Book Extras

I’m Flattered You Want To Steal My Book

Bonded Book One of the Shadowlight Saga by Mande MatthewsHonestly, I am. The fact that Bonded: Book One of the ShadowLight Saga has shown up in file shares and illegal download sites is quite flattering.  It means someone is going through the trouble to fight off malicious software downloads and browser hijacks just to get my book for free. It means someone out there wanted my book bad enough to try to steal it. By all that’s wondrous in this universe, those facts alone are enough to cause me to smile. It’s right up there with a five-star review.

But here’s the thing, if you really, really, really can’t afford my book and want to read it for free, just email me. I understand. I’ve been there—broke and desperate with nothing to spare (a few too many times, I might add). If I can provide that entertainment for you, and you honestly can’t afford the $4.99—bless you my friend. I will gladly gift you the book and be ecstatic that you wanted it that badly. In return, perhaps you could give me a glowing review, eh? 😉

If, by chance, you can afford that $2.99, then I would greatly appreciate your donation. See, it allows me to continue to build an income from this thing I love doing the most, and it tells me that I finally have a chance to do just one job—write and share my stories—after all these years of juggling one and sometimes two jobs along with my passion for writing. In appreciation for that donation and show of support on your part, I promise to continue to deliver to you my very best efforts.

So remember, I am here. Just e me. Have a magical day.

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6 Comments

  1. Yes, I get the whole “free book” idea to grow your fan base and eventual sales with a partial book or first book; however, if they put all your books up on their websites when are we going to ever get paid? It isn’t the same as music where you get a royalty based on broadcast play time outside of sales. If websites are going to drive traffic to them by giving away our books for free, we should be entitled to royalties the same way songwriters are. They drive traffic to their web pages for one reason to make money off advertisers. As the mob would say, we deserve a taste. This is my opinion. I’d like to know how other authors feel.

    1. Agreed – fileshares are unfair to those of us who put our hard work, time, imaginations, years of learning and perfecting, not to mention the cost of editors and such. However, fileshares have been around forever and I doubt they are going any where any time soon. Since they are illegal, and most people realize they are illegal, I thought it would be prudent to tell readers they can just ask if they simply can’t afford it. I know there are people in other countries who don’t have what we have and I’m more than happy to reach out to a would-be reader in that respect and hope that readers can fairly draw the line for themselves in whether they can afford a book or not. I know it’s a dangerous offer given the state of affairs seems to be entitlement these days, but I’m hoping for the honor system. I know, naïve but one’s gotta have hope.

  2. LOVE this perspective. Great post!

  3. I have friends that are of the opinion that music, software, e-books, movies, etc. don’t cost anything to produce, and therefore should all be shared freely. They’re constantly amused by my insistence on actually buying those things. With real money, no less.

    I appreciate your perspective.

  4. Hi Rob. Thanks for dropping by. I fear we’re breeding entitlement, but I’m going to keep closing my eyes to it. 😉

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