Monday, August 24, 2015

What Do You Really Want?

I'm indulging in reading for the past seven days. I've been writing but not as much as I should. During A to Z last year I highlighted books that have taught me something about writing. One of the writers I used as an example was Anthony Ryan and his Raven's Shadow series. Over the past week I've reread the first two novels and now I'm reading Queen of Fire, the third and last book in the series. Though I've fallen in love with the characters, I always like it when a writer keeps a series to 3 or 4 books. One of the things that has struck me as I read these books is how Ryan makes every scene count. Every chapter moves the story forward and makes it really hard to put the book down. At least 3 nights I've stayed up past 1:00 a.m. because I wanted to read one more chapter. Highly recommend this series if you love fantasy novels.

One with some market news. A recent survey by RWA and Nielsen points out that romance readers at least buy first based on authors. Secondly they make their choice based on the book being part of a series. After that, the third things influencing buying decisions was bookstore displays or e-store promotions.

Another news tidbit is the amazing numbers or people who read books on their phones. I know I do this with my Kindle app on my iPhone. Here's an article about it.

Some good news for brick and mortar stores as there is a slight uptick in retail sales of books this year, June being a particular good month, in stats gathered by ABA. I used to buy tons of books but I probably average only one or two physical books per month now though I usually buy at least twice that many on my Kindle. I also read lots of books from the library.

Don't forget the BIG announcement coming up from IWSG next week. Very, very exciting.

The end of summer is getting scary close as more and more people claim to have heard predictions of another brutal winter. Can that really be predicted?

But I'm going to enjoy these lingering days of warmth and sunshine before the leaves turn and catch up on my TBR pile. That's what I really want to be doing on the front porch with a cup of coffee.

Do you read books on your phone? Have you contributed to the uptick in book sales this year? Have you heard rumors of another bad winter? Do you look for books by author first?


20 comments:

Heather R. Holden said...

I'm envious of all the reading you've been doing. My depression has made it hard for me to crack open a book even just once a week lately, heh. That's great how the Raven's Shadow series has you hooked enough to stay up late to read it! You know a book's quality whenever that happens... :)

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I think I now purchase one print book a year.
Working through my reading list one author at a time!

Pat Hatt said...

I haven't purchased a print book in a long time, all kindle mostly. Ugg to the brutal winter, hopefully not

Madeline Mora-Summonte said...

I've contributed to the uptick in book sales! :) Some books were for me, some for my niece and nephew (a back-to- school-good-luck gift kind of thing.)

I tend to read ebooks on my iPad/Kindle app more than on my phone.

mshatch said...

Oh, I really hope those winter predictions aren't true. I didn't like last winter at all.

Maria Zannini said...

It's still brutally hot here. We don't get really cold until January.

Hubby bought a couple of print books this year. All of mine have been ebooks, but you'll never catch me reading a book on my phone. :)

Jay Noel said...

I too like it when an author keeps the series manageable. I tend to lose interest, no matter how great it is.

I'm not surprised by the RWA's findings, as readers seem very loyal to authors - especially since interactions have become more intimate thanks to social media.

betty said...

I too like when a series doesn't go beyond 3 or 4 books; I think sometimes if they do, it can get a bit stale towards the end of the series. Good that you have been taking advantage of getting some reading done! I have read a few books on my phone, a lot more on my tablet. I feel so bad here that I haven't gotten a library card yet since we moved; usually its the first thing I get in a new city. Something just so convenient about getting an Ebook I think :)

betty

Stacy McKitrick said...

The majority of my book purchases has been the paper variety. I prefer it over ebooks (and probably always will). I can never see me reading a book on my phone, but I do own a Nook. It comes in handy when I'm on vacation and don't want to lug a bunch of books around. That's when I finally get around to reading the free or 99-centers I picked up during the year.

Christine Rains said...

If there's an author I like, I will buy their books and check out ones they recommend. I've heard it's going to be a long, cold winter too. While I don't mind the cold, I just hope it isn't icy!

cleemckenzie said...

I still can't read a book on my phone. Sorry. Too old. Too in need of font size larger than 5!. Pages bigger than a few sentences. I've reduced myself to a Kindle and that's a far as I'm prepared to go.

The Armchair Squid said...

I'm not a fan of eBooks in principle but I have found them to be great for out-of-print books.

Tyrean Martinson said...

I've contributed a little to the uptake on paperback sales, but I still get books for my kindle that I also read on my phone, and I get books from the library. My daughter, a family physical therapist (kayaking and canoeing can be tough sports on the shoulders), and several of my friends have mentioned reading more on their phones lately. I admit that it is far more convenient to read while waiting in line at the store, or waiting anywhere, on my phone. I don't have an iphone, but I do have the cheapest possible data type phone (which means it works for some things but not others).

Karen Jones Gowen said...

I read everything on the Kindle these days, since I'm out of the country and away from bookstores and libraries. I've never been one to purchase books, having been trained at a young age to go to the library to find books. That's still what I do on the Kindle, borrow books through KDP Select. It's perfect for my situation right now and I definitely get my money's worth.

Joylene Nowell Butler said...

I'm sorry to see the summer go too. Especially up here where it seemed most of the summer was smokey because of forest fires. Ebooks are the way to go for pricing and storage, but I still love holding a real book in my hands.

Shanaya Tales said...

Late last year, I made the move to e-books, and actually have learnt to love my Kindle. So no I have not contributed to the sale of physical books. I have bought quite a few e-books though.

As far as reading on mobile goes, I don't feel comfortable doing that. It just doesn't give me the comforting feeling of reading a book. I don't think I would ever be able to do that, but then I guess..never say never. :D


Shanaya Tales said...

The statistic about how readers select a romance novel is interesting, coz I don't do that. I do not base my decisions on the author, the blurb is more important to me. I do however check if it is a part of a series, as I like to read any series in the order of publication. If I find the blurb interesting enough, I will look up the first book of the series (if it happens to be part of one) and read that instead. However I am clearly the exception to the rule here. :)

Ava Quinn said...

Great info, as usual, Sue. I don't read on my phone. I'm way too old skool for that. Hope to see you at September's meeting!

Patricia Stoltey said...

I've abandoned most of the series I used to follow and now look for standalones, first by favorite authors and then by.debut authors. Recently I've read mostly thrillers and suspense. I don't read on my phone, but sometimes read on my tablet if I can get the ebook through the library or if I'm traveling. And yes, I've contributed to an uptick in book sales. I mostly buy print books, but occasionally an ebook.

Arlee Bird said...

I can't even get text messages on my phone.

I will often be drawn to a book because of the author..Rarely do I by books in a series. I haven't been in a bookstore in quite some time. There aren't any very close to me.

Arlee Bird
A to Z Challenge Co-host
Tossing It Out