AR to E Books?

Does anyone know of plans for AR to be published in kindle or any ebook format?

Yes. In Signals From TARSUS in the May 2010 (page 5) there's something about his books. There is Old Peter's Russian Tales and the Russian Journals being available.

One great advantage would be the ability to take all 12 S&A books with me on a hike around Ransome-related areas, and consult relevant passages half-way up a mountain/tree etc, without the weight!

I see several of AR's older works are available as free ebooks on www.archive.org but I'd happily pay for the S&A series again, despite owning 2 copies of each (as of course, paper books are best).

For the past year I've been compiling a list of the free ebooks available which are relevant to my Ransome mania. I've got up to 75, which might justify the Kindle investment - the main fact being that it is cheaper than buying a wooden bookshelf and funding my current ebay habits.

I have an android phone with kindle reader.  I'd love your see your list of 75 books.....

Previously Magnus Smith wrote:

One great advantage would be the ability to take all 12 S&A books with me on a hike around Ransome-related areas, and consult relevant passages half-way up a mountain/tree etc, without the weight!

I see several of AR's older works are available as free ebooks on www.archive.org but I'd happily pay for the S&A series again, despite owning 2 copies of each (as of course, paper books are best).

For the past year I've been compiling a list of the free ebooks available which are relevant to my Ransome mania. I've got up to 75, which might justify the Kindle investment - the main fact being that it is cheaper than buying a wooden bookshelf and funding my current ebay habits.

I'd like to see your list, also.

I use a Palm PDA as an ebook reader.  I have a pirate copy of S&A, and pirated copies of books by other authors (all of which I have in paper form, too).  I happen to think that the exposure is worth more than the royalties for books of this age, a view shared by many current authors, also.

BTW, I also have many legitimate copies of books, some of them bought, others offered freely, a few with DRM protection.  I also have "pirate" copies of books with the approval of the authors.

I'd cheerfully buy the whole S&A set as ebooks, if they were available, even the books of which I already have 6 editions.  But I'd also like to be able to give them to others, to see if they get hooked.

73, doug

Previously Ike Stephenson wrote:

I have an android phone with kindle reader.  I'd love your see your list of 75 books.....

 

Previously Magnus Smith wrote:

One great advantage would be the ability to take all 12 S&A books with me on a hike around Ransome-related areas, and consult relevant passages half-way up a mountain/tree etc, without the weight!

I see several of AR's older works are available as free ebooks on www.archive.org but I'd happily pay for the S&A series again, despite owning 2 copies of each (as of course, paper books are best).

For the past year I've been compiling a list of the free ebooks available which are relevant to my Ransome mania. I've got up to 75, which might justify the Kindle investment - the main fact being that it is cheaper than buying a wooden bookshelf and funding my current ebay habits.

 

This is an interesting discussion. I know both Ransome's Literary Estate and their publishers are aware of the changes that electronic publishing has brought, and will continue to bring, to publishing. It's a rapidly changing industry and no doubt one that offers innovative opportunities, as well as potential difficulties.

Putting my Literary Executor hat on for a moment, I am however obliged to point out that all of AR's works remain in copyright in the UK and throughout the world. The major exception to this relates to works published before 1923 in the USA, which are considered to be in the public domain within that country. 

In other words, Ransome's works remain his copyright and it is illegal to make and sell copies without an appropriate licence from his Estate.

Publishers, such as Random House (Jonathan Cape and Red Fox) in the UK, have such licences. These grant exclusivity for specific works (in their case the 12 SA titles). These publishers therefore have commercial interest and investment in the works concerned. Decisions about whether, when and how to publish electronic versions of Ransome's copyright works are, therefore, a commercial matter between the publishers and the Estate. It follows that electronic versions of Ransome's works will be published if and when the Estate and publishers agree it is in their respective and joint interests to do so (no doubt taking into account many factors, including the potential benefits of exposure against sales, royalties, etc).

As of this date, however, there are no legitimate electronic versions of any of Ransome's copyright works. 

Please don't misunderstand me: I'm very interested in free discussion of the perceived benefits (or otherwise) of electronic publishing. It's very useful hearing what people think. But I am obliged to point out the legal position, as I'm sure TARS wouldn't want to give the impression that it condones pirated copies of AR's works.   

Geraint

Previously Doug Faunt wrote:

I'd like to see your list, also.

I use a Palm PDA as an ebook reader.  I have a pirate copy of S&A, and pirated copies of books by other authors (all of which I have in paper form, too).  I happen to think that the exposure is worth more than the royalties for books of this age, a view shared by many current authors, also.

BTW, I also have many legitimate copies of books, some of them bought, others offered freely, a few with DRM protection.  I also have "pirate" copies of books with the approval of the authors.

 

I'd cheerfully buy the whole S&A set as ebooks, if they were available, even the books of which I already have 6 editions.  But I'd also like to be able to give them to others, to see if they get hooked.

