# Gifts under US$6: ebooks, paperbacks, coloring books **URL:** \ **Category:** Marketplace\ **Created:** [December 4, 2018, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531 "2018-12-04T01:02:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2018, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/1 "2018-12-04T01:02:08Z")
This is a consolidation thread for all the threads I’ve made over the years for my books. The occasion: I’ve done some tinkering with the shading on some pictures in my coloring book _Wise Words from Shakespeare: A Coloring Book for Adults_; the results are lighter. It’s still not a ‘black lines outline white space’ type of children’s book, but it may hit a middle ground that will please those who prefer that type. I’m making this thread, mainly, because I had to change the hosting for images for all my books. Those links seem to be broken, so rather than ask a moderator to let me change each of the several threads, it seemed more reasonable to just put the new images in this thread, along with links to the original threads. The illustrations in the Shakespeare coloring book departed from the usual ‘thick black lines’ style common in children’s coloring books by including some dimensional shading. But since some people found the shading to be too dark, I corrected the images. Here’s a ‘before and after’ example: [![](https://i.imgur.com/0GHHhpI.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/0GHHhpI.jpg) As you can see, the changes don’t eliminate the shading but do lighten it. Here’s the original thread about the Shakespeare book: > **[Coloring Book for Adults: "Wise Words from Shakespeare"](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=773930)** > > Those who follow publishing news will be well aware that one of the big stories of 2015 has been the phenomenal success of coloring books for adults. That’s not “adult” in the rated-X sense (though those are being published, too)–but in the sense of... The book is still US$5.99 (or less depending on sales Amazon may run–and of course, the equivalent in other currencies). It’s available at > **[Amazon.com: Wise Words from SHAKESPEARE: A Coloring Book for Adults:...](https://www.amazon.com/Wise-Words-SHAKESPEARE-Coloring-Adults/dp/0692538070)** > > Amazon.com: Wise Words from SHAKESPEARE: A Coloring Book for Adults: 9780692538074: Lowry, K. Sherrerd, Lowry, K. Sherrerd: Books [![](https://i.imgur.com/uSxUaBS.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/uSxUaBS.jpg) (Many thanks to Rico for letting me make this new version of the thread.) ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2018, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/2 "2018-12-04T01:09:22Z")
_Wise Words from Jane Austen: A Coloring Book for Adults_ is part of the same series as the Shakespeare book; it uses ‘good advice’ from Jane Austen this time, of course. I used a variety of period paintings, etchings, and drawings as inspiration for the pictures. These, again, employ dimensional shading: [![](https://i.imgur.com/aVrGmgy.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/aVrGmgy.jpg) The original thread: [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=860267](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=860267) The book can be purchased at: > **[Amazon.com: Wise Words from Jane Austen: A Coloring Book for Adults (Duer Press...](https://www.amazon.com/Wise-Words-Jane-Austen-Coloring/dp/194593901X)** > > Amazon.com: Wise Words from Jane Austen: A Coloring Book for Adults (Duer Press Coloring Books for Adults): 9781945939013: Lowry, K. Sherrerd, Lowry, K. Sherrerd: Books Here’s a taste of the variety of the pages–each illustrates a wise, witty remark by Austen: [![](https://i.imgur.com/C8O0REd.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/C8O0REd.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2018, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/3 "2018-12-04T01:21:03Z")
The third coloring book for adults\* has a design that is certainly usable by right-handed colorists, but is expressly made for the left-handed–it has the text and pages-to-color on the _left_ side of each spread, instead of on the right. _Wise Words from Left-Handers: A Coloring Book for Adults_: [![](https://i.imgur.com/aGs67OE.