Unfortunately, the way things should be isn't always the way things are. It is quite easy to find ARCs for sale on eBay on any given day. Author C.J. Redwine wrote up a fantastic post about it today at her blog (click here to read it). The selling of ARCs and Uncorrected Proofs annoys me to no end. What part of "NOT FOR RESALE" do people not understand? Apparently this is something that needs to stay on the radar, and since new bloggers might not be aware of this issue, I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon and post about it.
Here is a great vlog that Pam at Bookalicio.us made about selling ARCs (if you haven't seen it yet):
Here are a few more links to posts about not selling ARCs:
- Fool For Proofs: The Advance Reading Copy Trade (The Guardian)
- Respect ARCs Campaign (Behind Yellow Eyes)
- Selling of ARCs is Unethical People! (My Overstuffed Bookshelf)
- Respect the ARC! (Confessions of a Bookaholic)
- Selling ARCs (Trisha's Book Blog)
- Anger. Righteous Anger! Spread the Word! (Bibliophilic Book Blog)
What do I do with the few ARCs I receive for this blog? Sometimes I keep them in my personal collection. Often I give them away here at A Few More Pages to help strike up some buzz about the book. But selling an ARC is not something I would ever consider doing. And I hope, now that you've become more educated about ARCs, you wouldn't choose to do that either.
Inspired by some of the "Respect the ARC" campaigns out there, I decided to make my own button. Feel free to grab it and use it on your own blog with my best wishes! Thank you for helping to spread the word about ARCs!
People also swap them on sites such as Bookmooch.com. When I was living back home in the US, paperbackswap.com was just starting out and there was a lot of issues surrounding swapping ARCs. I find it all a little insulting, personally.
ReplyDeleteWhile, in essence, the ARC is personal property which one can do with what they wish. However, it was obtained upon the agreement of review. And with words "Not For Resale" blatantly on the cover, I believe upon accepting the ARC, you are in agreement. Selling, therefore, is breaking the agreement.
One more thing . . . what does everyone think about selling an ARC that is, say, 5 years old? And of a very popular book? Book collectors may love to add it to their collection. Is it okay then, as the final product has been released?
ReplyDeleteOh, I completely agree! I think it is HORRIBLE how many used bookstores sell ARCs, some even before the book comes out. I actually pointed that out once at a bookstore I used to volunteer at, and the manager said, "Well, everyone does it and we got the books donated, so..." I mean, that's a book that the author and publisher then do not sell :-( It makes me really upset. I don't ever sell my ARCs. Granted, I often don't know what to do with them after reading, either...
ReplyDeleteNot to mention signed ARCs they pick up at conventions. I saw a signed ARC of PERFECT on eBay, listed at $55! That pissed me off. The book is only $18. And I'm happy to send signed bookplates!
ReplyDeleteThank you everyone who has stopped by and commented!
ReplyDelete@ Carrie - I'm not sure that I am against people "swapping" ARCs. They aren't being paid for the ARC. But when a swapping site specifically mandates "NO ARCs" (which Paperback Swap does), then ARCs should not be swapped. As for selling an ARC after the book has been released, I'm not sure how I feel about that. I know there are collectors who like that sort of thing, but I'd still feel squicky making money off of something that says "Not for Resale" and doesn't benefit the author in any way. Most of the recent anger has been about ARCs being auctioned at crazy prices before they are released (because certain readers want to read it before everyone else I guess?).
@ Aarti - I read on one of the posts I'm linked to here that some librarians love to get YA ARCs to give away in teen reading programs. I usually end up giving them away on the blog because I wouldn't really know what to do with them otherwise, either.
@ Ellen - That is horrible! That kind of thing seems so selfish to me. :(
I do not understand why people even contemplate doing this. I hope when publishers discover them doing this that they are no longer sent review copies. I would be so grateful if I was ever lucky enough to ever receive an ARC for review!
ReplyDeleteHi Katy,
ReplyDeleteAny ARC copies I get from publishers or authors, I usually request as PDF files, which I then delete after reading.
If an author or publisher requests to send me a hard copy for review, those I usually pass on to someone within my reading circle, which generally means that I get them back again.
There is always this debate in the charity shop where I volunteer and so now the ruling is that promotional copies, or any other copy that is marked not for resale, gets recycled by us, rather than put out for sale.
I would personally never sell an ARC or PROOF copy and I know that the likes of Amazon come down very hard on you if you are caught with them for sale in your store, although believe me, it does happen regularly.
Have a great weekend.
Yvonne
I sent a rather nasty email to a gal on ebay recently that was selling SHATTER ME for 100$ then charged like 8$ shipping & Handling!
ReplyDeleteFirst I said "Really? U got it for FREE & u cant even ship it for FREE after getting 100$ for it?!"
That was my sarcastic side then I told her it ruins it for us bloggers that are starting out.
They do NOT want to send ARCS to small fry's VS the 1 thousand follower, 5 thousand reviews posted type blog. I know that's an exaggeration, but you know what I mean. Because they have been burned by ppl selling ARCS.
I report em to ebay & then tweet em cuz its wrong :(
It makes us all vulnerable and soon we will lose printed ARCS altogether as a priv.
I have appreciated any ARCS I have gotten & treasure them.
This is a great post with some really great links - thanks for taking the time to make this informative post. I'll be linking. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by!
DeleteI found this post via Starting the Next Chapter, and I'm so glad I did. I may be late to the game, but I wanted to weigh in with my 100% support for respecting the ARC. I'm grabbing your button and posting it on my sidebar.
ReplyDeleteThis topic angers me like not many other things do. I refuse to purchase ARCs and count it as a treat and a blessing when I'm sent one. I would NEVER sell one. EVER. It's just not done. I'll gift them to other readers, donate to teachers, or host a giveaway, but sell? I'd rather gnaw a leg off, thanks.
I refuse to patronize book sites that sell ARCs. I had a bad experience with Thriftbooks & Alibris, where I'd ordered what were described as hardback finished copies and got ARCs instead. Um, NO. First of all, hello, NOT FOR RESALE. That doesn't mean just until the book is out. It means DON'T SELL THE ARC. Second, they totally lied in the description & didn't disclose what the book actually was. I was livid. Raised a huge stink, got my money back in both cases, and refuse to shop there even though their prices are the best. No thank you.
This is such a fantastic post and I'm so glad that the issue is getting attention.
Thanks for stopping by! I'm glad you found this post useful! :)
DeleteAdding this button to my blog..Respect the ARC!
ReplyDeleteExcellent! :D
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