1) Please send me your book two weeks before release with an offering of cheese. Two year old cheddar is the best.
2) If I should read your book, I expect effusive thanks and an acknowledgement in your next opus.
3) If I was not amazed by your book, can you please pay me back (according to my pay scale) for the time I lost reading this fast food attempt at making money (as it clearly is not art).
4) I expect you to dance while wearing Roots clothing and singing praises to my vengeful beaver god Castor Crankypantus.
If you have not figured it out by now, the above points are in jest.
Why do authors think it is a good idea to make a public post on how readers can help the author? They end up sounding like classless, condescending, egotistical, and, most of all, entitled posts.
When did readers owe authors anything? Why are readers now expected to do more than enjoy the book?
I am sure you want to know what set me off. Well, Gail Carriger (she has since edited her post) wrote a list of four things readers can do for her. Some have said that it is anti-ebookist because Carriger asks that readers buy a physical book first and an ebook second, but what disturbed me the most was the entitled and condescending tone. My grandmother would box my ears for posting something like that because it is utterly without manners.
She is not the only one to make such a post. Last year Rob Thurman dictated how readers should buy his/her books buy going into "book buying etiquette". These are people who have made it clear that they do not respect my patronage of their product. **
These posts, while being condescending, are also manipulative--you are not a good fan unless you do X sort of things.
I am sure some of you are now saying "But, Dhympna you are being too harsh, what is the harm of telling the few readers who will really go through with these steps to please their fave author?" For the few people who pat the author on the back, many more will not talk about your book, will not hand sell your book, will not buy your book, and certainly will not review your book.
My question for you is why do authors think that posts like this are a good idea? If you are so concerned about your publishing contract, then why would you want to turn off so many people? Let's be honest--there are more options out there for readers now and the truth is is that unless your books are absolutely fabulous and mind blowing, and I somehow doubt that they are, then I will move on and find someone new.
Authors that are published by NY publishing houses are in an even more precarious position than ever before. Why? Because for those of us who buy digital books, there is more competition for our hard earned dollars. Rather than allotting from my budget the cost for two books to appease the likes of Carriger, I will walk away with my money and buy two new authors (possibly quite a few more given what the digital cost of her books are). With the effervescent digital pub and self pub market there are more choices out there for me, the reader.
Because, after all, it is a reader's market.
**All of these requests by the authors are so they can get on the NYT best seller list. Yeah, well. Good luck now. If your dedicated fans really want this information, then why not send it out in a newsletter? You can please that handful while not turning off the majourity of readers. I often check an author's blog to check their writing style.
EDITED TO ADD: Dear Author has posted on this as well.
