On 7 March 2008 I had a new release. By the following week my book was up on an Internet pirate site. To add insult to injury the person who offered my book linked directly to the cover art on my website. I’m not the only author this has happened to recently. Both New York published authors and those with small presses are victims and if anything, the problem is becoming worse.
I’m angry, irritated, annoyed, pissed off—all those. Actually, add more “labels” in your imagination because that’s how I’m feeling. I’ve already exercised my potty mouth in the privacy of my own home, but I try to keep this blog clean.
I want to speak directly to the individuals who have put my books up on pirate sites. It’s simple really.
You are a thief.
That’s right. You’re committing a crime. It’s not a defense to say you didn’t know, because I know you do. You’re stealing from me. To put this in perspective let’s say you work forty hours a week, and at the end of that period you receive an envelope of money. Your employer gives the money to me, but instead of handing it on, I take quarter of the money and keep it. Only then do I give your wages to you. It doesn’t feel very good, does it? The fact that I’m taking money you could use to feed your family? The money you’re counting on to pay expenses?
That is what you’re doing to me. Contrary to public belief, authors do not make buckets of money. You are robbing me of a portion of wages I’ve worked hard to earn.
To the people who come to my website searching for free copies of OpShop’s song One Day, shame on you. If you want to listen to their music before buying, check out their website where you can hear the entire album. If you enjoy their music go and buy it from iTunes. That’s what I did.
If you’re reading this and are guilty of the crime of Internet piracy, you’re probably laughing. You probably don’t care, don’t have a conscience. I’d like to point out that what goes around comes around. Your turn will come.
Related posts:
If you’d like to get more people reading your work, talking about you, and make more sales of your work, you might want to post it yourself to filesharing websites. It’s called word-of-mouth marketing, and you don’t have to pay a cent for it. Word-of-mouth marketing is a prize that many traditional marketers drool after, but it’s very difficult to create.
Or if you really detest filesharers too much to stoop this low, you could post your work at the Baen Free Library, http://www.baen.com/library/. This would accomplish some of the same result, but you wouldn’t get as broad exposure as you would with the filesharers.
It’s up to you.
by dmars March 21st, 2008 at 7:15 amWTG Sistah!! I agree with you. Totally. I work two jobs to feed my family EDJ and writing. See one or the other doesn’t make enough for me to survive.
Amen, Shelley.
by Amy Ruttan March 21st, 2008 at 7:41 amdmars – you’re right. Word of mouth marketing is great, but there’s a huge difference between marketing and out-and-out stealing. Many people on the file sharing network read an authors work and enjoy it, but they don’t go out and buy his or her next book. No – they ask if someone has a copy for them to share. In this manner, the file sharing sites encourage piracy.
Amy – thanks. I don’t think people understand how much work is involved in writing and how little the return can be.
by Shelley Munro March 21st, 2008 at 12:19 pmYou go, Shelley!! I’ve been following this story; I hope there’s a better solution than what the music industry has found so far.
by Susan Helene Gottfried March 21st, 2008 at 1:21 pmYou go girl!
by Estella March 21st, 2008 at 3:07 pmI agree with you 100%.
Shelley, and all,
I really think you all are taking too short a view on this, and assuming that every copy of your work read for free is “stealing” from you.
Do you consider it stealing when one or more of your works makes it into libraries and hundreds, if not thousands, of people read it for free? Many of these readers then later purchase the books, and others by the same author. And anyone who really likes the books and author talks about it with their friends and associates. who may then check it out for themselves.
Of course, if you don’t write anything that will spark this kind of interest and discourse, then maybe I can’t really sympathize with your crocodile tears.
You should read the essay at http://ian.onthereddot.com/2008/03/19/why-online-piracy-of-books-is-a-good-thing/
It’s the same essay that’s on the front page of the Baen Free Library, but maybe you’d rather read it at its source.
It’s up to you.
by dmars March 21st, 2008 at 3:27 pmBless your heart! I have been where you are in dealing with copyright infringements.
