Would YOU buy an eBook from this man?
By Dr. Jeff Mirus ( bio - articles - email ) | May 20, 2010
One suggestion we’ve received recently is to publish eBooks containing thematic compilations of our commentaries and news. Today I sent a message to all registered users explaining the idea and asking for feedback. You can also provide feedback through this blog entry.
The idea is that this might be a way of increasing revenue without increasing expense. eBooks would be created over a period of time by grouping existing commentaries and news stories around central themes and publishing them in PDF files in which each included item constitutes a chapter in the larger file. Topics might include the following:
- Top On the News items by Phil Lawler analyzing the biggest stories of the year
- The most significant In Depth Analysis pieces by Jeff Mirus on Catholic principles of faith and morals
- A chronicle of major news themes over time, such as the sex abuse crisis
- The complete set of summaries of the documents of Vatican II (when the series is finished)
- And so on
It might be reasonable to offer each eBook for a price of, say, $9.95.
The tricky thing about new ideas for CatholicCulture.org is that when we do a standard anonymous poll, we often get a very positive response, and then after we’ve done the work of implementing an idea, the support sometimes isn’t really there.
So in this case, before we start working on eBooks, I’d like to ask all those who are interested to send me an email. There is no need for negative responses. I can get an idea of the level of interest from the number of users who write me stating that they are likely to purchase a CatholicCulture.org eBook.
Do you consider it likely that you would purchase such an eBook? That’s what I’d like to know. If that seems likely, please email me at [email protected]. Or you can use Sound Off! Or the “email the author” link following this entry.
We appreciate your help in assessing this concept.
Jeffrey Mirus holds a Ph.D. in intellectual history from Princeton University. A co-founder of Christendom College, he also pioneered Catholic Internet services. He is the founder of Trinity Communications and CatholicCulture.org. See full bio.
All comments are moderated. To lighten our editing burden, only current donors are allowed to Sound Off. If you are a current donor, log in to see the comment form; otherwise please support our work, and Sound Off!
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Posted by: wojo425627 -
May. 27, 2010 1:53 PM ET USA
I like the idea of a print on demand book. (Like cosimo books or Xlibris)Apparently the books are stored electronically somehow and then when someone orders a book it is printed and bound in a day and then sent to you. That way you only get books printed that are ordered and not left with piles of unsold books.
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Posted by: wolfdavef3415 -
May. 21, 2010 12:04 PM ET USA
A sample of the format for the eBook would be helpful.
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Posted by: jbryant_132832 -
May. 20, 2010 3:01 PM ET USA
I think its a GREAT idea. One little suggestion though. I would like to be able to select my own articles for purchase. Wikipedia has a service where you can do that and create your own print on demand book. See: Wikipedia In Print - How to create custom books with a mix of content from the free encyclopedia (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1K03AZfpDM). I'd be much more inclined if you offered this.
