# Could you please but your blurbs at the front of your books?



## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

Hi guys, I'm writing this a reader not a writer. In fact I dont do it myself. Though I have just been and added it to my most popular book, and I'll try to do it with at least book 1 of every series from now on.

Please could you consider putting the blurb in the front of your ebooks?

The reason is that I buy a lot of books, but I dont read them all the same day I buy them. But I do try to read and review every single book I download. But.... when I finish a book I then search my kindle for what to read next, which I will decide by what mood I am in. Do I want a murder mystery? Do I want a romantic comedy? Do I want hunky werewolves or dark vampires? Do I want science fiction or maybe something thought provoking?

This is where I get stuck. I can't remember what half the books are about. I open them and view the covers, but 9 times out of 10 it doesnt give enough info, and I end up logging back onto the kindle books store and typing in the books to read the blurb again.

So maybe just a small paragraph, after your contents page, that just says "About the book" or similar? Then I can find exactly what I'm in the mood for and not scroll right past simply because I really cant be bothered to look it up and just search for something that I remember instead.

Right, rant over, and thank you very much if you even read all that!


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## Jim Johnson (Jan 4, 2011)

I remember someone mentioning this late last year, and it's such a good idea I added it to my workflow section in my business plan. For my ebooks, I'm going to put the blurb right after the cover. I also wish more writers did this. Makes going through the sample downloads easier. Less time wondering "why did I download this?".


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## Magda Alexander (Aug 13, 2011)

I've started to do that for that very reason. By next week all three of my books will include a blurb right after the title page.


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## Chrisbwritin (Jan 28, 2014)

I'm on the fence. Some readers want a blurb, some readers get mad when there's extraneous stuff in the book, and it also shortens our sample by a full page. Not sure which is the lesser of two evils.


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

I would not want the blurb to greet me in a book, for one thing I have been reading books since the early 70s without having to skim over a blurb before I get to the story in question. A blurb is there to sell the book, once I buy or borrow the book I want to give myself over the experience created for me by the author and when you write your blurb you are acting as publisher not author. There might be too much plot spoilt in a blurb but by the time I read the book I will have forgotten that, I do not want a spoiler catching my eye as I frustratingly page over this extraneous piece of marketing text. I want a book to surprise me, but not in the sense of including a blurb that practically no-one else includes inside the book.


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## jdcore (Jul 2, 2013)

Mercia McMahon said:


> I would not want the blurb to greet me in a book, for one thing I have been reading books since the early 70s without having to skim over a blurb before I get to the story in question. A blurb is there to sell the book, once I buy or borrow the book I want to give myself over the experience created for me by the author and when you write your blurb you are acting as publisher not author. There might be too much plot spoilt in a blurb but by the time I read the book I will have forgotten that, I do not want a spoiler catching my eye as I frustratingly page over this extraneous piece of marketing text. I want a book to surprise me, but not in the sense of including a blurb that practically no-one else includes inside the book.


On paper books the blurb is on the back cover generally. Perhaps what is really needed is for ebook files to have a hover feature where a reader can touch the cover and when the options to remove the file etc appear, there's also an option to read the blurb or it could come up automatically. I'm spitballin'.


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## Adrian Howell (Feb 24, 2013)

I remember the thread on this issue last year, and I've added blurbs in the front of all of my eBooks since then. I put mine between my book title and my TOC, and keep it short enough so that it wouldn't take up more than half a page on most Ereaders' default settings.

It makes absolute sense, IMO, since, unlike print books (which often have their blurbs or equivalant on the back cover), eBooks not only don't have backcovers, but are often left unread for longer periods of time than print books. In the eBook age, many readers (including myself) often download a free or bargain book and not get around to it for weeks or even months. If I was considering reading a print book that I had purchased a year back and I couldn't even remember what it was vaguely about, most likely I'd read the back cover to make sure that this book was something I really wanted to start now. Ebooks should be the same, and the best way to do that is to simply put that spoiler-free blurb at the start of the book.


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## MatthewBallard (May 21, 2013)

Chrisbwritin said:


> I'm on the fence. Some readers want a blurb, some readers get mad when there's extraneous stuff in the book, and it also shortens our sample by a full page. Not sure which is the lesser of two evils.


I'm right there with you. I can see both sides.


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## RockyGrede (Apr 19, 2013)

As a reader, I prefer no blurb in the inside cover. I already read the blurb when I brought the book and that was probably the reason why I brought it.

There are authors who don't even add a blurb to the product description on amazon. So I have no idea what the book is even about. These books I don't download at all.


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## penrefe (Nov 30, 2011)

1001nightspress said:


> I wish, as a reader, that when I opened a new book on my Kindle for the first time, the file opened at the cover. But I have never had that happen. I usually scroll back (up to 10 page clicks or so) to find it, but it's annoying.
> 
> Is there any way to force a book to open at the cover?


That's a kind of "Damned if you do, damned if you don't" thing, since people like you--and me!--like to start from the cover, whereas many other people like to skip the opening bumph entirely and start right at chapter one.

There's no way to force it to open at the cover, as far as I can tell. I think there's a code inserted into the mobi file, which tells the ereader where the book starts from, and if that's set to Chapter 1, that's where it opens.

I also include a blurb in my books, for the same reasons already mentioned.


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## RockyGrede (Apr 19, 2013)

1001nightspress said:


> I wish, as a reader, that when I opened a new book on my Kindle for the first time, the file opened at the cover. But I have never had that happen. I usually scroll back (up to 10 page clicks or so) to find it, but it's annoying.
> 
> Is there any way to force a book to open at the cover?


Come to think of it, same over here. I think that is just the way it is programmed.


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## ElHawk (Aug 13, 2012)

YES. This is very important. So many people rail against front matter of any kind, but IT SERVES A PURPOSE. Duplicating your product description in the front of the book is key. It reminds the reader why the heck she bought that book in the first place: because it sounds awesome. Someday I'd like to find a way to test whether books with the description in the front are read more often than books without it. My intuition says that readers are likely to pass over a book on their Kindle carousel if they can't get re-excited about reading it. They'll read one of the other dozen books they bought that week instead.


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## Andrea Harding (Feb 27, 2013)

i see both sides of this point, but I know as a reader it annoys the hell out of me. Just my opinion though. I'm also in the 'wishing it started at the front cover' club, though!


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## scottmarlowe (Apr 22, 2010)

Chrisbwritin said:


> I'm on the fence. Some readers want a blurb, some readers get mad when there's extraneous stuff in the book, and it also shortens our sample by a full page. Not sure which is the lesser of two evils.


Exactly what I was thinking. I think it's a great idea, but it has some drawbacks. I think it's the kind of thing where you'd make some people happy, but not so much with others.


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## joyceharmon (May 21, 2012)

I have both the Kindle and Nook apps on my phone. On the Nook app, if you touch the thumbnail book cover and hold it down rather than releasing, a page with the blurb opens, with the options to read, archive, delete, or go back. I wish the Kindle app did that.


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## Melody Simmons (Jul 8, 2012)

jdcore said:


> On paper books the blurb is on the back cover generally. Perhaps what is really needed is for ebook files to have a hover feature where a reader can touch the cover and when the options to remove the file etc appear, there's also an option to read the blurb or it could come up automatically. I'm spitballin'.


Brilliant idea! Please suggest this to Amazon. It should satisfy both parties - those who want the blurbs and those who do not. I'd also like a one-click button right there on Kindle that takes one to all reviews for the book.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

By all means, contact Amazon about having a hover feature, or a menu option to look at the blurb.  [email protected]  It would be great.  But, in the meantime, please consider putting a blurb somewhere--the copyright page as EelKat mentions is a good idea.  It doesn't add another page to the look inside.  This reader would appreciate it until such time as Amazon makes a change.

Oh, and two reasons NOT to put the copyright/blurb page at the back of the book--one, it makes  it look like more is left of the book than is, though one page isn't a big deal one.

But the main reason is, for those readers who do like to look at the copyright page, etc, before reading the book (not me--I want it to start where the story starts), having these pages at the end of the book messes up the "sync to furthest page read" when switching between devices.

Betsy


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## Catana (Mar 27, 2012)

Sorry, but no. As a reader, I hate to have to get through a lot of material before I get to the text. As a writer, I consider the amount of sample you get to read much more important than your memory. If you read the blurb and downloaded the book, then there must have been something about it that made you want to read it. If that isn't obvious from the first page, how difficult is it to go to Amazon to refresh your memory?


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Catana said:


> Sorry, but no. As a reader, I hate to have to get through a lot of material before I get to the text. As a writer, I consider the amount of sample you get to read much more important than your memory. If you read the blurb and downloaded the book, then there must have been something about it that made you want to read it. If that isn't obvious from the first page, how difficult is it to go to Amazon to refresh your memory?


Pretty difficult if I'm traveling and don't have a connection at the time I want to pick the next book. I have had hundreds of books on my Kindle at any one time. It's part of the reason that I got a Kindle; so I could have a library of books with me at all times. And I don't read samples, so the sample length doesn't matter to me.

Most books don't open at the front matter, so you shouldn't have to go through a lot of information to get to the text. I hate that too. What I would like is a menu option to go to the blurb, like there is for the cover.

Betsy


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## Deke (May 18, 2013)

If not the blurb, then the cover.  I can't stand how ebooks don't start on the cover. I always have to GO TO the cover just to remind myself what the book is about.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Deke said:


> If not the blurb, then the cover. I can't stand how ebooks don't start on the cover. I always have to GO TO the cover just to remind myself what the book is about.


See, and I just want to get to the book.  I can set my devices to show the cover on the home pages--don't need to see the cover when I start the book.

This discussion shows that Amazon really needs to allow the reader some personalization of their reading experience. [email protected]

Betsy


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

I do not read the backpage again before beginning to read a paperback for the reasons given above. The Backpage is to sell me the book in a shop, not part of my reading enjoyment. And I have paperbacks unread dating back to 2010, it is not just an eBook thing (and one of those was a freebie - James Patterson YA witch thing being handed out for free in Leicester Square). 

This is very simple on a Kindle (eInk current edition). When inside the book press menu then Book Description. This does take you online, but if you don't mind using a bit of wi-fi it is easier than being sent to the backmatter of the book then having to return to your place in the book, so I understand why Amazon take you online.

