Ryan Field's Blog, page 581
December 9, 2010
Check This Out: The Rainbow Award Winners
Just saw the list of Rainbow Award winners over at Elisa Rolle's blog, here.
Congrats to all the winners, and to a few of my own favorite authors (AJ Llewellyn) for making it this year.
And a huge thanks to Elisa Rolle, for being so tenacious and so dedicated to doing this award for the second time. As a judge I know I had my work cut out reading all the books. I can't even imagine how hard Elisa worked organizing everything!!
RIP, Ginger
I've been posting about my publishing friend who is in Key West right now for a couple of weeks. He's been through hell this past year trying to get his twelve year old little scottie, Ginger, well again.
But I guess this time it was all just too much. She passed away last night, in his arms, after trying to rally back from kidney failure.
This, I swear, is the only hard part about owning a pet. They just don't live long enough!
December 8, 2010
How Gay Couples Celebrate Anniversaries...
The other night at a Christmas party I was listening to a conversation about how gay couples spend their anniversaries. The guy I went to the party with is single and straight (most of the time) and he was just as interested as I was.
There must have been at least four gay couples talking about this, and all have been together for at least twenty-five years. Or course I've heard about this before, but my straight friend seemed a little shocked. It never occurred to him there were so many different ways to celebrate the anniversary of a long term relationship. In his world, it's usually the day a couple is married. I know there are exceptions in straight relationships, too. But for the most part, it's the legal wedding date.
Here were a few examples:
Celebrate on the day they met for the first time.
Celebrate on the day they had sex for the first time.
Celebrate on the day they made an official commitment to each other for the first time.
Celebrate on the day they moved in with each other for the first time.
Celebrate on the day they shared their first date.
And, one couple decided to celebrate on the date they bought their first house together.
And each couple at this party did something different. They also said they didn't need an actual wedding date to celebrate, but they said they wished they'd been given the choice like everyone else.
There must have been at least four gay couples talking about this, and all have been together for at least twenty-five years. Or course I've heard about this before, but my straight friend seemed a little shocked. It never occurred to him there were so many different ways to celebrate the anniversary of a long term relationship. In his world, it's usually the day a couple is married. I know there are exceptions in straight relationships, too. But for the most part, it's the legal wedding date.
Here were a few examples:
Celebrate on the day they met for the first time.
Celebrate on the day they had sex for the first time.
Celebrate on the day they made an official commitment to each other for the first time.
Celebrate on the day they moved in with each other for the first time.
Celebrate on the day they shared their first date.
And, one couple decided to celebrate on the date they bought their first house together.
And each couple at this party did something different. They also said they didn't need an actual wedding date to celebrate, but they said they wished they'd been given the choice like everyone else.
Sarah Palin Post
This morning I tried writing a quick post about the Sarah Palin reality show. This post was centered on the recent show where Palin killed the Caribou.
After trying to write a viable post about the show, I decided to shelve it altogether. No matter what I wrote it just didn't sound right. On the one hand, it sounded as if I were knocking Sarah Palin. And I wasn't knocking her. On the other hand, I was worried readers might think I'm a Palin fan, which I'm not.
Actually, I'm not a fan of any politician. I despise politics in general and never comment about it.
But I do watch Palin's show. I'm a writer, not an elitist. I look at these things with an objective eye, not a subjective eye. I'm interested in all pop culture, and that's exactly what Palin's show is. And I keep my personal comments to myself so I don't offend anyone else.
After trying to write a viable post about the show, I decided to shelve it altogether. No matter what I wrote it just didn't sound right. On the one hand, it sounded as if I were knocking Sarah Palin. And I wasn't knocking her. On the other hand, I was worried readers might think I'm a Palin fan, which I'm not.
Actually, I'm not a fan of any politician. I despise politics in general and never comment about it.
But I do watch Palin's show. I'm a writer, not an elitist. I look at these things with an objective eye, not a subjective eye. I'm interested in all pop culture, and that's exactly what Palin's show is. And I keep my personal comments to myself so I don't offend anyone else.
