Great gadget by Ann Evans

By -

When I first bought my Kindle about a year ago I wondered whether I'd grow to like it or even get any use out of it. As a big lover of books in their printed form I wondered whether I'd be able to really get into the stories and enjoy them when they were displayed in digital format instead of the normal paper pages.

I'd bought a kindle primarily for viewing my own ebooks. After dragging myself into the 21st century with all its e-publishing capabilities I'd managed to get some of my out of print books up as ebooks, so naturally needed to be able to see how they looked on an ebook reading device.

So to begin with my kindle reading matter was my own books and very little else. But gradually I added to my e-library, and taking a look now I'm surprised at how my book list has grown. What surprises me most is how I've widened my range of reading choices. Often I've bought an ebook on the recommendation of someone else – generally an Author's Electric author. And when Authors Electric ran the great ebook giveaway a few months ago that was a fantastic time to read lots of books that I wouldn't otherwise have gone for. In addition to this I've also added a few classics to my e-shelves which I would never have thought of buying in a bookshop, but being able to buy at a very reasonable price or even free has meant that I can open my mind to the likes of Jerome K Jerome, Herman Melville and others.

Probably the last eight books that I've read (and I'm amazed that I've read eight novels in quite a short space of time) have been on my kindle. However the other night I was reading a normal paperback novel and found myself really missing not being able to adjust the size of the font. There I was, reading in bed as usual and having to adjust the book and my eyes to make out the smallish print. Oh how I wished I could just double the font size with the click of a button.
It occurred to me then, that when I do look to buy a printed book, or getting one from the library, the font size is always something I've considered before making my choice. And there has been many times when I've put the book back on the shelf because I know I'd get eye strain staring at the small print late at night.

Another joy of using a kindle is the way it remembers the page you were on, even on stories you've put down before finishing to start something new – it always remembers. And of course the ease of turning the page. Click - and over we go! 

Most recently I was glad of my kindle device as I was in the process of formatting my latest ebook, Become a Writer – A Step by Step Guide. It's out as a paperback as a print on demand and I was delighted at how the publisher (Greenstream Publishing) had laid the book out, as it wasn't a straightforward novel, but a non-fiction 'how to' book. So there were bullet points and sidebars and the like which I was dreading trying to format correctly. Being able to email my efforts to my own kindle before publishing was really helpful.

So, in the early days I hadn't really expected to get a lot of use from my kindle device, but now I have to say that it's probably the best gadget that I've bought so far. How about you - what's the best (or worst) thing about your ebook reading device?

Become a Writer – A Step by Step Guide by Ann Evans, published by Greenstream Publishing. ISBN 978-1907670244

Amazon link:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Become-Writer-Step-Guide/dp/1907670246/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1343919473&sr=1-1

More of my ebooks and published books at: www.annevansbooks.co.uk


Comments

Lee said…
My ereader is too heavy (1st generation iPad), and I'm thinking of investing in a Kindle, but I'm very interested in everyone else's experiences and/or suggestions.
13 September 2012 at 09:47
Anonymous said…
I only bought a Kindle for checking my own ebooks before upload. I was a complete ebook sceptic, didn't expect to take to them at all. But since having an ereader I've rarely picked up a printed book! I did try using a Kobo, but it was absolutely horrible - slow and inflexible.
13 September 2012 at 10:58
Post a Comment

Popular posts

A Few Discreet Words About Caesar's Penis--Reb MacRath

By -
Image
Veni, vidi...Wiki! Not long ago I had the all-time greatest Great Idea: one, born of total ignorance, that nearly tanked a novel. As you may have guessed from my opening line, my subject is Julius Caesar. But you might not have guessed from the title that my Great Idea entailed his being reborn as a penis. Don't laugh, please, I beg you. I saw no way around this, even though showing JC as a 'dick' might lead some to think that I've written a spoof. In fact, it's a serious thriller. Without giving the plot away, I can say this: I needed JC's ghost, today, remembering his nights with Cleopatra on her fabled golden barge. There  was the heart of my book--a ghost trying for 2000 years to relive that lost boogie with Liz. And I'd begun to run with this when my memory corrected me: Mark Anthony, not JC, was on the barge with Cleo. And this was after JC's death. What the hell was I to do, lacking the good sense to check memory's 'facts
Read more

