An ebook if you could read the first chapter?
The discussion going on at Smart Bitches has got me thinking about this again, and I’ve asked it before but not gotten much response. Would you rather read the first chapter than an excerpt on a publisher’s website? People often do the first 10 page test in the bookstore, on print books, would this be similar enough for an ebook purchase?
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Yes, I think I would. Just for the fact that there would be a better chance that I would get hooked into the story and want to read it right now! I can’t count how many times that has happened to me — I’ve read the first chapter on an author’s site or on Amazon and then been frustrated because I had to wait to either: physically go out to the bookstore or for Amazon to deliver it to my door. :gah:
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Excerpt v first chapter?
In most cases, I’d love to have the chance to read the first chapter.
But you know, there are some books that are very slow and have boring first chapters. It’s the later chapters that are interesting, the later chapters that would make powerful excerpts.
In summary, it depends on the book?
I would love to be able to read the first chapter. This can be especially helpful with an author I haven’t read before. I get an idea of their ‘voice’ and how I respond to it. I hope to see this feature in the future.
I judge a lot of books by the first page. If it doesn’t grab me by page two, I won’t buy.
So I personally prefer the first chapter as opposed to an excerpt. But if an author knows the beginning is slow, it might be better for her to entice with an excerpt instead.
In other words, push the strength of the individual novel.
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I don’t necessarily need the first chapter of a e-book to see if I’ll buy it. Usually I can make the decision with a juicy enough excerpt. I’d say between 5 and 10 pages.
But I’m a skimmer and flipper in the store when picking out books meaning I’ll read maybe the first few pages, skim the rest of the first chapter (this is my big test – if I want to skim or if I want to read) and then skip to a middle part and skim a page or two and then flip to the end.
But I do think having a first chapter instead of an excerpt can be helpful in some cases more than others. For instance, if the 1st chapter is mostly set-up or doesn’t have a lot of interaction between the main characters (hero and heroine) than that’s not good.
But if it’s exciting and a page turner and has a good hook that makes me want to buy it than all the better.
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I would love it. It’s how I got hooked on Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld universe. I’d been hearing about them and read the blurbs, but just hadn’t picked them up. Then I found her site, and read the first chapter of the first book, and I was hooked.
Go for it!
I’ll be honest…I love reading the first chapter on the authors’ websites. On the publisher’s website? It doesn’t make much difference to me. I’ll usually go to the author website anyway before I purchase. (Scary, I know…LOL)
It would be nice to see the authors have the option. Of course it would depend on the length of the story…
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Yes, I’d rather read a first chapter, too. :elmo:
And not just of an e-book. Any book. I like to get a feel for the writer’s voice and where the story is going than just a random highlight.
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Most of the time, I prefer the first chapter. You get a better sampling of the author’s skills, because of its length. It’s a fairer representation rather than the very carefully selected excerpt.
The only times I see it as a negative is when a prologue gets posted on its own which might not necessarily help to get into the book or if the story is shorter – a short story or a novella – so a larger percentage of the story is given away. It probably depends on the individual authors, too, because there are a handful of authors out there who write long, long chapters. Putting a 7k first chapter online might not do anybody any good at that point.
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I like the idea of the first chapter, but others have brought up good points–1st chapter as set-up with little or no interaction between protagonists, very long chapters or a key detail that gives away a part of the story (though I don’t often see this in first chapters). So, I think I’d still go with excerpt.
However, let me caveat that. I like excerpts that concentrate on something other than an intimate scene. I find a certain sameness about these, so they don’t “stick” in my mind when I read several similar excerpts while deciding what to buy. I like an element of strong eroticism in my romance but feel a non-erotic excerpt is what makes the author’s writing stand out from his/her peers. Every e-book I’ve bought has been based on a non-erotic excerpt (even those listed as erotic romance or romantica). Of course, that’s just me and YMMV.
I’d love to see this offered as an option more often. I have certain styles I dislike, and being able to read a longer sample would tell me if I’m getting into something I’m going to regret.
On of my publishers, Circle Dark, included the first chapter of their next novel at the end of their first anthology. (full disclosure: the novel was mine) They got a lot of positive feedback about it.
I think reading the first chapter would be more helpful to me in deciding whether or not to buy a book. It might not make me more likely to buy any particular ebook, though.
Any excerpt is great, but I get a better feel for the book from the first chapter rather than an excerpt taken from an unknown part of the story.
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I have to say that with Ebooks the blurb and excerpt can hook me right away. The first chapter would be a nice addition, but for me it’s not necessary.
When I see an ebook I like and the blurb hooks me I will go to the authors website for more, the one thing I would like though is for the author to have a different excerpt available there that is not on the publishers website. When I get that I feel like I’m getting a better look at the book as whole and that definitely influences my buying decision.
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It wouldn’t really matter for me. I wouldn’t read the whole chapter, and most likely would buy the book based on the excerpt.
This is why I always put the entire first chapter on my site. I hate not being able to sample more than just a short excerpt.