On eBooks and iPads

Recently there has been a ton of chatter about eBooks. With Amazon going to war with publishers over pricing, the release of the Nook--the first major competitor of the Kindle (not that there haven't been other eReaders, but just like Harry becoming the chosen one because Voldemort decided the prophecy referred to him, Amazon singled the Nook out as THE competitor) and then, of course, there was the stir over the introduction of iBooks. My observation has been that over the last year or two eBooks have gone from primarily a distribution tool used by small specialty markets (like small press erotica publishers) to a mainstream alternative to paper.

A few years ago, eBook sales were not significant enough to track. While I can't put my hands on the report right this moment, if I remember correctly, last year eBooks made up a little less than 4% of all book sales. While 4% of the market is not much, if you look at the trend, it's obvious eBook popularity is growing, and fast. Most books are releasing eBook and print simultaneously, and while some big NY houses have tested a policy model that delays the release of eBooks for hardbacks, the reader backlash to the policy has been heavy. The message is clear: eBooks are taking hold and readers expect to be able to download highly anticipated titles on the same day the physical copies hit stores.

I have watched all of these events unfold with a mix of disinterest and horror. The disinterest stems from the fact that reading on my screen annoys me--I spent years editing every draft of my manuscripts on paper, and only a sense of guilt over the waste finally forced me to learn to edit on the screen--so, if it's a chore for me to read on my computer, I'm obviously not going to choose to mix said chore with my pleasure reading. The horror is firmly rooted in the fear eBooks could one day become the industry norm and physical books over priced collector items. (Not that I think this will happen in my lifetime, but the fear is there.) As someone in my twenties, I'm apparently supposed to be a prime audience for eBooks, but I'm more of the opinion one would have to pry my paper copies out of my cold dead hands.

I like books. I like holding my books while I read them. I like seeing the spines on my bookshelves. I like judging how much story is left by the remaining thickness. I like being able to pull a well loved book off my shelf and open it to a random page. When I was little, I dreamed of one day seeing my name on the spine of a book. Before I was published I would walk in bookstores and scout out where my books would some day be located. A physical book is something special to me. Not that I have anything against eBooks (except that little bit of fear). I'm happy my books are released in various eformats as it gives readers who prefer such formats an opportunity to read my work. No, I've never had against them, they just weren't for me.

Until recently.

A couple months ago I splurged on an iPad. Mind you, I did not buy it as an eReader--there are much cheaper eReader's out there. I bought it knowing it would be primarily a toy, and justified the purchase by convincing myself it would be a nice alternative to my laptop for reading my critique partners' pages. Unfortunately, that plan has yet to pan out because none of the apps for the iPad have the ability to track changes or add comments to text. (Very frustrating! If anyone out there knows how to program in Cocoa and would be so kind as to write a document editing App with track changes and comments, I will love you forever. And of course, buy a copy of the program. ^_^) Since my productivity plans fell through, I have used my iPad primarily for games and movie.

Prior to my iPad, I had read exactly one ebook. It was a short prequel to a new series by an author I like, it was only available in ebook format, and it was free. Why not, right? So I downloaded the kindle app for my phone and snagged the book from amazon. While the story was good, I must say I was frustrated while reading it and the experience didn't encourage me to look into any other ebooks. Then, a couple weeks after getting my ipad, a similar situation occurred. An author I adore released a free short tie in novella to her NYT bestselling series, but it was only available in ebook format. I sighed, poured myself a cup of tea, curled up on the couch, downloaded the app for my ipad, and then resigned myself to reading on the thing. But the experience wasn't bad. Oh, I wouldn't say I enjoyed reading on the ipad more than enjoy reading a physical book, it was more like I simply stopped noticing that what I was reading was on a screen and not on a page. So I downloaded another book. Then I tested out some of the other ebook apps. This whole reading ebook thing? Not so intolerable after all.

So am I sold now? Am I going to stop killing trees and read only eBooks? Not hardly. Or, at least, not yet.

The switch from CDs to buying almost all my music electronically was fairly easy for me, probably because storing all my playlists on one device which worked with my headphones, my various sound systems through out my house, and even my car, made sense. When I'd buy a physical cd, I'd import it into my computer and then have to find somewhere to stash the physical CD which I really didn't need anymore. These days, the only time I buy a CD is if I'm at a concert and want something for the band to sign. Will I eventually feel the same way about books? Buy physical copies only when I want an author to sign them? I can tell you that when I recently moved and had over fifty large boxes of books, not having them sounded good, but I love having my own library. I don't collect much, but I do collect books. Things are changing fast, and this is probably a topic I'll have to revist in coming years.

So what are your feelings on eBooks? Love them? Hate them? Afraid of the possible future they represent? Has your opinion changed recently due to the events of the last six or so months? I'd love to know your opinions and your experiences!

Happy hump day everyone, and check back tomorrow when I continue the eBook discussion with my rating of the top three iPad ereader apps. (I originally intended to include it in today's discussion, but then I realized this post was already obnoxiously long.)