A Great In-Depth Piece on Elizabeth Edwards
I read this earlier this morning and wanted to share. It's one of the best in-depth articles I've seen so far on the web about Elizabeth Edwards.
http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/12/07/elizabeth-edwards-r-i-p/?icid=main%7Chtmlws-main-n%7Cdl1%7Csec1_lnk3%7C188725
http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/12/07/elizabeth-edwards-r-i-p/?icid=main%7Chtmlws-main-n%7Cdl1%7Csec1_lnk3%7C188725
December 7, 2010
RIP Elizabeth Edwards
I first became a fan of Elizabeth Edwards through following her husband's political career. And although I wasn't a staunch supporter of his...or any other politcal figure for that matter...I did agree with him on most issues.
Then I read Elizabeth's book and did become a staunch supporter of hers, both as a human being and a mother. And when I heard she passed today, I felt bad...for Elizabeth and her children. She was bright, couragous, and never stopped fighting for her family. She was a woman who deserved all the respect we can give her, considering how hard she battled cancer and for things I won't mention in this post.
My heart goes out to Elizabeth's family and good friends.
Then I read Elizabeth's book and did become a staunch supporter of hers, both as a human being and a mother. And when I heard she passed today, I felt bad...for Elizabeth and her children. She was bright, couragous, and never stopped fighting for her family. She was a woman who deserved all the respect we can give her, considering how hard she battled cancer and for things I won't mention in this post.
My heart goes out to Elizabeth's family and good friends.
Jonathan Franzen Discussing Tennessee Williams and Living in St. Louis
Although I probably shouldn't be, I am, in fact, a fan of Jonathan Franzen's work. In this youtube clip, at the bottom of the post, he explains why I probably shouldn't be a fan. When they discuss Tennessee Williams, and the fact that Williams was also from St. Louis, it shows a distinction between the mind-set of the gay male author and the straight male author. Franzen writes about St. Louis and speaks of it with mostly fond memories, where Williams never wrote about St. Louis and actually refused...so they say...to even be buried there. And even though no one can be sure, it's suggested that Williams didn't have the same fond memories of St. Louis as Franzen because he was gay. I mention both Tennessee Williams and Truman Capote in this previous post and what Franzen says in this interview helps back me up.
In this respect, I couldn't agree more with Franzen on Tennessee Williams. Nowadays St. Louis is just as gay friendly as most places in America. I have a gay nephew who lives and works at Washington University and he loves St. Louis. But I can't even imagine what it must have been like for a gay man living there forty or fifty years ago. From what I hear, it wasn't even that great in New York. But at least in New York there was a strong underground gay community to help gay men like Williams survive.
But I am, however, still a huge fan of both Franzen and Williams. Because for me...and this might be generational...I find good fiction fascinating enough to love all fiction writers as long as they write well. I've been holding off sending book reviewer, Elisa Rolle, a list of my favorite authors because I don't make distinctions about whether authors are gay or straight. And my list, without apology, doesn't just consist of gay authors and m/m fiction. In this case, Franzen writes so well I couldn't care less who he sleeps with (though, he is kind of cute in that book-ish way). I also like the fact that Franzen made the distinction between his work and Williams' work so openly. A lot of authors, gay or straight, would have just brushed over it without making any important statements at all for fear of saying anything...heaven forbid...politically incorrect. As far as his being an elitist goes, I just don't buy it.
The only area where I disagree with Franzen is this quote I read on wiki:
Never use the word "then" as a conjunction – we have "and" for this purpose. Substituting "then" is the lazy or tone-deaf writer's non-solution to the problem of too many "ands" on the page. ...But this is just a stylistic preference and one of those writing ticks all authors have been aruging about since the beginning of time.