Note that none of this discussion helps with a big pile of TBR doo-dah as you have to open each and every book. But not on a Kindle eInk. You get the highlight over the book in question hit right on the 5 way and then Book Description. Okay it probably does not save much time, but if you have said doo-dah pile with titles of a post-19th century length then you just have to look up each and every one. Or shelve it on Goodreads as Next TBR.


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## Rick Gualtieri (Oct 31, 2011)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> See, and I just want to get to the book.  I can set my devices to show the cover on the home pages--don't need to see the cover when I start the book.
> This discussion shows that Amazon really needs to allow the reader some personalization of their reading experience. [email protected]


Agreed. Would be nice to be able to go to Amazon and just click a button to say "Always start my book at...."

Interesting, thread, btw. I don't put my blurbs into my books right now, for no other reason than I don't. However, I have minimal front matter so I'm beginning to think an extra page wouldn't really hurt things for the purposes of at least testing this out.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

I've experimented with this, but never made it live.

In my case, it's less worry about 'Oh god, I have to click forward once!' and more about satisfactory placement. In traditional fantasy books, there's usually an excerpt somewhere in the front and I feel like a fantasy reader will come across the blurb, find that it is NOT the thing they expected and wonder WTF I was trying to pull putting an ad for the book into the book itself.

My firing solution at the moment is an alternate summary in the front rather than my ad copy blurb.


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## abishop (May 22, 2014)

joyceharmon said:


> I have both the Kindle and Nook apps on my phone. On the Nook app, if you touch the thumbnail book cover and hold it down rather than releasing, a page with the blurb opens, with the options to read, archive, delete, or go back. I wish the Kindle app did that.


The Kobo app does this too. If you hold down your finger on a book in your library, one of the options is "View Details", which includes the blurb. I just checked and confirmed that this option works even when your device is not connected to the Internet.

The Kobo app also automatically opens to the title page, not the first chapter.

In general I find the Kobo app much more user friendly and functional than the Kindle app. I always use it except when I'm buying something that's only available through Amazon.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Mercia McMahon said:


> This is very simple on a Kindle (eInk current edition). When inside the book press menu then Book Description. This does take you online, but if you don't mind using a bit of wi-fi it is easier than being sent to the backmatter of the book then having to return to your place in the book, so I understand why Amazon take you online.


If one has connectivity, it is very simple. No so much if one doesn't when one is picking the book.

And going to a page with the blurb and going back to your place in the book is no more difficult than going to Amazon and back. If, for example, I want to look at the cover while in the middle of a book on my Paperwhite, I bring up the top menu, tap *GoTo*, then *Cover*. Which brings me to the cover. I examine it lovingly for whatever detail I was looking for, then bring up the top menu again and tap the back key *<* and go back to my reading location. Which is the same key I tap to leave the Book Description on Amazon to go back to my reading. Just sayin'.

*Off to ask Amazon once again for more personalization options.* 

Betsy


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

I added mine to the front because it makes sense to. I have a lot of books on my kindle, and if I can't remember what they're about I don't read them.

I can appreciate that some readers don't particularly like this, but would hope they are open-minded enough to understand that many people DO like it and it isn't any big deal to click forward. How much effort does that really take? 

Seriously, I have had kindle books that had several pages of front matter. I've had much worse happen in life, so that doesn't irritate me at all. It takes me a couple seconds to forward to where the book starts. If I start letting things like that work me up then I need to start managing stress better, because there are far more important things to be stressed over.  

As a reader I understand that an author isn't obligated to make their book EXACTLY how I, as one reader, wants it. I trust that they made their book the way they felt was best and that some readers will appreciate it and others just click forward.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

Catana said:


> Sorry, but no. As a reader, I hate to have to get through a lot of material before I get to the text. As a writer, I consider the amount of sample you get to read much more important than your memory. If you read the blurb and downloaded the book, then there must have been something about it that made you want to read it. If that isn't obvious from the first page, how difficult is it to go to Amazon to refresh your memory?


I am not always connected to the internet. I am not in the land of wi-fi everywhere. 
Oh so as a writer, you can't give me 3 sentences to let me know why I bought your book in the first place. Now yes there probably was something about it but I may have gotten the book a year ago.
Why make it harder on YOUR reader? Let's say I'm in my car and want to start a new book. Unless I am sitting in front of a motel, I have no way to go to Amazon at that moment. Since you have not given me any indication about what your book is about, I will just put your book back on the shelf (figuratively) and go on to the author that does let me know what his book is about without making me do the Texas two-step.

Lesson here: The more steps your reader has to go through to find out stuff about your book or how to get your book, the less likely they are to be a repeat buyer.

Second lesson: it ain't your writing that pays the bills. It is the READERS that BUY your writing that pays the bills. 
Reading is a luxury. If I am gonna spend my hard-earned money on you, you best give me a reason.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

To all of you, that said it is easy to go to Amazon, can you please meet me in Kent, Texas?  I can promise you stars but I cannot say you will have any contact with the outside world.  The nearest cell tower is 54 miles away.  The nearest wi-fi is 38 miles away and only in 3 little spots.
Please note bring food and water too.  The nearest open store is the same 54 miles away.


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## Jim Johnson (Jan 4, 2011)

Out of curiosity, I just did a random sampling of five indie space opera books, different authors, on Amazon and used the Look Inside function. Every one of them had a TOC and a copyright page I had to scroll past before the actual prose started. I'm not sure a short blurb somewhere after the cover is going to make that much a difference, esp. if the writer mentions what it is.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

TattooedWriter said:


> Think about the "Look Inside" If a potential buyer clicks Look Inside on Amazon to sample your story, do you want them to see the same blurb they just read on the book's page...or do you want to draw them into the story immediately?
> 
> How many readers, on clicking the Look Inside and seeing the blurb they just read _again_, will just click out and go look for a different book?
> 
> You want to use every advantage to hook that reader. The Look Inside is your chance to pull them into your world. I want to make it as easy as possible for them to see the first line of the book. Putting the blurb in front of it isn't going to achieve that.


Maybe, maybe not. Here is my thinking. Hear me out please. Not everyone scrolls down to read the blurbs. If I am going from here to Amazon, there is a good chance I won't bother with the blurb. If the title and the cover catch me, then I will probably pick it up. So yes, having a short blurb of maybe 2-3 sentences right after the copyright would be a help when I go to read the book. It would not really be a waste of space. It doesn't have to be the exact blurb and it reinforces WHY someone is looking at your book. I do not think anyone would turn away because you don't start the look inside with "It was a hot sunshiny day with no relief in sight".


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

That was a funny pairing of posts.

"Be courteous to the reader."

"THINK OF YOUR SALES SPACE"

This could all be easily solved with a simple [frontmatter] tag that both Look Inside and a setting on the Kindle could ignore. Or hey, an option on the dash for 'offset start by X pages'.


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## Lady Vine (Nov 11, 2012)

Melody Simmons said:


> Brilliant idea! Please suggest this to Amazon. It should satisfy both parties - those who want the blurbs and those who do not. I'd also like a one-click button right there on Kindle that takes one to all reviews for the book.


Seconded. This is a great idea and one they should implement immediately. Because I personally don't like blurbs in the front of my ebooks. I think it looks amateur. But I do appreciate the benefits of having one there. Like someone upthread said, if you were picking up a paperback you'd purchased years ago, you'd reread the blurb to decide whether or not to read the book.


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## MorganKegan (Jan 10, 2013)

I also put my blurb in my ebook front matter, but I do something similar to EelKat: The only front matter I put in my ebooks is a combined title/copyright/blurb page, followed by the TOC. However, the ebooks still open at Chapter 1/Page 1.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

How many people even honestly use Look Inside? That thing is clunky as crap at least on a PC.


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

> How many readers, on clicking the Look Inside and seeing the blurb they just read again, will just click out and go look for a different book?


I doubt that many. All readers are different. For example, when I read a book on my kindle, I want it to be laid out just like a book that is hardcover or paperback. I expect front matter. I read dedications. I read author notes because I know it could enhance the story (unless they go on forever).

Even so, I don't shut down the "Look Inside" if someone doesn't do it just how I like it. I am not so crabby I expect the world to cater to just my likes. If I liked the cover and blurb, I will scroll down until I see the story sample. Again, how hard is that?

I'm sure some people won't. Some people search for things to be p*ssed off about and spend most days upset with one thing or antoher. I'm betting the majority of people simply don't worry about it.

If a book is a short story, it's a different matter. The Look Inside needs to get right to the story or you get nothing. Still, a title with a couple sentences below describing the story won't make the world blow up.

Too many times on here we fret and fret about how to please every reader. You can't. Ever. Just put your book together in the best way possible to show what YOU think the majority of readers will find beneficial. Then write another book.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

Yeah, but you should also THINK OF YOUR CUSTOMERS.

... You know, the folks you're trying to attract with your sales space.


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

And I am thinking about my sales space. I've spent 20 years in advertising and marketing. When I do a bookbub and 25,000 people download my free book, how do I know they aren't checking that Look Inside to make sure there's a blurb so they'll conveniently know what the book is about six months or a year from now when they get around to reading it? 

Just as many may decide NOT to buy because it's missing in that case as those who close "Look Inside" because there's a blurb in there. You don't know how many and neither do I. 

I do know one thing. My sales of other books in the series have increased since putting a link to the next in the back and since putting the blurb in front. This tells me some people are actually getting my books and then READING them. Not nearly enough yet, but some...and more than before.  

What else do I have to go on?


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## Bookslinger (Jan 12, 2014)

Good idea. I thought about doing this because I feel the same way as a reader. I'm glad to see someone else point it out.


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

And how many readers know that? Obviously not enough.

Anyway, I'm outta here. I need to write. Peace, all. Do what you think is the best. That's why it's indie.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

Okay look: So many of you have pointed out that the book starts at chapter one, so _no one has to scroll through the blurb again if they don't want to!_

I personally like to look at the cover again and I always wish the blurb was there with it. When I pick up one of my paperbacks I always turn it over to remind myself exactly which story it is (especially if it is part of a series and I get confused about which one was which). Ebooks are new, and always evolving. I would love it if we could evolve to the point where writers realise that readers generally LIKE to see the back, i.e. The blurb as well! (And yes, I would love the hover and click option but as yet it doesnt exist).

