The News is Borders is History - CrimeSpace2024-03-28T11:48:16Zhttp://crimespace.ning.com/forum/topics/the-news-is-borders-is-history?commentId=537324%3AComment%3A195275&feed=yes&xn_auth=noThe author is not consulted.…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-24:537324:Comment:1957152009-04-24T14:26:52.455ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
The author is not consulted. Books are standardly discounted for Amazon (and other mailorder sites) to off-set mailing costs, as well as Costco and the "bigbox stores". However, Amazon sells everybody's books; the big box stores sell bestsellers only. Bestselling authors can afford to take the cuts in return for the large sales, but no author controls discounts. Midlist authors rely on royalties based on full price sales, but frequently a significant portion has been discounted.<br />
I should add…
The author is not consulted. Books are standardly discounted for Amazon (and other mailorder sites) to off-set mailing costs, as well as Costco and the "bigbox stores". However, Amazon sells everybody's books; the big box stores sell bestsellers only. Bestselling authors can afford to take the cuts in return for the large sales, but no author controls discounts. Midlist authors rely on royalties based on full price sales, but frequently a significant portion has been discounted.<br />
I should add that standard contracts do state that books may be discounted, so essentially an author agrees to let the publisher make this decision. Level the playing field? You…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-23:537324:Comment:1956002009-04-23T21:29:43.399ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
Level the playing field? You mean the discounts they allow big stores? They come out of the authors' royalties.
Level the playing field? You mean the discounts they allow big stores? They come out of the authors' royalties. Very true. And also the libra…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-23:537324:Comment:1955982009-04-23T21:28:27.530ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
Very true. And also the library.
Very true. And also the library. There are exceptions. :) My l…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-23:537324:Comment:1955962009-04-23T21:27:32.502ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
There are exceptions. :) My local B&Ns are very indifferent.
There are exceptions. :) My local B&Ns are very indifferent. And I bought Dragon Scroll at…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-23:537324:Comment:1955822009-04-23T18:30:55.395ZEDWARD C MORGANhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/ECMorgan
And I bought Dragon Scroll at Barnes & Noble in Memphis, Tennessee. :-)
And I bought Dragon Scroll at Barnes & Noble in Memphis, Tennessee. :-) My experiences buying from Am…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-23:537324:Comment:1955782009-04-23T18:17:41.829ZI. J. Parkerhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
My experiences buying from Amazon have been good. We don't have an indie where I live. I will not buy from B&N or Borders because they have not supported my books. I might feel that way about an independent bookstore also if they didn't stock my books reliably or returned part of their order. Amazon at least treats me the same as any other author, and they use the same methods to alert buyers to my books. That beats bookstores that care only about bestselling authors all to hell.
My experiences buying from Amazon have been good. We don't have an indie where I live. I will not buy from B&N or Borders because they have not supported my books. I might feel that way about an independent bookstore also if they didn't stock my books reliably or returned part of their order. Amazon at least treats me the same as any other author, and they use the same methods to alert buyers to my books. That beats bookstores that care only about bestselling authors all to hell. If I ever had that kind of ex…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-23:537324:Comment:1955742009-04-23T17:50:17.175ZJohn Dishonhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/whiteskwirl
If I ever had that kind of experience with Amazon I would ditch them too. I want the best deal; I don't care who's offering it. I live in a good location for buying from Amazon, though. I live in Kentucky, and we have four Amazon warehouses in the state. To put that in perspective, there are only 15 warehouses in the whole country. So I get my books in three days or less and haven't had any stocking issues. Yet.
If I ever had that kind of experience with Amazon I would ditch them too. I want the best deal; I don't care who's offering it. I live in a good location for buying from Amazon, though. I live in Kentucky, and we have four Amazon warehouses in the state. To put that in perspective, there are only 15 warehouses in the whole country. So I get my books in three days or less and haven't had any stocking issues. Yet. Naomi--my point exactly. Comm…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-23:537324:Comment:1955692009-04-23T17:32:06.754ZB.R.Statehamhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/BRStateham
Naomi--my point exactly. Community.
Naomi--my point exactly. Community. And I've discovered more book…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-23:537324:Comment:1955612009-04-23T16:50:16.538ZJohn McFetridgehttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JohnMcF
And I've discovered more books browsing blogs and places like CrimeSpace.
And I've discovered more books browsing blogs and places like CrimeSpace. I understand that. I just don…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2009-04-23:537324:Comment:1955442009-04-23T16:33:28.580ZJohn Dishonhttp://crimespace.ning.com/profile/whiteskwirl
I understand that. I just don't feel the same way. I've discovered more books through browsing Amazon than I even did in a bookstore, probably because bookstores don't carry a lot of the stuff I like to read. I'll gladly give up the casual strolling through the shelves if it means I save $10 a book, which in many cases, I have.
I understand that. I just don't feel the same way. I've discovered more books through browsing Amazon than I even did in a bookstore, probably because bookstores don't carry a lot of the stuff I like to read. I'll gladly give up the casual strolling through the shelves if it means I save $10 a book, which in many cases, I have.