In this respect, I couldn't agree more with Franzen on Tennessee Williams. Nowadays St. Louis is just as gay friendly as most places in America. I have a gay nephew who lives and works at Washington University and he loves St. Louis. But I can't even imagine what it must have been like for a gay man living there forty or fifty years ago. From what I hear, it wasn't even that great in New York. But at least in New York there was a strong underground gay community to help gay men like Williams survive.
But I am, however, still a huge fan of both Franzen and Williams. Because for me...and this might be generational...I find good fiction fascinating enough to love all fiction writers as long as they write well. I've been holding off sending book reviewer, Elisa Rolle, a list of my favorite authors because I don't make distinctions about whether authors are gay or straight. And my list, without apology, doesn't just consist of gay authors and m/m fiction. In this case, Franzen writes so well I couldn't care less who he sleeps with (though, he is kind of cute in that book-ish way). I also like the fact that Franzen made the distinction between his work and Williams' work so openly. A lot of authors, gay or straight, would have just brushed over it without making any important statements at all for fear of saying anything...heaven forbid...politically incorrect. As far as his being an elitist goes, I just don't buy it.
The only area where I disagree with Franzen is this quote I read on wiki:
Never use the word "then" as a conjunction – we have "and" for this purpose. Substituting "then" is the lazy or tone-deaf writer's non-solution to the problem of too many "ands" on the page. ...But this is just a stylistic preference and one of those writing ticks all authors have been aruging about since the beginning of time.
December 5, 2010
The Fran Lebowitz Documentary on HBO
I went to a holiday party last night and three of the guests were discussing a recent HBO documentary with Fran Lebowitz. Being a fan, I went home and watched the entire documentary On Demand late last night.
She's known for sardonic wit and she's been compared to Dorothy Parker by many critics. She doesn't own a cell phone or blackberry, but she drives around Manhattan in an old checkered cab. I've always found her to be refreshing...in a rough, honest way you don't see very often. Especially nowadays, when everyone is so worried about being politically correct and not offending anyone.
I also loved part of the documentary where Toni Morrison asked a few questions. Both women are icons and both represent a period in American Literature that I've always loved. And it just so happened I'm re-reading Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye right now (Read. This. Book.), which made the show even more interesting.
I also laughed at a few of the comments Ms. Lebowitz made about the state of publishing these days. She did it with both wit and humor (I think there's a huge difference). Her comments on smoking had me snorting at two in the morning. And when she started discussing New York thirty years ago compared to New York today, I just shook my head and smiled. Though I'm not old enough to remember New York thirty years ago, I do remember the city when it wasn't quite such a tourist attraction.
So if you have a cable package and you get HBO, check this one out. It's worth watching just to see how Fran Lebowitz works the room.
She's known for sardonic wit and she's been compared to Dorothy Parker by many critics. She doesn't own a cell phone or blackberry, but she drives around Manhattan in an old checkered cab. I've always found her to be refreshing...in a rough, honest way you don't see very often. Especially nowadays, when everyone is so worried about being politically correct and not offending anyone.
I also loved part of the documentary where Toni Morrison asked a few questions. Both women are icons and both represent a period in American Literature that I've always loved. And it just so happened I'm re-reading Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye right now (Read. This. Book.), which made the show even more interesting.
I also laughed at a few of the comments Ms. Lebowitz made about the state of publishing these days. She did it with both wit and humor (I think there's a huge difference). Her comments on smoking had me snorting at two in the morning. And when she started discussing New York thirty years ago compared to New York today, I just shook my head and smiled. Though I'm not old enough to remember New York thirty years ago, I do remember the city when it wasn't quite such a tourist attraction.
So if you have a cable package and you get HBO, check this one out. It's worth watching just to see how Fran Lebowitz works the room.
December 3, 2010
Readers As Consumers: Research Before You Purchase
The other day an author friend told me one of my books was mentioned at the bottom of a review for another book. Unfortunately, it wasn't a great review for me or the other author, however, there was one part of the review that really bothered me from a practical business POV. Both as a reader and an author. And no, this isn't a rant about a poor review. This is more consumer oriented and I'm looking at this from an objective reader's POV, not as a disgruntled author.