Years ago someone stoled hundreds of my coloring picture/graphics & dozens along with thousands of other people coloring/graphics and sold them on cd on **bay.
I couldn’t do anything about it because I didn’t have the resources nor could I get the famous companies to back me & the other victims. I’m talking about the big famous TV animation cartoon networks. Thousands of their coloring picture/graphics was on the disks too…
Anyway, the famous companies said they would check in to it, but wouldn’t update me as it was ‘their’ companies private company investigation, but they appreciated my alerting them to disks! ~sigh~
The only change in the cd sales was the ads on **bay for coloring pictures on cd stopped showing example pictures…
I was beyond anger and felt so violated by the thieves and belittled by the famous companies.
I wish you luck in dealing with the thieves. I hope you can get something done to make them stop… or at least to stop them one at a time.
~you go get ‘em girl!~
~get ‘em for me too~ ;)
I apologize for getting so long winded. Copyright infringement makes me snap like a twig!!! arrrrr! I could go rant for hours about it!!! >:(
I honestly just stopped by to wish you & your husband a Very Happy Easter Weekend.
~imagine a cute little bunny right here~
by Dee March 21st, 2008 at 3:45 pm:)
Dee,
My heart is with you.
Stealing another’s work and claiming it as your own is a whole ‘nother ballgame from reading or viewing for free.
One thing you can do on ebay is post a comment, directing people to your original work, and making it clear that the sellers are ripping you off. This doesn’t cost anything but it is time consuming.
I most certainly wish you well, and I do draw the line at plagiarism.
by dmars March 21st, 2008 at 3:53 pmI hate hate hate it when the term “sharing” is used, because it’s not sharing when you’ve stolen it. If it’s not yours, you can’t share it.
One site, last week, had literally tens of thousands of downloads of pirrated books.
Libraries PAY use fees on books. That’s not theft. The comparison is simply silly because it’s not accurate to say libraries are “free” or that they’re doing what thieves on pirating sites do.
The whole, “oh I pirated but I’ll buy a book later” argument is not one I put a bit of faith in. The ease with which people steal ebooks and the frequency refutes that claim.
It isn’t up to me. If it were, people would pay for my books instead of stealing them. But in the end, honorable behavior is up to each one of us.
by Lauren Dane March 21st, 2008 at 4:19 pmThe people who stole the coloring/graphics didn’t claim them as their own. They just loaded them on a cd and sold them.
‘Years ago’, ebay didn’t offer the comment options without seller approval.
Also, ebay wouldn’t do anything in helping to stop the sellers…
It was an ugly thing to happen.
To me stealing is stealing. We work hard in birthing our creations and I wish our copyrights were respected by everyone.
Anyone partaking in Plagiarism or copyright infringement with intent to sell or posting it for free is a thief. Its a shame the hoops that victims have to go through to try and resolve the situation.
You’re right there is a difference between your situation and the one I had, but the feelings of violation are just so overwhelming that I wanted you to know that I understand & agree with you 100%
I hope you can get this resolved without too much struggle.
;)
by Dee March 21st, 2008 at 4:28 pmWelcome to the Brave New World.
No matter how you cry, no matter how you scream, online sharing is and it will be the part of the new library system. It’s here, and you might as well deal with it.
You could upload copies of your own works, with commentaries of what else you’ve done that readers might not have seen.
What are you going to do if books ever get to be completely replaced with digital counterparts.
I don’t know, but I imagine it will go somewhat along the lines of cars replacing horses and buggies.
You can scream and lament that cars should be illegal, but you won’t win.
What will win?
It’s up to you.
by dmars March 21st, 2008 at 4:29 pmDee – happy Easter. I’m really sorry this happened to you. It sucks!
Lauren – true, honorable behavior is up to each of us in the end. Luckily most people do the right thing.
dmars – it’s obviously we will never agree on this topic, so this is the last time I’m going to reply to you.
