There was an interesting piece on CNN today by Mark Coker, creator of Smashwords, and ebook publishing company. He discusses the Agency Pricing Model (APM) that several of the publishing houses and Apple have collaborated on. I think he worded the piece a bit oddly. He contends that he is for authors pricing their books as they see fit and that the Dept. of Justice lawsuit is a bad thing, but he failed to make his argument clear.
The way it was written, one takes it that he is in favor of the APM, but I think he really means he would rather not see government regulation of this, let the authors and consumers (you readers) decide where that happy price point is. I think he is right. This entire industry is in a state of flux and rushing in with this lawsuit just could upset the apple cart (excuse the pun, I didn’t see it until after I wrote it).
We authors, and you readers are determining, quite nicely I think, where all this is going. We write the books, you judge them with your word-of-mouth assessment and reviews and the book either succeeds or fades away. I suppose this is capitalism at it’s finest.
Speaking of which, THREE HUNDRED ZEROES can always use more reviews. YOUR reviews are what drives up rankings and helps generate more interest in an authors book. Those of you that have already posted a review on Amazon.com, Shelfari.com, Goodreads.com and other book sites deserve a big round of applause. Those of you that haven’t yet, please consider it, not just for this book, but for all of your favorite author’s books. Spread the word on what you have been reading lately. It doesn’t have to be a five-star review, it just needs to be an honest assessment of how you saw the book. Good, critical reviews, are always welcome.
Dennis, K1
I like what you wrote about how we authors write the books and the readers judge them and review them. So true.I think authors always welcome honest (and civil) feedback. Thanks for writing these blogs- I look forward to reading them!