This will be the first of a three part series I've written about the philosophy, theory, and practice of selling ebooks for free. Seeing that the subject turned into something of a manifesto, I guess I have a lot to say about on the subject. Perhaps because it is the founding principle of my publishing business, and compared to similar author/publishers, my work is read by so many more people without having to give up much, if anything, in the way of revenue. I think it works.
The principle philosophical question that needs to be addressed is the connection, if any, between the subjective and objective quality of a book and its value as expressed in monetary terms. Or to put it more plainly, the fairly common perception that high quality commands high prices, low quality, cheap prices, and whether this relationship applies to art in general, and books in particular. Spoiler; I am going to argue that it doesn't.
Writing is an art, and art is often judged subjectively, i.e. whether it appeals to the viewer or listener of the individual work. There are, however, certainly objective standards that can be applied to judge how accomplished the art or artist is. In writing these standards can include, spelling, grammar, and story structure. However, in the name of art and originality, even the objective standards of any medium can be successfully challenged. In short, anything goes in art, especially if the size of the appreciative audience is not a consideration.
It is uncontroversial to say that some readers and some writers equate the price of a book with the artistic quality of the book. It is hard to say just how many do, and at what conscious level, but I suspect this is a fairly common attitude. Indeed, I will suggest in my upcoming essay "The Practice of Selling Ebooks for Nothing" that when it comes to readers, you can divide the market into those that won't buy a free ebook, and those that only buy free ebooks - with some overlap and exceptions. As for authors, when I see the fact that authors are seemingly content to sell a handful of books a year, I have to believe that many authors also feel that there is a connection between the worth of their work and price in money they feel they must charge to reflect that worth. Clearly, I'm not one of them.
"If an author doesn't believe their book is worth anything and is just giving it away, why should I believe it is any good?" is a common response to a free book. To answer that question the first thing one needs to accept is that every value of the quality assigned to a book is subjective, and because it is subjective, the value of the work, as expressed in dollars and cents, is a quantum value; it varies with how much each individual reader enjoyed the book. Nor is there any agreed on standard level of payment for the entertainment value of a book, making it impossible to assign any sort of objective value to a book in dollars and cents. While there may be a perceived relationship between the quality of a book and its price, when one actually thinks about it, it is clear that there is none. A reader can pay $30 for the hardcover version of a book, only to DNF it, because they hated it. The price they paid had no relationship to their subjective enjoyment of the book. Or to take another example, does the quality of a book go down, when it goes on sale? Quality and price are two different things.
The same logic applies to self-publishing authors who get to set the price of their books. They are free to price their work according to the value they believe it represents, so if they feel that there is indeed a connection between value and price, their price should reflect the value they perceive in their work. But do they? By and large, no, even if they think price should reflect quality. At least I don't think so. And why don't I think so? Because they price their ebooks significantly less than traditionally published ebooks by traditionally published authors. If they truly believed that price equaled quality, then what does the fact that self-published books are generally priced between one third and one tenth of the price of traditionally published ebooks? Are they saying that their work is only 33% to 10% as good as the traditionally published books? Maybe, but I doubt it.
What self-published authors realized, even if they do not acknowledged it, is that price is actually a tool of marketing. Sadly, self-published books are a victim of the price equals quality mindset. Because of the perceived inferior quality of self-published ebooks as a whole, self-published books usually cannot command the price of traditional published books, even though self-publishing authors have the ability to price their ebooks the same as traditionally published ebooks. Instead, self-published ebooks compete with traditionally published books and authors by offering books at a lower price, making them, ideally, a better value for the money. This lower the price need not reflect an acknowledgement of lower quality of work. Lowering the price of their work to be able to compete does not lower the quality of their writing. It is simply marketing.
And I might add that just as there is a distinct free book market, there is a self-publishing market that is distinct from the traditionally published book market. In both cases there is, of course, some overlap, but the important point is that a publisher can target a market that will generate the most sales, and that price is a key tool in doing this. Put a price on your book, and you won't sell to the free book readers, put a traditionally published price on a self-published book, and you won't sell to the self-published market, and likely not to the traditionally published market either. Once again; price is merely a marketing tool.
Given this lack of real connection between quality and price, and given that price is a tool of marketing, not a measure of quality, selling books for nothing can, and should be looked on by readers and authors as a marketing decision, not as any sort of a measure of quality. Experience has taught me that there is a distinct market for free books. Readers are readers, and that this market is worth considering if one wants to be read and especially if an author's books are not in the mainstream of commercial fiction.
Next week my manifesto continues with " The Theory of Selling Ebooks for Nothing." Stay tuned, you won't want to miss it.
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