Wednesday, April 13, 2011

K is for Kindle

I got a Kindle for Christmas and I love it. It is the best present ever.

Am I responsible for the death of bookstores? No. I still go to bookstores too but I admit that I've bought more books on my Kindle than I would have purchased from bookstores.

Is there anything I don't like about the Kindle? I buy a lot of YA and Middle Grade books. When I'm finished with those books sometimes I want to keep them but if I don't then I donate them so they will get into the hands of kids. Sometimes I just give them to kids I know who I think will like them. I can't do this with the Kindle. I think I can lend it once to another Kindle owner for a limited amount of time.

But I love emailing myself manuscripts and reading them on the Kindle.

I want a sign that says Will work for Amazon gift cards. That way I could afford to buy all the books I want to buy.

But if you don't have $10.99 to spend on every book you want to read here are some of my tips for saving money and still fill your Kindle.

1. Follow your favorite authors/publishing houses. Sometimes when and author is releasing a new book a previous book may be available free for a limited time.
Right now Wings by Aprilynne Pike is available for free.
So is 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson

2. There are a lot of books out there that are less than $10.99. For example the self-published books by Amanda Hocking are around $2.99.
Other books I recently downloaded that didn't cost $10.99 include,
Earthling Hero by Anita Laydon Miller, this book was 99 cents. Can't beat that price.
CassaStar by Alex J. Cavanaugh. Alex is one of the hosts of this awesome A to Z challenge and the Kindle version of this book is $2.95. Go get it now.
Perilous by Tamara Hart Heiner is available for $2.99.


3. Swap Kindle books with other Kindle owners. Do you have friends who own Kindles who read the same books at you? Talk to them about swapping books.

4. Set up your bank account so that all your money automatically goes to Amazon then buy as many books as you want.

5. Rotate your reading. Read one book on the Kindle followed by a paper book. I've been doing this because I have a big pile of paper books to read. This helps ease the guilt of killing bookstores.

6. Add Kindle books to your wish list. I have a friend who only shops online. If you want a gift from her you better have an Amazon wish list filled out. Do you have friends like Pril in your life? You better fill your Wish List full of Kindle books just in case.


Do you have an e-reader? Any tips for owning an e-reader?

12 comments:

Julie Flanders said...

I absolutely have to get a Kindle. I've never heard anything but great things about them, everyone seems to fall totally in love as soon as they get one.

I've wondered about the cost of buying the books, thanks for the tips! I'll keep those in mind as I know I'm going to end up getting one of these soon, I can't resist any longer. ;)

Matthew MacNish said...

This is an exciting time in publishing. I know all of the indie writers you mentioned!

Alicia Gregoire said...

I'm so hesitant about the ereader, basically because of the number of physical books I have. I do have the Nook app on my Droid and I download free books on there to read when I find myself bookless.

Christina Lee said...

YAY! I concur with everything. lovelovelove!

Jennifer Hoffine said...

I don't have a Kindle yet, but I know I could download some ebooks through my library...not sure everyone has that feature yet (ours has been there for less than a year), but it's worth looking into.

Lindsay N. Currie said...

Ugh, Carrie this post stabs me in the heart. I lost my kindle. What kind of lunatic loses their kindle? Now I'm having to read my books on the blinding white background of the iPad (their e-reader is really inferior). Maybe I need to start a new fund called: "Give a kindle to the idiots who lose theirs" LOL. So much reading to do. . .

Unknown said...

Lindsay, that is so sad. I don't know what I'd do if I lost my Kindle. One of my friends got her Kindle by getting enough points on her credit card.

Unknown said...

Great post! (Especially the tips for finding cheap books.)

After I got my Nook eReader, it took me a year to catch up on all of the paper books I'd purchased to read. I used the same strategy (1 paper, 1 electronic) too! :-)

If you read a lot, there's no better alternative than an eReader. It's easy, mostly cheaper, and clutter free. Paper books are pretty and smell good (I think), but for me that's not enough of a reason to keep using them.

NiaRaie said...

I used to be very much against e-readers, but I'm learning to adapt I still love paper books( the cover, the smell of the pages, and being able to easily pass it along) but I'd also love to have an e-reader to read my manuscripts on. Good post. Has me thinking.. :)

triles said...

Great topic for K. My 10 year old daughter, who is a crazy fast reader, wants a Kindle. My guess is we'll get her one for Christmas. I love books, but I think I need one myself. I'll probably alternate like you suggest.

Marie Rearden said...

Love #4. :) And thanks for the freebie advice. I'm going to Amazon as soon as I post here.

I rotate between my Kindle and paper books, but ultimately, most of the Kindle books I buy are $5+ less than buying the book at my local Barnes and Noble. The Amazon option's really no better, because I'll pay $7-8 to ship the book if I'm under $25. Which makes me add more stuff to get to $25. Darn those genius marketing people.

Kindle on!

Marie at the Cheetah

Tamara Hart Heiner said...

thanks for the mention! I got a Kindle for my birthday. I love it! Now all the books on my to read list seem in reach!