GLH quoted in Wired: Some exceptions to the conventional
wisdom that no one wants to read novels online exists in the
realm of fiction. Cory Doctorow, author of the science fiction
book Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom said the novel has been
downloaded more than 400,000 times since he began offering it
for free online in January, 2003.
Sales of the hardcover version of the novel have also been
brisk, at least by the modest expectations of science fiction
novelists, Doctorow said. He estimated that nearly 10,000 hardcover
copies have sold, and more than 10,000 paperbacks have been
released to retailers.
While it's unclear how many buyers of the book first got a
taste of the novel on the internet, Doctorow is convinced that
free online publication helped sales. Even if book sales bombed,
however, he'd still see value in putting the novel online to
make his work more accessible to readers.
"I think it has to be about posterity and artistic satisfaction,"
he said. "Anyone who gets into science fiction for the
money isn't trying very hard." (9/22/04)
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