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/aGs67OE.jpg) At Amazon I’m seeing, right now, US$1.60 as the price! Don’t know how long that will last…they don’t ask the authors for a yea or nay on the price changes. (!) The link: > **[Amazon.com: Wise Words from LEFT-HANDERS: A Coloring Book for Adults (Coloring...](https://www.amazon.com/Wise-Words-LEFT-HANDERS-Coloring-Adults/dp/1945939001)** > > Amazon.com: Wise Words from LEFT-HANDERS: A Coloring Book for Adults (Coloring Books for Adults): 9781945939006: Lowry, K. Sherrerd, Lowry, K. Sherrerd: Books The original thread: [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=802402](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=802402) This book collects wisdom from a disparate group of famous left-handed people–not about being left-handed, by the way, but about life, love, politics, art, sports, and so on. As I said in the thread: > [@](#): > > … I found hundreds of famous left-handed people and many potential “Wise Words” to illustrate. The research process included, first, making sure that the famous person really was left-handed (there’s a lot of guesswork when it comes to people alive centuries ago), and second, making sure that the famous person had actually said or written the quotation in question. > > Unsourced quotations are all over the Internet. Most of the sites that come up when any remark is searched will be the sites that let anybody post anything; the result is that famous people throughout history are routinely credited with having said things they never did. From “let them eat cake” to “blood, sweat, and tears” to “if you have to ask how much they cost, you can’t afford one”—the people who are claimed to have said these things, never did. … Since the book was published I’ve heard from both left-handed and right-handed people who all said they had no problem using the book. For the right-handed, it was a bit of an eye-opener to experience something _not_ made expressly for them. \*later in the thread you’ll see a coloring book/workbook aimed at children. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2018, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/4 "2018-12-04T01:32:10Z")
Now for some books available both in paperback and in ebook formats. The ebooks will be, in some cases, free for Prime members. _Grey Fairy / White Wolf: Three Classic Lang Tales, Retold_ is fiction with an academic bent: [![](https://i.imgur.com/hUc0qF3.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/hUc0qF3.jpg) The book consists of “three of my expanded retellings of stories collected in Andrew Lang’s 1900 _The Grey Fairy Book_. The original Lang versions are provided for comparison (along with commentary and historical information). The book includes three illustrations…” (As I said in the original thread–) > **[Grey Fairy/White Wolf: new short fiction (with illustrations)](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=714273)** > > My new ebook is up for sale on Amazon: This ebook (estimated at about 130 pages) contains three of my expanded retellings of stories collected in Andrew Lang’s 1900 The Grey Fairy Book. The original Lang versions... Another bit of that thread: > [@](#): > > Usually when “fairy tales” are mentioned, what is meant are the thirty or so stories we’re familiar with from childhood books and Disney movies: Cinderella, Snow White, Hansel and Gretel, Beauty and the Beast, Little Red Riding Hood, and so on. > > Retelling these familiar tales has become quite an industry, in books, on television, and in the movies. The fine arts, too, are filled with reactions to the famous stories. And commentary and analysis–for example, Bruno Bettelheim’s _The Uses of Enchantment_; M. L. von Franz’s _The Interpretation of Fairy Tales_ (and others); and many books by Jack Zipes (such as _Breaking the Spell_)–nearly always centers on the familiar tales. > > There’s good reason for that, of course: it’s the often-retold stories that most effectively hook into our unconscious minds, and provide insights we find to be stimulating and significant. Through all the reworkings over the centuries, the familiar stories have been shaped to be accurate reflections of fundamental human truths. > > But what about the less-familiar stories? What do they lack? Why aren’t they being made into feature films and television shows? … The answer may be found in the ebook at: > **[Amazon.com: Grey Fairy/White Wolf: Three Classic Lang Tales Retold eBook :...](https://www.amazon.com/Grey-Fairy-White-Wolf-Classic-ebook/dp/B00I0DSUFG)** > > Amazon.com: Grey Fairy/White Wolf: Three Classic Lang Tales Retold eBook : Lowry, K. Sherrerd, Lowry, K. Sherrerd: Kindle Store Or in the paperback at: > **[Grey Fairy/White Wolf: Three Classic Lang Tales Retold: Lowry, K. Sherrerd,...](https://www.amazon.com/Grey-Fairy-White-Wolf-Classic/dp/0692347917)** > > Grey Fairy/White Wolf: Three Classic Lang Tales Retold \[Lowry, K. Sherrerd, Lowry, K. Sherrerd\] on Amazon.com. \*FREE\* shipping on qualifying offers. Grey Fairy/White Wolf: Three Classic Lang Tales Retold ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2018, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/5 "2018-12-04T01:42:47Z")
