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Ok, so I decided to track my "lost sales" in addition to actual purchases made. Why? Because I am very OCD, lol.

I figured out a list of reasons I would abandon a potential purchase, too.:

Ebooks have changed the publishing industry, right? Wrong (in my opinion). Ebooks made it easier for people to publish but it did not do away with the biggest impediments to authors everywhere: bullshit, exclusive contracts, geographical restrictions and unavailability.

I am always surprised when I can't spend money. I decided to start to log my "lost sales," mostly to see how much money I save by others being stupid.

The Bullshit ~ Everyone knows what BS is. For me it's BBA (Badly Behaving Author) activities and/or being a total douchebag (BTW, you don't have to be a BBA to be a douche).

Exclusive Contracts ~ I *think* this is something that actually started after ebooks came about and it is mostly related to self-published authors. Amazon offers the option to publish exclusively with Amazon for a 90 day period. Amazon offers the book to users for free (not sure how long). While this is happening the author can only have that [e]book for sale with Amazon. So if it was in other bookstores it gets pulled (sorry if you bought it!). I have no clue what the author gets out of it but I can tell you what the reader gets out of it: A) frustration that they can't buy a book and/or B) to keep their money in their pocket because they can't buy a book.

Geographical Restrictions ~ This is the biggest problem of them all. It is what is says - geo restrictions restrict the reader from purchasing books from a seller outside of the [publisher created] geographical area. Some eRetailers have geo restrictions, too. These restrictions - in relation to eBooks - make no sense. Why stop someone from giving you money?? While I can understand geo restrictions in relation to DTBs (dead tree books)...ok, I'm lying. I can't understand them at all.

Not Available in preferred store/format ~ If I were to rank these "Lost Sales" reasons, this would probably rank #1 with me. I can't buy your book if it's not available in my preferred store(s)!!!! This is slightly (although only slightly) different from Exclusive Contracts. The difference is that the author or publisher is deciding what store(s) to release to (or not). Sadly (for me) Amazon and Barnes & Noble are the primary stores for a lot of companies...and quite often Kobo (my preferred store) gets left out. I'm willing to (and do) buy at other stores like AllRomanceEbooks, Ellora's Cave and Baen Books but I have a problem buying books from Amazon and Barnes & Noble due to their DRM. I can't read the book on my ereader and I refuse to read them on my phone or on my computer. Period.

So, that's the primary list of reasons why someone would lose a sale from me.



January 2014 Totals:
Potential Sales Abandoned: 2
Money Saved (Lost Sales): $19.83 (digital) or $23.83 (DTB)



14-Jan-2014
Book: Fool Me Twice
Author: Meredith Duran
Problem: I wanted to place a pre-order for this book. This is a traditionally published book offered by Pocket. I checked Smashwords, AllRomanceEbooks, and Kobo before looking for it at Amazon and B&N. It's only offered at Amazon and B&N.
Resolution: Will either borrow from a friend after release or ignore all together.
Amount Saved: $1.99 (digital) or $5.99 (DTB)


Book: Making Documentary Films and Videos: A Practical Guide to Planning, Filming, and Editing Documentaries
Author: Barry Hampe
Problem: - I was reading reviews when I saw the author turn into a raging asshat. Also, reviews state that the author allowed his personal political views to [strong;y] filter into the [instructional] work. I also do not want to offend my friend. I have no clue if the author and my friend's political views will dovetail.
Resolution: Will not purchase, will buy Producer to Producer (gift for a friend) instead
Amount Saved: $17.84

________________________


How does this sound??

Also, the first book listed there - Fool Me Twice - I was able to get a free copy via NetGalley. So I'm going to review it as well.

Would that even count as a lost sale? I tried NetGalley after someone suggested it, otherwise I would have abandoned the sale.

16-Jan-2014
Book: Midsommer Murders series
Author: Caroline Graham
Problem: These books have been randomly withdrawn from US market AFTER I started buying them. Can't get 4 of the 7 books in either ebook (for Mom) or audio (for me).
Resolution: No longer pursuing. Only certain credit cards will permit you to open an Amazon.uk account. Mine aren't included.
Amount Saved: $32.00 (ebook) or $60.00 (audio)


Note: Science fiction doesn't seem to be too hard to get from the UK, but there are MANY UK mystery series that you just can't get in the US except in DTB form, which doesn't help me since I can't read them.

Stephanie wrote: "16-Jan-2014
Book: Midsommer Murders series
Author: Caroline Graham
Problem: These books have been randomly withdrawn from US market AFTER I started buying them. Can't get 4 of the 7 books in either..."

Wow. I hate it when that happens. :(

I worked for a bookstore in 1997, and was shocked to learn that the Ian Fleming James Bond books were out of print and unavailable!

(I guess the Fleming estate's contract had expired, and they were shopping for a new one.)

GA wrote: "I worked for a bookstore in 1997, and was shocked to learn that the Ian Fleming James Bond books were out of print and unavailable!

(I guess the Fleming estate's contract had expired, and they wer..."

i hate it when that happens. There are so many good books out there.

it is our sacred duty to preserve books!

"GA wrote:...t is our sacred duty to preserve books!"


Well, the good ones. There's a few I've read that could disappear. *was that my outside voice?*

Homeinmyshoes wrote: ""GA wrote:...t is our sacred duty to preserve books!"


Well, the good ones. There's a few I've read that could disappear. *was that my outside voice?*"

lol!

For those I think we should pile them up in boxes and set them inside bombs.