Comments on: Is Print Dead?

By: Bubba Gump

Bubba Gump — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 14:36:44 +0000

Electronics are just too fragile. Books will always entertain you even if the lights go out. Besides, they make good emergency fire starter. This is especially true if the economy is about to go down.

By: We need print!!!! « Kjdennis's Blog

We need print!!!! « Kjdennis's Blog — Fri, 14 May 2010 04:40:30 +0000

[...] 14, 2010 by kjdennis Is print or dead or alive is a real question. Is print going to continue in the fast world of the World Wide [...]

By: Denise Miller Holmes

Denise Miller Holmes — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 17:25:17 +0000

Well Steve, you have convinced me that print isn’t dead, but you haven’t convinced me it isn’t dying.

By: D. Ann Graham

D. Ann Graham — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 21:20:34 +0000

An e-book is not a treasure…

It cannot be coppied or bought at a bargain. It cannot be wrapped up beautifully and thoughtfully given away as a gift on special occasions. Considering a major percentage of traditionally printed books are bought for this purpose, it seems to me that — regardless of pricing and convenience — e-books will never reach this market. At most, they will attain gift card status, offering an isolated experience of choosing your own gift from the vendor, with all the surprise and thoughtfulness of the giver left out.

Even if you enjoy it, you cannot have the added pleasure of turning around and making a gift of it to someone else, because it is not tangible. It is merely a collection of electronic impulses making up a file for one particular machine. Sometimes it even disappears off that one. And while e-books might be convenient and fun for those who have the money and inclination to consume them…

They are not treasures.

By: Teri Dawn Smith

Teri Dawn Smith — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 17:45:52 +0000

My kids pool their money and bought me a kindle for Christmas. I love it, but my daughter said rather sadly afterwards. “Now you can’t share all your books with me.” I agree that until every night table has an e-reader, books will not disappear. But they will also have to have sharing capabilities. Even now when I think of downloading a kindle book, I reconsider. Would my daughter also enjoy this book? If so, I head to the local bookstore and buy a hard copy. I want too much for her to keep reading too.

By: Lenore Buth

Lenore Buth — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 07:28:47 +0000

Steve, it feels like you just hung a plumb line in the midst of the chaos. Thanks.

By: Rebeca Seitz

Rebeca Seitz — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:25:38 +0000

Brilliant! Not that you ever deliver anything less.

By: Pegg Thomas

Pegg Thomas — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 12:56:32 +0000

Thanks for the common sense approach to the issue and giving us some solid stats. There is so much “stuff” blowing in the wind that it’s difficult to sort it all out from outside the industry.

By: laura

laura — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 03:19:50 +0000

I agree print is not dead. While on vacation with a full car, I wandered into a Library with a booksale going on. $2 a bag. I gave a $20 to get just 4 bags and donate the rest. The librarian threw a pile of bags at me, and I went nuts in that conference room filling bag upon bag with beautiful hardcovered books with magnificent coverslips. Then I stopped when I realized my husband would murder me if I brought that many books back to the hotel.So I had to sort through and leave behind masterpieces. It was a heart breaking experience and I finally left with the 4 bags full that I originally intended and donated the other bags to people entering that bookfinder’s paradise. I was still reprimanded by my husband for the insane quantity of books I brought back. I may never read all those books, but just to look at them and caress them and hold them in my hands is shear pleasure. No the printed book is not dead.

By: Mark Young

Mark Young — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 00:03:46 +0000

Steve, great article. Helps me put this part of the industry in perspective. I know the revolution of change seems faster and faster each decade … but to think of a future without books?

By: C.J. Darlington

C.J. Darlington — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 23:03:42 +0000

I enjoyed reading this piece, Steve. Thanks for sharing. Reminds me of something I heard (might have been Michael Hyatt) who referenced audiobooks in comparison to e-books. There are certainly differences, but people thought audiobooks would kill paper books too. Only they didn’t. They’re just another way for people to enjoy story.

By: Lora

Lora — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 20:34:50 +0000

I also equate it to electronics vs acoustics.

keyboard, electric guitar or violin have surely come on the music scene, but… they can never replace the sound, feel, touch, beauty, or ability of the real thing, the instrument from which they were derived.

Another example could be seen in vector/computer graphics vs traditional illustrations/artwork.

A glowing screen with graphics will never have the look or feel of the real thing. The book.

By: Steve Laube

Steve Laube — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:16:40 +0000

Jill, that is one of the big challenges for all small presses. The larger publisher’s biggest advantage is distribution…not just availability. Shelf space in a store is a finite proposition and the fight for those spots can be titanic. Note that most bookstore chains like Barnes & Noble charge for placement on their front tables. A smaller press usually does not have the budget.
Before anyone gasps at that information, realize that is what happens in your grocery store too. That is why your favorite brand of cracker disappeared from your favorite store. They probably lost their space to a competitor.
Exposure to a product is everything. If you don’t know about it you would never buy it. Thus your book, Jill, is getting referrals and recommendations on the Amazon.com site…a form of word-of-mouth.

By: Jill Williamson

Jill Williamson — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 15:13:40 +0000

I find all this very interesting. My novel (paperback & Kindle) really only sells online and to libraries because my publisher doesn’t offer a large enough discount to make bookstores happy. 20% of my first year sales were Kindle sales. I think this is because my Kindle book swims in a smaller pool on Amazon that my paperback does, so Amazon’s referral system helps my ebook more than my paperback.

By: Victorya Rogers

Victorya Rogers — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 04:26:07 +0000

Totally agree Steve! I AM one of those “curl up with a book” people. Even with the hype, I don’t like seeing books on kindle or summaries on my iphone. When I read a book I like to hold the book. I also still go to movie theaters to see movies, even tho’ I have DVDs and Pay Per View at home.