I’ll include a book by Argus Constant for which I did artwork, as it’s similar in size to _Grey Fairy / White Wolf_, and like that book, is available in both ebook and paperback formats: [![](https://i.imgur.com/EO6GxhX.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/EO6GxhX.jpg) (^ Front and back covers, of course.) _Donald the Employee_ is a darkly comic novel of post-2016 American politics, and of the personalities that have become so large a part–for better or worse–of our daily lives. The ebook: > **[DONALD the Employee - Kindle edition by Constant, Argus. Literature &...](https://www.amazon.com/DONALD-Employee-Argus-Constant-ebook/dp/B079K7D1SW)** > > DONALD the Employee - Kindle edition by Constant, Argus. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading DONALD the Employee. The paperback: > **[DONALD the Employee: Constant, Argus: 9780692076255: Amazon.com: Books](https://www.amazon.com/DONALD-Employee-Argus-Constant/dp/0692076255)** > > DONALD the Employee \[Constant, Argus\] on Amazon.com. \*FREE\* shipping on qualifying offers. DONALD the Employee A long excerpt can be read at: [http://donald.sirtespress.com/](http://donald.sirtespress.com/) The original thread about the book: [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=848520](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=848520) Speaking of excerpts-- for any not aware, Amazon lets you look at a fairly large chunk of most books through its “Look Inside” feature; you see more if you’re signed in. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2018, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/6 "2018-12-05T01:10:08Z")
For those who still get a chuckle from the Far Side cartoon “Hell’s Library”–a bookcase filled with _The Big Book of Story Problems_, _Even More Story Problems_, _Story Problems Galore_, etc. … _LC4A and the Big Test_ is available as a full-color ebook, and as a workbook/coloring book paperback. The latter is greatly expanded, as I’ll describe in the next post. For now, the ebook: [![](https://i.imgur.com/JB8Ms1Z.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/JB8Ms1Z.jpg) This story emphasizes the main character learning how to find clues in a non-routine word problem, in order to figure out what operations to use and in what order to use them. A sample problem from near the beginning of the story: [![](https://i.imgur.com/os2irnV.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/os2irnV.jpg) A more complex problem from later in the story: [![](https://i.imgur.com/tk8t44r.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/tk8t44r.jpg) The text offers strategies for attacking the problems, which include simple drawings, as well as math manipulatives such as counters, graphs, number lines, and base-ten blocks. Graphic “white boards” summarize key words and patterns to look for in a story problem, in order to get from _‘paralysis’_ to _‘solving’_. The thread about the ebook: > **[New children's math storybook: eBook "LC4A and the Big Test"](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=703391)** > > This is my first picture book —it was quite a learning experience. I have two degrees in Mathematics Education, so the math portion is solid; I hope that readers will like the story and illustrations, too. The theme: finding clues in a word problem... For sale (under $2): > **[LC4A and the Big Test: A Math Storybook (The Duer Press Children's Math Picture...](https://www.amazon.com/LC4A-Big-Test-Storybook-Childrens-ebook/dp/B00FG0WKKM)** > > LC4A and the Big Test: A Math Storybook (The Duer Press Children's Math Picture Books 1) - Kindle edition by Lowry, K. Sherrerd, Lowry, K. Sherrerd. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like... ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/7 "2018-12-07T01:16:54Z")
The “under $6” tag works for all books but one, it turns out, and I apologize for the lapse: the LC4A storybook/workbook/coloring book described in the next post is $6.99. There are used copies for less, though I don’t know their condition (it’s third-party sellers, over which I have no control). For all paperbacks sold through Amazon’s old CreateSpace program (now KDP), authors are given a minimum price they can charge, which is set by Amazon to reflect the size of the files in the book. My LC4A paperback is longer and has more illustrations than my other books, hence the slightly-higher price. If you have any interest in any of these, do check Amazon for their frequent price drops (which they make without any input from the author). [![](https://i.imgur.com/jYdHYMk.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/jYdHYMk.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2018, 1:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/8 "2018-12-07T01:28:21Z")
