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#1
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Editorials...was "Copying Dust Jacket blurbs"
Richard Moriarty asked:
On what basis do think that it is ok to copy dustjacket blurbs in book listings? To which Mark Healy answered: Legally, I don't know or care. I don't like it and it reduces my estimation of the seller. I agree. Copying dust jacket blurbs is tacky. Then he continued: It isn't necessary. People who see your listing have already decided that they want that title, so it is a waste of time and bandwidth. I want to know what kind of shape the book is in. I don't need the sellers editorial commentary or that of the blurb guy from marketing a the publisher. But with this I disagree for two reasons. 1) Copying a blurb and the seller supplying editorial commentary (as long as the commentary is not simply a paraphrase of the blurb) are two very different activities. The first implies that the seller is lazy and hasn't read the book. The second shows the seller has read the book and has opinions. The views might be idiotic or insightful...but no matter. At least the seller is showing that she has thought about what she is selling. 2) Because a book, while certainly being an object or an "item", also has the potential to be more. Writing a few sentences of commentary is a fitting acknowledgment of that reality. Having opinions, it is true, doesn't alter the object itself. My copy of "Swiss Family Perelman" either has a coffee stain on the back of the DJ or it doesn't. The hinge is "going" or it's no "going." My opinion to a potential buyer that the content of the book is funnier than a viola solo will not alter these flaws. So why tell a prospective buyer that a book not only has a coffee and hinge problems, but also that the book is "funnier than a viola solo?" Because "Swiss Family Perelman" is not a kitchen gadget. It may sit on a higher plane. It is not a duty, but it is certainly sensible that the seller of such a thing would like to comment on it before passing it on to another person. In my book descriptions I follow two roads. If I have not read the book I simply state the condition and the price. But if I have read the book, I do add a few sentences of commentary. I'm parting (if the book happens to sell) with a good friend...(or an annoying one) and I want the next person in line to know that there is a touch of sadness (or relief) in the parting. For me, selling a book that I have read always brings to mind the words from the John Dowland air: "Now, Oh Now, I needs must part..." And if that television character from the distant 60's could editorialize about the miraculous Vegamatice by asking "ISN"T IT AMAZING ?", I think I can say to anyone who might be interested in buying my copy of "Swiss Family Perelman": "This book is like a vegamatic: AMAZING" Jonathan |
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#2
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"Jbrodie1750" wrote in message ... 1) Copying a blurb and the seller supplying editorial commentary (as long as the commentary is not simply a paraphrase of the blurb) are two very different activities. The first implies that the seller is lazy and hasn't read the book. Are you seriously proposing that booksellers read each book before they put it up for sale, and that that seller is lazy if he or she has not done so? You've got to be joking! Denise |
#3
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paghat wrote:
Most people if they like books at all end up with way more of them than can ever be finished If you are right, even among bookish people most folks are not like me. I can't imagine buying a book without reading it quite soon after purchase. On the few occasions that I've done so, it's seemed very peculiar. Omitting books of reference of course -- I don't read cookbooks or dictionaries straight through, though I may read large sections at a time. Well, and there's one other exception -- I haven't read all of my Charlotte Yonge books thoroughly (I get bogged down in the textbooks she wrote), though I do know most of the fiction ones quite well. --Helen |
#4
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#5
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Are you seriously proposing that booksellers read each book before they put
it up for sale, and that that seller is lazy if he or she has not done so? You've got to be joking! I am not proposing that booksellers read each book before they put it up for sale. For the prolific booksellers on this ng that would be impossible. But I do have problems with the scenario of copying a blurb for a book that has not been read. It just doesn't feel right to me. I apologize for using the term "lazy" I confess to not being a "bookseller." I do claim to be an enthusiastic reader and collector who has quite recently discovered that it is enjoyable to sell a book now and again. As my meager inventory grows, (I only have 35 books listed so far on my ABE) I *do* plan on only stocking it only with books that I have read and enjoyed. This is because I want my "shop" to reflect what I think is significant. My goal is to have no more than 300-500 books on my cyber-shelf. Amateur musicians have the freedom to play only music that they want to play. I'm an amateur "seller of an occasional book" who has the freedom to sell only books that I have enjoyed. (This is not because I'm independently wealthy...it's because I have another day job.) If I had to make my living selling books, I would clearly be out of luck. I am certainly not saying that my bookshop plan should be the wave of the future. But it works for me. And it keeps me out of trouble. And it makes me happy Jonathan |
#7
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But your schema raises a number of questions for me:
