Ebook pirating: the act of distributing an ebook for free around the internet, thus “stealing” royalties from whomever wrote it (unless the author died like 80 years ago, in which case, go crazy.)

I’ve seen a lot of authors posting opinions about pirating lately and I thought I’d add my own two cents. A recent email from StoryFinds.com included a “template take-down letter” that authors can send out to pirating websites to have their ebooks removed. The author who shared the template stated thusly:

“I regularly send out [take down notices] when I find sites, and yes it’s a pain, but if you don’t care about people getting your books for FREE that’s up to you. Personally, I find it infuriating.”

I’ve done that whole “scourge the internet for free romance novels and favorite MP3′s” thing back in high school. Why? Because I didn’t have a job or income and my family didn’t spoil me with buying me tons of stuff. Now most of the files I found came infested with viruses and I ruined quite a few PC’s before I finally had my own paycheck. Then I could just buy the 99-cent books and MP3′s on Amazon instead of wasting hours searching online and transferring files to my kindle. I mean…99 cents. Who cares, right? Less than a Starbucks coffee.

And I think most of the pirating world is like this. It’s mainly propelled by teens who don’t have easy access to credit cards. And they’ve got to be a little desperate. I mean, do you have any idea how hard it is to find pirated files that don’t have some sort of malware included in the download? Then you have sites like Scribd where you can find all sorts of stuff, but mostly trashy romance, and half the files are read-only and can’t be easily downloaded.

Let’s say someone downloads Sora’s Quest for free (as it is offered on Amazon and other ebook retailers, and as I’ve purposefully distributed to other free ebook sites, just to make it easy to find.) Then this reader has the gumption to hunt down the rest of The Cat’s Eye Chronicles from anonymous free websites and get a pirated download….Well, chances are they’re a teenager. Chances are they have very low income. And chances are I will make a fan for life.

I would rather have 1 fan for life than spend an hour out of my day chasing down pirated versions of my books.

I mean, in the end, if you’re a budding author looking to build a fan base, isn’t it all about exposure?

That 13-year-old who just downloaded my series online for free might come back as a 21-year-old and buy the rest of my books because they remember me, because whatever I wrote stuck with them, and because now they have the money to easily buy it from Amazon, or a bookstore, or what have you.

And even if you’re Patrick Rothfuss or George R R Martin, why sweat it? They’re established authors. What do they care about pirated ebooks? I’m sure they’re making plenty of coinage off their royalties already.

To be clear, I don’t condone pirating. I, too, have bills I need to pay and I’m sure I’ve lost quite a few thousand dollars to pirated ebooks. I also no longer attempt to download free music or movies because of my new-found “royalty awareness.” Pirating is stealing, folks. But I’m not going to be infuriated by it, and I’m not going to waste precious time chasing down free ebooks on all these websites. Because pirating is never going to stop. As long as there are teenagers without jobs, and as long as there are disabled people, veterans and retirees living off social security, there will be pirating.

So I’d rather have that one new reader. I’d rather have a fan for life. Because guess what? I’m not going to stop writing. I’m only 25. What will my canon be by the time I’m 40? With each book I publish, I make a few more dollars a month, I put aside a wee bit more money, and I live a better quality of life. And what makes those sales possible? Fans. Especially young readers who love YA Fantasy, and who like Sora’s Quest enough to scourge the internet for a free ebook. Because maybe they’ll start a Pinterest board, or a Tumblr site, or recommend me to their friends, or get their parents to buy my books. Or maybe they’ll post about The Cat’s Eye Chronicles in some forums and chat rooms. And maybe one day they will come back around and find me, and rediscover my books, and buy a nice set for their shelves (or Kindle), because now they have that money to spend.

But don’t be pirates, guys. It’s illegal. Just sayin’.