Suz's Reviews > Blonde & Blue

Maybe it didn't sell enough in paperback. Some publishers aren't continuing paper versions due to expense. If you get to where you want to read it, just download the free Kindle for PC app and read it. It's really not bad reading at all; hopefully you have a laptop!

I'm not interested in the paper version, I'm interested in an epub, but would find a pdf acceptable. I'd even buy a non-DRM encrypted kindle version and convert it myself as long as I could do a direct download and didn't have to download to an Amazon controlled application. I avoid Amazon like the plague and will never, ever install a Kindle application on anything I own. So, no win. But thanks for taking the time to offer a suggestion! :)

Suz wrote: "I'm not interested in the paper version, I'm interested in an epub, but would find a pdf acceptable. I'd even buy a non-DRM encrypted kindle version and convert it myself as long as I could do a d..."

Oh! Usually the other types of files eventually get produced. Since they have to be done separately, sometimes one gets done first (usually ePub first in Europe and Kindle format in the US). Of course if it was published by Amazon, they may have exclusive rights for a year. I think a few authors have signed with them. I don't know if they use DRM on those versions or not. I do know some of the Amazon downloads don't have DRM, but there's no good way to tell unless you ask the author or publisher (and who wants to do that since they'll likely go all suspicious on you!)

If you run out of books to read *grin* let me know. I am *sure* some of us here can help you find *something* to read on any subject, any genre, anytime!

hahaha Well thank you Maria, but my TBR list is out of control. I was discussing this series with someone last night on another venue and she told me this book had been out since June? July? I was surprised because I didn't realize it had been released. I was looking forward to reading the next part in the series. The first three were published with, I think, Ellora's Cave but I think the author may have self published this one. It's possible she won't place it any where else.

I really hate Amazon.

Suz wrote: "hahaha Well thank you Maria, but my TBR list is out of control. I was discussing this series with someone last night on another venue and she told me this book had been out since June? July? I w..."

No, really, we can help you find something to read...

:>)

If she self-published, you could always write and ask if she'll be making it available in ePUB (it can be a lot of work and usually you can't do it with DRM. Some authors like DRM for some reason.)

I don't like only one format either. There are a lot of readers out there now--plus paperback. It's nice to be able to choose.

epub is the standard pretty much across the planet except for the U.S., which is full of people who rushed out and bought Kindles so they could get new releases for 9.99 (before the Agency Model Pricing agreement). That was Amazon's plan all along, have their own proprietary formats that were not especially compatible with any reader but Kindle and then sell books as loss leaders to drive the sales of Kindles. Once people had kindles then they had to have kindle formats and that would keep them coming back to Amazon for books. It worked, and if it hadn't been for Agency model pricings we'd all be buying our books from Amazon because they'd be just about the only game in town and we'd all be using Kindles because they'd be just about the only game in town. I hate Amazon for this very reason. Their marketing tactics kept the cost of ereaders artificially inflated for several years longer than they needed to be (and out of my price range, thereby chaining me and my poor eyesight and arthritic hands to a computer). As you say, across Europe and in other places of the world epub is, indeed, the standard. I will always endeavor to support making that happen in the U.S. as well. I don't do kindle. As for DRM, I understand a person and/ or company needing to protect their intellectual property, and part of that is being able to say you did everything you could to protect it or you lose it; but DRM only inconveniences the people who want to pay for the product. Pirates blaze through DRM as if it weren't there. So DRM is stupid and antithetical to its purpose. The only real reason left for DRM is blind greed (which is a bit self defeating).

Suz wrote: "epub is the standard pretty much across the planet except for the U.S., which is full of people who rushed out and bought Kindles so they could get new releases for 9.99 (before the Agency Model Pr..."
I agree that DRM serves no real purpose. I also agree that pirating is real and it's hard to protect intellectual property.

As for whether kindle or the books were loss leaders, I've heard both--that the books were actually profitable at 9.99, but the Kindle was the loss-leader. All along there has been a large (and ignored market by the publishers) for books under 5 dollars. The used market was and still is huge in the US.

I'm not defending Amazon and I agree they attempted a proprietary format. I think it's safe to say that always fails (with the exception being apple.) I think the proprietary format will fail here too; eventually I expect Kindle to support ePub. In fact, it probably will with the tablet since that will have more functionality. Whether they make it easy to use is another story.

Amazon has opened a lot of doors even as they tried to keep the door only open for themselves. They won with Kindle because they had already won the eyeballs on books. They were selling used, new and being competitive there (and that was a huge help to me as a reader.) They had the selection that no one else bothered to have because they built an infastructure around books that was world-class. THAT is the reason Kindle succeeded--Amazon was already the place to go for books. They made downloading a one-step process right to the kindle so ANYONE could use a kindle out of the box with no training.

