[RobertMarda]

I am often already trying to determine if a book is something I like before I see the price.  The title and cover tend to draw me in.  If I see the price at more than $2.99 then unless something about what I have learned about the book is compelling I usually pass.  From what I have learned there are plenty of good books at $0.99 and $2.99 for me to buy and so I move on.

I generally figure a $0.99 book is self published and happily support indie authors who get my attention.  I almost always sample first when finding a new author.  Once I am confident in the quality and style of the author then I don't bother to sample often and just buy the next book in a series.

I like the idea that I can talk with the author and ask them questions about their books and get answers before I buy and this gives me an added level of assurance that I will like their book.

 

[Joseph Robert Lewis]

I like the idea that I can talk with the author and ask them questions about their books and get answers before I buy and this gives me an added level of assurance that I will like their book.

I'm happy to answer any questions about my books

 

[Aaron Pogue]

I like the idea that I can talk with the author and ask them questions about their books and get answers before I buy and this gives me an added level of assurance that I will like their book.

Me too! Like Joseph, I saw that comment and thought, "Man, I wish my readers would get in touch with me!"

Then again, I've got lots of blogs. Sooner or later, if they have any interest in it, my readers will get in touch with me somewhere.

 

[markarayner]

I recoil in horror, run to the bed, and draw the covers over my quivering body.

After an hour of catatonic misery, my wife brings me a cup of soup and tells me everything will be all right.

Then I go to the basement of Logos Bookstore in Santa Cruz. It's filled with pocket paperbacks for $1.00.

$1.00 books are great.

$0.99 are horrible.

I like your style, man.

 

[Neil Clarke]

Interesting thread. I'm actually conducting an experiment with the ebook edition of the current issue of my magazine right now. We normally list at $2.99, but this month I'm experimenting at 99 cents to see if the volume makes up for the lost sales. Don't have a lot of data so far, but it looks promising. I'll be sure to come back and let people know what we find.

 

[Starry Eve]

Good quality writing should be worth more than 99 cents, but then, I also feel it's a fair enough price to encourage people to take a chance on a new author. If nobody had heard of JK Rowling and her book had gotten rejected by traditional publishers, I wonder if Harry Potter's first volume would've started at 99 cents?

 

[Dan Ames]

My first reaction is that it's too cheap.  My second reaction, is that if it's a really bad book, it's over priced.  It all depends on the book, and ultimately, the marketplace.   

 

[Ben White]

Me too! Like Joseph, I saw that comment and thought, "Man, I wish my readers would get in touch with me!"

Thirded here, like most writers my favourite subject is what I've written

 

[Norman]

The advice I've been reading lately, is the highest price a new author should sell their book for is $2.99 so they can get the 70% royalty Amazon pays on books greater than $2.99. Competing for market share is tough. Selling a novel for .99 is one way to attract a fan base. I've dropped my three oldest books to .99 and my new release is positioned at $2.99. It took me a year to write my forth book. Paid an editor to get it in the best shape possible. It sat with a New York agent for months. I decided to go with a kindle release. There is nothing wrong with .99 books.

all the best
Norm

--- edited... no self-promotion (book covers, web links, mentioning your book/blog/etc.) in posts outside the Book Bazaar forum. please read our Forum Decorum thread.

 

[3pointers]

I love that price.  If the summary sounds like something I'd enjoy, I buy it.  I also read the reviews, however, and if it got a lot of low ratings for what I feel are legitimate reasons, I'll pass, even at $.99.

If I enjoy the book enough, I'm always willing (and often expecting) to pay more for his/her other titles.

 

[SEAN H. ROBERTSON]

If it looks interesting to me, I'll check it out.

 

[Javier Gimenez Sasieta]

In my opinion, 99cents price is a bad move: Every time I see that price I think there is some kind of desesperation behind it. But I believe that 99c prices will be a tendency in Amazon: we´ll see more and more 99c priced books. Maybe we should give them an opportunity, I don´t know. I always believed on reasonable prices, not ultra cheap bargain prices.

As Robert Heinlein would say, "There ain´t no such thing as a free lunch." 

 

[Joseph Robert Lewis]

In my opinion, 99cents price is a bad move: Every time I see that price I think there is some kind of desesperation behind it. But I believe that 99c prices will be a tendency in Amazon: we´ll see more and more 99c priced books. Maybe we should give them an opportunity, I don´t know. I always believed on reasonable prices, not ultra cheap bargain prices.

As Robert Heinlein would say, "There ain´t no such thing as a free lunch."

People seem to think $0.99 music and TV shows are reasonably priced. Why not books?

 

[Sandra Edwards]

There's an old saying...You can't judge a book by it's cover. The same should hold true for the price.

That said, I never, ever buy ANY book without sampling first.

Sandy

 

[2leelou]

I figure what the heck, if it's only $.99 and I don't like it I'm only out $.99. I have paid full price for a regular book (before Kindle) and didn't like the story so I was out the full price.  I have a few $.99 books (Franz Kafka, etc) that I know the story so I'll give it a shot and see what quality they are.  I haven't read them yet so we'll see.

 

[Rex Jameson]

Time is a big factor for me due to graduate school and working multiple jobs. The redeeming part of a 99 cent book is that you don't compound a loss of time with price. Still, a 1.99 or 2.99 book is just as tempting to me as a 99 cent book.

 

[brianrowe]

This has been a real head-scratcher for me, as I just debuted my first novel SLATE on the Kindle yesterday. I've gone back and forth on prices, and I ultimately decided on $2.99. I think $2.99 is a fair price for an 82,000-word novel, as opposed to say a novella or something, which should go for 99 cents. But what if 12 people buy it for $2.99, and 1,000 people buy it for 99 cents? That's the main question.

 

[Renee Adams]

My reaction is usually the following:

1. Summary check.
2. Typo check.
3. If it looks interesting, and no typos, purchase.

 

[Adler_James]

I look for the blurb and see what the book's about.  For the price, who knows... it's tricky because I've read books that need a lot of work and it seemed maybe the author thought "I'm selling it for a buck, who cares?" - and if that's true, it scares me a little.

 

[patrickt]

An acquaintance told me his digital camera was better than mine because it cost $5,000. I said, "I'll sell you mine for $10,000 and then you'll have a camera twice as good as the one you have now." People who equate price with quality are fools. A friend said her Rolex impressed people and I suggested she should start meeting a better class of person.

So, when I see a $.99 book I think, "Wow, less than $1. It is probably a new author." I don't even have to look to know it isn't Lee Childs or Lawrence Block. Then, I'll read the description, see if the author has written other titles, and  if it's the genre I like and meets other criteria I'll probably order it.

I rarely do the samples for entertaining reading.