This is so discouraging. I have my name set up in Google Alerts and I got an alert that someone was looking for a download of my books. I clicked through and here is the full conversation:
I’m really sorry for those poor people that they had to look for so long to find where they could steal my work. I’m sure it was super inconvenient for them. It’s not inconvenient for me to spend five years working on the first book of that series and then end up giving it away for free. Or to spend another three years completing the series to have people looking for a really long time for a free download.
The ebooks cost $3.99 ea. The box set is a whopping $9.99. Or you can check it out for free from a library – a library that will pay for the book. Meanwhile, my royalty checks are dwindling, so I have to work fulltime to pay bills and buy food, which means I can’t write as much as I used to. Would you continue working at your job if they didn’t pay you? No. I’m an absolute no one in the writing world, so if people are spending time looking for my books to pirate, can you imagine how many copies are stolen from a well-known author?
I’m pleading with you. Please don’t pirate. Books, music, photography. Anything. And if you know of others doing it, please ask them to stop. Authors want to keep writing, but if they aren’t getting paid, it can’t always happen.