Okay, so this got my dander up. The idea that Amazon would pull a publisher’s books on the basis of a pricing dispute should sound a bunch of alarms. (The fact that a lot of my friends’ books are no longer available–temporarily or otherwise–ticks me off, too.)
But here’s what bothered me just about as much as Amazon’s move: comments about the pricing of ebooks (and books in general) by people who know NOTHING about writing or publishing. So I posted a comment which I’ve reproduced below . . . and yeah, you can tell I got my knickers in a twist.
But, folks, this is serious. Monopolies are NOT GOOD.
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Folks who think that e-books are too expensive–or worth the same, regardless of who the writer is–and believe that writers will do just fine if Amazon continues to throw its weight around have absolutely no idea what they’re talking about. That line of argument is complete and utter hogwash. When you factor in the hours writers spend delivering a product that you want to read, most writers do not even come close to making minimum wage. The idea that an ebook is not worth as much is absurd. The author still put in just as much time to write it–and likely rewrote it several times to editorial demand. An editor still spent an enormous amount of time shaping the book; a copy editor proofed it for errors; a cover artist went through multiple drafts to create something that would make you–the reader–want to pick up that book and peek between the covers.
If Amazon had its way, we’d all be reading the equivalent of a literary Big Mac. Some fast food is just fine but not as a steady diet. Amazon’s model is unsustainable and, at its base, censorship. You want Amazon deciding what you’ll be able to read? If a school banned a book, you’d be up in arms. This is no different because Amazon knows that you are much less likely to go into a bookstore–just try finding one these days–or deal directly with the publisher.
Amazon is a distributor, period. Now, they can choose not to be a distributor of a certain publisher but to do so on the basis of a disagreement over pricing is ridiculous. Following that line of logic, all products available at a Target ought to be the same price.
Wake up, people. Amazon should not be dictating your freedom to choose.