I have to say I buy a book on the blurb, I _never_ look inside, but if I did and the blurb was there, I wouldnt get annoyed unless it was long. It wouldnt then use much of the free wordage. Most blurbs are pretty short and concise, I'm put off the book anyway if they are not, so why would it be a hassle to see a few lines between the cover and the copywrite or between the copywrite and the TOC? *It wouldn't!*

Can I repeat you would actually have to scroll back to see it? So it is basically optional and not forced on the readers who have idetic memories.


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## Lydniz (May 2, 2013)

My blurbs are 70-80 words max. I put them in.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

If I add blurbs to the front matter, I may have to offset that sign of goodwill by personally challenging each reader to a fist fight.


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

Vaalingrade said:


> If I add blurbs to the front matter, I may have to offset that sign of goodwill by personally challenging each reader to a fist fight.


I love it! They could sign up on your blog, and rafflecopter could select who fights you monthly. They get extra entries for liking your facebook page, following you on twitter, etc. You could possibly even earn some affiliate dollars advertising boxing gloves, fighting and muscle books, etc.

Yeah...now back to writing. Maybe.


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## Jim Johnson (Jan 4, 2011)

TattooedWriter said:


> And as has already been mentioned, hold down the cover of the book in your kindle library and click on "Book Description". Voila...a blurb.


I have a Kindle Touch. I hold my finger on a title (I don't display books by cover), and then I press on 'book description', but then a pop-up tells me I have to connect to wifi. I do that, then some 30 seconds later I get taken to the buy screen, where the blurb is like two lines of text under the cover, buy button, links and so forth. I have to then click on the 'show more' link to actually read the stupid blurb.

In the time it took me to do all that, I could have skimmed one page flip's worth of blurb reminding me what the book was about.

I might be doing it wrong, so maybe it's device-dependent? Because the latter option feels much more convenient to me. Kindle's a luxury item and sure, waiting a minute to read a blurb is a First World Problem, but ultimately I'm a consumer and I want it easy and I want it fast. Cover to blurb to Chapter 1 (or Prologue) is just about as direct as I can imagine.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

Agreeing with Jim completely.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

TattooedWriter said:


> And as has already been mentioned, hold down the cover of the book in your kindle library and click on "Book Description". Voila...a blurb.


IF they know to do that and IF they are online at the time.

Amazon really needs to do something that makes this part of the downloaded package for each book...

Betsy


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## Jim Johnson (Jan 4, 2011)

TattooedWriter said:


> Maybe I'm confused as to why people are buying books and then forgetting what they're about. (?)


I download samples after reading reviews, getting recommendations, and browsing and thinking "oh that sounds cool." I rarely read samples as soon as I download them. When I sit down to work through my backlog of samples, sometimes I need a reminder why the heck I downloaded that sample 3, 6, 9 months ago.

Buying books, that's different. I read a book pretty much as soon as I buy it. I don't need the blurb reminder at that point, but I still appreciate it being there if it's there.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

TattooedWriter said:


> Maybe I'm confused as to why people are buying books and then forgetting what they're about. (?)


Maybe because I have almost 2000 books in my library.  Some I got in 2008 when I got my Kindle and haven't read yet. Some I know the genre, but because I tend to buy a lot of books by authors I like, I may be looking for a particular book and I can't remember the title. Or maybe it's because I'm getting old and forgetful. 

Betsy


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## 10105 (Feb 16, 2010)

Here's the gearhead's way to control which page your ebook treats as the beginning page.

1. Use Calibre or another program to convert the .mobi to a .epub if you don't already have one.
2. Open the .epub in Sigil
3. Open the file named [something].opf at the bottom of the Book Browser
4. You'll find an entry at the bottom that looks something like this:
<guide>
...
<reference href="Text/text0.xhtml" title="Text" type="text"/>
</guide>
The text0.xhtml entry is the name of the book component file where e-readers look for the beginning.

5. Change the filename to match another entry in the Book Browser, the one you want to be the beginning.
6. Save the .epub file
7. Use Kindlegen to rebuild the .mobi from the .epub.
8. Open the .mobi file into Kindle Previewer to see if Beginning is where you want it to be.

There are other ways to modify a .mobi file. One is to use Amazon's free KindleUnpack utility to unpack the file to a zip, unpack the zip, make the changes, and use KindleGen to rebuild.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

TattooedWriter said:


> Maybe I'm confused as to why people are buying books and then forgetting what they're about. (?)


Hi. Quick question. How do you buy books? I ask this in all seriousness.
Do you buy one book, read it then buy another?
Do you buy books on sale to read later?
How many books do you buy/pick up in an average year/month/week?
Are you an average reader or a voracious reader?

Ok now let me tell you about voracious readers. We pick up books anywhere and everywhere. Both paperback and e-books.
Just this morning I picked up 5 new books that look good. I will probably get around to them sometime next year. So yeah like I am going to remember there are two westerns and 3 mysteries. 
Just in the last 30 days at Amazon I picked up about 90 books. Now about 10 were craft and cook books. That still leaves 80 to read. Now 3, I will read immediately because I was waiting on them. 
Note I read an average of 2-3 books a week and sometimes more.
This is not counting the paperbacks I picked up at goodwill two weeks ago.

Now does this help you understand how some people cannot remember why they bought a book.


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## Andie (Jan 24, 2014)

I love to have the blurbs readily available. I buy 5-10 books a week, but rarely have time to read them all immediately. It's nice to be able to scroll back a page from Chapter One to quickly remind myself what the book was about.


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

Star Fish said:


> ...when I finish a book, I then search my kindle for what to read next, which *I will decide by what mood I am in*. Do I want a murder mystery? Do I want a romantic comedy? Do I want hunky werewolves or dark vampires? Do I want science fiction or maybe something thought provoking?
> 
> This is where I get stuck. I can't remember what half the books are about. *I open them and view the covers, but 9 times out of 10 it doesnt give enough info*, and I end up logging back onto the kindle books store and typing in the books to read the blurb again.


In my opinion, any book cover that does not portray the *mood* of the book is a bad book cover, no matter how beautiful and well-crafted.

That said, I do put a short description at the beginning of each book.


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

I'm ambivalent about whether the blurb "should" be included within the pages of a downloaded e-book.  If it were there, I guess I would prefer it to be a linked part of the TOC that I could choose to look at or not.

In perusing through the pages of the currently only 204 books unread on my Kindle, I don't find any titles that aren't clear to me that they are historical romance, cozy mystery, thriller, etc. and I know, for me, that I didn't buy or download any of them for free if they weren't something I already vetted and want to read, so I don't really need to re-read a blurb.

However, a tip for Kindle users (don't know about other devices):  When I download any book, if there is something I specifically want to remember about why I bought that book, I open it, click on the menu, click notes & highlights and create a note.  It may be something like "2nd book in such-and-such series" or "set in Iowa" or "recommended by Atunah as 5* in June 14 2014 HR thread".  Then when I do get around to reading it all I have to do is bring up the menu again (from inside the book) and click "view notes" to find my own reminder.


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## Jim Johnson (Jan 4, 2011)

Cherise Kelley said:


> In my opinion, any book cover that does not portray the *mood* of the book is a bad book cover, no matter how beautiful and well-crafted.


I hadn't thought about it before, but I think this is a big reason why I display books in my kindle by title rather than cover. I haven't bought a single book or downloaded a single sample based on the cover image. I'm not sure I've ever gotten a 'mood' off a cover. Genre, maybe, but not mood. I think that's more because I'm not wired visually that way, rather than any failing of a book cover artist or designer.

Anyone have examples of a book cover that effectively expresses a 'mood'? Not genre, but mood.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

I forget because i bulk buy.

Last week I was on holiday. When I got back I had 5 days of Ebooksoda emails waiting for me. I went through all of them buying the books I liked. I think I bought about 9 books. I read a lot and intend to read them all (otherwise I wouldnt have bought them would I!) but not right this minute! I want to finish the novel I'm already in the middle of, then there are a couple I'm really excited about that I know I want to read next. Then I might read one or two of the newest downloads, but the other seven will probably sit on my kindle for a month or two or even more before I read them...

How can I possibly remember the blurb for each one? I LIKE knowing what a book is about before I read it! Yes, I can tell from the cover that it is a space adventure, but which one?


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## Sandra K. Williams (Jun 15, 2013)

jdcore said:


> Perhaps what is really needed is for ebook files to have a hover feature where a reader can touch the cover and when the options to remove the file etc appear, there's also an option to read the blurb or it could come up automatically.


Nook and Kobo ereaders and the various apps that read EPUBs (including OverDrive) have that function. The book description is part of the metadata and there's no need to go online.

If you build your EPUB by submitting a Word file you can't add a description internally, as far as I know.

The files I submit to Amazon have book descriptions in the metadata. Too bad the Kindle doesn't access it and instead goes online.


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## Colin (Aug 6, 2011)

<smug bugger>I've been doing this for years.</smug bugger>


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## Andrew Ashling (Nov 15, 2010)

Sandra K. Williams said:


> Nook and Kobo ereaders and the various apps that read EPUBs (including OverDrive) have that function. The book description is part of the metadata and there's no need to go online.
> 
> If you build your EPUB by submitting a Word file you can't add a description internally, as far as I know.
> 
> The files I submit to Amazon have book descriptions in the metadata. Too bad the Kindle doesn't access it and instead goes online.


So do mine.

I don't know how of if Amazon converts them to the paperwhite azw format though.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Reiterating what Betsy said back on page one: If you want a change, send feedback to Amazon!  More personalization is a good thing!

Me:  I am pretty good at remembering what a book is about from the title and/or cover.  I'm almost always on Wifi when I'm looking for my next read so, if I can't remember exactly, I can go on line pretty easily and find out.  

The book opens to the 'beginning' and I pretty much always Go To the Cover.  Then I page through the front matter.  I have found 'beginning' often doesn't include, in a kindle edition, the quotes from other works or other such front matter that, presumably, the author thought about before including.  It also often doesn't include forwards, which, again, presumably the author wants people to see.  I don't always read everything thoroughly, but I do look at it at least.

