Writers Life | Print or E-Book?

This (Monday) morning, Australia Post delivered a long-awaited box.

I was on edge all last week, hoping the box would arrive by Friday, in time to take for its contents – five copies of my newly formatted Akrad’s Children – along with my other books for the Rendered Realms stall at the Brisbane Supanova on the weekend.

A delayed delivery meant that was not to be. The E-book version has been available for some time and has sold many copies. Still, neither of these facts diminished my excitement as I cracked open the box and I at last held the new print version in my hands, ran my fingertips over the shiny cover, flipped the pages and enjoyed the weight of the book in my hands. That got me thinking about the perennial question.

Which is better? Print or E-book? Perhaps for most book lovers it’s not a contest (while others might prefer audiobooks or graphic novels), but there are pros and cons for both print and E-books.

Print Books

Pros

• Print books have character, each with its own individual beauty.
• The covers are a feature and can be works of art with creative images, textures like embossing and metallic finishes or tooled leather.
• The physicality of books make reading them a sensual experience from the feel of paper, the subtle aromas of paper, the sound of the pages, the ritual of opening them.
• Bookshelves can make a statement or a beautiful display.
• It’s easy to know with a glance how much one has already read, how much further there is to go or to flip between a map or genealogy of an important scene and back to one’s place again.
• They make tangible and durable gifts that can last centuries or even millennia.
• They can have other purposes – propping up something or an impromptu weapon assuming that should ever be necessary.
• They are easier to lend to friends and family.
• They never run out of battery.
• Authors can sign the copies when purchased at books signings or Conventions like Supanova 🙂

Cons

• Print often are more expensive than E-books.
• They can be heavy to carry, especially several books, and can be hard to fit in luggage for a long trip.
• If you fall asleep while reading War and Peace or another large tome in bed, it hurts when the book lands on your nose (speaking from experience).
• For people with arthritis, the weight of the book can strain the wrists, or it can be hard to read small font for those with visual issues or dyslexia.
• Sometimes books can become soiled, old and tatty or may absorb less pleasant smells.
• They can take up a lot of space – especially when if you have run out of bookcases and even walls to put the bookcases against.
• It’s hard to read in the dark.
• You may lose your place – if you don’t have a bookmark available or the bookmark falls out of the book.

E-Books

Pros

• An E-read has a huge capacity, with hundreds of books able to fit in a device that has the size, shape and weight of a small book.
• It’s easy to take several books on holidays without adding to your excess baggage so that you have no fear of running out of reading matter.
• It’s simple to change the font to make reading easier.
• Dyslexic fonts are available which help people with dyslexia focus on the text.
• Books can be purchased and downloaded from the device, often with links to the next book at the end of the book.
• E-Books are often more affordable than print books.
• The E-Reader has easy access to a dictionary or the X-Ray function to find the meaning of an unknown word or find out more about a subject that interests you.
• It’s possible to highlight sentences and take notes without defacing the book, and then send the notes to your computer.
• *An E-reader like Kindle is easy on the eyes and gives a book-like feel to the reading experience.
• E-Books can be read on devices like phones, tablets or computers as well as dedicated E-readers.
• E-readers can have built in light making it possible to read in the dark (or under one’s covers).
• The E-Book always opens up at the point where you left off reading (no fear of losing one’s place and no need to search for a bookmark) and it will even keep your place between devices (so you can continue reading on the phone if you don’t have your kindle with you and vice versa).

Cons

• The glare from devices like phones and tablets can cause eyestrain and disrupt sleep (though E-readers like Kindles that use Electronic-ink technology don’t have this problem).
• Touching the screen in the wrong place can accidently turn the pages which is annoying.
• Other functions like access to social media, especially on a phone or tablet, can distract you from reading.
• If the battery runs out, the screen goes blank, and you can’t read the book until your charge your device.
• While it’s possible to lend some E-Books to friends when this function is available, it is not as simple to do as lending a print book.
• Some (though not all) E-readers are black & white and most E-readers take you straight to the first chapter when you open them – so it’s easy to miss the full glory and beauty of the book’s cover.
• It’s harder to flip back or forward with a e-reader while holding your place.
• E-Books just don’t have the sensual physicality and beauty of a print book.

While I do use my kindle and appreciate its many features, I still love holding a book in my hands and appreciating its beauty and the reading enjoyment it brings.

What do you love best? Print or E-Book? What pros and cons have you discovered?