--Surely 35 books on ABE is not cost-effective? --Do you expect to find enough copies of books that you enjoy, at prices you can afford, to sell at prices that bring you a decent ROI? Thank you for a thoughtful reply to my impractical notions. I'll respond to your last query first and save more thoughts for future posts. Well...so far I have been lucky. I have sold three books from my small ABE stock..and the last one, a first of "Henderson The Rain King" that I picked up for ten dollars and sold for 180.00 has allowed me to "break even." But certainly I will need to have a much larger inventory. Is it possible that 300-500 books will be enought if they are the "right" books and the prices are realistic? I will find out, because that number is my goal. I do not envy dealers on ABE who have thousands of books in stock priced so unrealisitically that they will never sell. I would rather have 500 books and sell one a month than 5000 and sell none at all. And fortunate again for me is my definition of "ROI. For me, "breaking even" is acceptable and making a few bucks is delightful. That is because the actual puttering I do in maintaining my shop and selling a decent book is so much fun. However, if I start to lose money, that is unacceptable because it will be hindering me from buying my dream S.J. Perelman book, "Dawn Ginsbergh's Revenge" (with DJ.) I hope these explanations allow you to think that I'm not "one viola player short of a full section" but rather just a bit unpractical and harmless. Jonathan |
#8
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fiziwig wrote:
...[snip]... As a frequent book buyer on ebay I browse by subject categories looking for something interesting I haven't read before. I often buy books I've never heard of, and many of them turn out to be interesting and well worth my time. For that reason, whenever I encounter an ebay listing that simply has condition and price I skip right over it. There's not a chance in hell I would ever buy a book listed with only condition and price. ...[snip]... This shows that it is difficult to market to both the browser and the collector. The browser/reader needs info to decide to read the book. The collector knows what the book is and cares only about condition and price (and trustworthiness of the seller). Much of the time, there is not a lot of overlap between the two types of buyers, so a seller can use an appropriate blurb style. [The problem is the book that could go either way. i.e. the 10 dollar first edition or a common illustrated edition.] [I've seen many 100 dollar and up books with blurbs that target readers and many 2 dollar books with blurbs that tout the collector value. Is it cluelessness or stolen blurbs? Probably some of each.] [How many browsers looking for a book to read will pay 50 to 500 dollars for a collectable copy? - on the other side, how many collectors will be interested in a 87th printing of a paperback.] Brian "collector of thirty-seventh printings" |
#9
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An excellent point. Mostly I am a buyer of content and condition matters
not at all. I prefer PB because I can put the book in my back pocket when I know I'll be kept waiting at the dentist office. So I guess that makes me a whole different kind of buyer than the collector targeted by sellers of collectors editions. Yes, I collect books, but I really collect content, not physical objects. --gary "Brian" wrote in message ... fiziwig wrote: ...[snip]... As a frequent book buyer on ebay I browse by subject categories looking for something interesting I haven't read before. I often buy books I've never heard of, and many of them turn out to be interesting and well worth my time. For that reason, whenever I encounter an ebay listing that simply has condition and price I skip right over it. There's not a chance in hell I would ever buy a book listed with only condition and price. ....[snip]... This shows that it is difficult to market to both the browser and the collector. The browser/reader needs info to decide to read the book. The collector knows what the book is and cares only about condition and price (and trustworthiness of the seller). Much of the time, there is not a lot of overlap between the two types of buyers, so a seller can use an appropriate blurb style. [The problem is the book that could go either way. i.e. the 10 dollar first edition or a common illustrated edition.] [I've seen many 100 dollar and up books with blurbs that target readers and many 2 dollar books with blurbs that tout the collector value. Is it cluelessness or stolen blurbs? Probably some of each.] [How many browsers looking for a book to read will pay 50 to 500 dollars for a collectable copy? - on the other side, how many collectors will be interested in a 87th printing of a paperback.] Brian "collector of thirty-seventh printings" |
#10
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On Wed, 30 Jul 2003 10:27:52 -0700, Brian
declared: fiziwig wrote: ...[snip]... As a frequent book buyer on ebay I browse by subject categories looking for something interesting I haven't read before. I often buy books I've never heard of, and many of them turn out to be interesting and well worth my time. For that reason, whenever I encounter an ebay listing that simply has condition and price I skip right over it. There's not a chance in hell I would ever buy a book listed with only condition and price. ...[snip]... This shows that it is difficult to market to both the browser and the collector. The browser/reader needs info to decide to read the book. The collector knows what the book is and cares only about condition and price (and trustworthiness of the seller). Much of the time, there is not a lot of overlap between the two types of buyers, so a seller can use an appropriate blurb style. [The problem is the book that could go either way. i.e. the 10 dollar first edition or a common illustrated edition.] [I've seen many 100 dollar and up books with blurbs that target readers and many 2 dollar books with blurbs that tout the collector value. Is it cluelessness or stolen blurbs? Probably some of each.] [How many browsers looking for a book to read will pay 50 to 500 dollars for a collectable copy? - on the other side, how many collectors will be interested in a 87th printing of a paperback.] Brian "collector of thirty-seventh printings" well a blurb touting the "collectibility" of a book is pretty self-serving, whereas a blurb with the content opens a collectible book (particularly a $10 book) to another market. condition should always be described in either case and easily distinguishable from the "blurb" text. robert -- who really doesn't care if it's read or collected as long as it sells ;-) robert "I've been long, a long way from here Put on a poncho, played for mosquitos, And drank til I was thirsty again We went searching through thrift store jungles Found Geronimo's rifle, Marilyn's shampoo And Benny Goodman's corset and pen" |
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