_**LC4A and the Big Test: A Math-Story Planet Workbook (The Duer Press Children’s Math Picture Books)**_ [![](https://i.imgur.com/MRDqNIK.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/MRDqNIK.jpg) Thread on this is at: [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=769628&highlight=LC4A](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=769628&highlight=LC4A) This paperback contains all the contents of the ebook (describe two posts above), and adds a Parents’ Guide section and a Problem Sets section. > [@](#): > > Word problems can be a special challenge for many math learners. This new edition of the popular ebook LC4A and the Big Test adds several new dimensions to the story of the little alien who has concerns about an upcoming math test on word problems. LC’s vibrant world serves to introduce concrete, easy-to-apply skills that learners will enjoy mastering. > > “Where to begin?” All too often, that is the mental block facing learners dealing with word problems. LC’s story offers solid, research-based strategies for getting through that block–while enjoying the process. So that learners won’t feel intimidated, the strategies are presented at the second-grade vocabulary level, and are richly illustrated throughout the book. > > Ten new word-problem sets provide valuable experience and practice for putting the problem-solving strategies to work. The problem sets have been carefully constructed to expose learners to the full spectrum of word-problem types. This variety will help keep learners interested. > > The word-problem types are explained in detail in the useful parent-guide pages. Those pages contain, in addition, tips on enriching and enhancing the word-problem learning process; information about the uses of math manipulatives, and ways to acquire them at no or low cost; and a specific run-down of the types of addition and subtraction word problems that learners can expect to encounter. Handy graphics summarize the top strategies for getting to a solution. > > Dozens of fun-to-color illustrations make working through this book pleasant and entertaining, as well as educational. Word problems can be fun to solve: all that learners need is the confidence that they possess a toolkit of strategies and tips ready to apply. This storybook/workbook/coloring book will help give them that confidence. I’ve heard from some adults who made use of this book themselves (they were studying for the GED). As mentioned, it’s written with lower-grade-level vocabulary (except for the parents’ section). Here are some example pages: [![](https://i.imgur.com/iG2l0mM.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/iG2l0mM.jpg) Additional pages may be viewed at: > **[LC4A and the Big Test: A Math-Story Planet Workbook: Lowry, K. Sherrerd, Lowry,...](https://www.amazon.com/LC4A-Big-Test-Math-Story-Childrens/dp/0692408932)** > > Buy LC4A and the Big Test: A Math-Story Planet Workbook on Amazon.com ✓ FREE SHIPPING on qualified orders ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2018, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/9 "2018-12-09T23:52:25Z")
_ **Surprises for Zu-Zu** _: a rhyming counting book. This is a full-color ebook. [![](https://i.imgur.com/plsNg5C.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/plsNg5C.jpg) The thread is at: [New children's math storybook: eBook "LC4A and the Big Test" - Marketplace - Straight Dope Message Board](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=703391) The story involves a little alien critter who wanders off and has an adventure filled with lots of things to count–things that are intriguing, colorful, and in one case, a little bit scary. (But not too scary!) A couple of sample pictures: [![](https://i.imgur.com/ZMH1TUd.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/ZMH1TUd.jpg) [![](https://i.imgur.com/3XaHvY9.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/3XaHvY9.jpg) The book can be found at: > **[Surprises for Zu-Zu: A Rhyming Counting Book (The Duer Press Children's Math...](https://www.amazon.com/Surprises-Zu-Zu-Rhyming-Counting-Childrens-ebook/dp/B00FURS6A4)** > > Surprises for Zu-Zu: A Rhyming Counting Book (The Duer Press Children's Math Picture Books 2) - Kindle edition by Lowry, K. Sherrerd, Lowry, K. Sherrerd. Download it once and read it on your Kindle device, PC, phones or tablets. Use features like... ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/10 "2018-12-10T00:00:27Z")
