"Here borrow mine..."

First off let me begin by saying how much I love books. I mean really love books. Even when I don't have the extra money to spend I'll still buy a book if I love it. Of course I've purchased some that I have later come to regret spending any money on. (sorry to those authors!) But those are the minority in my book collection, which I might add is mostly in storage. Ahh, but that's a whole different story and one I think is best left for a day when I feel like opening my chest and pouring my heart out to the world) Aside from being too personal too share I also try to block out the books (and other great possessions) being in storage thing because they have been there for close to two years, which means they may just be piles of mush by now. *gasp*

Too painful to consider!

Moving on...books, well actually my take on borrowing books.

I'm a fan of sharing a good book but since moving into the realm of the aspiring writer world, I'm torn. (No pun intended!) What does book sharing mean for an author?

PRO
More people read your book and will hopefully then want more. A beautiful thing indeed. Isn't that we all want? More readers? Heck yeah.

CON
But...how do we know these readers exist if they haven't bought their very own shiny new copy of your book? I have to state that I've done no research on this topic nor do I know a darn thing about it aside from my own opinions here but from what I see in the world of publishing - its all about the numbers. Sales speak. The more a book sells the more opportunity will be handed to the author.

I'm curious as to how many people out there either lend or borrow copies of books? I do! I love sharing a great story and I adore getting one. (just got one yesterday!) Let me give you an example of how I roll when it comes to a book that rattles me to the core - in a good way of course.

If you're not a fan of this particular series sorry but if smitten.

Twilight. My sister read it and told me it was great. I asked to borrow it. I read the first half and went out and bought the entire series. I know I was late in the game since they were all released before I even started reading the first one but it was awesome not to have to wait. I was in no place to throw down a chunk of change as big as that at that moment in time. I had to, I had to have those books in my possession. And it was a good thing since I read them so fast I couldn't have shared with my sister since she was still reading them herself. Then my other sister borrowed mine after listening to me obsess about the series for months and got her own. You see the point here.

The moral of the story is without realizing it I played a role in ensuring Stephenie Meyer's success. Late in the game I know, but still I contributed to the figures the publisher and all the other people involved look at. This means more money for her and more new books for me. ( I hope since I did also love The Host) I can't take the credit since she wrote stories captivating enough to force me to want my own copies.

Before I end this chaotic rant on book buying, I want to point out something. Not everyone can afford their own books. Take the millions of teens out there that these books are aimed at, there are a lot of parents that can't shell out over twenty dollars for a new release. That's one of the reasons so many kids borrow a friend's copy or hopefully hit up the library. I get that but my message is for you out there that can afford it, especially if you're an aspiring author or even a published author. Borrow as many books as you want but when really gets you going (in a good way!) go buy it. Support the author so they can in turn pump out some more awesome books for all of us.

This is even more important in today's economy. The better books sell the more chance us hopefuls have of getting a shot at seeing our own books on those shelves. What better way to stimulate the economy - buy a book! (no I'm not being paid for this endorsement)