I choose to donate my books to some places. Libraries buy books and as Lauren said, they pay use fees. I do NOT choose to give my books to share/pirate sites.
by Shelley Munro March 21st, 2008 at 4:41 pmThat’s why libraries raise funds .. to BUY books. They do not get them free, they BUY them.
Libraries do not get books for free unless the publisher and author donates them. OR someone has already bought the book and donated it.
by Amy Ruttan March 21st, 2008 at 4:47 pmWell then, if you are never going to reply to me, I never want to hear from you again.
Please remove me from the list of people you send updates to.
by dmars March 21st, 2008 at 4:49 pmShelley –
I’m so sorry to hear that, and you are perfectly entitled to your vent. I admire you ‘keeping it clean’ because I can only imagine the sense of violation that accompanies this.
It’s true that not many people understand the work that goes into writing, or show their appreciation as they should. It is true with many, many art forms, sadly.
*hugs*
by Gwen Mitchell March 21st, 2008 at 4:51 pm~Gwen
While dmars arguments are sophistic, the fact remain that piracy is difficult, if not impossible, to police or control – even print books are “stolen” and leased individually by so-called “free” on-libraries.
by Amy Gallow March 21st, 2008 at 4:55 pmThe Web, with its hackers and spam, has developed faster than the protections of copyright or regulatory bodies and we will have to wait until the New World Order for that to change.
Being old enough to remember the last New World Order, I’m not optimistic.
I sympathize with you Shelley, having suffered the same indignity and pursued the thief legally without result, but expect it to remain part of our Brave New World for some time to come.
As for dmars, If you have created anything and had your hard work stolen, I apologize in advance, but, if you haven’t, reconsider the lightness with which you belittle the pain of others.
Amy
I lost track in my last post, part of it was dmar and part of it was to Shelley.
I apologize for the confusion, I get so heated over this issue that my common sense flies out the window.
I would like to add one more thing about my story here…
My situation was the reverse of Shelley’s.
I created and built my coloring picture website to offer them for ‘free’. I have a TOU that specifically states no one is allowed to use my pictures for financial gain.
This idea for the website came out of so many of my kinfolks needing coloring pictures for their church, school, college or crafting projects.
I never had any intent of making money off my creations.
So when the thieves started making money off them, I was outraged.
I pulled all my pictures except for a few off the net for a few years, but have since reposted them now that there’s so many grandbabies in our family that needs or wants pictures to color.
Just wanted to share the rest of my story so to speak.
okay Shelley, I’ll step back now.
Know that I’m with you all the way!
by Dee March 21st, 2008 at 5:03 pmYeah, sorry I mistook this for a mature and sophisticated blog – otherwise I would never have wasted my time on you.
We all suffer the injustices of the world, some more gracefully than others.
But the sad fact is that if you can’t adapt to current realities you will be demolished.
Sorry, but I didn’t make the rules.
by dmars March 21st, 2008 at 5:08 pmFact is, I don’t really much care for reading a book that I have to leave my computer to read any more.
I like video, and online text.
I don’t suppose you dinosaurs can appreciate that.
by dmars March 21st, 2008 at 5:20 pmdmars suffers from a condition that afflicted us all at one time–youth!
Would that it still did, alloyed with a little wisdom.
Amy
by Amy Gallow March 21st, 2008 at 6:14 pmThanks for the compliment – that my problem is youth!
But fact is that I’m 56 years old, a former test engineer at Microsoft and engineering tech at Ingersoll-Rand. I also completed a year of grad school in Chinese Regional Studies, only to be shot down for lack of obtaining grant funding to continue. That was a tragedy that took me 7 years of depression to get over. So I’m no brainless doo-wop who has never suffered injustice, no matter what you think.
I originally spotted this article because I have a Google alert for “copyright” and I’m following the issue closely. While I do feel for your personal pain, the fact is that the whole world is re-examining the issue of copyright.