My first book (other than my dissertation) was _ **Forum Finesse: A Guide to Impact and Influence in Online Talk** _. It’s an ebook. It’s got some usable advice, but it did come out five years ago. I seriously need to update it with the St. Petersburg “Internet Research Agency” (Putin’s ‘troll factory’) and other realities of our current life. Still, worth a free look at the Look Inside feature (and free altogether if you have a Prime membership). [![](https://i.imgur.com/p78CNAQ.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/p78CNAQ.jpg) The Amazon page for the book: > **[Amazon.com: FORUM FINESSE: A Guide to Impact and Influence in Online Talk eBook...](https://www.amazon.com/FORUM-FINESSE-Impact-Influence-Online-ebook/dp/B00E5SH95W)** > > Amazon.com: FORUM FINESSE: A Guide to Impact and Influence in Online Talk eBook : Lowry, K. Sherrerd: Kindle Store The old SDMB thread: [eBook on Forums/Message Boards now out! - Marketplace - Straight Dope Message Board](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=697865) Promo banner: [![](https://i.imgur.com/qOEYIKq.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/qOEYIKq.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/11 "2018-12-10T00:08:26Z")
No prices are printed on any of these paperbacks; no one will know what you paid. As with any online bookstore, beware of ordering from a third-party seller who charges more than the list price. For some reason I see a lot of that on my listings (maybe every self-publisher does). ---
**Author:** ![Anxious\_Squirrel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anxious_squirrel/32/1083_2.png) [@Anxious\_Squirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anxious_Squirrel)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2018, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/12 "2018-12-10T19:51:32Z")
Nice thread. Your books all look really good! I’ve been publishing on amazon since 2013, but very lazily. And I didn’t do my first paperbacks until this year. It’s great to see other self-pubbers on here. You inspire me! I noticed with one of my paperbacks that has yet to sell a copy that there are already two other buy links for it. One from a third party and one from amazon itself. I was told in my FB group that third party sellers can somehow purchase options to sell your book without actually buying any, since it’s POD, and then if someone buys from them, the seller buys the book from me at a discount, and then we both make money. So yaays for that. I have never had amazon discount one of my books without me changing the price, but I never used createspace. All my amazon books have always been uploaded direct. Good luck with your sales!!! ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2018, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/13 "2018-12-12T00:18:09Z")
Thanks, and good to hear from another aspirant, TheMysteryWriter. Whatever sort of books do you write? (J/K.) The whole third-party seller phenomenon is a hot topic on some self-publisher discussion sites; there’s a sort of vulture/jackal feeling to the practice, but the way you describe it, it sounds potentially beneficial. (The real vultures and jackals are the many “PDF” sellers out there, who do buy one copy and then sell YOUR book as a PDF. That’s tough to deal with mentally for those of us who lack the resources to pursue the thieves. ) Anyway, thanks again for posting. We selfers have to stick together! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Anxious\_Squirrel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anxious_squirrel/32/1083_2.png) [@Anxious\_Squirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anxious_Squirrel)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/16 "2020-03-16T18:31:36Z")
> [@Sherrerd](#): > > Thanks, and good to hear from another aspirant, TheMysteryWriter. Whatever sort of books do you write? (J/K.) > > The whole third-party seller phenomenon is a hot topic on some self-publisher discussion sites; there’s a sort of vulture/jackal feeling to the practice, but the way you describe it, it sounds potentially beneficial. (The real vultures and jackals are the many “PDF” sellers out there, who do buy one copy and then sell YOUR book as a PDF. That’s tough to deal with mentally for those of us who lack the resources to pursue the thieves. ) > > Anyway, thanks again for posting. We selfers have to stick together! 🙂 This says you replied back in 2018, yet I just got an email notif about it this morning. I’m not sure if anyone will get annoyed with me for resurrecting a zombie, but it feels rude to not reply. Besides if Cecil decided to give me a poke who am I to ignore him? :D:D I hope you and your books are doing well! I also like how you’re making good use of public domain material. I’ve only done one book with public domain material, my very first, a children’s picture book about dog sports, from which I got most of my source material from Wikipedia. Most of what I sell is short smut for a very small subset of men who are into that kink. I have also dabbled in short Christian romance, sci-fi shorts, and nonfiction. I am eclectic. I want to write mysteries, but I haven’t managed one yet. I have 47 books altogether. Most are around 5,000 words, so they’re short stories. I’ve thought about trying coloring books but I’m not artistic at all, and I hate dealing with paperback formatting. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2023, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gifts-under-us-6-ebooks-paperbacks-coloring-books/825531/17 "2023-12-13T21:44:37Z")
