I’ll be honest–I never realized there was a cult of print book readers until I published my first book. I’m not an early adopter of technology, but when the Kindle came on the scene, I couldn’t resist.
Books for under $5? I could carry around an entire library in my purse? And what? Back lit? I could read in bed without waking up my husband (or later, my nursing newborn)?
SIGN. ME. UP.
In any event, this isn’t meant to be a criticism of paperbacks–they have their uses. But I see so much unwarranted hate that I need to speak up about this. So without further ado, I present to you 5 completely random reasons that ebooks are awesome.
You can carry a million of them at once
Ok, not a million. But quite a few–the Kindle Voyage can hold around 6000. I can take a bunch on a road trip. I can take even more on a long-haul flight. When you’ve got limited carry-on space and can read 2-3 books in 14 hours, well . . . you do the math.
Movers can’t destroy them
They can’t destroy my Kindle, because I shove it in my purse while the house falls down around me. Ok, so they can’t destroy my books either without working hard at it. But they CAN destroy bookcases. In fact, that’s why I haven’t unloaded my boxes of books for two moves now–and when I did, it was to donate most of them.
They’re cheap!
Yes, I know you’re technically renting them. But Asrian Skies is currently going for $.99 as an ebook–the very least I can sell the paperback for is around $11. As both a reader and writer, the costs can’t even come close. And as a reader who’s read almost exclusively indie authors for the past 10 years, it’s infinity more affordable to take a risk on a new writer by buying an ebook.
(Yes, I realize this only applies to indie books, but I don’t read much traditional publishing anymore–so yes, ebooks are much cheaper for me)
Reading on a Kindle is easier
At 39, my near vision isn’t what it used to be, but I can get away without reading glasses in bright light. Know what’s not bright? Trying to read a paperback in bed. The Paperwhite and later Voyage saved my reading habit. I’d imagine once my vision gets worse, the ability to increase the font size will become invaluable.
Speed of purchase
The last town I lived in had no bookstore. Not even a used one–the closest was about 35 minutes away. Ebooks? Click download and you’ve got a book at 11 pm when you’re craving something new to read.
And though I said this wouldn’t be negative, but I do have one last thing to say–being able to read paperbacks is a privilege. If your eyes are good, you have a local bookstore, and you can afford paperback pricing (or are eligible for a library card–I am not) . . . great! But remember there’s a large population out there for whom ebooks are a lifesaver, financially, medically, and emotionally.
What about you? What do you like about ebooks?