Romance Writers & Readers discussion

Some years ago I lost my copy of Anthony Trollope’s “The Last Chronicle of Barset” and I went to a bookstore to get a fresh copy. There were none on the shelves, but they eventually found me a copy. It cost about $ 15. A few months later I bought a Kindle and discovered that I could download the eBook version of this book for free.

There are voluntary, non-profit organisations that have uploaded 19th century and some early 20th century books into the internet that can be downloaded free. They are books in the public domain. You can even download free, audio versions of many of these books.

Though many might like to read off physical books, can they afford this luxury when eBooks are available for free? Hence, the demand for physical books that are in the public domain will diminish and it may become economically unfeasible for publishers to print these books.

Hence, the big question: will the classics soon go out of print?

Good question...thank goodness for libraries. I foresee a future where public domain works will be eligible for print-on-demand services and people can order them the way they order their own books now.

I hope they don't. I still have my high-school copies of classics with my notes.

There of those like me who love physical books even though I do have a kindle and use it. I am currently living in an area where many people are poor and can't afford internet or the toys that go with it so they read physical books. Yes, they do use the library a lot and they exchange books at the senior center. I believe the physical books will stick around but will become more costly to buy due to the lower demand. I still have the copies of many of the classics along with contemporary books I bought. There's nothing like holding a physical book, curling up on a swing and going to another world as you turn the pages of words which transport you there.

I think it's possible. There may still be a market for them in schools - annotating a print copy is so much easier than a digital copy (maybe that's just me) - but when a book is free to read on Kindle, it's far more tempting to buy that than the print version.

I like Erin's suggestion of them being print on demand. That way, those that want a physical copy can still have one and publishers aren't spending huge amounts on printing books unnecessarily.