Now that I have your attention….
If you have found your way to this blog post by doing a Google search that looks something like this – “[Author] [Book title] Free download” – well, let me tell you, friend, you have come to the wrong blog.
What you are doing is partaking in piracy. And it’s illegal. Check the front of just about every book you read and you’ll see the following (or something similar): “All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the publisher.” In other words, don’t give this to a friend. Don’t post this on the internet. Don’t print this out and mass distribute copies.
Just don’t.
Let me repeat: it’s illegal. Not just for those who do the sharing, posting, distributing. If you’re downloading this material and reading it without paying for it, what YOU are doing is illegal, too.
Not only that, it’s flippin’ unethical! Didn’t your parents raise you right? Didn’t they teach you not to steal? Because that’s what you’re doing, Sparky. You’re stealing.
The authors who write these books spend hours upon hours of their lives creating. Then, after they’ve gotten words on the page, they spend hours upon hours editing. Then the books goes to editors, who spend hours upon hours editing. Then the authors have another crack at it and spend more hours upon hours fixing, editing, re-writing. Then, guess what? Editors get to look at it again. This continues until there is a product that is worthy of print. NOW it goes to print were there are people who work hard to turn this manuscript into what we see in bookstores and on publishers’ websites and on Amazon.com. Again, more hours being spent. All the while, there is a graphic artist somewhere who is designing and creating the cover of the book. Oh, let’s not forget about the people who work in distribution and get your new book to you when it’s ordered. Or the people in customer service who assist you when you can’t figure out how to download or open your eBook. Or the folks in marketing – and often the author – who spend more hours getting the word out to the world that there is a new book to enjoy.
All of these people get paid. They get paid from book sales. There aren’t money trees behind the warehouse or in the author’s back yard.
And let’s not forget about those who are self-published. People who don’t have publishing houses behind them to do all of this. People who do every bit of the work themselves.
Would you like someone to come along and take part of your paycheck? No? Then why are you doing it to others? Because that’s precisely what you’re doing by downloading illegal “free” copies of eBooks. You’re taking a part of someone’s paycheck. From lots of paychecks. You’re stealing.
Now, don’t get me wrong. Books can be pricey sometimes and it’s often difficult to afford to buy as many as you want. But that just means you need to be smarter – look for sales, buy in bundles, GO TO THE LIBRARY.
I currently have access to about 250 ebooks that I could download and read. But they were not put there for me. They were submitted for judges to read in hopes of winning an award. Sure, I could pull them down to my computer and transfer them to my Kindle. Easy peasy.
But, you know what? I don’t. Because I’m not a judge. Those books were not submitted for me. So, if I want to read them, I’m going to buy them. Even when I get free copies to do reviews, I end up purchasing the book. If I’m sent an eBook, I buy the hard copy. If I’m sent a hard copy, I buy the eBook. Many times I’ll buy another copy for a friend or family member.
These authors work hard…for us. For readers. Yes, they do it for the love of writing. But they also have bills to pay and kids to raise. This is how they make a living.
Don’t be a douche. Buy the damned book. Stop stealing!
Frivolous Views 
Reblogged this on K'Anne Meinel.
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