Evidently, the person who reviewed this book, and then mentioned my book, makes all his e-book purchases on one large retail web site. I'm not going to mention names of web sites, because I've seen this happen in several places and it wouldn't be fair to single anyone out. And it's not important who the reviewer was in this case because his review actually turned out to be a very enlightening. One of the comments the reviewer made about my book was that it was only a 30 minute read, but no reader could actually know it was this short unless they bought the book.
I'm not going to mention the book because I'm not here to promote anything right now. But it was one of those short stand alone e-books that has become a very popular format with a lot of authors, publishers, and readers these days. In other words, this was a short story, with a length of just over 5,000 words and a reading time of 15-21 minutes, and it was priced accordingly.
But it seems this reviewer was under the impression the book was longer, in spite of the price. And although I do believe that when someone reviews a book on a professional review site they should know all the information about the book, I can understand why he'd think this. On this particular retail web site where he bought the book, I didn't notice a word count or an actual reading time. Under the product details, all I saw was a file size. And if a reader is anything like me, a file size means absolutely nothing. Speaking as a reader (and a computer idiot), I know reading time, I know word count, and I know page numbers. But when you get into file sizes and things like KB's, I go blank. And because I buy most of my e-books on publisher web sites, I never noticed the ambiguity on this particular retail web site.
So I did a little research to see how other web sites display the product details with the e-books they sell. And I found a huge difference. For example, allromanceebooks.com lists a word count very clearly, which for me is the best indicator. And fictionwise.com mentions actual reading time, and then goes on to categorize books as S (short), M (medium), and L (long). No problem there; a huge round of applause for ARe and Fictionwise. There are several others that give these details as well, and most publisher web sites make product details just as clear.
I wrote a short blog post about this earlier in the week, and since then I've had several authors contact me and tell me they've been experiencing similar situations regarding product details and book lengths (we do take this seriously). Readers have left disgruntled comments in customer reviews of e-books because they felt as though they've been cheated. They thought they were buying a full-length book and they wound up with a short story stand alone instead. And from what I've seen, I can't blame the reader if they only shop for e-books on a web site that doesn't make the details clear. For many readers, remaining with one web site makes them feel safe and comfortable. And they tend to trust larger retail web sites more than smaller sites.
The only solution I see is to try to get the information out there as much as possible so readers know exactly what they are purchasing when they buy an e-book. Frankly, I may even start writing book lengths into the cover copy of my short story stand alones from now on. If web sites don't want to give out all the product details to idiots like me who don't know file sizes, I'll do it myself in my cover copy. This way there isn't any confusion and no one can say they didn't know all the facts before they made a purchase. And I also think it's important to get the word out to readers and let them know that if they have any questions about buying a book, there are places like ARe and Fictionwise where they can get all the information they need. And it only takes minutes to do this. But they have to know, especially the readers who are just getting into e-books and e-readers.
As an author, it really does bother me when a reader spends their hard earned money on a book and winds up disappointed in the length of the book. Or if they feel cheated because they feel they didn't get enough information before they made the purchase. I've owned two small businesses and my first goal with each business was always catering to the consumer. I always felt an obligation to treat the consumer well and give them the best service possible, and as an author I feel this same obligation now.
So please take the time to let your readers know what they are buying. And don't assume they know anything. And readers, please take the time to research what you are buying. I personally think it's a great idea to have an accessable e-mail address so readers can actually contact the author with any questions they might have about a book. I post my e-mail on my blog, and you'd be amazed at how many readers will, in fact, ask me questions about a particular book before they make a purchase. One even wanted to know the ending of a book, and I told her. She thanked me, and said she wasn't interested. Which was fine with me. Though sometimes you might even lose the sale of a book because the reader winds up not interested after you've answered their questions, I do think the reader will appreciate it and consider buying your next book or story instead.
