Why do you keep buying more e-books?

[issybird]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

I actually went through a "SECURE ALL THE FREE AND DIRT CHEAP EBOOKS NOW!!" phase back when first transitioning from paper (just like most did), but ended up going back and deleting almost every one of them later. I've yet to regret a single one of those deletions.

I went through the same trajectory. I did get over the freebies frenzy fairly early and the time it took to delete them from my Amazon account was a lesson internalized for all time. No more freebies for me.

But the 90% multi-use Kobo coupons got me good. And if you went through ebates.com, the discount was 95%. Good times! But as with all benders, there's got to be a morning after.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

Thank you, kindly!

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by issybird

I went through the same trajectory. I did get over the freebies frenzy fairly early and the time it took to delete them from my Amazon account was a lesson internalized for all time. No more freebies for me.

I never got any freebies. What I did do was noticing a pattern in the way Feedbooks named their free public domain downloads... so I wrote a script to automatically download all of them

(On the other hand, I did also buy a lot of books from Feedbooks, mainly if Kobo didn't have them. Kobo has (had?) the weird problem of missing one or two books in the series I read... at least at that time.)

But the 90% multi-use Kobo coupons got me good. And if you went through ebates.com, the discount was 95%. Good times! But as with all benders, there's got to be a morning after.

I got hundreds of ebooks that way... to the point that my credit card company called to verify if I did indeed make 215 or so €0.56 purchases in one evening. Yeah, I got all the books in the Forgotten Realms library that I didn't yet have, using one 90% multi-use coupon, in one evening... and Kobo didn't even have a damned cart! Normally those books would hav been €7, or $6.45 when paying in dollars, so I think €0.56 per book was a good deal

[drjd]

Why do you keep buying more e-books?

Well.. because I can, and I want to read 'em.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

and Kobo didn't even have a damned cart!

We earned that discount!

[Cosimo]

That I want them is reason enough to buy them, justifications aren't required.

[ekbell]

Why do I continue to acquire more books even though I have more then I can read?

1) I would really, really regret not reading this particular book, generally because it's part of a series that I follow or by a favorite author with an interesting plot hook.

2)It`s not too expensive, looks interesting, will fit a hole in my library and research indicates the book is written by a reputable author.

3)It`s something that I have reason to believe my husband or children will enjoy. The more certain I am that they will want to read this particular book the more I`m willing to pay for it.

4)It`s free, looks interesting and I don`t already have hundreds of books in that subgenre.

I like variety and being able to look things up. I like having books available for my household`s tastes and interests. I like knowing that I`ll never ever not have something I feel like reading.


(and I like knowing that I`ll always have books to obsessively organize)

[Apache]

Because I have always had a large TBR. Even pre eBooks I always had a lot of books lined up waiting to be read. Now it is even easier because they are on one reader.
Apache

[DrNefario]

I almost feel that buying ebooks is a hobby in itself, wholly separate from reading them.

I am interested enough in books that I belong to several communities devoted to them, such as this one, and as part of the discussion things inevitably come up that I am interested in, and some of the time that leads to a purchase.

[Andy_T]

I don't know, but this is not an issue for me.

I don't collect free books just because they are free or on sale, so my TBR pile is determined by which books I want to read based on reviews and recommendations.

Yes, my TBR pile will last me for some time, but the way I go about it is that I read the book(s) I have available right now, then I buy new ones. In Europe there are not that many Kindle sales, anyway.

My time to read books is more valuable to me than the money I spend on the books....

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

I must admit that I find the popular, "I already have enough books in my TBR pile to last me the rest of my life" sentiment a bit puzzling. I don't blame people for having available TBR "ePiles," but it does strike me as odd to worry about "sticking primarily to them" or to quantify the time it would take to work through them all. If it's strictly a financial concern, then sure ... limit yourself to books you already own until such time as your financial situation changes. Otherwise, buy what you want/read what you want/when you want. I never want to come close to the end of the list (real or virtual) of books I'd like to read in my lifetime. I hope to always be crippled with choice--acquired or un-. When I finish one book, I enjoy having every, single book in the world being in the running for my next. It's a sweet, sweet affliction I hope never to be cured of.

I never went through the download all those free books phase. There are a handful of PD authors that I was interested in, but I found myself buying the omnibus volumes of most of those authors.

After noticing that a few ebooks that I purchased in the past are no longer available, I decided that getting new ebooks that I want, when I notice it, is the best solution. So I might buy 8 or 9 books by a specific author at a time, then space out reading them to avoid burn out.

[treadlightly]

I'm glad I bought a lot of ebooks before agency pricing and the disappearance of Kobo coupons. I'm still reading a lot of those and haven't bought many since prices doubled/tripled.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by treadlightly

I'm glad I bought a lot of ebooks before agency pricing and the disappearance of Kobo coupons. I'm still reading a lot of those and haven't bought many since prices doubled/tripled.

I still overbought, but I have to agree that my purchases have turned out to be a much better investment in light of current conditions than originally seemed the case.

[disconnected]

I can still remember reading Donald Duck comic books and seeing pictures of Scrooge McDuck rolling around in his piles of money. That's how I feel browsing through my Calibre library.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

I actually went through a "SECURE ALL THE FREE AND DIRT CHEAP EBOOKS NOW!!" phase back when first transitioning from paper (just like most did), but ended up going back and deleting almost every one of them later. I've yet to regret a single one of those deletions.

Originally Posted by issybird

I went through the same trajectory. I did get over the freebies frenzy fairly early and the time it took to delete them from my Amazon account was a lesson internalized for all time. No more freebies for me.

Originally Posted by issybird

I still overbought, but I have to agree that my purchases have turned out to be a much better investment in light of current conditions than originally seemed the case.

I'm a recent convert to the 'freebies are more trouble than they're worth' church. I've just gone through my calibre library either deleting the freebies or marking them as 'To Be Read'.

As a result, my TBR pile has gone from around 780 to about 1190.

I still have to go through my on-line book accounts and prune the unwanted freebies.

But it's worth it. I'd never get to them, and they just obscure the books I actually want to read.

As to why I still buy ebooks?

Several reasons

(1) Magazine subscriptions.
(2) Favourite authors/series with new releases
(3) Bargain books - that is, books I want to read that are on a limited time special offer.