A survey commissioned by the Guild found that only 25% of print books and e-books read in the past month were bought new or through a paid s
I do NOT support the Author's Guild on this. I stand with libraries. Let me tell you why.
MATH. Unless by some magical money tree, the budget will have to come from somewhere. Probably (likely) from those mid-list and low-list book purchases. Because SJM and Stephen King will absolutely be checked out. So the authors who will be missing out? Most of us.
CAPITALISM. The fact that author revenue is down? We can start with capitalism. Consolidation of publishing houses to fewer and fewer, with layoffs so significant that books are making it onto the shelves with very little to no editing (looking at Shy Girl)
CAPITALISM 2: People generally have less money! And when you are struggling to buy food, you are NOT able to spend on books. So, maybe let’s increase the minimum wage and make sure people have enough for food and gas and rent before going after LIBRARIES.
CAPITALISM 3: Have you been paying attention to how many ‘big box’ stores have been undercutting authors? Talking about stocking AI books if they sell? I have. Authors are making less in part because big companies have monopolies and get to dictate the terms. It’d be a better idea to break those up so that there’s competition for competitive prices again.
THE TIMES: The marketplace has changed. More people are listening to audiobooks. And you know who absolutely FUMBLED audiobooks as an author advocacy organization? That’s right, the very Author’s Guild who decided… “who is to blame for authors making less money? I know! It’s libraries!”
Libraries are already fighting for their lives, and they are one of the last third spaces out there. I have a lot more faith in a librarian finding my mid or low list book and stocking it, getting people to read it and maybe even BUY IT than I do in a Guild who says they’ll give you a Human Made sticker for a price, and on a website that literally ends with a “.ai”
End rant.