I of course denounce any action to make money off of another person’s work or to claim it as their own, but I think it is another matter altogether for people to read or view the work for free. I had hoped to enlighten you a bit about the marketing potential in permitting this to happen, that’s all.
And it’s simply not true that the libraries pay the full price for every reader of every copy they loan out. They typically receive donations of works that someone else has paid for, and maybe they pay some fees (I don’t know), but if you think they pay the full price to the author each time someone checks the book out and reads it, it’s time for a reality check. And for every copy that shows up on the internet to be fileshared, someone bought the original, and maybe the readers will buy copies for themselves, or other works by the same authors.
As I see it, you can continue to cry in your soup that people who share your books online are stealing from you, or you can recognize that if people are sharing your books that your writing means something to them and is valuable. You should be happy about this, and you just might see some increased sales from it.
Think of it as the new library system, that you can use to promote your work.
by dmars March 23rd, 2008 at 12:51 amThis is a complex problem without easy any easy solutions.
Do I like someone being able to access all or most of my books for free? No. Does it happen? Absolutely. Do I hope that if someone reads one of my books for free that they will turn around and buy some of my books? Absolutely!
Would I mind a reader letting a friend read a copy of my book? Absolutely not–I’d be honored that they want to share it. Do I want a reader to offer my books to the many millions on the Internet? Absolutely not.
That does cut into my living and there are only a handful of writers out there making big bucks. The rest of us work hard to make a living, sometimes having to hold down other jobs at the same time.
This topic of debate is going to heat up, especially now that the large NY publishers are starting to offer E-books. It will be interesting to see how soon it takes some of them to start taking note of these sites and what they do about it.
by N.J. Walters March 23rd, 2008 at 2:50 pmFrom where I stand, dmars, fifty-six is young and youth is not only a matter of age nor wisdom the technical mastery of a subject..
My background is as technical as yours, unusual in a romance writer, and probably more hands-on. This allows me to note the fineness (technically) with which you qualify your statements, most of which align with the school of thought that suggests “if rape is inevitable, lie back and enjoy it.” (Something rarely thought by the victims)
To call file sharing a marketing tool is sophistry, to accept that some benefits might accrue from the act of theft is pragmatism.
Where do you personally draw the line?
For the rest N.J.Walters has captured my view of the reality we face.
Amy
by Amy Gallow March 23rd, 2008 at 4:53 pmI find it so annoyingly patronizing that anyone would attempt to enlighten me that I should simply “get over it” that people steal from me. That’s simply ridiculous.
In point of fact, dmars, you’ve not made one single rational point. Your comparisons are not accurate:
You brought up libraries and yet, it is YOU who don’t understand that libraries don’t give away books but rather pay use fees and use public funding to pay for the books they use. Comparing this to theft is apples to screwdrivers.
You bring up updating technologies as in horses to cars but this is not about a new technology. This is about theft of copyright. The issue isn’t one of not wanting books to be in electronic format from paper, it’s not wanting to have tens of thousands of copies made of our books without paying for them.
Here’s one for you – can I walk into your house and “share” your television or computer? Because hey, I need one and well, yours is nice and I’ll totally buy one in the future after I test yours out and all.
Or oh I know! Identity theft is totally common these days so why don’t I just help myself to the money in your checking account. Because well it happens and you’re a dinosaur if you don’t admit it.
The reality is – yes, people will always do selfish things like theft. Like cheating and hurting other people. All kinds of wrongdoing happens every day. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to smile and agree that hey I should simply accept people stealing from me.
by Lauren Dane March 23rd, 2008 at 9:01 pmIt is true that when I first wandered in here I really had no concept of the depth of emotion you people feel about this issue. If I had, perhaps I wouldn’t have been so blunt in proposing that you look at some ways you could use filesharing. Or maybe I would have refrained from sticking my neck out altogether. It’s been an educational and somewhat shocking experience for me, and I do apologize if I’ve hurt your feelings.
