1. Don’t blame the authors, it’s not something they can directly control; 2. You can ask publishers to rethink their library ebook policies. NB that originally the ebook lending policy was meant to mirror how libraries replace their physical books because of wear, but there’s lots in the details. - ThreadSky

scalzi.com • 115 days ago

1. Don’t blame the authors, it’s not something they can directly control;

2. You can ask publishers to rethink their library ebook policies.

NB that originally the ebook lending policy was meant to mirror how libraries replace their physical books because of wear, but there’s lots in the details.

Reposted from Mark R

I only just recently learned about the extortionate system libraries have to follow to stock ebooks, and was horrified. Did not consider that the authors would benefit from it. What am I to do with this ambiguous horror?

Comments

victorianoe.bsky.social•115 days ago

One of the advantages of being self-published is that I set the ebook price for libraries.

sanyaweathers.bsky.social•115 days ago

How should I best support authors, though? I mean, my eyes can’t handle print, even “large print,” anymore, so e-readers are keeping me going. But I’m down to be ridiculous and check out a paper copy and a digital copy at the same time, no shame in my game, if that makes a difference to the writer.

ogsaltbae.bsky.social•115 days ago

It definitely makes a difference in library stats, which the collection development teams take into account when considering whether to buy an author’s new releases!

ogsaltbae.bsky.social•115 days ago

And the publishers also see that circulation info, making it more likely they’ll offer the author more book deals.

strasmark.bsky.social•115 days ago

Sorry! Didn’t mean to imply that I thought the authors were to blame. It’s good they benefit!

evan-tuality.bsky.social•115 days ago

Library ebooks get more people reading and are a good investment! No late fees, no missing or damaged books, no work needed to reshelf.

stayre.bsky.social•115 days ago

It's very much like the record companies. Last I knew, most contracts subtracted "breakage" from digital sales.

kendrama.bsky.social•115 days ago

Oddly, libraries often pay less for downloadable audiobooks than ebooks (different distribution model, usually straight one-time fee vs. re-purchasing annually or after a certain # of checkouts). So if your library can get a bunch of new bestsellers on audio but not ebook, that’s probably why!

kp-tx.bsky.social•115 days ago

Another reason that libraries sometimes have just the downloadable audio and not the eBook is that the eBooks are limited by Amazon's exclusivity clause if the book is in KU, and that doesn't apply to audiobooks. (Some audiobooks are Audible exclusive, so you won't see those in a library).

kp-tx.bsky.social•115 days ago

It varies. At my library, eBooks are more likely to be limited by time (usually 24 months) or number of checkouts, and eAudio are more likely to be permanent (buy it once and it stays in the collection), so audio prices tend to be higher. Prices tend to be higher than what an individual pays.

authoross.bsky.social•115 days ago

When a self-published author sets a library price, the platform usually recommends a price several times higher than the normal sale price.

I originally used their recommendations, but recently actually put thought into it and realised that's stupid and made mine the same or less than sale price.

adam.lamore.dev•115 days ago

Our library has just introduced lower limits on how many ebooks you can check out in a given month to try to keep those costs under control. But paper is still unlimited!

robinfacer.bsky.social•115 days ago

It’s also worth noting that UK libraries pay royalties to authors *per* check out. A policy that is not in place in the U.S.

lanna.bsky.social•115 days ago

I believe Hoopla does.

robinfacer.bsky.social•115 days ago

I don’t know much about Hoopla. Lovely if they’re paying authors based on how many people read a book vs. how many institutions *buy* a book that is then read many times.

librarymary.bsky.social•115 days ago

Ebook licenses for libraries often expire with far less usage than a physical copy. And the pricing model is wildly inconsistent compared to print pricing of books in like categories. (This is for readers of the 🧵, not a critique of authors.)

felicelandry.bsky.social•115 days ago

Talking about ebooks, why are there some series you can only buy one or 2 books of that series e.g. there's a Piers Anthony series I want to buy but out of the 7 books only 1 is available?

zardeenah.bsky.social•115 days ago

Why are you trying to buy a Piers Anthony series in the year Two thousand and twenty five?

(So many, many sketchy things about his books, even the ones that are mostly still readable)

walkaboutslang.bsky.social•115 days ago

That sounds like the Apprentice Adept series. 👍

kp-tx.bsky.social•115 days ago

It's possible they've only started to do electronic versions of that series. Maybe they started with one, will see how many copies they sell, and if they think it's worth bothering, they'll gradually release eBook versions of the others.

samwell-slughorn.bsky.social•115 days ago

For health reasons, my the acuity of my eyesight fluctuates, and e-books have been a godsend, allowing me to adjust font size and background. There are a lot of old favorites that I can’t go back and re-read because they aren’t in ebook format or they are just plain unavailable period.

cooperpointrd.bsky.social•115 days ago

This is why we spend time scouring good used book stores.

emsk.bsky.social•115 days ago

What really shits me is when a publisher won't release e-books outside of the US. Even to libraries. There's an entire rest of the damn world, some of us want e-books not the dead tree!!

drwhen.bsky.social•115 days ago

Can I just say how much I love the phrase "what really shits me"?

drwhen.bsky.social•115 days ago

Don't know if this is the one you're thinking of, but if I recall correctly, the 6th and 7th books of The Incarnations of Immortality series had to change to a new publisher because the content was deemed too controversial.

drwhen.bsky.social•115 days ago

And now I see there was an 8th book published 17 years after the first 7.

I'm not sure I could read this now. Piers Anthony's work falls into the category of books I strongly suspect will annoy me if I read them as an adult.

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