Last Christmas all of the Kensington editors received Kindles so that we can read submissions without printing them off and wasting paper. (Hurray for green holidays!) I love my Kindle and I love not lugging stacks of manuscripts home to read, but I have to confess that when I’m reading for pleasure, I still prefer a book that’s printed on paper, a “pbook.” When I’m reading an ebook, I miss seeing the whole page at one time; I have a different sense of the story’s pacing; I don’t have a clear idea of how long the books is and I can’t read as quickly.
How about you? Are you one of the majority of e-consumers who uses a computer screen? Do you read romance on your iphone? Or are you stuck with me in the Twentieth Century and the printed page?
Lots of people tell me they love their e-reader, but prefer to actually shop in a bookstore, where they can browse through the pbooks on the shelves. As the major book retailers rush to compete with Amazon, I hope they won’t lose sight of their bricks-and-mortar business. Bookstores have traditionally been places where communities of readers come together, where a striking cover can attract a brand-new fan, where the surprise of discovery and serendipity add special pleasure to the reading experience and a bookseller’s recommendation can broaden horizons.
What are the special features of your favorite bookstore that make you a regular customer? What kinds of events or promotions would be a powerful draw for you? In this era of diminishing retail outlets, the reader/writer community needs to support the booksellers who make our favorite entertainment available!
Unfortunately, I’m one of those people who’s helping put brick-and-mortar book stores out of business. I only buy online — can’t even remember the last time I bought a book “in person”. Now I’m considering the reasons… I’ll admit I’d probably buy *everything* online if I could, and if I didn’t have to pay for shipping. I like being able to shop for the best deal, and not deal with other shoppers. But with books there’s another reason: I need access to my computer so I can use my lists that track what I’ve already bought or read. Until I started keeping track, I was buying too many duplicate books.
That said, I wouldn’t be surprised if Amazon has a wing with my name on it, after all the money I’ve spent with them over the years. I’ve been buying from them since they were small enough to send thank you gifts to their customers!
~Lindy
Instead of buying an ereader, I’ve compromised and bought a netbook. I order online and get a fuller screen.
But I do prefer browsing in a bookstore and yes, I’ve been caught staring at my covers and petting my books. What I love about print books is being able to refer back to a certain page in the story much easier than an ebook.
The biggest draw I’ve seen to a brick-and-mortar store in the last few years was the midnight release for the last Harry Potter book. It was held in the Concord Mills Mall and included costume contests, food and all sorts of other neat activities. Anything a bookstore can do to lure in children (And yes, I realize how wicked witch that sounds
is a surefire hit.
Maybe a double signing with a romance author and a children or Y.A. author with similar themed books would work out well. Mom, come for the kiddies, stay for the after dark edition.
And Alicia, I am with you about preferring print books for pleasure. If I’m taking an electronic device to bed, it’s not going to be an e-reader!
I have been reading books on my Kindle 1 for over two years now and rarely buy a paper book. I can see a full page at one time just like a paper book and the status bar at the bottom tells me how far I am into the book which helps to understand the pacing. WHile I prefer my kindle I have read a few ebboks on my phone and laptop. For me if the story is good enough that is all I notice not the medium holding the text.
I don’t have an e-reader yet, but I have the Kindle iPhone app, and I’ve been surprised by how easy it is to read a book on the iPhone, using one of the larger font sizes.
I got the Kindle app because some of my friends have books out that were only available in e-format. However, like you I really still prefer p- books, and I love a good bookstore, one with comfy chairs, knowledgable staff, and atmoshere. My all time favorite is the Tattered Cover in Denver.
Gail Hart
I have to say I like the option of having both pbooks and ebooks. I started reading ebooks one night because I was reading a series and finished the book I had at 1:00 AM and had to have the next book. I went to B&N online and downloaded the book. I was hooked from then on.
Do I still by printed books? Yes. I love pre-ordering the books in the series I follow. But now I’ve found a whole new market place for books. I have found new authors that I like in the ebook world that I would have never know other wise and I have to say it is much more portable than real books.
I read on my ITouch. I know that’s not for everyone but I love it. It’s small, portable, and I can house a whole library with on problems. My ebooks travel with me where ever I go.
I think it’s great to have options and in a world of dwindling resources I think ebooks are a great option.
There’s a horror flick called The Ninth Gate based on a book El Club Dumas by Arturo Reverte-Perez. I call it academic horror, not because of the interactions with the Devil, but because of the books that are destroyed in the film. *g* Anyway, the main character is rare book dealer and when they describe the smells and the sounds of the books, I can hear them when they flip the pages, smell them. I long to touch my fingers to those aged bindings and feel the weight of them in my hand. I’m seething with envy at the collections on the set. I love the printed page. When the Dead Sea Scrolls came to Kansas City, there was a Gutenberg Bible in the exhibit. I almost couldn’t look at it for the want to touch it and examine each page. I am a true Bibliophile.
When it comes to ebooks, I like the immediate gratification of the instant download. But I work 8-10 hours a day on my laptop. I was a freelance editor for ten years. So, reading on the screen puts me into work mode. I don’t get to relax.
