Flip the page

I'm participating in the Smashwords end of year sale so a number of my short stories and novels are available at discount over the next few weeks, including my new short stories Dream Machine Winona and Invisible (see previous post).

My recent experience of having my seventh novel Blue Hotel published commercially highlighted how ebooks are now firmly part of the reading experience. Because the paperback edition of the novel is only available to order online many people elect to buy the digital version – some have told me they even prefer it. Artists adapt.

So do readers. There was an outcry when iOS 16 removed the page flip from Apple Books. Five years ago a change to a phone's UI would have been an obscure note in a tech publication. Now it's a mainstream concern.

Personally I hope Apple brings back the flip. I enjoy thumbing through a book no matter what the format. Digital distribution has brought me all manner of titles I could never find on bookstore shelves, like George Simenon's romans durs.