price as it relates to book length

1173 Views 15 Replies 16 Participants Last post by Atunah, Dec 29, 2012

wiccanhot

Discussion Starter · Dec 26, 2012

Hi,

Back before Kindle I would go to B&N and look at the shelves of my favorite author. There were usually more than one mass market paperback that I hadn't read yet. Since the books were the same price and I wanted more bang for my buck I would compare page lengths and buy the longer book.

I don't like short books because I like to savor the story especially if it's by one of my favorite authors.

Now that I buy on Kindle I still check page length or # of words. I prefer books that are at least 50,000 words or at least 300 pages.

Anybody else who does this or just me?

-WiccanHot

1 - 16 of 16 Posts

Ann in Arlington

· #2 · Dec 26, 2012

I don't really pay attention to length if it's an author or book I know I want.

For an unknown (to me) I'm not going to be happy to pay standard price (say $11 to $14) for what ends up being a short novella. So I don't. I'll wait until it goes on special, put it on my Prime KOLL wish list if it's available that way, or just go without reading it.

Actually, for an unknown author, I'm not likely to pay that much even for a standard length book unless it looks really good to me and has lots of good word of mouth.

MariaESchneider

· #3 · Dec 26, 2012

I'll only do it based on whether it's a short story versus full novel, but keep in mind that I'm almost always browsing the lower-priced goods anyway. And I don't really shop on length other than to say, "I'm not shopping for novellas or short stories today." I've read some fun "short" novels - Molly Harper has one billed as a novella that was full of fun and chuckles. Frank Tuttle has some short novels (and priced accordingly) that are worth every penny. I just finished a 300 plus page stinker. I wouldn't have finished it, but I wanted to know what happened to the dog. I was wishing the whole time that about half that book had been cut. I'm kind of still feeling this way.

But when it comes to "is it a novel" I don't really care if it's 200 pages or 400. If it's over 400 I'm probably not going to buy it if I notice that it is that long. I tend to avoid long, long novels, no matter what the price.

See less See more

Carol (was Dara)

· #4 · Dec 27, 2012

I don't pay much attention to length but that's probably because I'm not much of a browser. By that, I mean I usually know specifically what book or author I'm looking for. So I don't do much comparison of price or length but (unless it's a favorite author of mine) I almost always sample. That's one of my favorite things about the Kindle. I was always too embarrassed to stand around in the bookstore reading the first chapter of a book before buying, so I love having the ability to sample now from the comfort of my livingroom couch.

history_lover

· #5 · Dec 27, 2012

I would say the average book is at least 300 pages so most people probably read books this long or longer by default. Much lower then 300 pages and you're getting into novella territory. I do enjoy a long book sometimes (600+ pages), but I don't require it and I don't think a longer book for the same price gives me more for my money. I put quality above quantity. A long book doesn't automatically make a good book. If it's traditionally published, you might be able to mostly trust that it's been properly edited so there's not a lot of unnecessary "filler" - but regardless of how long a book is, if it's well written and I enjoyed it, it was worth the money.

mish

· #6 · Dec 27, 2012

wiccanhot said:
Now that I buy on Kindle I still check page length or # of words....

...Anybody else who does this or just me?

Yes, the length of the book does influence the price I'm willing to pay. I read all lengths... shorts, novellas, novels...and I have a price range that I'm willing to pay for each so if the book description doesn't give me the info I need on the length (I prefer word count) then I will probably pass on it. I don't trust the Ammy page count estimates so I consider them but with a huge grain of salt. Of course, there are always exceptions if it is something I really, really want.

neaughea

· #7 · Dec 27, 2012

There are so many different things to consider in respect to book price for a kindle. I actually put some thought into this when I first got my ereader. I downloaded a butt load of the freebies - discovered why they were free. When I couldn't get through the first chapter I knew it was bad!

But I have also read some really awesome $2.99 books. Some of them were 120 pages others over 500 pages. I feel like I got a total steal at 2.99 for the 500 page book btw.

So I think one thing that may be missing and really wish there were a way to really discern when a book has been edited/proofed/etc because it makes a difference in the overall quality of a book.

So while I would probably NEVER pay $4.99 for an 80 page book, I might pay 2.99 for it if the quality of the writing/editing/story show through in the preview.

See less See more

michele97

· #8 · Dec 27, 2012

I kind of love the idea of getting a really long book for under a quid - I love a bargain! But if it's the book itself that's attracted me, rather than the price or offer, then I'm not worried by the length and often prefer shorter lengths - I do sometimes feel work has been 'padded' rather than written to be as long as it needs to be...

I'm happy to pay the same price for a book I want, rather than a book that's just longer in length but less appealing.

LDB

· #9 · Dec 27, 2012

I look at the length before making a purchase and will not buy if the price to page ratio seems high.

Ergodic Mage

· #10 · Dec 28, 2012

I do pay attention to the price versus length but only as a guide, quality of story means much more than length to me.

Betsy the Quilter

· #11 · Dec 28, 2012

I don't look at the price to length ratio. But I look at the price AND I look at the length. I don't like short stories (though I appreciate them as an art form) and would prefer not to read novellas. I like really, really, really long books. So, my price max for a novella is lower because it is shorter, but there's no scientific magic number. Probably up to 3.99 max as I rarely pay more than $8.99 for a full novel (though I have been known to).

Betsy

Michael Cavacini

· #12 · Dec 28, 2012

I only care about length when it comes to audiobooks; I don't want to pay full price for a book that's only six hours. For the Kindle, I prefer spend less than $10 on everything. However, I do want to read Rod Stewart's autobiography, which is more than $10, so I'll wait till I have a gift card

Troy Jackson

· #13 · Dec 29, 2012

As others have said, price to length ratio doesn't matter all that much to me.

EmilyG

· #14 · Dec 29, 2012

I don't pay much attention to the price to book length ratio. Although I am wary of cheap, long books.

I find a lot of "3 star" 400+ page novels that would have been "5 star" ~250 page novels.

LT Ville

· #15 · Dec 29, 2012

I pay attention to the length because I’m not willing to pay too much for a short story. I don’t think short stories, no matter who wrote them, merit being more than a few dollars. I’m not a fan of novellas that have the same prices as novels, but I will occasionally make an exception if I have heard great things about the novella.

Atunah

· #16 · Dec 29, 2012

I don't read shorts and even for novellas, I am very very picky. I just prefer full sized books. I have bought some novellas by some favorite authors and those where .99 cents. Perfect for me. But the novellas have to be in the 100 page range.

What I don't like is those installment "books" where someone charges 2.99 or such for a handful of pages and by the time all parts are released, you end up paying way to much for something that is still not a nice sized book. I have seen some that end up being around 200 pages total. Adding the parts it would have cost like $18

. Each part only being like 40 pages.

So of course I always look at length. Even for the selected novellas I read, I wouldn't pay that much for.

1 - 16 of 16 Posts

This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.

Top