Betsy makes a good point about including the blurb at the end -- messes up the 'furthest page read'.  BUT . . . with the Paperwhites, there's much better footnote functionality.  I can conceive of there being a sort of 'footnoted' link to the blurb at "the beginning" which can be ingored by those who want to get right to reading and can be clicked by those who want a reminder of what the book is about.  They read the 'footnote' and then easily click back without having changed their save point.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Ann in Arlington said:


> Betsy makes a good point about including the blurb at the end -- messes up the 'furthest page read'. BUT . . . with the Paperwhites, there's much better footnote functionality. I can conceive of there being a sort of 'footnoted' link to the blurb at "the beginning" which can be ingored by those who want to get right to reading and can be clicked by those who want a reminder of what the book is about. They read the 'footnote' and then easily click back without having changed their save point.


It doesn't even have to be a footnote; it could be a location treated the same way as the Cover and the TOC; an entry in the "GoTo" menu. Once one has visited it, it's a simple matter to hit the "back" button on the menu to go back to the reading point. But a footnote would be unobtrusive and would be there right on the first page. 

Betsy


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## Jan Hurst-Nicholson (Aug 25, 2010)

I've been putting the blurb in the front of the book ever since it was suggested here a year or two ago. 

One of my trad published books (by Penguin) also has the blurb in the front of the book as well as on the back cover.


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## WDR (Jan 8, 2014)

To answer the original question, my ebook file is the same file used for the print book. Because the ebook and the print book are the same, the classic front matter is there in the document.

I _have_ seen print books that put the blurb in the front matter. So, this is not as unusual a request as you may think. I like your idea, because considering the technology and what you want to see happening, I agree with that. I don't know if I would want to do it, just because like many people I don't like to page through to find the true beginning of the story. (For the same reason, I prefer the author's notes to be at the end of a story, not at the beginning.)

However, the technology being what it is, it shouldn't be too difficult to add a new feature called "Blurb" to the ebook formats. This way, an ebook reader knows what data to grab when a user wants just a quick description by touching and holding a book icon. I think this would be an excellent idea. So, good, I'll write a letter to the EPUB consortium and suggest this as a feature. I see it as being incredibly easy to implement without having to require a serious change in software to support it.



cinisajoy said:


> Hi. Quick question. How do you buy books? I ask this in all seriousness.
> Do you buy one book, read it then buy another?
> Do you buy books on sale to read later?
> How many books do you buy/pick up in an average year/month/week?
> Are you an average reader or a voracious reader?


I would describe myself as a "reformed" voracious reader. Most of my reading has been set aside for writing. I'm not doing as much input as I am output. Still, when I do sit down to read, I fall right into flow state and leave the real world for the book's world. Reading is a major activity in my life. Once I sit to read, all else gets set aside. It's like drinking alcoholic drinks or having sex: you don't do it whenever in the middle of the office or grocery store (well, that could be argued&#8230. You set aside a time when it is appropriate to do so.

When I buy new books, I always buy them in a cluster. I may now go months between purchases, but when I do it is usually a large handful of books. That usually happens when I complete a manuscript and send it out for editing. Then I'm raring to read and sit down and do so.

Often when I buy books, it is because one has caught my interest and that usually triggers the purchases. It might be a while before I get a chance to actually sit and read. This means I usually have a line up of books to read when the time comes.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

I've been having my books open at a story summary since my first one went up in February 2010. It's what I want as a reader, so it's what I do. Those who don't like it can't dislike it any more than I do traditionally published books that open at the cover and make me click through page after page of copyright, glowing endorsements from other authors, etc. It annoys me, but I've never returned a book over it.

And I do often use the Go to Book Description feature of the Kindle. However, I have no wifi. I have 3G, keep it turned off because of the battery which on my Kindle is evidently not the greatest, and using that feature is often a major annoyance. Again, it's not something that makes me return a book or put the author on the never-again list, but it is something that IMO indicates a lack of consideration on the part of whoever did the formatting.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

ellenoc said:


> I've been having my books open at a story summary since my first one went up in February 2010. It's what I want as a reader, so it's what I do. Those who don't like it can't dislike it any more than I do traditionally published books that open at the cover and make me click through page after page of copyright, glowing endorsements from other authors, etc. It annoys me, but I've never returned a book over it.


Huh. I've never gotten a book that opened to the cover. For me, they all seem to open at Chapter 1. And I use Go To to get to the cover. I guess if it opens at the cover and you want to go straight to the first chapter, you could do the same thing.


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## Mandy (Dec 27, 2009)

Personally, this is why I like good covers that give me a good idea of what the book is about. I browse through my book covers on my Paperwhite, and when I see one that catches my eye and fits my mood, I usually look it up on Amazon to see what it's about. While I don't really find it necessary for me, I wouldn't mind a half-page blurb at the front of a book.


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## dgrant (Feb 5, 2014)

As a reader, I've poked at downloaded samples on my kindle, having forgotten what they were about that made them interesting enough  to download. There's never been a blurb on the forgotten samples. It might've helped! I've then gone and read the sample, and answered my question. 

As a reader, I've downloaded books, and found a blurb in the front. It annoyed me. "Why, for the love of little green apples, is that there? I don't want to read the blurb, I want to read the story, and this is yet more useless front matter I have to scroll past!" 

...

So I see both sides. And I know I'm not Yon Average Reader, so I'm not the best person to extrapolate the tastes of the book-buying public. How would we research to see if it'd help more than it'd annoy?


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

Ann in Arlington said:


> Huh. I've never gotten a book that opened to the cover. For me, they all seem to open at Chapter 1. And I use Go To to get to the cover. I guess if it opens at the cover and you want to go straight to the first chapter, you could do the same thing.


One of the things I dislike about the PW is the way they set up the Go To feature that requires clicking (touching? tapping? whatever) out of the book, going to Go To, clicking on that, etc., so I don't do it unless there's no other way, and I tend to page through junk at the beginning rather do that. I suppose I'm always optimistic that there will be less of that, and I never know until I've done it. I agree that the vast majority of books these days open to Chapter 1, but I still get quite a few that start somewhere else, even those that have pages of T/C at the beginning, although that's a lot less common than it used to be.

I guess what this thread proves is you'll never make everyone happy. Heck, maybe there are ebook readers who really want to read 5 pages of glowing reviews and endorsements before getting to the book. For instance, I see Mandy's post about browsing covers on her PW. I couldn't turn covers off on mine fast enough, and I've never deliberately gone to a cover in a book on any Kindle. I just don't care what the cover's like and would never expect one to clue me in to what the book's about.


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

ellenoc said:


> One of the things I dislike about the PW is the way they set up the Go To feature that requires clicking (touching? tapping? whatever) out of the book, going to Go To, clicking on that, etc., so I don't do it unless there's no other way, and I tend to page through junk at the beginning rather do that. I suppose I'm always optimistic that there will be less of that, and I never know until I've done it. I agree that the vast majority of books these days open to Chapter 1, but I still get quite a few that start somewhere else, even those that have pages of T/C at the beginning, although that's a lot less common than it used to be.
> 
> I guess what this thread proves is you'll never make everyone happy. Heck, maybe there are ebook readers who really want to read 5 pages of glowing reviews and endorsements before getting to the book. For instance, I see Mandy's post about browsing covers on her PW. I couldn't turn covers off on mine fast enough, and I've never deliberately gone to a cover in a book on any Kindle. *I just don't care what the cover's like and would never expect one to clue me in to what the book's about.
> *


I know every reader is different, but the statement I bolded really surprises me. I shouldn't be clued in that your books are western romances? I thought the prevailing wisdom is the cover is the first clue to expectations of what a book is about.

For what it is worth, my older Kindle Keyboard does not have the option to display covers, but whenever I open a new book, I click menu, Go To, Cover, and start from there (no wifi or 3G connection required). It takes about 10 seconds. I did not realize the PW worked differently to take you out of a book, I'll have to play with DH's PW and see how different it is.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

crebel said:


> I know every reader is different, but the statement I bolded really surprises me. I shouldn't be clued in that your books are western romances? I thought the prevailing wisdom is the cover is the first clue to expectations of what a book is about.


Hey crebel - Of course the cover would tell you Western Historical or Regency or maybe Thriller or Cozy Mystery, but what I meant is it doesn't tell you anything beyond that. For instance, as you know my Western Historicals all have pretty different story lines and different types of hero/heroine. If I want to know what a book is "about," I want to know more than its genre or even subgenre. I want to know the kind of general summary that's in a good blurb.

I put a few words on the cover of my last romance to hint at the story line the way many traditionally published books do, and after I wrote the first post here, I thought about that and went and looked at how it appears on my PW. The words are large enough and can be read, but they don't tell what the story is about. The novella I sent to my mailing list has more of a tag line, and it would maybe be enough to give an idea, so I'll have to think about that some more in light of people saying they rely on the covers for far more than I'd ever expect. Even so, there isn't always room on a cover for more than a few words, and I'm not giving up starting with the story summary.

I just looked at 2 traditionally published books I have here (I cleaned out all but a couple of bookcases of paper books recently, but these are 2 I kept). One says: "Nothing is simple when it comes to love" (Regency). The other says: "Their hearts taught them to trust...their desire taught them to love" (Western). Combine the cover and those tidbits, and I still don't know a thing about the story except genre and subgenre. Well, with the Regency, I'd probably guess he's a duke or at least an earl, and in this case I'd be wrong.


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

Thanks for clarifying for me, Ellen.


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

On the cover question I was a bit puzzled on first coming to kboards as a fair amount of my reading at that time had been on my Nook. On both my Nook HD and my Kobo Mini a previously unopened book opens to the cover (oddly my latest on Kobo _Life After Life_ opens to a different cover than the one on the shelf). On my Kindle (which most of my recent reads have been on) it opens to the beginning and I use the menu to GoTo the cover cuz I like pictures.

My biggest puzzle about this thread is the notion that you get to the end of your current read and are stomped because you do not know what it is in the various books you've downloaded as you are not near a wi-fi connection. I tend to have a long Order To Be Read list in my head. So once _Pressing Matters_ is done (non-fiction writing research) I need to read my Prime borrow (_Project Antichrist_), then a toss-up between _Girl is a Half-Formed Thing_/_And the Mountains Echoed_/_The Book Thief_/_Life After Life_ or trudging back to my TABPOSM* pile (_Collected Works of Lydia Davis_/_Infinite Jest_). Guess I must be some sort of odd control freak.

