At last, a place to vent my frustration with like-minded people. Am I alone in my obsession with book sizes, in particular paperbacks? I hate tradebacks (roughly 8 x 5 inches) but new releases just aren't published in the nice compact mass market size anymore (7 x 4.5 inches). I was looking at a paperback on amazon recently - a book I really really want, but was horrified when I looked at its dimensions - a hugemongous 9 x 6 inches! - this in my silly, obsessed little mind meant that I couldn't buy it. Mass Market size is just perfect for a paperback. They fit in your sack or even coat pocket and also the way they sit in your hand is perfect. Why has the trend moved so strongly towards the Cumbersome and ugly tradeback?
MM's still get published, usually about ayear to 18 months afterthe original publication, and generally only for crime and fantasy and romance. General fiction rarely goes below the size of a QP, and that's usually about six to twelve months after initial publication. Then you get freaks like Twilight, that have stayed in that huge FC size since their original publication....
I'm not a fan of huge books, either. I like the ones that are the size of a small paperback, but have a hard cover.
+QP= quality paperback, its what most books are published as FC = format C, the soft cover big size that newreleases are first printed in (usually) sorry, i work in a bookstore and take the terms for granted now XD
The only reason I don't mind the larger books, is ease of reading. I tend to read in bed, and without my glasses (for far away--I'm blind as a bat beyond six inches from my nose) I can't seen small paperbacks without having them right on top of my face. The bigger books I can hold back at a comfortable 9 inches or so. However, for books I intend to read while on the go, or outside, I prefer the MM sized books.
I like the big ones if i am going to keep them at home. But if i am going to take the book with me i like it to be smaller.
I always figured it was that way because smaller books are cheaper to print and associated with genre fiction. If a publisher wants to imply that their book is sophisticated and worthwhile, they'll avoid small sizes like the plague. That's why non-fiction is rarely in the small mass market size, because non-fiction needs to hold the intellectual high-ground -- it is supposed to be informing us, after all.
I'm so glad you've said this, David. I once suggested in another forum that the trend towards the bigger tradeback was nothing short of snobbery, and I was called stupid.
I have always preferred the MM sized books and I agree that it stinks most books don't come in that size. From working in a major book store in the receiving end of things I learned that it really is about pricing. They figure if they can get you to buy something for $12.95 or $14.95 rather then $6.99 they have kinda gotten one over on you. As a reader it is awful when you don't really have the money to spend on such things, but as an author I can see the benefits.
