"To The Pain," No Longer

William Goldman, known to my generation as author of the script of "The Princess Bride", says he will be best remembered for, "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." Which, I never before associated with him (oops...I will flog myself immeditately, then rent it tonight!)

Luckily, he understands the inherent burden of being human is that we are inexorably tied to our own perspective: "...I wish I liked my own writing more, but like all of us, I am trapped inside my own skin."

That's O.K., William. There are plenty of us out here to be an audience and to appreciate what you cannot. I love Goldman's writing - his sardonic humor mixed with a wistful, hopeful, even romantic ideal.

While playing "qutotable banter" with a friend - after I had rattled off a long streak of Eleanor Roosevelt one-liners, I came to the following quote from Goldman:

"One way an author dies a little each day is when his books go out of print."

The title of this post, "To the pain," is another Goldman quote, from “Princess Bride”. This is the punchline of a GREAT speech. The point is that the character threatens to fight, "to the pain," rather than to the death... dismembering his opponent, leaving him a hideous beast, with chunks sliced from his flesh, but leaving his ears to hear, "the cries of little children upon seeing his living remains,"... A most horrifying idea. I remember watching this as a child and being awed and fascinated by this description.

"One way an author dies a little each day is when his books go out of print." is from the same deep understanding as, "to the pain." The root idea of both is that there are fates worse than death.

With the technology of eBooks growing up and becoming daily reality, authors need suffer, "to the pain," no longer. eBooks need never "go out of print." We can maintain an infinite number of eBooks at the ready for book lovers, consumers and eBook aficionados to download 24/7/365. eBookstores never close. eBooks never go out of print. eBookshelves never need to be cleared to make room for new titles.

DPPstore is pleased to offer FREE conversion and listing services to any authors who hold copyright of their out of print work. Give new life to your backlist and leave "the pain" to the unimaginative, uninspired, technophobic few who refuse the new life and cleave desperately to "ink on dead trees".