*TABPOSM Taking A Break Possibly Of Several Months - an essential category for a literary fiction reader


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

crebel said:


> For what it is worth, my older Kindle Keyboard does not have the option to display covers, but whenever I open a new book, I click menu, Go To, Cover, and start from there (no wifi or 3G connection required). It takes about 10 seconds. I did not realize the PW worked differently to take you out of a book, I'll have to play with DH's PW and see how different it is.


I wouldn't describe it as taking you out of the book. You're in the book and tap near the top and the menu comes up. Tap Go to and a drop down gives you your options. Tap where you want to go. When you're done, tap near the top again and tap the < (back arrow). You're right back in the book where you started.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

Mercia,
are you one of those people who could tell me what you are having for dinner on June 17?
I personally have no idea what I will be in the mood to read when I finish the books I have going.  As far as food, tonight is pork chops.  Tomorrow will be ground beef.  I only know tomorrow because I am trying to use the older stuff first.


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## ZanaHart (Nov 22, 2013)

I try to make my cover images distinctive enough that they will give some idea of the plot. I won't put a whole blurb in the front, but I might experiment with a one-sentence teaser...


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

zanahart said:


> I try to make my cover images distinctive enough that they will give some idea of the plot. I won't put a whole blurb in the front, but I might experiment with a one-sentence teaser...


You look like cozy mysteries.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

crebel said:


> I click menu, Go To, Cover, and start from there (no wifi or 3G connection required). It takes about 10 seconds. I did not realize the PW worked differently to take you out of a book, I'll have to play with DH's PW and see how different it is.


What Ann said.

Like Ellen, I don't view covers on my device. But if I were interested in seeing the covers, I would turn them on on the home page. I don't really care about the covers, either, once I've bought the book. (Sorry. ) I just want to get reading. And all of the books I own that I've opened (as far as I can recall) that come from Amazon start at the beginning of the story. It's very rare indeed for them not to....

Betsy


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> I wouldn't describe it as taking you out of the book. You're in the book and tap near the top and the menu comes up. Tap Go to and a drop down gives you your options. Tap where you want to go. When you're done, tap near the top again and tap the < (back arrow). You're right back in the book where you started.


Agreed. It's basically the same process on any version of Kindle I have used. Maybe "out of the book" was a reference to additional actions being taken on a pop-up menu screen rather than turning the pages back or forward page by page to get where they wanted to be.


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

cinisajoy said:


> Mercia,
> are you one of those people who could tell me what you are having for dinner on June 17?
> I personally have no idea what I will be in the mood to read when I finish the books I have going. As far as food, tonight is pork chops. Tomorrow will be ground beef. I only know tomorrow because I am trying to use the older stuff first.


What I have for dinner is not important enough to plan (but then my last hunger pang was in 2009), I can't even plan what I am going to wear until I open the wardrobe. Reading is different because I am keen to read these other books. Even if I decided I needed a different mood I swap the order of what I'm reading, pick something else from the pile or something completely new from Scribd. What I could not do is have no idea of what to read next and then open random books to read a blurb that is non-existent in the interior of 100% of the books that I have read to date. It is a free world where paradoxically you pays your money and you makes your choice. I choose to choose my next read long before I finish the current one.


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## ElHawk (Aug 13, 2012)

I'm a big user of BookBub, EbookSoda, and other email subscriptions that recommend bargain ebooks in my chosen genres. I sometimes buy four or five books a day, if there are some on offer that catch my eye. I might buy as many as a dozen a week. I'll probably never get around to reading all of them, but I'm never without a book when I'm in the mood for something new.

Authors would be wise to take note of readers like me. There are lots of readers out there with similar habits. Few readers these days buy ebooks one at a time, read them all the way through, then go looking for a new one.


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## unkownwriter (Jun 22, 2011)

TattooedWriter said:


> And as has already been mentioned, hold down the cover of the book in your kindle library and click on "Book Description". Voila...a blurb.


Not on my Kindle (an older model K3, before it was Kindle Keyboard). I can right-click the title, but I get a popup asking me if I want to turn on Wi Fi, which I don't. I hardly ever turn that on.



TattooedWriter said:


> Maybe I'm confused as to why people are buying books and then forgetting what they're about. (?)


Because they bought/downloaded the book a while ago, and they forgot what it was about. Happens to me all the time, and sometimes the first page doesn't tell you much. It's not always easy to tell what the book is about by the title, and if you don't see the cover -- like me with my older Kindle -- you need a blurb.

This is something I've been thinking about as I get my books ready to publish. I'd like the book to open at the cover, with the next page being the title/copyright page, with a very short bit about the book., just a couple of sentences. Two clicks and you're at page one of the story.


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## Ian Marks (Jan 22, 2012)

jdcore said:


> On paper books the blurb is on the back cover generally. Perhaps what is really needed is for ebook files to have a hover feature where a reader can touch the cover and when the options to remove the file etc appear, there's also an option to read the blurb or it could come up automatically. I'm spitballin'.


I think a "hover feature" is a brilliant idea. I do most of my reading on the cheapest (and thus least painful to lose) Kindle, so I don't have the benefit of those beautiful color screens and their fancy carousels... so I'd love to have a way to see the cover and/or read a blurb with just a touch, and then go straight back to reading. Maybe someone at the 'zon will see this and it will spark some thinking along those lines.


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## Decon (Feb 16, 2011)

I put my TOC at the end of the book. Never seen the point of it being at the beginning and wasting time for the reader to scroll through the look inside.

As for the cover, I put a thumbnail of the cover at the beginning of the first chapter.  If anyone wants to see the actual full cover, then they can use the TOC/go to  cover.

Reading this thread, I think I'll do the same with the blurb as I do with TOC and put it at the end, so the reader can access it through the TOC menu on the kindle if they are so minded.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

What is even the use of a table of contents you only get to AFTER the contents?


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## Adrian Howell (Feb 24, 2013)

Vaalingrade said:


> What is even the use of a table of contents you only get to AFTER the contents?


The theory is that anyone who wants to see the TOC can used the "Go to TOC" menu which will let them jump straight to the TOC at the back of the book, thereby freeing up more space in the front for sample.

The problem with this is that Kindles come in all different shapes and sizes, from Paperwhites to Kindle Apps for tablets. Not all of them function in the same manner, and while they all have the "Go to TOC" command, not all of them are easy to find or access. For a long time, I didn't even know that there was a "Go to TOC" command in my Kindle App (for Android).

As a writer, the great thing about being indie is that you are perfectly welcome to do whatever you feel is best. Put the TOC in the front or put it in the back. Put your front matter in the front, in the back, or even leave it out completely. It's pretty much up to you.

But as a reader, I personally would be less inclined to read a book that puts its TOC in the back, or doesn't have front matter (which, to my stubbornly conformist mind, is still a mark of professionalism). For eBooks (which don't have back covers), a short book description (blurb) in the front is icing on the cake for me when I'm coming back to a novel I downloaded months ago.

But yes, I'm sure there are readers who are the complete opposite of me, and want the story to start on the very first page, without having to wade through a whole excruciating three pages of front matter, blurb, and TOC between the title and the body.

So for the writer, perhaps it's damned if you do, damned if you don't. As indies, we just have to go with our gut.


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Vaalingrade said:


> What is even the use of a table of contents you only get to AFTER the contents?


There is not really much need for a ToC in a book of fiction that I'm going to read straight through from beginning to end in a paper book. But in a kindle book, as I understand it, you need to have a ToC so that the chapter jump and 'time left in chapter' features work. Putting it in back means it doesn't take up 'sample' space, but the kindle features still work.


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## jvin248 (Jan 31, 2012)

I slimmed my front matter down to as few distractions as possible for any book I've done since a year+ ago, the basic model is:
-Title page with title, sub-title & series number, by author name, and a single "(c) copyright, date" line (to cover the partial previews)
-Blurb that matches the retail channel
-Start of the story

Everything else I moved to the back matter: Blurb for the next book in the series, request to consider putting up a review, the big scary legal copyright (rules say within 10 pages of the work it covers), dedications, blurbs for a few books/series of mine that are somewhat related, and then miscellaneous things like TOC/etc. I don't put in any full text/chapters from other books, hoping that the blurbs are enough to get readers interested in the next adventure. I appreciate the brief front matter as a reader myself and have found upon finishing a good story that I am more receptive to and interested in perusing the longer details put in the back matter.


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

I hate TOC in fiction, but I understand some kindles have indicators of where in the table of contents you are and some people want to use that feature. So I put in a TOC and it's in the back. THe feature still indicates to them, but it doesn't take up front matter. More important, it's not sitting there looking silly, because how many fiction books (other than long fantasies) have TOC? I have a whole lot of paperbacks and not one of them.

(By the way, I'm not saying I'm right that it looks sillyl, but it does look silly to me to have one in fiction. Again, personal preference. I don't expect every author on the planet to cater to my TOC wishes.)


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

TOCs in fiction are awesome if the author keeps them in mind and uses them as teasers.


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

> TOCs in fiction are awesome if the author keeps them in mind and uses them as teasers.


Yeah, I can see where some people would like them. Just like some people like maps in books. I dislike maps so I never look at them. I like to read words about travels or battles, not look at maps. Still, if other people like them, they certainly don't ruin my reading experience of the book. I just forward click.


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## Jan Hurst-Nicholson (Aug 25, 2010)

Caddy said:


> I hate TOC in fiction, but I understand some kindles have indicators of where in the table of contents you are and some people want to use that feature. So I put in a TOC and it's in the back. THe feature still indicates to them, but it doesn't take up front matter. More important, it's not sitting there looking silly, because how many fiction books (other than long fantasies) have TOC? I have a whole lot of paperbacks and not one of them.
> 
> (By the way, I'm not saying I'm right that it looks sillyl, but it does look silly to me to have one in fiction. Again, personal preference. I don't expect every author on the planet to cater to my TOC wishes.)


At first I also couldn't understand why fiction would require a TOC, but my family saga is three families over three generations and has numerous characters, so I put a family tree in the front of the book for readers to reference who is who. Readers can also skip back to earlier chapters.


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## Sapphire (Apr 24, 2012)

crebel said:


> "set in Iowa"


OFF-TOPIC WARNING
Crebel, I just noticed your Ottumwa IA location. My mother used to drive the childhood versions of myself and my sister to Ottumwa every week for dancing lessons from Lois Watts.


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

Sapphire said:


> OFF-TOPIC WARNING
> Crebel, I just noticed your Ottumwa IA location. My mother used to drive the childhood versions of myself and my sister to Ottumwa every week for dancing lessons from Lois Watts.


