Shifting from ink on paper to digital text suddenly allows
us to make perfect copies of our work. Shifting from isolated
computers to a globe-spanning network of connected
computers suddenly allows us to share perfect copies of
our work with a worldwide audience at essentially no cost.
About thirty years ago this kind of free global sharing became
something new under the sun. Before that, it would
have sounded like a quixotic dream.
Digital technologies have created more than one revolution.
Let’s call this one the access revolution.
Why don’t more authors take advantage of the access
revolution to reach more readers? The answer is pretty
clear. Authors who share their works in this way aren’t
selling them, and even authors with purposes higher than
money depend on sales to make a living. Or at least they
appreciate sales.