73, doug

 

Previously Ike Stephenson wrote:

I have an android phone with kindle reader.  I'd love your see your list of 75 books.....

 

Previously Magnus Smith wrote:

One great advantage would be the ability to take all 12 S&A books with me on a hike around Ransome-related areas, and consult relevant passages half-way up a mountain/tree etc, without the weight!

I see several of AR's older works are available as free ebooks on www.archive.org but I'd happily pay for the S&A series again, despite owning 2 copies of each (as of course, paper books are best).

For the past year I've been compiling a list of the free ebooks available which are relevant to my Ransome mania. I've got up to 75, which might justify the Kindle investment - the main fact being that it is cheaper than buying a wooden bookshelf and funding my current ebay habits.

 

 

I am interested to learn that the early Ransome books which have not been re-issued since publication, are still within UK copyright. Having read about the law I see it lasts for 70 years after the authors death. (As you say, US rules are different, and US websites can offer free ebooks....which people worldwide are going to download without a care in the world!)

I don't want to see the nightmare laws that surround AR's collections (Gautier, Hoffman) or his Translations (A night in the Luxembourg)!!

I'll just reiterate that my own list of free links is about Ransome-related ebooks. For example,  Robbery Under Arms, Holiday House, Mehalah...

I would urge the Publishers and the Estate to consider S&A ebooks soon. Currently there is no chance that ebook sales will ruin traditional profits (it is infuriating that hardbacks for sale at £10 are sold as ebooks for as much as £8!). In the future, if ebooks do take off, you don't want to be lagging behind. No stock to keep in a warehouse either - so it seems as if the publisher can't lose.

Previously Magnus Smith wrote:

I would urge the Publishers and the Estate to consider S&A ebooks soon. Currently there is no chance that ebook sales will ruin traditional profits (it is infuriating that hardbacks for sale at £10 are sold as ebooks for as much as £8!). In the future, if ebooks do take off, you don't want to be lagging behind. No stock to keep in a warehouse either - so it seems as if the publisher can't lose.

I am with Magnus on this topic and I don't even own an e-book reader (yet). The Literary Executors and publishers should be careful that they don't fall into the same pit that music publishers and record companies did. Electronic copies of books, legal or otherwise, have become much easier to create, not as easy as music files but nevertheless easy. If they don't fill this niche, then the pirates will.

If there was choice between a "free but pirated" e-book and a "cheap and legal" version from the publisher I honestly believe that many people would go for the legal version. However, currently, there is no choice. I either have to go for "free but pirated" copy of Ransome's works or go without. The publishers and the estate are already losing a small but growing part of the market.

Right now most new copies of Ransome books are probably bought by adults for children and this market would continue to exist as the penetration of e-book readers is probably limited in the youth market. However, as these devices spread into more general use, for example as text book readers in schools and universities, the market will only grow.

I'm definitely with Adam on this- he's stated it better than I did.

And here's one person's experience:

http://www.forbes.com/2006/11/30/cory-doctorow-copyright-tech-media_cz_cd_books06_1201doctorow.html?partner=whiteglove_google

He still feels the same-  I talked with him a good bit a few weeks ago at Worldcon, even mentioning the AR books.

73, doug

Previously Adam Quinan wrote:

Previously Magnus Smith wrote:

I would urge the Publishers and the Estate to consider S&A ebooks soon. Currently there is no chance that ebook sales will ruin traditional profits (it is infuriating that hardbacks for sale at £10 are sold as ebooks for as much as £8!). In the future, if ebooks do take off, you don't want to be lagging behind. No stock to keep in a warehouse either - so it seems as if the publisher can't lose.

I am with Magnus on this topic and I don't even own an e-book reader (yet). The Literary Executors and publishers should be careful that they don't fall into the same pit that music publishers and record companies did. Electronic copies of books, legal or otherwise, have become much easier to create, not as easy as music files but nevertheless easy. If they don't fill this niche, then the pirates will.

If there was choice between a "free but pirated" e-book and a "cheap and legal" version from the publisher I honestly believe that many people would go for the legal version. However, currently, there is no choice. I either have to go for "free but pirated" copy of Ransome's works or go without. The publishers and the estate are already losing a small but growing part of the market.

Right now most new copies of Ransome books are probably bought by adults for children and this market would continue to exist as the penetration of e-book readers is probably limited in the youth market. However, as these devices spread into more general use, for example as text book readers in schools and universities, the market will only grow.

Hmmm, Cory's article (linked above) is pretty extreme! And the science fiction market is a special case. But I can see a lot of sense in what he says. I love the line "positively pervy for paper".

It takes a publisher with true guts to commit to that kind of free marketing. I think we should aim to gently encourage the S&A publishers to adopt paid-for ebooks as a first step for now!

I'm not convinced the SF market is that special (but those are the editors/publishers I know well).

