Please Welcome Serena Yates- Guest Author

Serena Yates Welcome

I want everyone to give a big huge welcome to Serena Yates. I am so very pleased to have her at the blog today and she is discussing a subject that is close to my heart. As most of you know I am a working writer. I have an eleven-year-old daughter, three huge labs that are my babies, and a disabled husband. I am the sole provider for my family.

I would love nothing better than to write all day, every day. To turn out more books a year for you. Maybe some day that will happen, I pray anyway, but unless these pirate sites stop it may never happen for me.

Like Serena says in her post. We don’t write to be rich and famous but we do have to make a living.

I will give you an example of my experience before Serena’s post. The weeks before the third book of The Were Chronicles was released the pirate sites were already gearing up for it. We tried to fight it- sent notices and all we can do. The day of the release… it was posted. With hundreds of downloads before it was taken down four days later. To me this is heart breaking and the worst part of being an Ebook author.

But enough about me- Today is Serena’s day!!! Please make sure to mark your calendars for the release of Stealing my Heart. I already have!



Why all this fuss about sharing e-books?

This has become a very touchy subject over recent months. People on both sides of the ‘piracy divide’ have become increasingly emotional about why they think they’re right and the others are – quite frankly – idiots.
Many articles have been written, many a discussion has taken place. You’d think that everything that can be said, has been said. So why have I decided to go ahead and blog about it?
a. It’s rather obvious that I’m involved in the battle - I’m an author of (mainly) e-books. So it’s a topic very close to my heart, indeed, to my livelihood. Therefore this is not an objective piece of analysis. I’ll stick to the facts, but I can’t be impartial. If that’s what you’re looking for, stop reading right now.
The issue is still not recognized nor very well understood by many people. Showing ‘the other side of the coin’, the pain and frustration authors live with every day, might help more people understand the consequences. Education is a good solution for many problems, this one is no different.
There is actually something you can do to help authors fight for their right to be paid for their hard work (like any other craftsperson). More about that later.

1. Why I worry as an author
2.
My ability to keep writing the stories that I need and want to write depends on my ability to earn a living from the sales of my books. Because I get very few $ per book, the more books are sold legally, the better my chances of putting food on the table. Also, the likelihood of my next book getting accepted depends on the sales of the previous book: if too few copies are sold (because everyone downloads them from a file-sharing site) my publisher will not give me another contract.
“Success” for 90% of authors means survival, pure and simple. We are not talking about being rich and famous! Like with most actors or musicians, only very few authors achieve celebrity status. The majority can barely make a living from writing.

3. Why readers might worry
4.
Money is being invested in the production of e-books, they do not “pop into existence” for free. Think about the people who are involved in making an e-book happen after the author has written it: editors and proof readers, cover artists and photographers, advertising and marketing. Even e-book retailers need to pay for web design and shopping cart management. None of those people in the “production” line will work for free! Yes, the total cost of production is lower than for a hardback or a paperback, but prices of e-books are also much lower.
If you want e-books to grow beyond the 5% or so market share they have now, you’ll need to support that growth by buying them. That’s how market size and success is measured. If you like the convenience of having 1,000 books with you on your e-reader every time you travel – support the growth of e-books by buying them.

5. And yes, even e-pirates should worry
Legally, everyone who downloads a book without paying for it can be fined. You can find the warnings and amount involved on the first few pages of almost every –book. Granted, so far not much has been done in this area, but the newly established U.S. Justice Department intellectual property task force is sure to make a difference (see article by Diane Bartz of Reuters at http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN1224904520100212).
Also, many e-publishers are no longer willing to stand by and see their income vanish into thin air. They’re installing tracking mechanisms into their e-books which will allow them to find (and punish) those who have bought their books and then put it onto a file-sharing site.

So, what can you do to help?
There are a few obvious things, which I am sure most sensible people already do. Think of e-books as just a different format of the same story (like audio books) – for which you’d expect to pay. Don;t share your e-books beyond family or close friends – just like you wouldn’t lend your paperback to just anyone. Get an account on goodreads.com and start a conversation with some of the authors on there – most of them will be happy to talk to you about how e-book piracy affects them.
You can also talk to friends about some of the things you may have learned by reading this or other blogs spread the word and make people think about the consequences of what they do.


And as of March 1 you can also help by buying a copy of Stealing My Heart

(http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=&P_ID=719)

at Total-E-Bound. All proceeds will go to help fight illegal e-book downloading. Just like the authors have contributed their time for free, the publisher contributed editor time, artwork and advertisement production.


The cover model, Adam Killian, gave his time as well and said:
"I said yes when AJ asked me to do the cover of Stealing My Heart, because like the book industry, mine is being affected by piracy. I said yes because if it's good for AJ, it's good for me. I said yes with pleasure and pride. I am proud to be the face for this groundbreaking book. From my heart to yours, Adam Killian."


Serena Yates
www.serenayates.com
serenayates09@googlemail.com