It really wasn’t my intent to be patronizing, it’s just that using filesharing as a marketing tool is a relatively new way of looking at things and I thought you might like to hear about it. Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails just made 1.2 million dollars by uploading his latest CD to the Pirate Bay. The list of similar successes go on, but I’m not sure you want to hear about it.
Filesharing isn’t a new technology, true enough. But it wouldn’t exist at all if it weren’t for new computing and internet technologies, hence the horse/car comparison. And again, many people are talking about it in these terms and arguing that what’s happening is a technological change in the way we do things.
And I hate to keep coming back to the library issue but it seems necessary nonetheless, to point out that the library does not pay full price to the author for every book that is checked out. This is simply a fact, that people read books for free when they check them out of the library – thousands of them, millions of them. The libraries may pay fees, but it must be a pittance compared to the full retail value of the books they lend out. I don’t know what exactly they pay, so I could be wrong here. But it really doesn’t make sense that they would pay full price to the author for a copy of the book everytime they lend it out.
You say that my arguments are “sophistry”, but you don’t give any reasons why you think so. And they really aren’t just my silly ideas, I got them from people who’ve thought long and hard about this. And I considered them and the evidence myself for quite a long time before deciding they had some merit.
Also, I don’t think I ever said that you should just lie down and take it. If I said something that sounded like that, I apologize.
But under the DMCA provisions you can write to the website posting your work without your permission and ask them to take it down. By law they have to, and most websites that are subject to DMCA takedowns are reporting that they obey the requests immediately.
I actually have a lot more to say on this subject, but at this point I’m not sure that I should.
by dmars March 23rd, 2008 at 11:40 pmAmy,
You think that you might have more “hands-on” technical experience than I do. Well, maybe you do.
But to set the record straight on my end, for 5 years at Microsoft I had a lab of 50 networked servers. I did all the maintenance on the servers and the network myself, plus purging all the machines, installing nightly new builds and testing them. At Ingersoll-Rand, for 7 years I spent a good part of each day with machinists, welders and assemblers, verifying the correctness of engineering drawings before they were published. At Crowley Maritime I wore a hard hat, drove a forklift and repaired tugboats. And I’ve rebuilt engines, transmissions, and done all the troubleshooting and maintenance on my own cars, especially my two babies – rotary engine RX-7s.
Now maybe you have more hands-on technical experience than I do, but it’s rather bold of you to think that you do, without knowing anything about me.
Deborah
by dmars March 24th, 2008 at 1:53 amDeborah,
At my age, I can afford to be bold and your CV doesn’t match mine in either depth or breadth.
Let’s stop wasting each other’s time with this nonsense. I’ve a manuscript to work on and your need for an explanation of the sophistry contained in your arguments suggests it would be more hard work than it’s worth.
We’ll just agree to differ and go our separate ways.
Amy
by Amy Gallow March 24th, 2008 at 5:04 amMaybe you do and maybe you don’t.
But if you don’t want to share your technical experience and show that it is deeper and broader than mine, and if you think it is beneath you to show how my arguments are sophistic, then I’m inclined to think that you don’t.
Deborah
by dmars March 24th, 2008 at 2:53 pmLife’s too short Deborah.
Get over it.
Amy
by Amy Gallow March 24th, 2008 at 3:33 pmOH, it’s too short you say.
Too short to acknowlege the truth and fight for it?
I don’t think so.
by dmars March 24th, 2008 at 3:53 pmYou’re not fighting for truth, Deborah. You’re fighting because I was careless and dented your pride (I apologise for my lack of care. It was unnecessary)
Over twenty years, I rose to a senior technical position in the Maritime Industry, Lectured in University for almost five years, and then repeated the feat in the operational side of the offshore oil industry because it caught my interest. Since retiring have been used as a trouble-shooter in the latter field.
Be an adult and walk away from it now.
Amy
by Amy Gallow March 24th, 2008 at 5:46 pmAlright. alright. So there were insults and unintended injuries all around. I’m big enough to recognize that and walk away.
But it really was something to go through.
by dmars March 24th, 2008 at 5:55 pm