Literature is something of a latecomer to the digital revolution. In some ways, this is quite surprising, as it predates other forms of entertainment like computer games, film, and TV by several thousand years. Mind you, the older generations are often the slowest to get to grips with anything new. After all, when was the last time you heard your granddad talk about getting an Xbox?Some of the growing pains for ebooks, have been the same ones that other forms of digital media have gone through, and still are going through. Piracy is one such pain.
The mere mention of the word ‘piracy’ generates quite an angry response from many people, whether they are a writer, or a reader.
To those people, I say you should perhaps step back, and rethink things a bit. I’m an indie author, and I know for a fact that my work is available to download from torrent/pirate websites. I know this to be a fact, as it was me who put them there in
the first place.
Before I go any further, I’ll just mention a few things, to provide some context. Firstly, you won’t see me on any bestseller lists anywhere, not unless that list is based on an otherwise empty shelf. Yes, woe is me, get out the violin and all that.
Secondly, years ago, I used to be something of a profligate pirate myself. My hard drive was chock full of computer games, applications, films, and TV shows. I knew lots of other people who did the same thing as well.
Lastly, I have no formal legal education, or training. This puts me at around about the same level as that bloke in the pub, who insists that it’s perfectly legal to shoot a Welshman with a crossbow, so long as you do it outside the city walls, on a Wednesday afternoon.
Just to be clear, I have no intention of getting involved with the tedious, semantic differences between copyright infringement, and theft. I’m also mainly talking about the financial impact of piracy, rather than the copyright side of things.
