Monday, September 19, 2011

What Do You Do With ARCs?

Posted by Kathy Martin at 6:00 AM
I have a moral dilemma and I would love some input on this topic.

What do you do with ARCs after you finish reading them? I am starting to get quite a few piled up.

Here are my options as I see them:
  1. Donate them to my High School Media Center until I get the finished book. (But some are for adult books that would not be appropriate there.)
  2. Give them away in contests. (But, if the finished book is now available, won't I be cutting into the author's sales for the book? That seems wrong!)
  3. Throw them away. (I absolutely hate the idea of throwing away books although I can force myself to do so if it is the best option.)
Do you see any other options? What should I do?

BTW, I love getting eARCs from NetGalley because they don't cause this sort of dilemma. I don't feel bad when I delete the file from my Kindle after reading it and writing the review.

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13 comments:

  1. Bookish in a BoxSeptember 19, 2011 at 6:07 AM

    I give them away! Personally, if I win an ARC after the book has been released and I like it, I'll buy myself a finished copy that I wouldn't have bought if I hadn't read the book at all. So it's a big win since I'm pretty picky about which new books I buy.

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  2. MeredithSeptember 19, 2011 at 6:13 AM

    I give them to my son's high school, even the adult ones. I've found out from his former reading teacher/now assistant principal that the grown-ups are looking for new reading material too! I gave them one ARC, not adult romance but a biography-type book on Kennedy, and when I went to see her a few days later, she had a waiting list stuck to the front of the book in stickies of teachers and administrators who were wanting to read the book after her! Most of my ARCs are YA stuff though, and the kids love the newer stuff. The school's library has very little to spend right now, and the reading teachers have to buy their own books for their classroom! If the ARC came with a letter from the publisher requesting reviews, I leave that in the book and let her know to have the kids say something about the book online. If it's an ARC of a book that I LOVE, I'll eventually buy one for myself, but almost all of my books get swapped or given away once I've read them. They don't do any good sitting on a shelf when someone else can enjoy them.

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  3. AnonymousSeptember 19, 2011 at 7:00 AM

    I have an arc cart in my library. The kids all know that these are uncorrected copies. They don't get checked out. I just tell the student to take it. That always blows their minds. I don't keep track of them in any way. I have no idea what's in/ out/ or gone forever. I have many finished copies on my shelves and sometimes, when 2 kids want a title, or it's already checked out, I will mention the arc's availability.

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  4. UnknownSeptember 19, 2011 at 7:02 AM

    I donate some, give some away and the rest I trade on GoodReads. Some people like to collect books like that and it gives them the opportunity.
    I agree, I mostly use netgalley for the same reasons.

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  5. BookladySeptember 19, 2011 at 7:02 AM

    A few I keep until I can afford a finished copy. The adult and young adult ones I pass on to other readers so I can get them excited about a new author/series. The ones suitable for elementary school I give away as prizes - again - in an effort to get the kids excited. I NEVER add them to the school's library collection as that's not ethical, but if it's an ARC for a book I'm giving away for a prize, it's one that I decided was a good match for our library and I will have ordered at least one finished copy or more for the collection.

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  6. Annette MillsSeptember 19, 2011 at 8:18 AM

    I mostly give them to my high school or middle school media center. If not appropriate I usually keep them. I don't see a problem with using them for a giveaway (I actually posted an ARC giveaway today!) Because if I love an ARC, I'll buy the "real" book anyway, and I hope the people I give them to will do the same, or encourage others to read the book.

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  7. Jessica ( frellathon )September 19, 2011 at 9:27 AM

    I'd say donate them even if it's to the library sale shelf and a giveaway. I'd be okay with entering those giveaways lol :)

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  8. Small ReviewSeptember 19, 2011 at 9:41 AM

    I work in a library, so I put them on the shelves there for the kids to borrow (or keep). I don't know if it's "ethical" but we're a very tiny library and we have to fight hard to get any YA books on our shelves so our collection is tiny. Because of this, many of our books come from donations.

    I also use them as prizes for our library reading clubs.

    Otherwise, I swap them with fellow bloggers.

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  9. ephrielleSeptember 19, 2011 at 12:10 PM

    I would go with give them away or offer up as a trade. There are people out there that don't mind in the least owning an arc.

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  10. JanaSeptember 19, 2011 at 1:32 PM

    I do giveaways or keep them and loan them to young friends (that sounds creepy, but you know what I mean!). If I got it from a publisher and it is appropriate for my school library (middle school), I always buy a copy for my library. I have a hard time giving them away, though.

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  11. Jen BigheartSeptember 19, 2011 at 2:46 PM

    Seems like a hot topic question. I do several types of things with them. I give them away to nearby schools and shelters. I have hosted a swap party with other bloggers - that was FUN! We took the leftover books to a nearby shelter. I also have a trade page on my blog for some doubles that I have received. My only advice - never sell and never throw away.

    Good luck!

    Jen

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  12. EmilySeptember 19, 2011 at 6:09 PM

    I offer them as giveaway prizes- my attitude is that many people enter any old giveaway that comes up and there's no guarantee that they would have purchased the book new at some point. I mean, if winning an ARC takes a sale away from an author, then so do used bookstores and libraries, and that's an argument done to death I think. If people don't want to win the book then they don't have to enter!

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  13. Lisa Richards/alterlisaSeptember 22, 2011 at 4:12 PM

    I give them away on my blog except for the YA ones. Those I give to a friend that teaches middle school to lend out to her students.
    (\___/)
    (='.'=)
    (")_(")

    alterlisa AT yahoo DOT com
    http://lisaslovesbooksofcourse.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete

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