Amazon. I’m curious. How does selling a book for 1 penny work?

Right, the author doesn’t get anything.

It’s kinda like buying a used paperback at a boot sale. New doesn’t translate to ‘off the shelf brand new.’ It’s been preowned. Maybe gently read.

‘Like new’ condition is, of course, relative. Some sellers take liberties. Others are honest.

Shipping price is fixed, so the sellers might make a small profit there.

Bottom feeding is all it is.

Well, some of the "new books" really are new. They are what's called in the trade "remainders"--books that the publisher can't or doesn't sell through the usual channels and gets rid of at bargain basement prices. They will often have a mark on the edge of the pages to indication it's a remainder.

There’s that…

I used to sell used books on eBay. The Salvation Army here would hold auctions. Culled merchandise that hadn’t sold in their retail outfits, items that their sorters deemed wouldn’t sell in those same stores…

Often I could load my car for $10 for $15. Never really factored for price per item there, but would always find a couple of things that would bring BIG bucks.

Like water, the books, and anything other item for that matter, would seek its own level.

Haven’t you ever gotten a book as a gift that you never read?

p.s. The books aren’t listed on AMAZON’s site. They’re only list the books for individual sellers at a fee.

Not sure about Amazon, but on eBay there’s an insertion fee and a final value fee.

The Lady said:

And about the mark. Yes, there are often mumblings in the description about a slight "mark" so that must be what it is. I would never have known.

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Yep. The "slight mark" is just a line marked across the botton of the pages. If you see that on any book, the book was a remainder.

If it seems wrong that these books are being sold with no money going to the author, consider the fate of most remaindered books: pulping. Then the books are wasted, recycled, the author still doesn't make any money, and no one gets to read the book. As sad as it is, the "one penny" gimmick seems preferable to me.

I get a number of books for free when I'm contracted to write a review and or judge a contest, and it's always made clear to me that I can do what I want with the books after I complete my assigned editing or judging task--including selling them . . . which I have done a number of times.

Sometimes I have the opportunity to sell the books for nearly their original price, and sometimes I'm only able to cover the shipping cost. Books I can't sell and or don't want, get donated to a local senior center and or library.

JAlpha said:

I get a number of books for free when I'm contracted to write a review and or judge a contest, and it's always made clear to me that I can do what I want with the books after I complete my assigned editing or judging task--including selling them . . . which I have done a number of times.

Sometimes I have the opportunity to sell the books for nearly their original price, and sometimes I'm only able to cover the shipping cost. Books I can't sell and or don't want, get donated to a local senior center and or library.

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Then there's book collectors who only want ARC's or Firsts...