Authors & Internet Piracy
As an author in the modern age, the internet is more than just another tool. Learning to navigate its complex waters is an intrinsic part of what it means to be an author. The vast majority of book sales of all types are done online. Basically all communication between an author and their agents, editors, artists and fans is done online now. Social media has become the main hub for book marketing and networking, where having a digital presence is often as important as writing a good book. Ebooks and Audiobooks have claimed a massive chunk of the market, making them a crucial part of any authors strategy for success. This migration of the industry online opens a lot of doors for authors, as they can build platforms independently, reach readers and other authors directly and distribute their work across the world at the click of a button. It’s like an ocean without an endless horizon where anyone can strike out and chart their own path.
But, for all the endless possibility that the internet offers authors, there’s a trade off. As with the real life ocean, the internet comes with its own dangers. One of those threats is piracy, which is a constant threat that comes with putting out any digital content. Every creator must come to terms with this reality and decide how they are going to approach it, and I’ve seen a litany of approaches from any different authors. While I cannot tell anyone else how to approach this, I can discuss how I see it.
As a reader, I hate the “walled garden” philosophy of digital ecosystems. The idea that when you pay for a book or any other piece of media, you are only buying the “right to read it” or that you can only use it on a certain device is frankly absurd in my opinion. Perhaps it’s growing up before the proliferation of the subscription economy, but I still believe in ownership and in the rights of the consumer. I believe we have the right to keep our books and music and everything else and do what we want with them, short of selling unlicensed copies. If you went to a store and bought a book, you could mark it up, sell it, trade it, loan it to a friend, and you could keep it forever without worry of it being altered or reclaimed by the bookstore.
Because of this, as an author, I don’t opt in to DRM protection on my digital content. I think if someone buys my books they have every right to download it and read it wherever they want, to store it indefinitely or to lend it to a friend. Does this philosophy come with inherent risk? Of course it does. But in my mind, if you’re the kind of person pirating an Ebooks that sell for less than five dollars, often as low as ninety-nine cents, you’re not my target audience. I doubt a person with that level of entitlement would ever have bought my books in the first place.
The unfortunate truth is that for all its potential, sailing the digital seas come with its risks. Creators must accept that piracy is bound to happen to people who put their art out there for long enough. You can fight it when it shows up, but you cannot live in fear of them. All you can do is set your course and keep sailing towards your destination.
