Hate doesn't sell--even when you say you're clean

Do you want to sell something?  Do you want to convince someone something is cool?  Then don’t be a douche—this is not swearing, this is a metaphor.  A douche goes somewhere private and claims it is good, but in actuality, it is harmful and unpleasant, but still somewhere private.

E-books versus print books has raged since e-books became assessable to more than just people who got bored with burning money.  Now that they’re accessible, unfortunately, they’re popular, which means the douches that come with them.  They needs to stop (so do douches that come with print).

Some e-book authors are clinging to any news about resale, including Scott Turrow’s recent argument and digging up his e-book hate, and claiming this means pirates are everywhere.  Ignoring that Scott is arguing over legal sales, they’re claiming pirates everywhere on ebay, amazon, amazon’s patent on e-books resale, and even certain country’s internet.  They decry anyone who uses these as ‘they could be pirates’ and ‘they help pirates’.  Douches.

They are sticking themselves into what is private.  If you buy resale, that’s no one’s business but yours and maybe taxes.  If you work in resale, that’s also private.  If you sell resale anywhere legally, even online, that’s private.  If you don’t do those things, that’s still private.  If you can do those things, that’s legal.  Rights are private and it’s your choice to make them public.  No one should associate you with anything illegal if you’re not doing anything illegal.

They are harmful.  Not only do these people want to take away resale rights—an essential right in all markets, including the digital one—but they want to take away resale rights purely because they think they are special.  They don’t like any resale because they could be hurt but resale of their product.  Could.  COULD.  Will they?  Who knows?  Ask around, even to companies and experts and you’ll get a range of  ‘we can’t tell’ and ‘probably not, but we’ll do our best to fix it.’

But the damage goes further.  As an author, you’re claiming ‘never resell my book, I am above the law’.  Legal resale is, well, legal.  You own it now and they don’t.  You can sell it. You can break it.  You can ignore it.  But do you want it in the first place?  Not only are you told ‘it’s not really your property’, but it’s followed up with ‘you scumbag, thinking about resale’.  You may not even be buying their book.  E-book authors don’t seem to care about their personal books short of ‘I’ve been pirated!  How dare they patent resale’. But they’d still scream bloody murder over thinking you might own something and want to sell it.  It’s starting to look like you’re buying more than just something to read on your tablet now and it’s getting unpleasant.

Worse, they say you lack intelligence and sense for resale, even if no one ever got hurt (which they don’t think is a realistic option).  You’re hurting business, as they assume the book was bought twice and paid for once.  They also ask why would anyone resell a book at all (even print).

Lastly, they demand money from those sales and think they deserve it.  They ignore all models of resale, even digital, claiming they need it and no one else does because they are entitled and they deserve it. They say resale steals form their profits.  Can you imagine if someone said that about a pair of pants or dishes?  They can’t, because they say they’re a completely different situation because they’re e-books and pirated.

Do these attitudes paint a good picture of any e-book authors?  When they’re noise covers up others’ silence or facepalms, they’re not just being douches, but they’re soiling people who aren’t douches.  What metaphor is appropriate for those who make innocent people look as bad as them by association the innocents never signed up for?

On the lighter news, they’re wrong.  Resale keeps stock rotated.  It keeps many companies strong, including future e-book resales.  Resale means it is sold twice (or more).

Here’s an e-book author (June solstice) who promotes strong and protected resale stores.  Go buy one, even if it’s not mine.  Go buy it where you want, I trust you. I trust all of you.  You’re a customer to somewhere and I believe you’re perfectly legit.

Hardly even threatened

Speculation is all over the net about e-book sales as they began to plateau soon after years of sales rocketing upwards.  Due to its popularity, some think e-books will soon eradicate print books altogether.

But why?

E-books have outsold print for several years, but why would that mean the print market is disappearing?  Beyond a new format outselling it, is there any indication print is dying?  In every debate over which format is ‘the best’, many people still proclaim preferences to print.  While publishing houses have been failing or claiming to have disappeared altogether, many of those that are going strong still sell print books. Despite the sales, electronic reading devices and hype about overzealous companies still drive customers away form e-books.  Thanks to the economy, caution has replaced much of the past frivolousness.

As hard as it is to conceive in first world countries, there are areas that lack the internet, let alone wifi coffee shops.  There are still many neighborhoods that have been in disrepair for decades and there are still families that struggle to meet rent.  Literacy is still greatly important in these communities and money is scarce.  If any literary entertainment is to be bought, it will never be on an expensive electronic begging to be stolen.

Libraries are slow to pick up e-books, also affected by the economy.  Lack of funds means a lack of replacing the old with the new.  Some books have yet to be converted into e-books, in fact.

Even bookstores, still thriving now that the excess were pruned away, exist. Some even choose not to sell e-books.

Just because technology changes to the point that more than 1% can access it on their credit cards, why would one assume it will change the entire world next year?