Are Used Bookstores Really Such a Threat to Writers?...

AnneMarble · Jan 4, 2016

This author is upset about a recent article praising the comeback of used bookstores. To be fair, she "excuses" readers for buying books used (gee, thanks), and she believes the coverage is more insidious because it implies that "digital is bad." But still... She is angry that writers were posting links to this article! Because writers shouldn't promote something that doesn't pay them! Sigh. You know the argument that USBs are great for writers because they help writers get discovered? She points out that you can now do that by buying their ebooks instead. (Uhm, not everyone has an ebook reader. And even now, not all books are available that way.) She compares used bookstores to pirates because many make the same excuse for piracy! Oh, but she isn't opposed with used bookstores, don't get her wrong.

She just doesn't think writers should promote them because they're cutting their own throats when they do so. Wha?

She says in the comments that bookstores and libraries are two sacred cows in need of tipping, and she's not a fan of either. What?!

I'm sure I'm not the only one who read her article and thought...
:crazy:

Jamesaritchie · Jan 4, 2016

I some countries, writers do get paid when a used bookstore sells one of their books. I can't say I would mind this. But if used bookstores were a threat, writing would have died out long ago.

Look at it this way, without writers, and without tons of new books being released every year, there would be no used bookstores.

shadowwalker · Jan 4, 2016

Used book stores are not taking money away from writers. Writers have already been paid for that book when it was first sold. It's like saying you can't sell a used lawnmower because it's taking money away from the lawnmower company. If a reader can't afford or refuses to pay for a new book, and they can't get it at the library or through a USB, they just won't buy it, period.

As to writers promoting sites, why not? Someone buys a used book, really like it, and they'll be looking for another from that author. And if they like it well enough, they won't wait for it to hit the USB.

There's not wanting to lose money, and then there's Scrooge. Next she'll want tracers put in book bindings so people can't give them away to friends, either.

tiakall · Jan 4, 2016

The part that she's forgetting is that if it's a used book, the author already HAS been paid for it. They were paid when it was sold new. It's not piracy and painting it as such is a pretty big false equivalency.

amergina · Jan 4, 2016

Often a reader picking up an author's book at a used book store leads to the reader *buying* new books from that author.

Ari Meermans · Jan 4, 2016

tiakall said:
The part that she's forgetting is that if it's a used book, the author already HAS been paid for it. They were paid when it was sold new. It's not piracy and painting it as such is a pretty big false equivalency.

amergina said:
Often a reader picking up an author's book at a used book store leads to the reader *buying* new books from that author.

Exactly. What she's failing to note--and this bothers me about someone whose writing is dedicated to helping authors market--is that used book stores and libraries are phenomenal passive marketing tools. Readers who "fall in love" with a book are going to seek out more books by that author and they are not going to wait to see if they can pick up other books at the used book store. They'll toddle on off to Amazon or B&N to get the books. If that book is in the middle of a series, you can bet they'll buy the preceding books ASAP and the following books soon after.

AnneMarble · Jan 4, 2016

shadowwalker said:
As to writers promoting sites, why not? Someone buys a used book, really like it, and they'll be looking for another from that author. And if they like it well enough, they won't wait for it to hit the USB.

I think what upset her was that authors were linking to the article about the love of USBs. Her attitude came in two directions. First, why would authors promote something that isn't making them money? My answer: Because they are still readers, or should be. Duh. The other part of her argument is that the article they were promoting seemed to be anti-digital (yay, people still read paper books!) and anti-Amazon. Because Amazon never sells used books ever.

shadowwalker said:
There's not wanting to lose money, and then there's Scrooge. Next she'll want tracers put in book bindings so people can't give them away to friends, either.

Shhh, don't give her any ideas...

tiakall said:
The part that she's forgetting is that if it's a used book, the author already HAS been paid for it. They were paid when it was sold new. It's not piracy and painting it as such is a pretty big false equivalency.

She ran around her ideas in circles. In one breath, she would reassure us that she's not against used book stores, but then compare them to piracy sites. But I guess that's OK because it wasn't a "direct" comparison. She was taking the "used book stores give me exposure" argument and pointing out that people the same about piracy sites, but authors get angry about piracy and usually do not get angry about a USB. But of course they're not the same thing. USBs sell a copy and it's gone. They don't get one copy and then make new copies.

She thinks digital books should take the place of USBs for exposure. But that assumes that everything is available in digital (it's not), that everyone wants to read ebooks (they don't), and that everyone has an ereader (they don't). Then again, as far as I can tell, most of her books are about authors and social media and platforms. So maybe she can't see past the glow of the social media to the whole world. (On her blog, most people seemed to agree with her, as least in the initial comments. On other blogs, not so much.)

Cobalt Jade · Jan 4, 2016

I think fanfic is more of a threat to writers, because it's easily available, and it's free.

cmhbob · Jan 4, 2016

Kristen usually has some good things to say, but I completely disagree with the tone on this one. She says several times in teh comments that she's not calling UBS evil, but that's the tone of the article, I think.

I shared the article she's upset about in my publisher's Facebook group, and everyone agreed that UBSs are a good thing, and that eyeballs beget eyeballs. I don't know that I've ever been to one, but I know my love of reading came from the library, not the bookstore.

And is that whole royalty-per-so-many-lendings a real thing? Never heard of that.

CassandraW · Jan 4, 2016

Cobalt Jade said:
I think fanfic is more of a threat to writers, because it's easily available, and it's free.

Meh, I'm not sure I agree. A lot of us don't have the foggiest interest in fanfic.

