many great and passionate readers by email, through my Facebook Fan Page, and more. I sincerely do appreciate all the readers who have read my book, taken the time to contact me, written a review (they really do help!), and generally been supportive in my writing endeavors this year.

For my first novel, Right Ascension, I had the following encouraging and exciting milestones:

  * Sold over 5,000 copies this year.

  * Ranked #1 on Amazon's "Technothrillers" best-seller list.

  * Ranked #414 overall in the Amazon Kindle Store.

The sequel, Declination, also showed encouraging signs:

  * Sold over 3,000 copies this year -- so more than 60% of the people who bought _Right Ascension_ went on to purchase the sequel as well.

  * Both _Right Ascension_ and _Declination_ were on the Top 25 best-seller list for "Science Fiction" at the same time.

  * Ranked #827 overall in the Amazon Kindle Store.

As for this blog, its popularity has steadily increased since I launched it in April, with over 18,000 visitors. Average hits per day increased from about 40, to 60 in August, 90 in October, and over 100 a day in November and December. My most popular blog posts from 2010 were:

  1. E-Ink vs. LCD: What's The Difference? (2,075 views)

  2. E-Book Market Share: Amazon At 75% (760 views)

  3. Kindle 3 Announced: 3G for $189, Wi-Fi for $139 (675 views)

  4. Kindle 3: Hands-On First Impressions (607 views)

  5. E-Book Sales Continue Rapid Growth (483 views)

Thank you again to everyone who visited my blog, left a comment, bought or read one of my books (available on my web site or  through Amazon here), became a Facebook fan, or shared some encouraging words this year. I've definitely excited to see what unfolds in 2011, and discuss it with all of you. Happy New Year!

* * * * *

# THE END...?

### Thank you for reading this collection of Always Write blog posts from 2010—I hope you enjoyed them!

#### Keep reading for a sneak peek at David Derrico's first novel:

### Right Ascension

**Right ascension** , _Astron_. One of two coordinates (the other being _declination_ ) representing the position of a heavenly body in space, calculated as an angular distance from a fixed spot in space (the vernal equinox), measured eastward along the celestial equator and expressed in degrees or, more commonly, hours, minutes, and seconds.

#### • • •

Set in the year 3040, _Right Ascension_ examines mankind's place in the Universe, how we ascended to that lofty position, and the horrifying price of that ascension.

Humanity's position of political and technological dominance within the galaxy is suddenly shattered when a sleek alien vessel arrives unexpectedly at Earth. Admiral Daniel Atgard and the crew of the _Apocalypse_ embark on a mission to find these enigmatic aliens, but the focus of the mission quickly turns from finding answers to exacting revenge. Meanwhile, a belligerent species of reptilian warriors, seeking to avenge a previous defeat at the hands of the human-controlled United Confederation of Planets, takes this opportunity to plan an all-out assault on Earth. Faced with overwhelming odds and the terrible knowledge of mankind's most horrifying secret, Daniel must choose between honor ... and humanity's very survival.

### Keep reading for a sample of

## RIGHT ASCENSION

### available now!

The dim light radiated by the candles flickered imperceptibly, casting dancing shadows along the earth-toned walls of the room. Tapestries of both human and alien origin adorned the walls, and a collection of artwork assembled from throughout the known galaxy decorated the small chamber. Though it usually gave him much pleasure, the room gave the Admiral little solace now.

Even the seat his wife sat in was a work of art—created by an Arcadian sculptor thousands of years ago. His wife, too, seemed to be a part of that sculpture, her graceful lines blending with the subtle contours of the chair. His eyes followed her elegant form, tracing the flowing patterns of her robe up to the supple lines of her neck and into the recesses of her dark eyes as they burned back into his.

"I think you should go," he finally blurted out. "It's too dangerous for you to stay here, Tara."

"What do you mean?" she asked him, stiffening up at the unexpected request. "Where do you think I should go? To stay with my parents on the mainland? Would I be safer—"

"No, not on the mainland," he replied, looking down into the dark fibers of the carpet. "I mean somewhere else... maybe just to Mars or the moons of Saturn for a little while... or maybe to the Cygnus System..."

"The Cygnus System?" she repeated incredulously. "My God, Dan, Earth has to be better protected than Cygnus Prime—this has to be the safest place in the sector."

"That's what they said about Korgia Prime," he snapped uncharacteristically.

The soft lines of Tara's face deepened noticeably. "What is it? What is it you know? The Confederation reports claim everything is under—"

"Under control? No reason to panic? Of course that's what they're saying." He paused and took a deep breath. "But the truth is there is damned good reason to panic, Tara."

"Daniel," she said seriously, leaning toward him. "I've never heard you talk like this before. Not when there were daily attacks on Earth in the old days... not even when the Korgians were massing for their assault. What in the hell is going on out there?"

"I wish I knew," he lamented helplessly. "I wish I knew."

### Continue the adventure!

#### Download Right Ascension _from Smashwords_ here!

#### Please be sure to check out my website, where you can find new information on my novels (Right Ascension, Declination, and The Twiller), short stories, my "Always Write" blog, and updates on my latest writing projects:

### www.davidderrico.com

* * * * *

# ABOUT THE AUTHOR

####

_David Derrico_ _was born just north of Miami, Florida, and developed his appreciation for complex moral issues while receiving a degree in philosophy from the University of Florida in Gainesville. He wrote his first novel,_ Right Ascension _, before attending law school at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Boalt Hall). Right Ascension was first published by Bookbooters Press in 2000, and garnered its inaugural eBook of the Year Award._

_Derrico wrote his second novel,_ Declination _, during law school, while he was probably supposed to be studying. Nonetheless, he graduated, passed the California Bar Exam, and worked as an attorney at a large, international law firm in Los Angeles for several years. While practicing law (all that practice actually made him pretty good at it), he managed to write some short stories and start work on his third novel, The Twiller._

_Recently, Derrico retired from his "day job" as a big-firm attorney and moved back to South Florida, where he finished that third novel._ The Twiller _follows the (mis)adventures of an unlikely hero and his unique companion on a comic romp around the galaxy. Derrico maintains a website with reviews, excerpts, current news, a blog, and purchasing information for all of his novels and other works at_ www.davidderrico.com _._