Further, ebooks aren’t quite as green as the spin would have everyone believe. Sure, they save paper and trees, but print books can be recycled. With all of the new technology, digital dumps are becoming a huge problem with old batteries, laptops, and monitors degrading or damaged and seeping things like lead, mercury, and cadmium into our ground water and the land itself, contaminating our food supply. These substances are toxic and cause a variety of health issues that can lead to death.
Then there’s the piracy issues and the value of an ebook that you cannot trade, sell, or lend. (Except with the Nook and you may lend it once.)But that’s a whole other box of cookies. *g*
I sold my first romance to an epublisher in 1998 and had one of the first dedicated ereaders, a wonderful old Rocket, but I’ve come full circle and have returned to print entirely for my reading pleasure.
I buy a lot of print books online, but only because the bookstore is an hour’s drive over mountains, but I read exclusively print, and I make that trip to the bookstore as often as I can. I know a lot of it is psychological–I write all day on a computer and the screen equates with my job. When I want to relax, it’s got to be paper/print. Even on a Kindle, I’m feeling a need to edit everything I see, but I don’t have that same problem with print.
I’m not a Luddite by any stretch of the imagination, but I do love my print books–and looking at my loaded bookshelves makes me feel like a rich woman.
The only thing that bothers me about e-books is that I can’t easily tell how long the chapter will be. With a print book I can fan the pages and gauge whether I have time for one more chapter or if I have to put it down.
Ref: bookstore
There’s a little indie bookstore not far from me that was converted from a 1920s movie theater. There are comfy chairs all over the place and the obligatory cat. The best part is that I can chat with the owner and she helps me look for new-to-me authors in the subgenres I like. You can’t get that at the big chains.
Well, I have no intentions of giving up my paperbacks until the day that all the publishers say they aren’t making them anymore. . . which I sure hope isn’t anytime soon. Even that whole Dorchester stuff, they are still printing books to some extent, just later (and why do they have to be trade paperbacks? Nothing wrong with the smaller ones. . . LOL). Anyway, I just love seeing them, holding them, smelling them. . . ah, think this is getting scary here. . . but I just feel better looking away from a screen and going to the paper.
And I do a fair amount of buying them from amazon.com, but I think it still is nowhere near how much I buy in a store, and I tend to be in a bookstore once a month, which is alas, the most I can basically afford. LOL
But I finally figured out what device to get; I’ve been back and forth between mostly the Kindle (since I live on amazon.com when I’m online) and the Nook (since offline I live in B&N). . . but I realized no to both — when it’s time to trade in the old netbook (it’s only a year this month old, so that’s not here just yet), I’m going to look for a touchscreen/convertible version (only two makers thus far), so that way I can have all the major store software on there, instead of having dedicated ereaders that may not be able to read all types of files, and each individual store may not carry every book; plus the moment we were introduced to the iPad, when I was still thinking ereaders, I said, oh, really gotta wait now, because that will force the others to go color. A netbook is already there — plus, if I’m going to spend that much (regardless of the pricing war going on, they still cost pretty good hunks of change), I want to be able to do more than one thing on it, and with the netbook, I can have my internet, movies and music, and my very important games. Except for the iPad, you can’t do that with the others. So, for me, mission accomplished.
Just don’t want to actually *have* to use those reader programs for a while yet.
Lois, who might be in the age group they are targeting, but still wants me my paper.
Well, unlike Kate, I am a bit of a Luddite. I’ve been dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century. Just bought a phone with a built-in Kindle, but I haven’t downloaded any books onto it yet.
But because we’re living in a small condo now, I’m seriously considering doing ereading. Space is just at such a premium and I have to do regular sweeps of the place, boxing up books and taking them down to the bulging storage bin.
One of the things I appreciate about brick-n-mortar bookstores is their willingness to work with local authors. The Book Oasis in Stoneham is all set to offer signed copies of my book through their website. All I have to do is drive up and sign stock now and then.
Something I’d love to do is visit romance reading groups organized by bookstores, but I’m afraid New England isn’t most romance friendly area. Only 12% of the population will even admit to having read one! But in lieu of that, I’ve posted Reader discussion guides on my website in the hope of getting the conversation started. Everything’s more fun when you do it with a friend. Why not reading?
I have a Kindle and if I’m doing research for a book or reading for any business purpose, I read on the Kindle. But if I’m reading for fun…it’s a print book all the way. Without question…and often at the beach where the glare of the sun doesn’t impact the print in any way.
I’ve read a few ebooks but no more than 20 or so over the last three years. I prefer pbook’s. The weight, the smell, the covers, the blurbs all entice me to pick them up and look. Even to look at books I might not normally buy because I’m caught by the cover or tagline. Ebooks can’t do that for me. Yes, they are convenient, but in a way we’re losing our ability to be patient, to be more social by shopping at bookstores. I’m afraid my favorite bookstore is a chain store, a BAM. However, the clerks there know me and are eager to help whenever I have a question. I don’t think I’ll be giving that up anytime soon.