Well, I just realized that it's been a while since I last posted here. I know, shame on me!
I have to admit, I've been carrying the topic of this post around in my head for a while now. It's one of those things that I struggle to address continually while trying to help authors and publishers along with their endeavors. So I figured, why not make a post about it for posterity? Here goes.
In discussions with fellow publishers and authors, many times the conversations seem to converge on a single point: "I don't need to do eBooks!". There are many variations of justifications such as;
Yeah, why should I bother creating eBooks? My print books are doing just fine! I think it's too early to invest in eBooks. The market won't really take off before a decade or so, right? eBooks are evil! They're destroying the press and will end the pleasure of reading printed books. You will not take away the awesome smell of fresh paper!You get the idea. Now, I'm not here to tell you that these concerns are incredulous. They're all a unique but insufficiently informed perspective looking at the same issue. With the rate of technological advances over the past decade, it's easy to understand. However, I have to say I strongly disagree with all of them. First off, if you have a printed book that's doing well, it's a mistake NOT to create an eBook version of it. You can double your reach by simply putting out an eBook version out there. Because printed and digital books actually support and complement each, you'll be seeing increases in sales in both versions of the same book. There is a common belief that printed books and eBooks compete and steal momentum from each other, which is simply baseless information. If that were the case, Amazon would not have been seeing increased sales in both printed and digital books. As a second thought, it really is NOT too early to invest in eBooks. In fact, it may be getting late. With more and more authors and publishers putting out digital content out there, there is no doubt the market will get ever more crowded. This is simply a first movers market, where the ones who start early will reap the profits in the long run. Finally, eBooks are NOT evil! They're the inevitable revolution that must and will come to the publishing industry. Just like we're reading off of paper instead of stone tablets like our ancestors did, one day our children or their children will be reading off of only digital media. While that is a long ways off from now, the time to act and get into the action is now. And in the mean time, why not enjoy the benefits of living in this era: enjoy both printed books and eBooks! So I stress again to sum it up: It's time to get on the eBook bandwagon NOW!
