State of Play

The state of play

In recent years you have seen many e-book blogs sites disappear.

When this particular blog first started there were a large amount of sites that were dealing with this particular sector, however this has changed quite dramatically.

Has this sector really changed since inception or is it just our perception of it?

What do you think? Is this the case?

E-book’s are popular because anyone that feels they have a book in them, can create and self publish their own book and many have felt that they could make a good living by being a writer.Many e-books have been written, some will have sold quite well, and there are many more that won’t have sold many copies.

Naturally anything that is ready to be sold, has to be marketed and while your book may be good, if no one knows about it, it won’t sell.

I started this blog as a place where people like myself who read and/or write a lot could visit and share their particular skills and techniques with others of a similar mindset and leave with something new. My ethos has always been if you care you share.

Has the demographic really changed?

At one point many sites were predicting the death of the traditional book, E books were going to be the only way to read, and the buying of the right electronic device was the main decision that had to be made.
So what has changed, if anything?

Being a Londoner and travelling on the underground as frequently as I do, one of the main things that people do when they are travelling is to read either one of the free newspapers that are given out, or text/play a game on their mobile smart phone, or to read their book of choice.

So are people reading by an electronic device or the traditional book?

From what I see on a regular basis it is about a 60-40 split in the favour of  electronic reading. But the good old paper and ink is still there. Similarly not so long ago people prophesied  that vinyl records were dead, but now they are making a strong comeback.

Whilst you can buy a CD or download the song of your choice, the one advantage vinyl records have always had is that they are personal, every record has a little story behind it. In many ways the traditional book has the same thing. In addition to this you don’t need to buy an expensive reading device; you just use your eyes or braille.

While I love e-book’s, I cannot deny that when I get a spare moment, I do love going to an old 2nd hand bookshop, breathing in the familiar aroma of old books, leafing through what’s available and carrying out a couple of books. The printed book does have a disposability factor where you can give it to a friend; leave it where you finish reading it, selling it to a second-hand shop or throwing it in the bin. You can also resell it on Ebay or donate it to a charity. The choice is yours,

With an e-book you can of course store it on your device or delete once you finish reading.

I feel now is a settling point whereby both the e-book and the traditional book have shown that they have their relevant places in the market.  E-book blogging sites such as this one have their relevant place, also when they blog it has value.

Or are e-book blogging sites a thing of the past?