I love bookshops as much as the next person, love being able to go along the shelf picking what to read next, and I support the shops whenever I can, particularly the little independents.
However, I can also see the value of online purchasing. Certainly, we at Inscribe rely on Amazon to sell our ebooks (for details of our titles check them out on our home page at www.inscribemedia).
So it was with interest that I read a thought-provoking article by Anne Treasure on www.sbs.com, which includes the line ‘Amazon is good for book publishing because it is good for readers’.
I have regular debates with writers about online purchasing and the allied rise and rise of the ebook. My view? I’ll continue to support traditional bookshops wherever I can but writers also have to take note of where our audience is (and in many cases, an audience that would not use bookshops).
Same with my own books; I love the idea that they nestle on bookshelves but if a new audience finds me online, that’s fine.
The full Anne Treasure article is on http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2013/11/21/comment-how-i-learned-stop-worrying-and-love-amazon-0?
John Dean
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