Evidently, the person who reviewed this book, and then mentioned my book, makes all his e-book purchases on one large retail web site. I'm not going to mention names of web sites, because I've seen this happen in several places and it wouldn't be fair to single anyone out. And it's not important who the reviewer was in this case because his review actually turned out to be a very enlightening. One of the comments the reviewer made about my book was that it was only a 30 minute read, but no reader could actually know it was this short unless they bought the book.
I'm not going to mention the book because I'm not here to promote anything right now. But it was one of those short stand alone e-books that has become a very popular format with a lot of authors, publishers, and readers these days. In other words, this was a short story, with a length of just over 5,000 words and a reading time of 15-21 minutes, and it was priced accordingly.
But it seems this reviewer was under the impression the book was longer, in spite of the price. And although I do believe that when someone reviews a book on a professional review site they should know all the information about the book, I can understand why he'd think this. On this particular retail web site where he bought the book, I didn't notice a word count or an actual reading time. Under the product details, all I saw was a file size. And if a reader is anything like me, a file size means absolutely nothing. Speaking as a reader (and a computer idiot), I know reading time, I know word count, and I know page numbers. But when you get into file sizes and things like KB's, I go blank. And because I buy most of my e-books on publisher web sites, I never noticed the ambiguity on this particular retail web site.
So I did a little research to see how other web sites display the product details with the e-books they sell. And I found a huge difference. For example, allromanceebooks.com lists a word count very clearly, which for me is the best indicator. And fictionwise.com mentions actual reading time, and then goes on to categorize books as S (short), M (medium), and L (long). No problem there; a huge round of applause for ARe and Fictionwise. There are several others that give these details as well, and most publisher web sites make product details just as clear.
I wrote a short blog post about this earlier in the week, and since then I've had several authors contact me and tell me they've been experiencing similar situations regarding product details and book lengths (we do take this seriously). Readers have left disgruntled comments in customer reviews of e-books because they felt as though they've been cheated. They thought they were buying a full-length book and they wound up with a short story stand alone instead. And from what I've seen, I can't blame the reader if they only shop for e-books on a web site that doesn't make the details clear. For many readers, remaining with one web site makes them feel safe and comfortable. And they tend to trust larger retail web sites more than smaller sites.
The only solution I see is to try to get the information out there as much as possible so readers know exactly what they are purchasing when they buy an e-book. Frankly, I may even start writing book lengths into the cover copy of my short story stand alones from now on. If web sites don't want to give out all the product details to idiots like me who don't know file sizes, I'll do it myself in my cover copy. This way there isn't any confusion and no one can say they didn't know all the facts before they made a purchase. And I also think it's important to get the word out to readers and let them know that if they have any questions about buying a book, there are places like ARe and Fictionwise where they can get all the information they need. And it only takes minutes to do this. But they have to know, especially the readers who are just getting into e-books and e-readers.
As an author, it really does bother me when a reader spends their hard earned money on a book and winds up disappointed in the length of the book. Or if they feel cheated because they feel they didn't get enough information before they made the purchase. I've owned two small businesses and my first goal with each business was always catering to the consumer. I always felt an obligation to treat the consumer well and give them the best service possible, and as an author I feel this same obligation now.
So please take the time to let your readers know what they are buying. And don't assume they know anything. And readers, please take the time to research what you are buying. I personally think it's a great idea to have an accessable e-mail address so readers can actually contact the author with any questions they might have about a book. I post my e-mail on my blog, and you'd be amazed at how many readers will, in fact, ask me questions about a particular book before they make a purchase. One even wanted to know the ending of a book, and I told her. She thanked me, and said she wasn't interested. Which was fine with me. Though sometimes you might even lose the sale of a book because the reader winds up not interested after you've answered their questions, I do think the reader will appreciate it and consider buying your next book or story instead.
