Posted on 2012-Oct-29
E-book or Ebook (eBook)?
Books in electronic format have come a long way to live harmoniously and independently with hyphens. Having strictly adhered to the scholarly standard, “e-book” is pretty much accepted with venerable blessings as though the hyphen were devotionally created to categorize nouns. The search of “ebook” on MLA and Chicago Manual of Style nearly proclaims dead on the subject (1 result each) whereas the keyword “e-book” search tells a different story especially if you choose the 16th edition of Chicago Manual of Style. Over the years, hyphens have grown less relevant and outdated as the search engine giant ignores its necessity. But then, when it all boils down to popular vote, there is no real winner between the arch rivals between “ebook” and “eBook”. Due to the fact that the two terms have been born and bred in the same spelling dynasty, both of them look alike as much as the search algorithm could not differentiate the identical twins. The big difference thus rests on the particular style of a writer’s judgment of deciding what to pen. Heading towards the majority in the practical usage of the term and how the influential blogosphere has handled the industry blogs, we lean toward the latter term to remain intact with the universal consensus and take side with the stylish approach to season this very revolutionary book format.
What Search Results Show
You might find the discussion of the debatable writing style random in the introductory paragraph. Personally, it is rather a frustrating time when people make their ideal choice referring to the format differently. In the title of the blog, Going from E-books to Ebooks, the feasibility of repetition kept me thinking whether it mattered so much to discuss the transition. Owing to the clarification with partial statistics and possibilities, walking through the unprecedented decision to slash the hyphen independently reinstates the authorial prowess. It is by no means my assertion to judge what is right or wrong. However, from a marketing perspective, it is useful to address the more acceptable writing style because you are on the verge of reaching out to the majority or the chosen few. Even back in May, “ebook” did score pretty well on Google Insights. Eventually, the editorial director decides to go with his guts, backed up by the voter’s poll, to formally constitute eBook.
Underwhelming Proofreading in eBooks
Seen from the writing style above, language in itself is organic and evolving. Unfortunately, language does not generally spell perfection when manmade invention get involved. According to The Verge, the multitudes of typos in Umberto Eco’s Foucault’s Pendulum are unforgiveable, especially when the top dollar is paid for imperfect OCR technology. The writer of the article reddens his misspelled quotes from the book while conscientiously admitting his constant feedback submission to the retailer; he bluntly demands certain updates to patch the error but little effort has been done to set things right. Regardless of heedful attempts to contact the retailers for comments, the correction system does not seem fully in place although there are certain viable channels to report errors in most eReaders. His demand as a consumer is simple: how do publishers prevent these minor mistakes from diverting their audience’s attention from appreciating the literary beauty to counting how many “c”s have replaced “e”s. Take heed of Nerea’s satirical comment on Amazon’s customer review page to verify The Verge’s discussion.
Self-publisher’s Success
Before finalizing my argument that eBooks have been steadily catapulted, it is my obligation to present you a reaffirmation to lift up the independent spirit. In the prosperous time when self-publishers are over the moon keeping track of their exposure to wider recognition and bigger paychecks, Mark Coker somehow foresaw the commercial hype back in July. He commended how the authors chose to fly solo went from last to first resort as indie authors have gathered successful stories in their portfolios and motivated other talented colleagues to pursue their own way of declaring independence. Following the Bowker report, self-publishing has experienced continually healthy growth in prints and eBook sales. Smashwords has become the top "self-publisher" whose approximate 19,086 works (47% of 40,608 self-published eBooks) have been distributed to the market. Another survey of book consumer habits also shows that authors can promote their work more efficiently on this “DIY” route.
Bundle Sales for Indie Authors
If you are wondering where to go from here, you might want to reread how the bundle sales have made a phenomenal impact. Despite the fact that the package usually includes the work of big name authors rather than indies, it is up to the reader who decides which distributing channel can broaden the sales revenue and the quality of the content delivered by hardworking authors that will ultimately attract new readers. When the transition of e-book to ebook (eBook) is finalized in the upcoming future and typos are mostly taken care of, more indie authors of similar genres might come out and join forces to secure the trade and reap a harvest. When that day comes, the first resort for their solid success can be established to inspire and craft the successors in this kingdom of organic evolution.
Label: Self-Publishing
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