For what it’s worth …

• Posted in About Books, On Writing

Note: I talked about this last week over at Magical Musings and wanted to share it on my site as well.

There’s been a lot of debate this summer over what the price of e-books should be. E-books should be $9.99 or less. E-books should be $3.99 or less. E-books should be 99 cents.

Pfft. Whatever, dudes.

Because you know what? In the end, the debate about e-book prices is all just noise. Because the fact is that readers will pay what a book – e-book, print, or audio – is worth to them. Not what retailers or publishers or even writers think that book is worth.

Should a cup of coffee be $5 or more? Even for a double-shot vanilla bean salted caramel espresso latte that melts in your mouth? Probably not. But people will pay that much for it. And do you know why? Because they want it. There are lots of articles out there talking about how much money you can save – thousands of dollars a year – if you just cut out that $5 cup of coffee every day, but there’s a coffee shop on practically every corner.

The Republic of ThievesLast year, The Republic of Thieves, the third book in Scott Lynch’s Gentleman Bastards series, was released. I could have saved money buying the e-book or the hardcover book online, but I went to the store and got the print book, even though it was $28. Why? Because I wanted it.

I had been waiting on that book a long time (so had my significant other), and I was happy that it was finally out. To me, it was worth paying $28 to read more in the story/world.

People spend money on the things they want, and I want to read good books – no matter if they are 99 cents or $28.

What about you guys? Do you think e-books should be a certain price? Why or why not?

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12 Responses to “For what it’s worth …”

  1. Jennifer @ The Book Nympho says:

    I agree.

    I usually won’t buy an ebook if it’s over $9.99 but if it’s one I REALLY want I’ll cave and get it. But if I can save money by buying the paperback vs the ebook then I’ll go that route. Plus if it’s a book I’m not going to keep after reading I can trade it into my local used bookstore to help me buy another book. That’s one thing that print has over ebook.

    But these days I’ll see if my library has it before buying it in any format.

    • Jennifer+Estep says:

      I still buy a lot of paper books too, and I will get the paper version, especially if it’s something that I know my significant other will want to read as well.

  2. Renee says:

    I usually will not pay over $3.99 for an author I have not read before. However, if it is a new release from one of my authors I typically buy both ebook so I can have it the day it is released, and print book when I find it regardless of price because I love the feel of a real book when reading.

    • Jennifer+Estep says:

      I will buy both the print and e-book versions if it’s a book that’s going on my keeper shelf.

  3. Amelia Ann Dobogai says:

    I buy your books the day they come out. At first I bought paperbacks, but I switched to e-books since I bought my nook & kindle. I have all the Elemental Assassins & the Mythos Series on my nook and the BigTime series on my kindle. I plan to buy the new Black Blade series as soon as it comes out. I am willing to pay the price for e-books for any author I consider a keeper and that I reread. Cost is relative to what you are willing to pay. Would I like the e-books to cost less? Yes, but the author still put in the time and effort to write the book, edit it, proof read it and they deserve to be paid for their time. My husband built bookshelves for all the paperback & hardback books I own, I have bookshelves in every room in my house. He said there was no more room for bookshelves and if I wanted the newest book buy it for either the nook or kindle no matter the price. I have even filled old dressers in two of my bedrooms with books. I have bookshelves down the hallway. So I love to read. I’m 65 and retired it is what I do.

    • Jennifer+Estep says:

      Thanks! I appreciate that. Glad you are enjoying my books.

      That’s very true. The work on the author’s end is the same no matter what format the book is in — write, revise, edit, copy edit, proofread, etc.

      LOL. I wish I had room for that many bookcases.

  4. Jen Twimom says:

    My biggest beef is that ebooks should cost less than their paper counterpart. So if a book is mass market and on sale for $7.99, I would like to see the ebook at a dollar less or more. That was how it was when I bought my Kindle. It’s frustrating when the ebook and paper prices are the same. And… I don’t even own my ebook copy. Technically it’s just a lease (when purchased from Amazon). Anyhow… that said, I still have paid $9.99 or so for ebooks on my “must read” list.

    • Jennifer+Estep says:

      I know from self-pubbing my own stuff that there are still some production costs/works involved in e-books. But I do think they should be less since you don’t “own” it, like you said.

      I think it would be interesting if e-books were priced at a $1 less (or lower) than the print version, but the author/publisher split the royalties 50-50.

  5. Vicki says:

    There are certain authors that I will pay any price for the book. It does not matter if the book is hardback, trade or mass market paperback or e-book only (I get so outraged when a publisher doesn’t let an author complete a series. Doesn’t the publisher realize I am trying to make my collection consistant???). I will pay it because I love their work and will buy anything at any cost to read it…RIGHT. NOW. (You are one of the authors…btw)
    If I am reading a new author and the book synopsis and review really catch my attention, I buy the paper addition but otherwise I try it out in e-book format first. Usually a new author’s work is on the cheaper end of e-book prices.
    I fully support my favorite authors. I buy the hardback/trade/mm paperback and likely, I will get it from Audible (I love to hear the voices and figure out how some of the names are pronounced) if it goes on sale for Kindle, I get that too.
    You are right. It’s all about what a person is willing to pay and what she values. I am a fortunate person and can indulge my reading passion. I place a HIGH value on my favorite authors, books and READING.

    • Jennifer+Estep says:

      Thanks! I appreciate that. Glad you are enjoying my books.

      I still buy mostly paper books because I still prefer to read print. But I will buy an e-book — no matter the price — if I want to read something immediately. And if there are ebooks that I’m interested in, and I see them on sale, then that’s like a bonus.

  6. Karin Anderson says:

    I agree with your statement, but it would be nice to see some sort of pattern. For example, most Mass Market Paperbacks are $7.99, most Trade Paperbacks are between $14 and $20, and Hardbacks tend to be between $20 and $30. Maybe if there were some sort of bracket for e-books the debate wouldn’t be quite so hot.

    I’ll pay whatever I need to for a book I want, however. 😉

    • Jennifer+Estep says:

      That’s true. E-book prices are all over the place. It would be nice if there were a standard the way that there is with the other formats.

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