Readers As Comsumers: Research Before You Purchase
The other day an author friend told me one of my books was mentioned at the bottom of a review for another book. Unfortunately, it wasn't a great review for me or the other author, however, there was one part of the review that really bothered me from a practical business POV. Both as a reader and an author. And no, this isn't a rant about a poor review. This is more consumer oriented and I'm looking at this from an objective reader's POV, not as a disgruntled author.
Evidently, the person who reviewed this book, and then mentioned my book, makes all his e-book purchases on one large retail web site. I'm not going to mention names of web sites, because I've seen this happen in several places and it wouldn't be fair to single anyone out. And it's not important who the reviewer was in this case because his review actually turned out to be a very enlightening. One of the comments the reviewer made about my book was that it was only a 30 minute read, but no reader could actually know it was this short unless they bought the book.
I'm not going to mention the book because I'm not here to promote anything right now. But it was one of those short stand alone e-books that has become a very popular format with a lot of authors, publishers, and readers these days. In other words, this was a short story, with a length of just over 5,000 words and a reading time of 15-21 minutes, and it was priced accordingly.
But it seems this reviewer was under the impression the book was longer, in spite of the price. And although I do believe that when someone reviews a book on a professional review site they should know all the information about the book, I can understand why he'd think this. On this particular retail web site where he bought the book, I didn't notice a word count or an actual reading time. Under the product details, all I saw was a file size. And if a reader is anything like me, a file size means absolutely nothing. Speaking as a reader (and a computer idiot), I know reading time, I know word count, and I know page numbers. But when you get into file sizes and things like KB's, I go blank. And because I buy most of my e-books on publisher web sites, I never noticed the ambiguity on this particular retail web site.
So I did a little research to see how other web sites display the product details with the e-books they sell. And I found a huge difference. For example, allromanceebooks.com lists a word count very clearly, which for me is the best indicator. And fictionwise.com mentions actual reading time, and then goes on to categorize books as S (short), M (medium), and L (long). No problem there; a huge round of applause for ARe and Fictionwise. There are several others that give these details as well, and most publisher web sites make product details just as clear.
I wrote a short blog post about this earlier in the week, and since then I've had several authors contact me and tell me they've been experiencing similar situations regarding product details and book lengths (we do take this seriously). Readers have left disgruntled comments in customer reviews of e-books because they felt as though they've been cheated. They thought they were buying a full-length book and they wound up with a short story stand alone instead. And from what I've seen, I can't blame the reader if they only shop for e-books on a web site that doesn't make the details clear. For many readers, remaining with one web site makes them feel safe and comfortable. And they tend to trust larger retail web sites more than smaller sites.
The only solution I see is to try to get the information out there as much as possible so readers know exactly what they are purchasing when they buy an e-book. Frankly, I may even start writing book lengths into the cover copy of my short story stand alones from now on. If web sites don't want to give out all the product details to idiots like me who don't know file sizes, I'll do it myself in my cover copy. This way there isn't any confusion and no one can say they didn't know all the facts before they made a purchase. And I also think it's important to get the word out to readers and let them know that if they have any questions about buying a book, there are places like ARe and Fictionwise where they can get all the information they need. And it only takes minutes to do this. But they have to know, especially the readers who are just getting into e-books and e-readers.
As an author, it really does bother me when a reader spends their hard earned money on a book and winds up disappointed in the length of the book. Or if they feel cheated because they feel they didn't get enough information before they made the purchase. I've owned two small businesses and my first goal with each business was always catering to the consumer. I always felt an obligation to treat the consumer well and give them the best service possible, and as an author I feel this same obligation now.
So please take the time to let your readers know what they are buying. And don't assume they know anything. And readers, please take the time to research what you are buying. I personally think it's a great idea to have an accessable e-mail address so readers can actually contact the author with any questions they might have about a book. I post my e-mail on my blog, and you'd be amazed at how many readers will, in fact, ask me questions about a particular book before they make a purchase. One even wanted to know the ending of a book, and I told her. She thanked me, and said she wasn't interested. Which was fine with me. Though sometimes you might even lose the sale of a book because the reader winds up not interested after you've answered their questions, I do think the reader will appreciate it and consider buying your next book or story instead.