There is the protocol problem, although conversions, both official and unofficial, are pretty good these days, as long as DRM is not an issue.    Another SF author won't buy books unless they can be transferred between platforms.  OTOH, a noted computer security expert just loves his Kindle, and doesn't worry about interoperability.

On a related issue, Lonely Planet sells their travel guides, per chapter, as PDF's.  But I tried them on a Nook (from Barnes and Noble), and it turns out the file names are internal to the PDF's and aren't useful. All the chapters for New Zealand have the same name, and three other guidebooks start their file names with the chapter number.  Since the Nook, in it's stock form, doesn't show file system hierarchy, I get chapter 1 of one country, followed by chapter 1 of another country, followed by chapter 1 of a third guidebook.

73, doug

Previously Magnus Smith wrote:

Hmmm, Cory's article (linked above) is pretty extreme! And the science fiction market is a special case. But I can see a lot of sense in what he says. I love the line "positively pervy for paper".

It takes a publisher with true guts to commit to that kind of free marketing. I think we should aim to gently encourage the S&A publishers to adopt paid-for ebooks as a first step for now!

 

Maybe SF is a whole different publishing field from the rest of that world:

http://baencd.thefifthimperium.com/24-CryoburnCD/CryoburnCD/

I've come late to this discussion having been away much of the late Summer, and thankfully free of  a computer part of that time.  (And yes, I did have printed books with me...). It may be worth adding that e-books for reading devices such as the Kindle are subject to VAT in the UK (currently 17.5%) and I suspect in most of the EU whereas printed books are VAT zero-rated.

The form of 'e-book' which is Printed-On-Demand (from a digital file which must be similar to the e-book) is something I try and avoid.  The two examples (not AR) I've read have poor covers which curl and the printing leaves something to be desired.  The examples of AR's books which are offered as POD books now, thankfully, seem to be mainly offered from the USA (copyright 75 years from first issue, I think, and should not be sold outside the US) or India (no idea as to copyright there) though I notice that someone in Guernsey (is copyright there different from UK?) and several addresses in the UK are still offering early AR titles; the latter are certainly infringing copyright.  Apologies, I seem to have strayed from e-books to POD and copyright!

The difference in VAT is just an matter of the administration catching up with reality (although they'll have a lot of incentive to keep things as they are).

And POD has most of the disadvantages of both media.  I think it's had its day.

BTW, I've now seen some backlist books issued as ebooks, and not just in the SF community.

A sign of the times?

Canada's richest literary award, the Giller Prize,  has just been won by a first time author, Johanna Skibsrud, with a novel called The Sentimentalists. This prize usually results in the book becoming wildly popular and selling thousands of copies in the next few months.

The curious thing is that this novel was only published in a hand printed edition with a very small run of 800 copies. Even working flat out they would not be able to keep up with the anticipated demand. The publishers have so far refused to make a mass market dead tree edition available, so the only way most people will be able to read it in the near future will be as the legal e-book. 

I mentioned above that some backlist books were being published in ebook editions now- I was specifically referring to the Vintage Press editions of the Nevil Shute books (1).

It turns out, the formats in which each of the books is epublished is pretty variable-  I can get some of them, but not all, in a format for my Palm PDA.  I think they're all available in .pdf and .epub, but some are available in other formats.  And since they're DRM'ed, I can't easily convert.

BTW, they're charging just about the same amount for trade paper and electronic editions (with slightly different prices for different formats).

73, doug

(1) Shute mentions Swallows And Amazon, in some depth, in No Highway,

     he mentions Coot Club in passing in The Rainbow And The Rose,

     and Landfall has characters Admiral and Lady Blackett.

If you hear of the release of this in ebook format, please let me know.

The description sounds interesting.

73, doug

Previously Adam Quinan wrote:

A sign of the times?

Canada's richest literary award, the Giller Prize,  has just been won by a first time author, Johanna Skibsrud, with a novel called The Sentimentalists. This prize usually results in the book becoming wildly popular and selling thousands of copies in the next few months.

The curious thing is that this novel was only published in a hand printed edition with a very small run of 800 copies. Even working flat out they would not be able to keep up with the anticipated demand. The publishers have so far refused to make a mass market dead tree edition available, so the only way most people will be able to read it in the near future will be as the legal e-book. 

 

To return to S&A books in e-book form, I really would encourage Random house to consider issuing a legal copy. After a relatively short search I have been able to find a source selling the whole set including "coots in the north" for £5.

I would far rather buy legal officially published copies of the books in e-book form but nature abhors a vacuum and in the absence of legal copies others may be tempted to buy the "pirate" copies.

I am not prepared to reveal what the source of the e-book version is as I do not want to encourage the proliferation of pirate copies.

So come on Random house, how about it?

Interesting.  I had a discussion with a friend about pirate ebooks, and her take was that if they weren't available legally, it was reasonable to download them if they were free, but paying for pirated books was wrong, because the money went to the wrong place.

BTW, Swallows And Amazons does seem to be easily available for free.