Not really.
Well, you CAN get four of my novels free if you sign up for my newsletter. But that's not what I'm talking about. What I'm talking about is piracy (downloading a book on file sharing sites). The author receives no money for these downloads.
Argument: But authors are rich!
Truth: The average author advance is $3,000. For my first book (WITCH SONG), I received ZERO advance.
Argument: It's just a file - it literally costs nothing.
Truth: My books cost $3,000-$5,000 to produce plus a year of my life.
Argument: It's no different than loaning a book out to someone.
Truth: Someone bought the book in the first place, so the author received compensation. Also, books wear out after a while, so the number of times it can be shared it limited.
It's really very simple. Series have been canceled because an author's first books haven't sold well enough. Which means no more books. Authors have had to quit writing because they can't pay their bills. Which means no more books.
If you really can't afford to pay 99C to 4.99 for a book, get them at the library. Don't steal them.
