Comments on: PONDERING: Snippety snip

By: Lynne Connolly

Lynne Connolly — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 12:25:15 +0000

Thanks, Snuze, I think that’s a really interesting comment. We’re in a market in transition, and it might be that the media we read our books on is less important than the overall realisation that we’re entering a global market. Paper books are less easy to transport, but people are used to them. The manufacturers are currently trying to make electronic readers like paper books, and I think this is a transition to the final product, which will be as different to paper books as cassette tapes are to DVD’s.

By: Snuze

Snuze — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 11:11:46 +0000

I am not very familiar with the publishing industry but as a reader, I can see there has been a shift in terms of pricing and distribution of books in the past decade.

I commonly rent books because buying had gotten near prohibitively expensive where I live. The book price in my country is higher because of the currency rate; if you earn ~RM 2K, buying books that is priced upwards of RM30 kinda makes you pause, you know.

Most of our favourite authors’ most recent releases are in the form of hardcovers (~RM 60 – RM120) or trade paperbacks (~RM40 – RM80). Don’t talk about college text books or reference books. :p

I understand that renting instead of buying reduces the publishers’ profit margin and this, in turn, affects the writers. But I think it behoves the publishers to reconsider their business model in this kind of situation. Perhaps instead of exporting the books, they can outsource the printing to supply certain regional markets; maybe this will reduce the price and make books more affordable. It is possible that this will eat into their profits, but they can look forward to expanding the market when the price goes down.

I am not an economist and perhaps my suggestion has little merit, but as a book addict, I do want authorsto be able to continue producing their work and inspire and entertain and making this world lovelier.

By: Are we seeing the end of the book trade as we know it?

Are we seeing the end of the book trade as we know it? — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:39:41 +0000

[...] have all gone as the accountants and marketers have taken over. Earlier this week I was reading a post on Lynne Connolly’s blog about the difficulties for both authors and readers in an environment that is increasingly hostile [...]

By: Plotters & Manipulators United » Blog Archive » A Sinkful of Blood

Plotters & Manipulators United » Blog Archive » A Sinkful of Blood — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:43:42 +0000

[...] This post is very much influenced by Lynne Connolly’s post at The Good, The Bad, and The Unread, which I read last week. Category: General You can [...]

By: Lynne Connolly

Lynne Connolly — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 00:03:43 +0000

Interesting thought, Charlotte. That’s the reason I’m so happy writing for ebook publishers. They’re willing to take a chance, and if they feel a book or series has something to say, or if it’s a bit different, they’re more likely to go with it and give it a reasonable chance of succeeding.

By: Charlotte

Charlotte — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:40:40 +0000

Well-said! I totally agree with Wylie’s comment about television as well. Look at the wonderful UK show Kingdom (starring Stephen Fry) that was canceled just recently at the end of its third season. Why? The story was unfolding too slowly, and they want to do another incarnation of Big Brother just to keep viewership up.

It’s the same in the publishing industry, unfortunately. Publishers have to make a buck – understood. But maybe it’s time for the system of distribution to change, instead of the system of creation!

By: uberVU - social comments

uberVU - social comments — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:07:29 +0000

Social comments and analytics for this post…

This post was mentioned on Twitter by RRRJessica: RT @redwyne: New blog post: PONDERING: Snippety snip http://bit.ly/2k7uKs...

By: Monday Morning Stepback «

Monday Morning Stepback « — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 18:16:00 +0000

[...] liked Sybil’s post at TGTBTU on snippiness in Romland, and the way she connects it up with stresses in the publishing industry. [...]

By: Wylie

Wylie — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:35:45 +0000

Well said!
I’m feeling snippy myself these days but couldn’t put my finger on why. I think you’ve nailed it, Lynne. As both author trying desperately to make the leap to NY from epubs, and reader, who’s increasingly dissatisfied with the dreck on the shelves, my fingernails have been chewed to the quick and I’ve been losing my self in the dreck on television – LOL. The networks aren’t giving new shows much of a chance, either — cancelling them after only a few episodes. Just think, if Seinfeld or MASH were to comeout today, neither would have made it to the second season. *shrugs*

By: Lynne Connolly

Lynne Connolly — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 09:15:34 +0000

I find myself reading more and more Harlequins, because they’re quick, absorbing and non demanding books. I don’t always want the High Concept, the latest thing, the big seller, sometimes I just want to curl up with a good story.
Yes, I do think the smaller houses are more stable and they might weather the storm better than the biggies. I’m pretty sure the big houses are going to try to recoup their investment costs by squeezing margins, which will include authors’ royalties. I’d rather work for a smaller company which invests more in time and care in its authors than a bigger company that concentrates on the high end. Or Harlequin, which concentrates on its image and brand. I think a lot of the bad feeling and snippiness is down to the extra pressure authors feel under. Those three book contracts mean you have to produce, and not every author writes that fast. Force it, and quality will deteriorate, and the joy will go.
I miss the old Regencies, too. It’s not that there aren’t some great historicals out there now, but that the smaller stories have died. And I’d love to have them back. Still, like you Sandy, there are a lot of the old ones I haven’t read yet.

By: SandyH

SandyH — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 02:35:45 +0000

Very thoughtful comments. I bought a box lot of old regencies a couple of weeks ago and am reading a lot of older authors who never really hit it big – but what wonderful stories, plots, character development. Really made me think about all the dreck out there these days.

By: Gwen

Gwen — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:29:49 +0000

Lynne – you make such good points. Any longer pub’rs think a book has to sell in the millions for it to be considered successful. What ever happened to the small run books? Why does it have to sell like McDonald’s and not like the local sandwich shop to be considered worth publishing? I bemoan the days of “smaller is better”.
.
Do you think the “smaller” houses like Roc or Orbit are in better shape than the biggies like Ballantine, etc., even if they’re owned by the biggies?