How To Sign An Ebook
by Ami Greko
Like the oft-lamented “smell of books,” I’ve found that there there are some concepts that people consistently get hung up on when discussing ebooks. I used to try to puzzle out answers to these, but in this new, Zen-like approach I’m experimenting with in 2010, I’ve decided to try to actually evaluate the meanings behind the questions. Get your Desktop Rock Garden ready: we’re going behind the scenes on three of them this week.
Question 1: “How will people get their ebooks signed?”
As far as I can tell, the logic behind this question seems to go like this: authors have always signed books, and readers have always come to events to get their books signed, therefore not being able to do that = huge problem.
Here’s the logic I’d love to see people using: instead of wondering how we can adapt an older model to suit new technology, maybe we should think about what getting a book signed represents to a consumer, and see if there’s a way an ereader could make it better.
I’m not big on signed books, so it’s possible I’m missing something here, but it seems to me that they tap into a few different things: the impulse to memorialize an event, the collecting jones, and also the desire to have a unique experience directly with the author. Why else stand in line for an hour with your name spelled out on a post-it note waiting for Salman Rushdie to scrawl his signature and your name in Shalimar the Clown? (←An actual unfulfilling personal experience I’d prefer to not relive.)
We can make this a different encounter. It’s a paradigm shift. Instead of forcing people to wait in line hoping to get some small face time with an author, maybe everyone who attends the reading gets a recording of the event immediately following. Maybe the author is excited enough about being sent on tour that he writes an additional story with the book’s characters, available exclusively to those who show up at his appearances. Maybe a risk-taker even releases the first chapter of her upcoming work-in-progress and an email address where comments can be sent.
The suggestions above aren’t meant to be definitive, and more importantly, they aren’t meant to be changes that need to happen overnight. I mean for them to be examples of the ways in which we can reconsider the signing experience wholesale, instead of merely adapting old practices.
What ways would you be excited to see the signing experience change?
Comments
How awesome are you, Ami! Late last year, I developed a method to custom-sign e-books for my customers, which I’ll soon deploy. I’m glad to see that other progressive peeps in the business are thinking about such products — products that can differentiate from traditional models, and incentivize more sales.
I know this is not your point, but in a year or two when all ereaders have touchscreens with stylus, getting your ebook signed will be easy! Then your ereader can function as an old-fashioned autograph book, too.
To me, a signed book is an heirloom-esque object which takes on certain fetishistic qualities (beyond the baseline fetishistic qualities usually ascribed to books-as-physical-objects by bibliophiles). To wit: my signed copy of Brian Wilson’s autobiography, while actually inscribed to someone else, has a story unique to that physical object regarding its provenance and how it came into my possession.
I actually don’t see the point in signing an electronic book: to me, an electronic book is disposable and mutable, like paperbacks—I have no reason, urge, or convenient method of enshrining an ebook like I do my print book library. It’s all about the unique physical artifact for collectors and singed-book enthusiasts, which is one of the reasons why I don’t think physical books will go away any time soon.
That said, it comes back to my usual argument: collectors are a small segment of the book-reading public, and publishers certainly will want to exploit that urge for the physical, and create books *worthy* of signing, in addition to competent and accessible electronic versions: nice hardcover editions, printed on fine paper and bound into attractive and durable covers, probably in small editions—those will be the books that fans and collectors seek out, in order to get them signed.
I think Pablo is mostly right about collectors, but from the bookstore perspective, people are usually so happy to happen upon a signed copy of a book that they are surprised it doesn’t cost more money than list price. And by people, I mean the general bookstore-browsing crowd, not just collectors.
So it’s not just the experience of meeting somebody. There is still a certain value in the signature of certain authors (and the list is different for every reader) that is not necessarily related either to experience or to collectibility. Also, regardless of whether the person buying the book knows much about the book in question, the fact that a book is signed can very often be the thing that turns browsing into a sale.
I’m personally not insane about signed books either, nor am I much of a collector, so I’m not sure what this X factor is, but just putting it out there.
I do love your ideas about added value for events, though. Should be implemented whether e-books can eventually be signed or not.
Totally agree with these comments–books will continue to be signed for the collectors, and there will probably always be a market for them. The points you all make are good ones, and taken to the extreme, maybe it will be rare in the future to buy a physical book from a living author that *isn’t* signed.
I do think my main point becomes particularly valid in light of what Megan says–let’s try to expend energy on new ways of making the author reading experience unique, since the signing issue is essentially a red herring.
J.C.: very excited to see this new method!
I need to hear about Shalimar the Clown.
Also? I’m not a big collector of signed books, either. Just donated my one and only, which was Whoopi Goldberg’s autobiography (don’t ask) (ok, I’ll trade you for the Shalimar story).
It’s an interesting question. I’ve always looked at a book signing as a suitable venue to get to say something to the author, and for me the actual autograph is irrelevant.