*waving to Sapphire* It's a small world, isn't it?


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## Sapphire (Apr 24, 2012)

I don't understand why some people find it difficult to click to turn the page in order to skip past anything in front they consider excess. Do they find it difficult to click when they're ready to read the next page or chapter of the book?

A ToC _can_ be very helpful in some books and actually add to the anticipation or understanding of the story. Again, click past if you don't want to read it.

I suspect too many of us are thinking like technicians. A reader doesn't always know all the little tricks of navigation or discovering extra information in a book file. Reference a footnote to see a blurb? I don't think the average reader would explore that option. Use the 'go to' button to find a ToC at the _back_ of a book? Why would someone expect it to be in the back? People buy a Kindle (or whatever ereader device), download books, and read. They're not interested in the engineering intricacies.

Also, why do people worry about reducing sample size by a page or two. A sample is to entice and reveal the quality of writing. The only place I could see a shortened percentage of sample as being a problem would be with a very short story.


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## Guest (Jun 7, 2014)

Since reading the other post referred to above, I've been including the blurb in the front of the book. It really never occurred to me to paste it in there before I understood the rationale. 

I thought it an excellent suggestion especially for those who tend to make impulse download buys through a promo. It's only a paragraph so it can easily be skimmed over, but it's there for those who need it.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

I would not call them impulse downloads.  If I know an author is having a promo on say the 31st, then I will wait until then to pick up their book.    So please do not think all downloads during a promo are just impulse buys.

PS: Yes I love footnotes.

Here is another life lesson from this thread.
Unless you actually talk to a good cross section of readers, then you have no clue as to what a reader will do.  You only know what you do.

So here is the thing: some readers stockpile, some readers buy only best sellers within a week of them being published,  some wait till books are on sale.
Some love front matter.  Some hate it.  
By the way,  the TOC in fiction is great if you lose your place or if more than one person is reading the book.  And yes you can lose your place in an e-book.


Look folks, here is the thing.  I am just trying to help y'all sell books.  On a paperback,  I can turn most of them over and get a small blurb.  Hardback, has a dust jacket with the blurb.  Would it really hurt you to put in 3 or 4 sentences to let readers know what they are about to read?


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

You can set your book to open at chapter one.  
Most readers know how to click back to read the front stuff.

Now next silly question.  How many of the authors here actually own an ereader or two?  I would think they would be a good investment.
But then what do I know about books?  I just read them and know what catches my eye.

Now please do not ever put reviews in your front matter or your blurb at Amazon.  
Tell me what your book is about.  And especially do not put a paid critic's review in the blurb.  Put them down in the editorial reviews.

Just a little friendly advice from the neighborhood book junkie.


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## hardnutt (Nov 19, 2010)

1001nightspress said:


> I wish, as a reader, that when I opened a new book on my Kindle for the first time, the file opened at the cover. But I have never had that happen. I usually scroll back (up to 10 page clicks or so) to find it, but it's annoying.
> 
> Is there any way to force a book to open at the cover?


Why don't you just click on 'Menu', 'Go To', 'Cover'? Depending on how many clicks you have to do to get back, it should save you a few.


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## A past poster (Oct 23, 2013)

ElHawk said:


> YES. This is very important. So many people rail against front matter of any kind, but IT SERVES A PURPOSE. Duplicating your product description in the front of the book is key. It reminds the reader why the heck she bought that book in the first place: because it sounds awesome. My intuition says that readers are likely to pass over a book on their Kindle carousel if they can't get re-excited about reading it. They'll read one of the other dozen books they bought that week instead.


This makes absolute sense! I wish I had thought of it before.


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## Thomas Watson (Mar 8, 2012)

Sapphire said:


> I don't understand why some people find it difficult to click to turn the page in order to skip past anything in front they consider excess. Do they find it difficult to click when they're ready to read the next page or chapter of the book?


Never underestimate the sense of entitlement that infuses American society. People overreact to the strangest things.

I'd never considered such an interior blurb, but it seems to me that placing such on the copyright page would in fact be the way to go. I always skip past that page, myself, and I expect most readers do so, but anyone who felt the need would find the information readily available. And as someone else already pointed out, I wouldn't simply reproduce the product description from Amazon. Why not give them something new? This is something I need to think about...


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## FictionalWriter (Aug 4, 2010)

I've always done that. As a reader, I found it very frustrating not having it at the front of the book.


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## tiffanycherney (Feb 18, 2014)

First off, this thread has definitely gotten me to consider doing this because I definitely do see the use since I've forgotten some of the freebee's I've downloaded since it's been a while since I've gotten to them. To answer your question Cinisajoy- yeah, I own e-readers, to be precise I've owned an early edition nook and currently own a nook table that also has the Kindle app and by far I definitely don't know all the ins and outs of navigating on them. I totally agree though they are awesome investments.

For me if I don't want to read a blurb, it's rather easy to avoid since I typically scan the front matter whether it is paperback or ebook unless something catches my eye as important to the story like setting up for the story or in general- for example I'll read some dedication and acknowledgements. As far as increasing the sample size I think EelKat has a perfect format for handling the desire for the blurb to be in the book, but not add to the sample size if that's your concern. I agree with Thomas's point too that a new summary might be better too, that way it shows you did put time in instead of simply copy and pasting what you already did. Sure, even with that placement and it being a summary might turn away some readers still, but you definitely can't please everyone.


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## Nigel Mitchell (Jan 21, 2013)

As a reader, I can say this does happen. I have books I've downloaded on impulse and are in my carousel, and I never read them. I don't even remember what they're supposed to be about. I've started reading them, and they start slow, so even several pages in I can't tell what the main plot is supposed to be. I know that's the fault of the author (not a very grabby opening), but a quick blurb might spark my interest in reading them.  As it stands, I delete them from my carousel every time I sync a new Kindle.


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## Daizie (Mar 27, 2013)

I can't believe there are people who would actually get upset by a blurb being there as a courtesy. It's one more flick or click.


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

cinisajoy said:


> Now next silly question. How many of the authors here actually own an ereader or two? I would think they would be a good investment.


As I said (I think) in another thread, I had a Rocket Ebook and a Hiebook before Amazon ever came out with the Kindle. I bought my K1 in May 2008, just short of two years before I ever heard of indie publishing and jumped in. I gave the K1 to a friend, although it's still in my name, now have a K3, PaperWhite, and a Kobo. I have the Kindle for PC software running on my desktop computer. I'm always surprised by the people who publish ebooks and say they don't have an ereader of any kind. The software for a PC is free. I bought my Kobo when Borders went under for about $50. The Baby Kindle isn't much more than that. You can read on your phone, for Heaven's sake.

I agree with your caution about plastering reviews all over. I've given up on a few books that initially piqued my interest when I couldn't find a blurb on the product page, just review quote after review quote. From memory, though, I feel the ones like that were traditionally published, and I can remember a few paperbacks like that over the years - plastered with endorsements from other authors and review quotes all over, but no story summary anywhere.

*Caddy *- At a guess the annoyance at having to click past extraneous front matter isn't a big problem with a reader who has decided on that book and bought it. I put up with all sorts of things that make me go hmph in books I've decided to read. However, in a sample - I can remember one sample I downloaded that never got to a single word of story. Every single screen was part of who-cares front matter. Once you get into long novels maybe that's less of a problem, but even then, it's probably better to give a prospective purchaser as much story as you can. I've seen posts from readers who download samples from Smashwords because they're longer and then buy, if at all, from Amazon.

As to TOC, I do think they're necessary in fiction for ereaders. You can't riffle through pages to find something in an ebook. Without some way to jump around large bits of text, if you lose your place or want to go back to a certain thing or skip ahead (for us ending readers), you get to click or swipe until your finger is tired and patience worn out. IMO the best thing is to be able to skip from chapter to chapter the way the K3 allowed (and the PW doesn't), but that requires a TOC.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

Ellen, what no Fire?  I am confused.  Just teasing though it is different from an ereader or kindle for PC.  My uncle is fixing to get either a Kobo or a baby kindle.  Depends solely on his phone.  Whichever one can use his charger is the one he gets.  He is in a nursing home and at the moment has one plug.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

ideeli028 said:


> Since reading the other post referred to above, I've been including the blurb in the front of the book. It really never occurred to me to paste it in there before I understood the rationale.
> 
> I thought it an excellent suggestion especially for those who tend to make impulse download buys through a promo. It's only a paragraph so it can easily be skimmed over, but it's there for those who need it.


As a reader - Thank you!


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## Gone 9/21/18 (Dec 11, 2008)

cinisajoy said:


> Ellen, what no Fire? I am confused.


I have no wifi, so I need a device with 3G, and since I'm not willing to pay subscription fees for something like an Ipad... but in truth I'm also not interested in multi-purpose devices. I like my ereaders to be books only. The Kobo is a PITA because it has to be hooked to a PC to load anything, but then I don't use it very often. I know the recent incarnations of Kobo and Nook allow instant downloading to the device, but I'm an Amazon junkie. If it can be bought there, I'm buying it there.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

I am not fond of Kobo.  Mine has wireless but it always messed up my library on there.  Easier to hook up to the computer.

Oh and hi fellow amazon junkie.


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## Andrew Ashling (Nov 15, 2010)

cinisajoy said:


> Now next silly question. How many of the authors here actually own an ereader or two? I would think they would be a good investment.


I own two Kindles, a Sony and a Kobo Glo.

You're absolutely right. They were a good investment.


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## Lefty (Apr 7, 2011)

cinisajoy said:


> My uncle is fixing to get


You must live in Texas.


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

I'm now trying to figure out how the blurb should be titled. 'Blurb' sounds incredibly dumb. Description?


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## LeonardDHilleyII (May 23, 2011)

Chrisbwritin said:


> I'm on the fence. Some readers want a blurb, some readers get mad when there's extraneous stuff in the book, and it also shortens our sample by a full page. Not sure which is the lesser of two evils.


^^^ I've heard more complaints of too much at the beginning of the book, too.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

Vaalingrade said:


> I'm now trying to figure out how the blurb should be titled. 'Blurb' sounds incredibly dumb. Description?


