Is the word "book" on the verge of extinction?

Seriously, will the word "book" fade away? Who the heck buys books these days? I certainly don't. In fact, I doubt I'll buy another physical book in my lifetime. And if I do, it will be because the damn book publisher failed to produce an ebook.

In the e-publishing era, we may not use the word "book" anymore. We'd say we're reading a novel, or a horror story, a screenplay, or a collection of short stories. After all, what would it mean to say we're reading a "book"?

What the heck is a book? It's merely a physical thing, the product book publishers used to produce before people stopped buying their wares. So is "book" a soon-to-be useless term?

The meaning of the word won't fade away completely, of course. We'll always refer to the historical existence of libraries that contained wall-to-wall books. We'll always know what that meant. And some people will inherit books from their grandparents. But will we use the term in our daily lives? I'm not sure. I think at first we will. But in ten or twenty years?

What do you think?

A future for deleted scenes

When I enjoy a book, it's a hard moment when I reach the last page. All those good feelings, all that enjoyment -- over? Done?! It can't be!

But maybe the book doesn't have to end there. What about all those great scenes the author deleted? And the story lines that were abandoned? And characters that didn't make it into the final version?

When I have time, I think I'll create a few "pages" on the Xmas Carol blog. Apparently you can set up separate pages (in addition to the main web page, in other words) that people access through tabs. I see a "Deleted Scenes" tab coming up in my future.

I want the XC blog to deliver extra value to readers, to give them a solid reason to visit. In addition to interesting posts, the deleted scenes might fit the bill nicely. And then readers can meet Margo, a great deleted character. And what about James, Maria Kennedy's other love interest? Didn't know about that one, did you?

Anyway, food for thought. Also, since Xmas Carol is an ebook, I could easily tack these features on at the end of the book. But I'm not sure that would be a great idea. Still, think about it: ebooks can go on forever if the author keeps adding stuff. Betcha can't do that with paper books.

Annie's chart

To help me think the pricing situation through, Annie made this chart.

Looks like it's hard to make any money at 99 cents. Unless the book is a major blockbuster, the money won't roll in.

Much as I'm not into money, it would be helpful to have some change to pay for things.

I'm leaning toward 2.99 now but I'm going to research this further. Thanks, Annie!