> [@Anxious\_Squirrel](#): > > I hate dealing with paperback formatting. It _is_ a bear! And as it turns out, the personnel at Amazon (Kindle Direct Publishing) can make formatting an eBook just as ghastly an experience. I have a new paperback up for sale, but am still wrestling with the KDP employees over something utterly ridiculous: they keep sending me the same form letter that says: \*\*your book is disallowed because it’s available free on our site (it isn’t) \*\*your book is disallowed because though it has original content, the title MUST be “Public Domain Work (Annotated)” even though your book isn’t annotated, but instead has supplementary and explanatory material presented at the END of the book, not as annotations. They won’t budge. Possibly, knowing Amazon and their likely love of below-minimum-wage workers, they are not English-speakers, or at least have only a rudimentary grasp of the language. At any rate, their only method of solving whatever problems they claim exist is to send the same non-pertinent email again and again. They never seem to learn what the actual situation is because they never read the replies they get. . . . To back up: I’ve been ill and haven’t been able to sit up (due to pain, due to the location of my physical trouble). So I’ve been reading paperbacks while in a recumbent position, and wanted to re-read Jane Austen. All my copies are, sadly, cheap paperbacks with tiny font and worse, with small inner margins, such as require physical strength to wrench the book open enough to be able to read it. SO, I wanted to produce a large-print edition. I decided to start with _Northanger Abbey_ as there is less market-saturation for that one, as compared with _Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility_, and _Emma_. Having read Amazon/KDP’s rules, I knew that they don’t consider a large-print edition of a public domain work to be “differentiated” enough to publish. So, over the weeks after deciding to do this, I did my research and produced a Study Guide. I aimed it basically at: a) high school students and b) casual readers who have questions about some of the terminology they find in the book and curiosity about Austen and the circumstances of her writing N.A. I was pleased with the outcome. The font is large enough for comfortable reading even for people who need reading glasses but don’t want to wear them. The inner margins are nice and wide–no strength needed to yank the book open wider! And the Study Guide has some nice, useful stuff. So the paperback went through the publication process with no problems: > **[Northanger Abbey: Large Print Edition with Study Guide: Introduction and Study...](https://www.amazon.com/Northanger-Abbey-Large-Introduction-Sherrerd/dp/1945939052)** > > Northanger Abbey: Large Print Edition with Study Guide: Introduction and Study Guide by K. Sherrerd Lowry \[Austen, Jane, Lowry, K. Sherrerd\] on Amazon.com. \*FREE\* shipping on qualifying offers. Northanger Abbey: Large Print Edition with Study Guide:... ^ The eBook (Kindle) edition should have been ‘no problem,’ but someone with power over Kindle editions is enjoying themselves by raising the ridiculous objections mentioned above. And when someone is getting off by exercising power, you can’t do much about it. (Jane could have written something fairly gripping about this situation, were she here today…) Their requirement that I change the title to “Northanger Abbey (Annotated)” is annoying because I can’t get them to understand that “Annotated” in the publishing world means that the new material (definitions, commentary, etc.) appears in the midst of the text. There are annotations–notes–that are tied to specific parts of the public domain work. By contrast, of course, my edition collects all the original material at the end of the work (except for that contained in the Introduction). The KDP employees don’t know that this is true because they never read the replies that authors (including me) send them. The KDP employees simply send the same irrelevant form letter again and again, being, it would seem, proponents of the “Broken Record” method of solving problems. Anyway, though this particular paperback doesn’t fit the “under US$6” title of the thread, it might still be of interest to gift-givers.