A writer's guide to Christmas newsletters - Roz Morris

By Roz Morris aka @Roz_Morris . Blog: Nail Your Novel -
Image
Let me confess: I'm a fan of round-robin christmas letters.  It's fashionable to diss them in the UK, but I disagree. Even if the missive is smug and airbrushed and claims the golden offspring can split the atom, it’s more meaningful than a card that only says 'from Nina and Frederik'.      But since I approve of Christmas newsletters, that means I must compose one. And I don't know what to put. I spent this year writing, rewriting, talking to other writers and, er, working out what to write next. Sure, there was adventure and atom-splitting, but it happened on the page and in my head.      And that's my update. One paragraph. How can I spread it out?      When in doubt, study the requirements of the genre. Boasting     Christmas letters need boasting, with bells on. Your friends will report a mighty throng of promotions, bonuses, and other unceasing achievements. Traditionally published authors can name-drop with the i
Read more

Margery Allingham and ... knitting? Casting on a summer’s mystery -- by Julia Jones

By -
Image
The Watchtower from the Saltings  (Photo Tom Barr)  How to connect a 1940s naval watchtower on the Tollesbury marshes, a brilliant Scottish knitwear designer and my all-time favourite novelist?   The investigation led me along the single-track lanes south-east from Tollesbury, heading towards the end of the old railway line to Tollesbury Pier. I began to get goosebumps as I remembered coming here before. Once on a long walk with my dog, when I was never quite sure where we were trespassing but was determined to explore anyway.  That was when I first saw the six-sided building, stark and guarded against the weather. Then I saw it again in my imagination: ‘It’s a t-tower,’ said David. Xanthe loved the way he said it with a shiver of excitement in his voice. ‘It’s in the m-middle of a f-field and it looks right down the r-river.’ ‘And when it was wartime the Navy built it so they could keep a lookout against invaders,’ added Kieran. ‘Then p-zow they’d press a button and the whole
Read more

Irresistably Drawn to the Faustian Pact: Griselda Heppel Channels her Inner Witch for World Book Day 2024.

By -
Image
Happy Easter! Griselda Heppel channelling her inner  Maggie Smith as Professor MacGonagall from Harry Potter. World Book Day has been and gone and I can now reveal my costume, having kept you in suspense for a whole month. I know. Lucky me, I found this splendid Professor MacGonagall outfit online and have been channelling my inner Maggie Smith ever since (soon to move on to the Dowager Countess What is a weekend? Grantham from Downton Abbey ). I was pleasantly surprised by how comfortable it was and reckon these Hogwarts wizards and witches know a thing or two about Practical Wear for Muggle Workshops (Spells, Charms and the Magic of Books Part 1, for instance). I’ve never before given author talks on each of my books all in one day (including two separate ones on The Fall of a Sparrow ) and I did wonder if I’d end up muddling all 3 of them (oops) or conking out altogether. Fortunately the stories are each so different in theme and background, and the Christ Church Cathedral Schoo
Read more

This one wild and precious life... reviewed by Katherine Roberts

By -
Image
You know that feeling of finding some coins down the back of the sofa? I was clearing out a drawer recently and came across an unused £10 National Book Token from ages ago... so long ago, in fact, that it had expired. "Ah well," I thought, "it was obviously a gift at the time, so easy come easy go..." and then I discovered that you can actually renew one of these tokens if it has expired. So I sent the details online to National Book Tokens, along with a photo of my expired card, and they emailed me a replacement. I could probably have spent this online too, but decided to enter into the spirit of olde-worlde book shopping and buy my gift-book from a local independent bookseller. I also decided it should be non-fiction, and so I chose the wonderful Arcturus Books in Totnes. Turned out I pretty much wanted to buy everything in the shop, but my token (being rather devalued over the 15 years or so it spent in my drawer) would only buy one book. In the end, I allowed th
Read more