Since when is stealing okay?

November 12, 2010 etc 3

Illegally downloading books. Not something I ever thought I’d write a blog post about. I mean, I never really thought about it, didn’t realize there was “debate” about it. It’s wrong. Don’t do it. End of story… right? Apparently not.


I really started thinking about this topic recently when Claudia Gray tweeted that people were already illegally downloading the advanced version of her upcoming book Afterlife. Understandably she was hurt. Her trust was violated and someone stole from her. That’s what it is. They took something that was not theirs without permission. I applaud her for her handling of the situation. She didn’t rant about it but did make it clear that it wasn’t okay.

Other YA authors have chimed in on the topic. Jackson Pearce (As you Wish, Sisters Red) posted a video about book piracy (see below) on October 4th. She replies to questions and comments that she has received about it from readers. For the record, I agree with her responses.



Sarah Rees Brennan (The Demon’s Lexicon, The Demon’s Covenant) started a bit of a conversation on twitter when she tweeted People who pirate books are no better than people who burn books. i’m so sorry. in response to Claudia Gray’s tweet. Now, notice she did not say that it is the same as book burning. She explained further in these tweets:
“Pirates may want to ‘spread information’ but they do so in a way that can demolish authors’ careers. End result – no more books.”
“So pirates destroy books just like book burners do, but bookburners destroy present books, & pirates destroy books OF THE FUTURE.”
She had many other responses which you can read by checking out her twitter feed. I agree with her responses as well.

You could also check out Ally Carter’s post here. She says it much better than I can.

A.S. King also blogged about the issue here and here. I love her!

This whole topic really frustrates me. From my experience the authors who are out there writing young adult literature… they’re great. Why would you want to take something from them? I’m not a writer but I can imagine how much of yourself has to go in to making a book. Your time, your energy, your passion. When a person illegally downloads a book it’s like saying there is no value there. This is wrong on so many levels. It’s offensive and it’s just not okay.

I’m sure that there are people out there who don’t see the big picture. I am not trying to judge anyone or say that they are bad people. They love to read. They enjoy a certain author or story and just want to share it. Whatever the reason… it can’t be justified. They only person who has the right to decided they want a book to be free is the author (and I’m sure the publisher would have something to say as well.) It’s not selfishness that keeps authors from giving their books away. Think about it. This is their job. It’s their livelihood and they deserve to get paid for it.

Clearly I’m not an expert here. I just wanted to publicly support the authors out there speaking out against book piracy. I’m sorry it’s happening. You deserve better.

I’ve purchased signed copies of books by the authors I mentioned in this post (Jackson Pearce, Claudia Gray, Sarah Rees Brennan, and I’m still looking for signed copies by Ally Carter.) I’ll be giving them away on this blog as soon as they all arrive. This is how you share. Not illegally downloading a copy.

And now I beg…please respect authors and their work. Do the right thing, don’t illegally download books.

3 Responses to “Since when is stealing okay?”

  1. bibliophile brouhaha

    Trying to make a living as an author is harder than people think. Not everyone is lucky enough to score a deal at a major publishing house with a huge advance. When you illegally download, you are stealing someone’s livelihood. If you want to read a book for free, there’s a place for that – called a ‘library’. You may have to be patient and wait a little while, but at least you are doing the right thing.

    Excellent post! I will post with a link in my news roundup next Thursday.

    -Linds

  2. Lindsay

    I completely agree. When Deathly Hallows was illegally uploaded to the internet before the release, I refused to read it. I couldn’t do that to J.K. and still call myself a loyal fan. Same for Stephenie Meyer’s Midnight Sun. I wouldn’t want someone to do that to me, so I can’t do it to them. It’s also a good way to show one’s respect and I wonder if that’s been forgotten by some…

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