Friday, March 27, 2020

How Do You Like to "Read" a Book? By Margaret Daley



Below is a post I wrote ten years ago. As I was reading it, I thought about what I wrote considering whether the print book was dying. Recently, I sent out my newsletter and asked my readers how they preferred to “read” a story. The print book was their favorite way. The e-book was second and the audio version was third. 

How do you like to “read” a book?

Is the Print Book Dying?

For years we have been hearing people predicting that the book was dying—on its way out the door. In the future people will read books on the computer or some kind of handheld device like the new Kindle at Amazon (which I do think is neat but way too expensive). I do think those devices will gain in popularity, but at least for the near future the book is alive and well—holding its own.
 
I read an article in an airline magazine on my way to Fort Lauderdale about a project that Microsoft was involved in.  It’s the high school of the future. The library doesn’t have books that you can hold in your hand. Everything is on the computer and all the students have their own laptops. They don’t have textbooks.
 
For the most part things are going along okay, but the students and teachers are complaining there are no books around. They must research on the Internet. Teachers go home and spends hours adapting work from the Internet to present to their students. They miss not having textbooks to supplement their teaching.
 
Now I don’t know about you, but I can’t sit at the computer all day and especially read on top of that a story on my computer. I think my eyes get tired from the light on the computer. Don’t get me wrong. I love my computer and what it can do, but I also love a good old-fashioned book to hold at the beach. So, I’m hoping there’s a place for both in the future.
 
What do you see happening in the next ten or twenty years?



Obsessed, Book 2 in Everyday Heroes—99¢ through April 10th
By Margaret Daley


Stalker. Arson. Murder.


When a stalker ruthlessly targets people she loves, a woman flees her old life, creating a new identity as Serena Remington. Her plan to escape the madman and lead him away from family and friends worked for three years. Now he's back. With nowhere else to run, her only choice is war. Quinn Taylor, her neighbor and a firefighter with expertise in arson, comes to her aid, but will it be in time to save her?
Buy links: AmazonBarnes and NobleAppleKobo and Google Play


10 comments:

  1. Sweet sweet cover ! Do you have a marketing strategy to reach the right audience ? Get reviews from top readers in your genre using usabookreviewers dot com. Would you like a book trailer ? I can do one for free.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Margaret, after years of reading mostly on a kindle, I am back to print. There's nothing like holding a chunky new paperback. (I recently ordered several.) My ancient kindle is struggling, and I have zero desire to purchase another. I enjoyed reading your ten-year-old article. How interesting that it's still so relevant!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Magdalena. When I read that old blog, I thought it still applied to today.

      Delete
  3. So interesting, Margaret. I love books in any and all forms, but at the end of the day, I still love my paperbacks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I like print and e-books. I'm not an audio person. I'm a visual learner.

      Delete
  4. I echo what Magdalena said. I've been almost exclusively reading on my kindle for years and years, but lately, if a cover grabs me, I will order that book in print.
    I also think that audiobooks are going to become more and more popular.
    I love audiobooks because, like you, my eyes get tired from being on the computer. I can listen to a book while washing dishes or cleaning in general. LOL I find if I sit still while listening to a book I will fall asleep, regardless of how good it is. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Kimberly. I wish I could listen to audio books, but that doesn't work for me.

      Delete
  5. Most of the books I read are on my tablet unless I get a print book from the library. It's easier to get print books at our library than to borrow ebooks.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks, Merrillee. I haven't gone to the library in years.

    ReplyDelete