In the end the market will make the choices; I'm not fond of proprietary technology, but I think it will take care of itself. It's up to authors to make sure their books are readable by readers!!!

Hi Suz I just wanted to drop a line to let you know that this book has been available in epub since it's release. It can be found at allromanceebooks.com. I hope that helps. Thanks for your interest. :)

Trina wrote: "Hi Suz I just wanted to drop a line to let you know that this book has been available in epub since it's release. It can be found at allromanceebooks.com. I hope that helps. Thanks for your interes..."

Trina, I'm not sure how I missed your response for so very long but I did. Thank you for taking the time to respond. I am actually starting it now and I see that #5 is due to release soon, too. This is great news! Congratulations!

Incidentally, smashwords? The bomb! Just sayin'.

Suz wrote: "Trina wrote: "Hi Suz I just wanted to drop a line to let you know that this book has been available in epub since it's release. It can be found at allromanceebooks.com. I hope that helps. Thanks fo..."

Another place to check is here on GR for ePUB or the author/publisher site. I've started selling some of my books in multi-format right from my blog. I'm not the only author doing it. The publishers are starting to do it more and more as well, so if you don't see the format you want, check the publisher site and the author site!!!

Maria wrote: "Another place to check is here on GR for ePUB or the author/publisher site. I've started selling some of my books in multi-format right from my blog. I'm not the only author doing it. The publishers are starting to do it more and more as well, so if you don't see the format you want, check the publisher site and the author site!!!..."

I'll do that in the future. I don't usually spend a lot of time on the author websites. I'm one of those people who figure she could be reading the books instead of playing fangirl (I really make a pitiful fangirl). I could do a better job of digging into individual sites for info. Thanks for the reminder and the tip!

Suz wrote: "Maria wrote: "Another place to check is here on GR for ePUB or the author/publisher site. I've started selling some of my books in multi-format right from my blog. I'm not the only author doing it...."

Completely agree. I don't like to visit author sites much either, but I am finding more authors and publishers have info or sell direct. I recently posted about Frank Tuttle's All the Paths of Shadow being on sale and was reminded by an ePub reader that the publisher had the ePUB for the sale on the publisher site (I linked to Amazon which did the reader no good at all...)

I think the book also sells on B&N, but the reader had a Song (I think). So sometimes it pays to check. It can take a while, if at all, for books to appear on some of those sites.

Maria wrote: "I think the book also sells on B&N, but the reader had a Song (I think). So sometimes it pays to check. It can take a while, if at all, for books to appear on some of those sites..."

I avoid B&N if I can, too. I much prefer a place that will allow me to do a direct download. The last time I tried to download from B&N it wanted me to install their software. I'm not sure if it would allow me to download directly to Adobe Digital Editions now or not. I'm not going to install a distributor's software just to buy their product. I just won't. Every time I've ever done that I've ended up with spyware, adware, and secondary background services I don't want that I had to spend time cleaning off my system. I don't respect DRM and will strip it out anyway so that I can use the management software of my choice (calibre). It's not about piracy or sharing or anything of the sort. It's about managing my library the way I need to manage it.

I can't see regular books, I can't hold regular books, if an ebook is poorly formatted I need to be able to reformat it so that I get more than 2 or 3 words on a line on my device at the size I need and the rest being forced margin. The ability to do these things have enabled me to read again when I had nearly accepted it being out of reach for me.

I've recently gotten some insight about DRM systems and how expensive it is for book distributors to acquire and use DRM systems. Apparently purchasing DRM systems, and using them per book, is quite expensive. So you have to wonder who is making the money from selling DRM software, because everyone has come to agree that insisting on its use is self defeating for IP protection and inconveniences the end users who wish to pay the sellers and authors and holders of the rights.

Things that make you go, "Hmmm."

Yes, DRM can be a problem and not a solution. In fact, there probably isn't a good solution. We just have to depend on people being honest.

Tor has decided to stop using DRM. I'm excited about it. They also did an experiment where they released a bunch of their books for free without DRM and found that their sales actually increased the month they did so.

When I get ready to buy I always look at the distributors that don't use DRM first, always. I realize that often it's the publisher that sets those rules but if I have a choice I will purchase non-DRM first every time.

Suz wrote: "Tor has decided to stop using DRM. I'm excited about it. They also did an experiment where they released a bunch of their books for free without DRM and found that their sales actually increased ..."

Baen does theirs DRM free too. I load mine without it on any of the sites that allow it, but some of them do require it...well, only one that I can think of and I'll have to double check that. They may have changed it when I uploaded this last book.