I think it would be more interesting if instead of signing it was more of a meet and greet. And when it was a high profile author or celebrity author I’m sure no one would miss the autograph hounds…
Great comments from fellow “I don’t care about signed books but…” people. I would only add that virtual goods and prizes have surprising relevance (as surprising to me as the signed book) in online communities/games. So there’s no reason you shouldn’t get an unlocked foursquare / gowalla / yelp goodie for showing up at an actual reading. Or, for that matter, attending virtually. So, for example, sometime in the near future I might log on to a live feed from a WORD event (cause Brooklyn’s kinda far from the UWS on a winter night), unlock my virtual goodie, and get a special offer on the relevant book bought from WORD, kissed by the author, & wrapped by Bookavore.
Just to back up Stephanie’s comment, I do think the idea of the signed book is devalued in publishing circles (both because we know so many authors personally and mostly live in NYC where celeb-sightings are not normally attended by awkwardly thrust pen and paper), so we shouldn’t really base conclusions about the future of signed books on our personal lack of excitement. I think that for many people who may never get to meet or speak to an author, the signature itself makes it special. Interesting to see if that holds with a e-signature, which in itself won’t necessarily be in limited quanitity.
As many new ways as we have to make signed ebooks unique, technology also makes them a little too reproduceable to be truly special.
Will publishers put a cap on how many e-signatures can be sent or attached per title? Will certain authors choose only to give their e-signature to those they meet in person? Will people start asking for thumbprints or retinal scans at signings to save alongside their book files? A new custom title page inset with a photo of the fan with the author?
Just thought I’d throw in another aspect of signing. I have a standard policy of pretty much always gifting people books on birthdays, anniversaries, etc. I love receiving books as gifts myself too. But what I feel makes the gift that much more special is the personalized inscription. That I think is an important part of the book owning experience and I’m fairly certain digital books can only enhance that experience further. Imagine being able to not just inscribe a book but draw a jpeg, upload a photo, maybe even embed a video to it! I think that’s a good example of digital complementing and enhancing a thus far traditional, analog experience rather than just trying to replace it or undermining its importance.
I’m another one of those who doesn’t particularly care about signed books, and I’m not likely to buy a copy in a bookstore if it just happens to be signed. If I love an author enough to make a special trip out to an event, then the signature isn’t about collect-ability, it’s about having proof (for myself) that I’ve met someone I really admire.
That said, my solution would be to have interchangeable battery panels on an eReader. There’s an interesting design on the back of my Kindle; I’d rather replace that with a blank design that I could have an author sign and personalize. Then I could switch the panels out depending on my mood and what I’m reading on the Kindle, and the rest of the panels would be fairly easy to store safely.
To me, a signed book is more than a collectible. It IS about that one-on-one face time. I never buy signed copies that are pre-signed in stores, because it’s not only about the signature. I’m not looking to sell the book on eBay. And your suggestions of a recording of the reading or an additional, exclusive story are cool – but besides the point as far as what a signing is, at least to me.
Having the chance to interact with your favorite writer one-on-one, even if only for a few brief moments, is an irreplaceable experience, and usually authors don’t seem to be willing to do that unless there’s signing involved, because that encourages people to purchase books. Now, unless booksellers want to sell e-books, then have an event where only people who have bought the ebook from this specific outlet in this specific time window could come and have one-on-one face time with the author, where people will just stand on line and get 2 mins each to have a chat with the author, I don’t think signings will or should go away.
This is a great post with some great comments. I agree with Pablo in that publishers will create books physical books *worthy* of signing,. One question I have though pertains to the comment on ereaders that have touchscreens with stylus. If you have one of these said ereaders, can you get the ebook signed if it is only, as Amazon would like to say, a *license?*
I adore the idea of badges/pins for signing attendees (it speaks to my competitive nature). One other idea, and I admit I stole this from last year’s blogger signing at BEA, is the “trading card” approach. I’m not big on signed editions of books either. I do like unique and fun toys that don’t collect a lot of dust. Integrating a game aspect or other fun fillip might be a cool alternative to signing a “book”.
Yeah you lost me on this one. I think the root issue of ALL of the “problems with ebooks” can be summed up in a certain segment of consumer’s fear that what they love will be taken away from them. I don’t think it’s anymore complex than that.
Though we have MP3 for music now and before that we had CD, there are STILL people who buy and collect Vinyl.
So there will ALWAYS be print physical books. And I agree with the people who said the stuff about how a signed ebook is virtually meaningless because it’s a virtual product. The physical book signed from favorite authors is important. It’s personal, like a handwritten letter means so much more than email.
The value of a handwritten letter is even higher now that email is so popular, and my guess is that paradoxically as ebooks become more popular, signed physical copies of books will take on that quality as well, of being even more special.
I expect we’ll see print books for the niche they will be meant for, going back to the high quality print editions that are collectible, where bookmaking will go back to being an art form and I’m excited to see that happen.