CassandraW · Jan 4, 2016

cmhbob said:
I know my love of reading came from the library, not the bookstore.

I agree with this. I'm a book buyer now, but certainly my love of reading was fostered long ago, before I could afford the luxury of buying new books.

MarkEsq · Jan 4, 2016

I agree that UBS are awesome, and I don't get the piracy analogy. But it did remind me of the book club I went to speak to, where one of the members brought me a book to sign with the used-bookstore's label plastered over the front. I smiled and signed, of course, but wasn't overly-impressed. A slip in manners, I thought.

CassandraW · Jan 4, 2016

MarkEsq said:
I agree that UBS are awesome, and I don't get the piracy analogy. But it did remind me of the book club I went to speak to, where one of the members brought me a book to sign with the used-bookstore's label plastered over the front. I smiled and signed, of course, but wasn't overly-impressed. A slip in manners, I thought.

Oh dear. I can't imagine asking an author to sign a used book. But then, I know the author made no money from the sale. I wonder if that's common knowledge among non-writers. Is it possible the person didn't know?

I'm going to do an informal poll of my non-writing acquaintances to see if they realize this, or indeed, have ever stopped to think about it.

blacbird · Jan 4, 2016

This is one of the stupidest, most misinformed and misguided articles about writers and books that I've seen in a loooooong time. Utter nonsense.

caw

KTC · Jan 4, 2016

I stopped reading her blog long ago. She devotes more time to giving advice than to writing, IMHO.

T Robinson · Jan 4, 2016

Just in case she is a member here, I will only say that I disagree with her stance.

cmhbob · Jan 4, 2016

CassandraW said:
Oh dear. I can't imagine asking an author to sign a used book. But then, I know the author made no money from the sale. I wonder if that's common knowledge among non-writers. Is it possible the person didn't know?

I'm going to do an informal poll of my non-writing acquaintances to see if they realize this, or indeed, have ever stopped to think about it.

I agree with the signature.

I'll say that until I started writing and really exploring being published, I didn't know that authors didn't get paid on used books, although it's one of those things that as soon as you consider it, you say, "Well, duh. Nobody gets paid for used stuff."

jjdebenedictis · Jan 4, 2016

Cobalt Jade said:
I think fanfic is more of a threat to writers, because it's easily available, and it's free.

I don't agree with that, at least not for novels. Fanfiction is something you turn to after you've already worn out your copy of the source material but there's no sequel in sight.

People don't generally read fanfic instead of the source material. They read both -- which means the author gets paid.

As for the writer having an issue with libraries and used book stores, pffft. Literacy helps society because it builds brain function in its citizens.

Kids who read novels have been shown to do better at school, even after controlling for the child's IQ and natural aptitudes. Seniors who read novels slow their age-related decline in mental function. Adults who read novels have more empathy, a better capacity for seeing things from other points of view, and a greater tolerance for ambiguous situations. These things have all been shown in studies.

Reading is good for society because it builds better citizens. That's the payoff. The author should care about getting paid, but not at the expense of public literacy -- there is a point where what's good for you is outweighed by what's good for society.

Myrealana · Jan 4, 2016

If that were true, wouldn't public libraries also be considered a threat to writers?

James D. Macdonald · Jan 4, 2016

I don't mind signing used books.

A lot of my earlier books are only available used.

What they mean is that a reader/fan sought out my book and cherishes it.

MarkEsq · Jan 4, 2016

CassandraW said:
Oh dear. I can't imagine asking an author to sign a used book. But then, I know the author made no money from the sale. I wonder if that's common knowledge among non-writers. Is it possible the person didn't know?

I'm going to do an informal poll of my non-writing acquaintances to see if they realize this, or indeed, have ever stopped to think about it.

I suppose it's possible she didn't know, I didn't really consider that possibility.

Please post the results of your survey.

nighttimer · Jan 4, 2016

blacbird said:
This is one of the stupidest, most misinformed and misguided articles about writers and books that I've seen in a loooooong time. Utter nonsense.

caw

Pretty much this. Here's a line which me arch a Mr. Spock eyebrow:

Here’s the deal. I don’t care about bookstores. I care about writers. In fact, readers should care about writers more than bookstores because no writers? Well no real point in bookstores now is there?

There's a certain skewed logic to this. Of course if there's no bookstores, thank goodness there are libraries where a writer's books can be found. Maybe.

Of course there are also car trunks which are really great for writers because they can sell their books directly to the public and bypass those raggedy bookstores completely! Where will Miss Lamb's car be parked tomorrow?

Introversion · Jan 4, 2016

CassandraW said:
I agree with this. I'm a book buyer now, but certainly my love of reading was fostered long ago, before I could afford the luxury of buying new books.

As a kid, used bookstores weren't only the way I could afford to read more, they were a gateway to titles that weren't in stock (or sometimes, not even in print) any more.

Today, I still use Amazon, Alibris, etc to buy out-of-print material.

Seems very short-sighted to throw stones at UBSs. I wonder, does she have a similar problem with people reading titles at their local libraries?

veinglory · Jan 4, 2016

Lamb's article is very meandering but basically reasonable. I don't agree with every point but I don't see it as being "anti-used book store" per se. That is more a minor corrolary to her main point that paper books are sometimes excessively valorised in the media and ebooks correspondingly denigrated. Although I admit I skimmed much of her post because, well, pithy it is not.

Jamesaritchie · Jan 4, 2016

cmhbob said:
And is that whole royalty-per-so-many-lendings a real thing? Never heard of that.

Yes, it's a real thing, just not in America.

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