<HTML><BODY style="word-wrap: break-word; -khtml-nbsp-mode: space; -khtml-line-break: after-white-space; ">Cord:<DIV><BR><DIV><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"><P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">The main reason why publishers often do not send out free copies to</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">authors is, I think,</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 13.0px"><BR></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">+ NOT the cost of the book (absolutely negligible)</FONT></P></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>A more accurate phrase would be "relatively negligible", but you're right, it's hardly the main reason.</DIV><BR><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">+ NOT the shipping costs<BR></FONT></P></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>These are more significant than the cost of the books, but still relatively negligible.</DIV><BR><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"><P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica"> <SPAN class="Apple-converted-space"> </SPAN></FONT><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">+ BUT RATHER: the amount of work necessary to keep track who actually</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">are tho book's authors and where they live</FONT></P> </BLOCKQUOTE><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV><FONT class="Apple-style-span" color="#000000">The amount of work isn't all that onerous, to be honest. However...</FONT></DIV><BR><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"><P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">So the problem probably isn't money - but time. </FONT><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">There has to be someone</FONT></P></BLOCKQUOTE><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">whose job description includes "send out author's copies". If there</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">isn't no one will find the time to do it, even if everybody has good</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">intentions.</FONT></P></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>There's the truth of it. There is no one whose job it is to send out author's - or "comp" - copies. In fact, it's not required of anyone. It is done as a courtesy, which means that 1) it's a good thing to do, and should be done, but also 2) that it has no practical priority in the workflow.</DIV><BR><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">I believe every publisher will send out one (or more) free author's</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">copies if they are specifically asked for a certain book. But they may</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">not find the time to do this automatically for every publication.</FONT></P></BLOCKQUOTE><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>Perhaps not every publisher will necessarily do this, but I have yet to hear of one that wouldn't, within reason.</DIV><BR><BLOCKQUOTE type="cite"> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">In the case of authors like Don Rosa or Vicar, whose works are published</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">a lot by Ehapa here in Germany, I suppose Ehapa would rather be willing</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">to send out *every* new German Disney publication to them. This may in</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">fact be easier (and thereby cheaper) than trying to filter only those</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">which contain stories by the respective author. It may not hurt to ask</FONT></P> <P style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face="Helvetica" size="3" style="font: 12.0px Helvetica">Ehapa for this.</FONT></P> </BLOCKQUOTE><BR></DIV><DIV>Whether this is Ehapa's view or not, it is a pretty fair description of a fairly common practice. </DIV><BR></DIV><DIV>(You sure you don't have any special insights into publishing?)</DIV><DIV><BR class="khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>Gary</DIV></BODY></HTML>