I put "About The Book", but if anyone has a more slick phrase I would like to hear it


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## ruecole (Jun 13, 2012)

So, after reading this discussion and the comments about putting the description on the copyright page, I grabbed a bunch of print books out of my bookcase and checked them. It's true, some of them have a short description there as part of the Library of Congress info. Looks something like this:

Summary: In a last ditch effort to save the world Bob and Joe must overcomemany obstacles including their distrust of each other.

(Okay, that was pretty lame, but I think you get the picture.)

Hope that helps!

Rue


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## Adrian Howell (Feb 24, 2013)

Star Fish said:


> I put "About The Book", but if anyone has a more slick phrase I would like to hear it


I don't know if it's at all slicker, but personally I just use what Amazon uses on its product page: "Book Description"

It'd be something like:
---------------------------------------------
*Book Description: Book Title*
Blurb-blurb-blurb. Blurb-blurb-blurb. Blurb-blurb-blurb.

*Genre:* Mystery
*Print Length:* 280 pages
---------------------------------------------

And keep it all short enough so that it'll fit on one page at default font size settings.

So that's one page for the cover followed by one for the title, one for the book description, one for the front matter (copyright stuff), one for the TOC, and then the book. For some readers, that might be too much, but I could only format my books in the way I'd want to read them.


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## 10105 (Feb 16, 2010)

If the book is on the device, the reader has most likely seen the blurb or description, or whatever it's called. If the reader did not read the blurb, there's not much you can do about that. If readers want to know what the book is about, they can go to Chapter 1 and read a paragraph or two. It that doesn't hook the reader, maybe the problem is the opening and not whether there's a blurb in the frontmatter.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

The book may have been on the device for more than a year.  So yea I'm gonna remember the blurb.  Though I will give Al credit it is pretty obvious that his Nursing Home Ninjas is a humorous mystery.

You know what I just thought of.  Make your readers work to find out what your book is about.  Make it super hard to find your books too.  After all,  you are a writer. You don't need money.  Buying books is a luxury.  
Make it easy on us and we will give you our hard-earned money.  Make it hard and we will find someone that understands us.


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## Catnip (Sep 7, 2013)

I like to have the blurb at the beginning too. I often download books and don't get around to reading them for months, so a reminder is helpful. 

It'd be nice if Amazon provided a way to see it without the writer having to use up space in the front matter. I know there's a menu link to the book's description, but that depends on having an internet connection available.


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## Bluebonnet (Dec 15, 2013)

> My uncle is fixing to get





CB Edwards said:


> You must live in Texas.


Or Georgia.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

David S. said:


> Put the "about this book" at the end, along with "about the author." Add it to the table of contents, which usually gets shoved in your face at the beginning of the book anyway. If someone really wants to read the blurb, they can click on it in the table of contents.
> 
> But then people would complain that it makes it look like the book is longer than it really is and they think there is more to the story as they near the end, but there's not.
> 
> So lobby Amazon to add a back cover to the menu, and put it there, just like on paperbacks. That way it won't show up in the percentage remaining.


Hmmm. On the Kindle books that I read, the book almost always starts at the text, after the ToC. So if one was to put the blurb somewhere in the beginning and include it in the ToC, it also wouldn't show up in the percentage remaining.

Betsy


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## 77071 (May 15, 2014)

I'm trying to add my blurbs to the front lately.  It helps me as a reader when other authors do it, so I'm getting into the habit.


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

cinisajoy said:


> You know what I just thought of. Make your readers work to find out what your book is about. Make it super hard to find your books too. After all, you are a writer. You don't need money. Buying books is a luxury.
> Make it easy on us and we will give you our hard-earned money. Make it hard and we will find someone that understands us.


I am with Al on the opening should do it, but that is because of how I write. My opening (short) paragraph tells you without info dumping what the story is about. The advantage of leaving it to a good opening chapter is that you cannot by definition introduce a spoiler. If you are surprised that this chapter leads into a short story then maybe I was being too subtle in titling the book _Seattle in Shorts_. I write literary fiction and my market would not expect me to make it easy on them. Working out WTF is going on is part of the fun of reading literary fiction. When a literary fiction reader parts with hard-earned money they expect to have to work hard at the reading. After all, how else are they going to discuss it in their book club? Although it gets me thinking about what James Joyce's publisher could have done with _Ulysses_.



> About this Book: an advertising salesman spends a day going around Dublin, oh and there is that young bloke as well, and the two meet a one point.


Although to be truly Joycean this should then be rephrased ten times just in case you did not catch its brilliance the first time round.


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## Rick Gualtieri (Oct 31, 2011)

So since I needed to update all of my books this weekend anyway to add my new release to the About the Author section, I figured I'd add the blurb too (right after the copyright page) just to test to see if there's any difference.  

That's it...it's all still publishing out.  Guess we'll see.


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## 10105 (Feb 16, 2010)

cinisajoy said:


> The book may have been on the device for more than a year. So yea I'm gonna remember the blurb.


The blurb helps to coax a reader into buying the book. It's job is done as I see it. The story itself must reel you in. And there the hook is, in the front of the book. Chapter 1.


cinisajoy said:


> Though I will give Al credit it is pretty obvious that his Nursing Home Ninjas is a humorous mystery.


I hope so. (The publisher used the blurb I wrote in the query to get them interested in publishing it.)

I have a few books I never would have purchased if I'd been smart enough to read the sample. When the blurb is better than the book...

"Barnum was right."


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Mercia McMahon said:


> I am with Al on the opening should do it, but that is because of how I write. My opening (short) paragraph tells you without info dumping what the story is about.


But maybe that's not what I'm in the mood to read right now? One of two things might happen: (1) I pretty much don't _start_ a book unless I'm sure I'm going to finish. So if I do have to read a couple of chapters to decide if I'm in the mood for it, frankly, I'll probably go ahead and read it, even if I'm not, particularly. But then I won't enjoy it as much so the chances of me buying another by the same author goes down.

Or (2) maybe I read a couple of paragraphs, realize I'm _really_ not in the mood, but think I might be later and find a different book for now. But, later, maybe I am in the mood. But maybe it's months later. . . so, again, I'm browsing my library for a book to read. I pick up yours and start reading and say to myself, "self, this seems very familiar; I must have already read it," and put it down and move on. I may _never_ read your book.

Bottom ine: I don't understand why one should have such a problem with the idea of including a blurb. Having one doesn't preclude a reader from doing what Al and you suggest, but it also accommodates others who would prefer not to have to figure it out that way. Many ways have been suggested for doing it that are completely unobtrusive. Simply place it and/or link it so that people who don't care never see it, and people who do can find it easily.


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## heynonny (Mar 12, 2014)

I read this thread about a day before I'd intended to hit the publish button on my first novelette, and it made so much sense that I went ahead and added the short version of my blurb to the front matter. Other than messing up the "Look Inside" preview on Amazon a little bit, I see no downside. The ebook defaults to the first chapter anyway for those who don't want or need to refresh their memories.

As a reader, I really hate not having linkable TOC.


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

Ann in Arlington said:


> Or (2) maybe I read a couple of paragraphs, realize I'm _really_ not in the mood, but think I might be later and find a different book for now. But, later, maybe I am in the mood. But maybe it's months later. . . so, again, I'm browsing my library for a book to read. I pick up yours and start reading and say to myself, "self, this seems very familiar; I must have already read it," and put it down and move on. I may _never_ read your book.


My novel is one that parallels a story of mental health recovery with the unjust pasts of some of Seattle's minorities. I expect a lot of people to start reading and then switch it to their TABPOSM (Taking a Break Possibly of Several Months) pile. Literary fiction often explores the human condition in ways that are unbearable at times in a reader's life. It works for other styles/genres too I could not cope with even romantic elements in non-romances after one particularly bad broken heart. Of course, a Western with a romance in the middle would probably not tell you that in the blurb.

After 40 years of avid book reading I have finally found a book that includes the blurb on the interior and it is literary fiction (I assume I've not read it yet). Kate Atkinson's _Life After Life_ has a page length blurb placed between the cover and the Table of Contents. Of course I only know that because I downloaded it onto my Kobo Mini. As [Betsy?] pointed out that it something that you would not read on a Kindle without knowing how to use GoTo. It was a well-written blurb that explained the story with only detail given for the opening of the story. My worry is about poorly written blurbs that include spoilers that are fine in the effort to make me buy, but which I prefer to have forgotten by the time I read. Maybe I should only download onto a Kindle.


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## Carradee (Aug 21, 2010)

I put my blurbs on the title page.


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## Lindy Moone (Oct 19, 2012)

As a reader with 700 plus items on my Kindle, I really like this idea. Thanks for bringing it up. I never remember what a book is about when I get around to reading it, and probably pass up a few good ones over and over... so I'll take my chances and add the blurbs, just in case readers are doing the same with my books. I'm not worried about spoiling the read.

Anyway, if a blurb is loaded with spoilers, I probably wouldn't have bought the book. This would just be a reminder of what the book is about -- so I just added my (non-spoiling) blurb to the beginning of the first book in my trilogy. When I get the first two chapters of book two beaten into shape, I'll include those at the end of book one, too, then upload the new version. (The book is almost 400 pages, anyway. At $ 3.99, no one is going to complain that they aren't getting what they paid for if there's a little more front and back matter. And the sample size is already huge.)


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## ElHawk (Aug 13, 2012)

HSh said:


> I'm trying to add my blurbs to the front lately. It helps me *as a reader*when other authors do it, so I'm getting into the habit.


This is how I make all my decisions with my business. What do I like as a reader? Then that's what I do as a writer. So far it hasn't steered me wrong.


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## Atunah (Nov 20, 2008)

I own about 1300 kindle books I have not yet read. Some going back to 2008. Yes, there are actually books I paid for that I haven't read yet from 2008. 
A blurb would most certainly be helpful I think. 

So I hear that the cover should tell one what the book is about or what genre. But here is the thing, yes I can look at a cover to see if its historical romance for example. If I am lucky I might be able to drill to the sub HR genre from it. Georgian period, western, civil war, revolutionary war, native american, regency, etc. 

But in addition to picking my next read by genre and sub genre, I am also a big mood reader. So the blurb tells me more about the trope. Widow in regency time, downtrodden poor heroine meeting mighty duke, scarred hero either from war or other, non titled characters, pirates, etc. And this is just talking about one sub genre under a genre. I have many other genres/sub genres on my kindle. 

