I’ll admit I’ve been hoarding books most of my life. I love books. I love reading them and writing them.
Used book sales were the highlights of my year. Every sale sacks of new books came home to fill my bookshelves.
How many bookshelves? Eight four foot by eight foot, two three foot by eight feet and a few smaller bookcases lined my front room walls, sat in side rooms and tempted me with their titles. That doesn’t count the stacks on the tops or on the floor.
Meeting Reality
Some of those bookcases held reference books. Teaching science requires a science library for lesson ideas. Researching plants requires guide books. Raising livestock requires veterinary and care books.
But the other bookcases held hundreds of books waiting to be read. I claim a thousand now, although I’ve never really counted them. Since I read about fifty of them a year, the last will be read about twenty years from now.
I am a senior citizen, an older senior citizen. Those books waiting for me to read them will probably end up going for fifty cents a box or tossed into a dumpster.
My solution was to stop going to the used book sales. I’m reading and giving away many of my books to people or book sales so others can enjoy reading them. I hope they will be read, not sit gathering decades of dust as they have on my shelves.
Book Reviews
As an author, I want other people to read my books. It’s hard work to write a book, rewrite it, edit it, create a cover and publish it.
The book market has changed. When I choose a book, I look at the dust jacket to find out something about the book. Reviews are nice, but they do not persuade me to read a book.
Why? Because there are books I enjoy reading and books I don’t enjoy reading. Take Stephen King. Many people love reading his books. I tried one, well two. The novel was enough for me. The one on writing was interesting and helpful.
The book market emphasizes book reviews. It’s vital to get reviews of your books.
Gift Giving Time
Now there are opportunities for me to give digital copies of my books away over the holidays. I’ve done this thinking people will read my books and do reviews of them.
Instead people download hundreds of free books just like the sacks I used to lug home in my hoarding books days.
The books sit on their phones or tablets or ereaders unread as so many of mine on my shelves. And then they are erased. Hoarding books is now guilt free as the books don’t sit there in front of you.
No one read them. No one reviewed them.
I don’t think I will participate. My digital books are $2.99 each. Maybe, if someone purchases one, they will actually read it and maybe do a review of it.