Evidently, the person who reviewed this book, and then mentioned my book, makes all his e-book purchases on one large retail web site. I'm not going to mention names of web sites, because I've seen this happen in several places and it wouldn't be fair to single anyone out. And it's not important who the reviewer was in this case because his review actually turned out to be a very enlightening. One of the comments the reviewer made about my book was that it was only a 30 minute read, but no reader could actually know it was this short unless they bought the book.
I'm not going to mention the book because I'm not here to promote anything right now. But it was one of those short stand alone e-books that has become a very popular format with a lot of authors, publishers, and readers these days. In other words, this was a short story, with a length of just over 5,000 words and a reading time of 15-21 minutes, and it was priced accordingly.
But it seems this reviewer was under the impression the book was longer, in spite of the price. And although I do believe that when someone reviews a book on a professional review site they should know all the information about the book, I can understand why he'd think this. On this particular retail web site where he bought the book, I didn't notice a word count or an actual reading time. Under the product details, all I saw was a file size. And if a reader is anything like me, a file size means absolutely nothing. Speaking as a reader (and a computer idiot), I know reading time, I know word count, and I know page numbers. But when you get into file sizes and things like KB's, I go blank. And because I buy most of my e-books on publisher web sites, I never noticed the ambiguity on this particular retail web site.
So I did a little research to see how other web sites display the product details with the e-books they sell. And I found a huge difference. For example, allromanceebooks.com lists a word count very clearly, which for me is the best indicator. And fictionwise.com mentions actual reading time, and then goes on to categorize books as S (short), M (medium), and L (long). No problem there; a huge round of applause for ARe and Fictionwise. There are several others that give these details as well, and most publisher web sites make product details just as clear.
I wrote a short blog post about this earlier in the week, and since then I've had several authors contact me and tell me they've been experiencing similar situations regarding product details and book lengths (we do take this seriously). Readers have left disgruntled comments in customer reviews of e-books because they felt as though they've been cheated. They thought they were buying a full-length book and they wound up with a short story stand alone instead. And from what I've seen, I can't blame the reader if they only shop for e-books on a web site that doesn't make the details clear. For many readers, remaining with one web site makes them feel safe and comfortable. And they tend to trust larger retail web sites more than smaller sites.
The only solution I see is to try to get the information out there as much as possible so readers know exactly what they are purchasing when they buy an e-book. Frankly, I may even start writing book lengths into the cover copy of my short story stand alones from now on. If web sites don't want to give out all the product details to idiots like me who don't know file sizes, I'll do it myself in my cover copy. This way there isn't any confusion and no one can say they didn't know all the facts before they made a purchase. And I also think it's important to get the word out to readers and let them know that if they have any questions about buying a book, there are places like ARe and Fictionwise where they can get all the information they need. And it only takes minutes to do this. But they have to know, especially the readers who are just getting into e-books and e-readers.
As an author, it really does bother me when a reader spends their hard earned money on a book and winds up disappointed in the length of the book. Or if they feel cheated because they feel they didn't get enough information before they made the purchase. I've owned two small businesses and my first goal with each business was always catering to the consumer. I always felt an obligation to treat the consumer well and give them the best service possible, and as an author I feel this same obligation now.
So please take the time to let your readers know what they are buying. And don't assume they know anything. And readers, please take the time to research what you are buying. I personally think it's a great idea to have an accessable e-mail address so readers can actually contact the author with any questions they might have about a book. I post my e-mail on my blog, and you'd be amazed at how many readers will, in fact, ask me questions about a particular book before they make a purchase. One even wanted to know the ending of a book, and I told her. She thanked me, and said she wasn't interested. Which was fine with me. Though sometimes you might even lose the sale of a book because the reader winds up not interested after you've answered their questions, I do think the reader will appreciate it and consider buying your next book or story instead.