A cover can never tell me all of this. And I often don't remember what it was that made me pull the trigger on a book. I wouldn't remember if it was 2 months ago, and won't definitely remember if it was 5 years ago. 

So yeah, blurbs in ebooks are good. When I grab a paper book of the shelf I can turn it over quick and read it. I don't have to go to a computer and go to goodreads or amazon and find out what the book is about. So why should I have to do that with an ebook. A book is a book is a book.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Mercia McMahon said:


> After 40 years of avid book reading I have finally found a book that includes the blurb on the interior and it is literary fiction (I assume I've not read it yet). Kate Atkinson's _Life After Life_ has a page length blurb placed between the cover and the Table of Contents. Of course I only know that because I downloaded it onto my Kobo Mini. As [Betsy?] pointed out that it something that you would not read on a Kindle without knowing how to use GoTo. It was a well-written blurb that explained the story with only detail given for the opening of the story. My worry is about poorly written blurbs that include spoilers that are fine in the effort to make me by, but which I prefer to have fogotten by the time I read. Maybe I should only download onto a Kindle.


Well, while I have mentioned using the "GoTo," my point in earlier posts wasn't that you would only see the blurb if you knew to use GoTo. Sorry for any confusion. The point I was trying to make is that a blurb would be easily accessible that way without interfering with furthest page read or pages left to read and would be easy to access for those readers who want it. Some readers page back to see the cover and other front matter. They would also see it.

Personally, I wouldn't propose the same blurb that is used on an Amazon page be used--I find most of them too long. Something short and pithy. The elevator pitch version. But I also object to spoilers in the Amazon page blurb. Why would someone do that?

As for covers (SteveCampbell mentioned covers)--did the cover of Wool tell me what it was about? The rose on the cover of Twilight--did that tell me it was about vampires? Maybe it's me, but there are a LOT of book covers that don't tell me what the story is about. Maybe I'm just dense.

Ultimately, of course, it's your choice as an author. I don't check to see if there is a blurb embedded before I buy, so it really won't make a difference in my buying. (Cover, title, blurb and your posts here on KB guide me in buying.) And if me buying your book is your main goal, as at least one author implied here, well, okay. Your work is done. But if you want me to choose your book to read out of my ~1500 unread books in my Kindle library, until Amazon makes the blurb available as metadata, having that blurb in there might make a difference. Up to you. 

(Thanks to all of you who are adding blurbs. I have a lot of signatures to check out.)

Betsy


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## Vaalingrade (Feb 19, 2013)

I think some authors have internalized what I'm just going to go ahead and call unreasonable* complaints about front matter and dinging to percent read meter and using it as an excuse _[edited]_ about not doing something that multiple readers have said would be a big help to them.

*Unreasonable in that front and back matter were NEVER a problem in the centuries-old history of books until ebooks happened at which point one more touch of the screen became 'liek so much work' as opposed to physically flipping through those pages or stopping reading whent he book says 'the end'.

_Edited to comply with Forum Decorum. --Betsy_


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

ElHawk said:


> This is how I make all my decisions with my business. What do I like as a reader? Then that's what I do as a writer. So far it hasn't steered me wrong.


THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

Oh and if you missed it 
THANK YOU.


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## 75845 (Jan 1, 1970)

Vaalingrade said:


> I think some authors have internalized what I'm just going to go ahead and call unreasonable* complaints about front matter and dinging to percent read meter and using it as an excuse _[edited]_ about not doing something that multiple readers have said would be a big help to them.
> 
> *Unreasonable in that front and back matter were NEVER a problem in the centuries-old history of books until ebooks happened at which point one more touch of the screen became 'liek so much work' as opposed to physically flipping through those pages or stopping reading whent he book says 'the end'.


It is the link between print publishing traditions (none of which are centuries old) that lie behind the genuine concerns of many authors here whom you dismiss. I do not like the idea because it is not something I would like to read and it just strikes me as odd to re-read the publicity blurb of _Life After Life_ after the cover. Yet the fact that a prize winning novel does it changes my opinion to considering it. Like I am sure all the authors commenting on this author dominated thread we are wanting to do what readers in general would want and are not yet convinced by a few non-author readers posting in a thread on a writers' forum. Like everything in indie publishing I will rejoice in the possibility of making my own considered opinion.

_Post edited to comply with Forum Decorum. --Betsy_


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

OK, gang, 

I think we've all seen how hard authors on this forum work to put out a good product.  Disagreeing about what constitutes good content is not laziness.  Move on.  I'm going to review whether posts should be edited.

Betsy
KB Mod


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## Rick Gualtieri (Oct 31, 2011)

ElHawk said:


> This is how I make all my decisions with my business. What do I like as a reader? Then that's what I do as a writer. So far it hasn't steered me wrong.


Much agreed, with the caveat that I try to make my decisions as a reader while listening to what other readers prefer since I know my habits don't necessarily conform to anyone else's.


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## unkownwriter (Jun 22, 2011)

There's no reason the blurb included in the book has to be the same one on the product page. My intention is to reword the blurb into a more concise version.

In fact, I just finished reading a print book (or rather, re-reading one from a few years ago), Longshot by Dick Francis. In the back of the book is included info about other books he's written, which are like the blurbs I'm wanting to include in my books. Here are a few, to give you an idea:



> BANKER
> 
> Young investment bank Tim Ekaterin has decided to join the exciting world of horse racing. When the multimillion-dollar loan he arranges to finance the purchase of Sandcastle, a champion, is threatened by an apparent defect in the horse, Tim Searches desperately for an answer. Violence and murder do not deter him. He must find the key to the murders. And to Sandcastle.
> 
> ...


These might be fine as a blurb on a product page, though I'd like a little more information. But something this short and to the point would hardly take any time to read, but would give a good idea for folks who might not remember what the book is about. Believe me, it's easy to do, and the cover doesn't always tell you enough.

If this was done on the title page, with the copyright just below and then a short description like this, with the book starting on the next page, I don't see that as a huge problem with readers. One click to the story. How bad could that be?

Some have mentioned that things like this are old-school, too much like print books, etc. Some personally don't like them. That's fine. But the whole thing about self-publishing is not only that we can write our books the way we want, but that we can also do things for the reader. How many big publishers care about the reader's experience? Not many, if any.

Why not take advantage of that, and do something to help the reader? Even if you don't want your book to open to a description, at least have it there so it shows up on the Go To menu. It's not hard to link to it in the TOC -- and having one is totally a good thing, it's saved my butt a few times when my Kindle decided to reboot and I lost my place.


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## Lyoung (Oct 21, 2013)

I was just thinking this the other day...and the day before that...and the day before that...as I tried to keep my eBooks in order.

I've fallen into the Kindle pit of downloading more eBooks than I can read. I forget what the book is about - I know the genre, but I don't know the story line. And my Kindle can access Amazon's page only if it's on WiFi, so if I'm out and about, I can't access the blurb.

So a blurb at the beginning of the book would be so AMAZING!


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Sheila_Guthrie said:


> In fact, I just finished reading a print book (or rather, re-reading one from a few years ago), Longshot by Dick Francis.


Apologies for going off-topic; just delighted to find another re-reader of Dick Francis... 

Betsy


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

Hi! As the OP I would really like to thank the 90% of you (including the mods, yay) who think this is a good idea! I sincerely hope that I see more blurbs because I buy soooo many books (I think I just bought 4 from the signatures on this thread alone) and I fully intend to read and review all of them eventually, but am so much more likely to if I can see at a glance what they are about.

I have a dreadful habit of starting a book, then realising it is not the one I thought it was and closing it again. The trouble with that is that when I'm skimming through my TBR pile on my kindle, if I can see I started a book and didnt continue then I automatically assume it was because it was bad rather than remembering that I might have just changed my mind because I mistook it for another one. Having the blurb would change all that.

And finally.... Has no one noticed the glaring mistake in the title of this post? I just spotted it and groaned! How has it got to 7 pages without anyone commenting?


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## Carradee (Aug 21, 2010)

Star Fish said:


> And finally.... Has no one noticed the glaring mistake in the title of this post? I just spotted it and groaned! How has it got to 7 pages without anyone commenting?


Hey, noticing and commenting on it are two different things. I thought it worth a chuckle, myself.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Well, it IS the KBoards way to not comment on typos.


Betsy


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

Oh I thought you wanted but blurbs.  Saw it the first time.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

cinisajoy said:


> Oh I thought you wanted but blurbs. Saw it the first time.


ROTFL


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## Lindy Moone (Oct 19, 2012)

I noticed. "But" is spelled incorrectly. It should have two "t"s.


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## RinG (Mar 12, 2013)

I did this a while back when someone mentioned it. I clearly label it as the blurb, so anyone wanting to start at the beginning of the story can just skip over it. I think it's a really great idea. I like to re-read the blurb before reading a book, as it helps orientate me in the story.


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## 41419 (Apr 4, 2011)

Y'all have convinced me to give this a try. I just wish I had read this thread before I reformatted my whole backlist to add links to a new book. *weeps*


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## A past poster (Oct 23, 2013)

This is a great idea. I'm working on it now.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

Okay, I just want to give everyone another nudge to think about doing this. I have just opened 26 TBR books on my kindle and _none_ of them have a blurb in the front. I can only remember what 3 of them are really about.


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## Jan Strnad (May 27, 2010)

dgaughran said:


> Y'all have convinced me to give this a try. I just wish I had read this thread before I reformatted my whole backlist to add links to a new book. *weeps*


Yeah, me, too. Well, maybe next time.

As for starting at the cover (and I apologize in advance if this has been covered, I haven't read all 7 pages of this topic), it seems to be possible. This, from http://webdesign.about.com/od/mobi/a/html-for-kindle.htm:



> But when you build your Kindle HTML file, you also need to include the A element with a name attribute. You should name all your chapters as well as the start of the book and the table of contents. Use the following names for your structure:
> 
> <a name="start" /> - This is the start of the book. It's where the book will open the first time someone reads it. You can use it to skip over title and dedication pages and get your readers right in the meat of the book.


Seems that you could use that code to open at the cover.


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## unkownwriter (Jun 22, 2011)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Apologies for going off-topic; just delighted to find another re-reader of Dick Francis...
> 
> Betsy


I first found his books in a tiny library on an Air Force base in 1977, and have been a fan ever since. Every so often, I pull out my paperbacks/check them out of the library and give them another read.


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