So what’s it take for you to buy hardcover books from an author? I ask because Scott Lynch’s third Gentleman Bastards book, The Republic of Thieves, just finally finally finally came out in paperback, and the jerk’s announced that volume 4 is going to be somehow coming out later in 2014.
I do not think I’m going to be able to wait for the fourth book to hit paperback, and splitting the series after a trilogy appeals to the obsessive-compulsive book nerd in me, so I will be promoting Mr. Lynch to “buy in hardcover,” at least for the Gentleman Bastards books, as soon as #4 comes out. Kevin Hearne’s Iron Druid books also just made the leap– Shattered was the first book released in hardcover, and I bought it immediately.
Do you have a rule for when you’ll buy a fiction author in paperback vs. hardback? How patient are you about waiting for paperbacks from authors you like?
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If I have the money and I really want to read the book (either because it belongs to a series/universe I love or just because the blurb won me over), I go for the hardcover without hesitation. I love hardcovers. Of course, if I am limited in money, I need to wait for the paperback (or I go for the trick of grabbing the now cheaper hard cover when the paperback comes out instead of the paperback itself). And I can also decide to buy a single hardcover instead of multiple paperbacks if this is a book I badly want. Right now I am resisting very hard not to pre-order Star Wars: A New Dawn, which comes out in hard cover in September.
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Star Wars books are one place where I try really hard to wait for paperback under nearly all circumstances, although it frequently doesn’t work very well. I just find that they read way too fast to be worth hardback prices. That said, I bought the entire Fate of the Jedi series in HB as they were published, but I was mad at myself each time I did it. 🙂
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…and “Kenobi,” and “Crucible.” Hmm. Maybe I’m not trying that hard anymore.
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I mostly read ebooks because I have poor eyesight. If I really want to read a hardback book right when it comes out, I’ll pick it up from the library.
Before the advent of ebooks, I bought a healthy mix of hard- and paper-backs. My decisions were based on what I could afford and what I just had to read. Now, I can’t justify paying hardcover prices, especially when they might give me a headache.
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I love the smell and feel of hardcovers, but I simply don’t have the shelf space, so I treasure the few I own. Haven’t read Lynch, but with that superb book cover, a blurb from Martin and your fine words, I downloaded book 1 ‘The Lies of Locke Lamora.’ I have a feeling you’re going to be a bad influence on my book budget.
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I don’t like hard covers so I will wait a long time. I’ve been waiting six months for one now. I just read other authors.
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If a story really grabs me, I might buy a paperback copy, but hardbacks? No. There’s no value in them for me. I have mild arthritis and the weight alone undoes me. I might be tempted to buy a hardback for a present, IF I know the recipient would appreciate it in that format.
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I read everything from the library (print or Kindle) first, and then if I decide I want to buy it, I wait for the paperback. Although I do sometimes buy hardcover if I know I want the set.
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It is hardbacks for me all the way. If I really want a book NOW I will exercise patience, save and get the hardback. I’m not a new-book snob; used ones are just fine, although I do prefer mine with dust jackets. I collect a number of authors and have paperbacks of some of their books. when I see a hardback on sale somewhere I will buy it and donate the PB to the library or a thrift store. My main criteria is if I am going to reread the book, the book must be hardback. I don’t own an E-reader, and sorry, but have no plans to ever own an e-reader. Publish BA as an HB or PB and I will be first in line! Guess I am a book snob after all.
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I vastly prefer paper myself, although I do own a Kindle Paperwhite– which I mostly use to read ebook-only indie authors. And just for the record, as a novella BA is virtually unpublishable without being ridiculously expensive. It’s just too short to be cost-effective; nobody’s paying $15 for a 120-page manuscript. This is one place where even I have to admit ebooks are great. 🙂
(To be clear, not challenging your decision not to buy it– just thought I’d explain why I haven’t tried to publish it on paper.)
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My sister the librarian has an e-reader. I just realized I could get her to but the book so I can read it. Sometimes it takes more than one brain to do anything I’m involved in.
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You can also read it on whatever you wrote that comment with. Every platform has a Kindle app.0
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I read in bed. Hardcovers are heavy, and hurt too much when they fall on my face as I nod off. I prefer trade paperbacks as a rule, for the larger font, but I’m learning to love my e-reader. Generally I only buy hardcovers as boxed sets, and those aren’t usually the full-size first release hardcovers anyway.
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