I’ve been sitting on this news for a couple of weeks, kind of afraid to pass it along to all of you, my reading public… but I got published in a book recently.

I was published in Glitter: Real Stories From Real Women About Sexual Desire, a book curated by the lovely Mona Darling whom I delightfully became acquainted with at BlogHer last August.

I’d be rather honored if you went and bought it and read it. It’s available in paperback or Kindle formats.

There’s also a lovely blog called Glitterhood which is the official home of the book. Won’t you drop by?

Earlier this afternoon I found myself in Midtown because I needed to pick up a paycheck and once I’d gotten all of my bank business done, I decided that since I finished reading The Hunger Games yesterday, it was time to go pick up copies of the next two books, and since I wasn’t sure when I’d be leaving the house again and I was within walking distance of Barnes and Noble, I hoofed it over.

I left empty handed.

Reason? The second and third books in the series are still hardcover only when it comes to being book books and I cannot under any circumstance think of a reason why I would purchase a copy of a book in the young adult section that’s hardcover and $17.99 (actually, it would be more than that because I live in a state with sales tax).

I’m desperate to find out what happens, but I’m not that desperate.

Besides, it’s like $5.99 for the Kindle… and clearly, $5.99 is better than $17.99 as in I can buy the third book AND a sandwich and soda with the $12 that I saved.

I couldn’t help being disappointed because I was expecting to pick up two paperbacks costing $8.99. I wanted these books in paperback.

And so, the internal debate begins… In what format do I buy these books? I have to weigh the pros and cons every time I make a purchase.

I had wanted to get these books in paperback because while James hasn’t read The Hunger Games yet, he wanted to and I fully expect that he’s going to like the books and would probably want to read the rest of the trilogy. If I buy the books as e-books and he ends up wanting to read them, chances are we’d end up buying the books again in paperback because James doesn’t like the Kindle (actually no, that’s not true… he’s never tried to read a book on the device so technically he’s adverse to the idea of reading a book on the Kindle)… which I guess is still going to be better than buying the hardcover book because $5.99 plus $8.99 is only $14.98 but you know… if I can avoid spending money on something, that’s generally what I want to do.

I seriously have a love/hate relationship with e-books.

I love the fact that they’re cheaper than their book book counterparts. I love the fact that they’re a total instant gratification purchase. I love the fact that I can read the books I purchase on my Kindle device, or on the app on my phone, or the app on my computer. I love the fact that since there’s an app for my phone, I can read books in the dark. I love the fact that e-book reading is totally conducive to reading while standing on the subway. I love the fact that I can carry tons of books around in my pocket so I can switch what I’m reading on a whim.

I hate the fact that when I absolutely love a book, I feel compelled to buy a second copy in physical book form making me wish I’d just waited to go to the store to buy the book. I hate the fact that I don’t have a physical copy of the book to loan to friends.

Okay, fine… so the love does outweigh the hate… but that whole wishing I’d bought the book when I bought the e-book after I finish thing drives me three loves worth of crazy.

Then from there is the whole hardcover vs. paperback debate… which I suppose I’ve never really gotten into because I tend to gravitate towards what’s cheaper 90% of the time. I’ve only ever bought hardcovers if I absolutely could not wait when something came out and since e-books exist now, generally in that scenario I cave and buy the e-book.

How about you? How do you like to consume your books these days?

I find I really have to avoid Bluestockings. I simply can’t seem to go into that store without walking out the door with a minimum of four books. It’s the display table that gets me every time. I go in there looking for something specific, and the next thing I know I have the something specific in my hand plus three more books that I thing I need.

Namely, I needed to pick up a copy of Urban Tantra: Sacred Sex for the Twenty-First Century by Barbara Carrellas. I actually just finished reading the book, but when I bought it originally, I bought the Kindle version even though I knew damn well I was going to want a hardcopy because I just couldn’t wait to have it. I swear, that’s where the book industry makes out on me. Half the time I buy the Kindle version and love the book so much I need to have it on the shelf for reference, then the other half of the time I buy the book and then end up buying the Kindle version too because I don’t want to lug around the book on the train. It’s a racket, I tell ya!

So, what else did I get… The Electric Jesus: The Healing Journey of a Contemporary Gnostic by Jonathan Talat Phillips, which I’m not really sure what to expect about but it seemed remotely interesting and I like reading about people’s spiritual awakenings and such so I figured it might be interesting.

Dirty! Dirty! Dirty!: Of Playboys, Pigs, and Penthouse Paupers-An American Tale of Sex and Wonder by Mike Edison, which I mostly picked up because I laughed my ass off at his last book, I Have Fun Everywhere I Go: Savage Tales of Pot, Porn, Punk Rock, Pro Wrestling, Talking Apes, Evil Bosses, Dirty Blues, American Heroes, and the Most Notorious Magazines in the World. Jeez Louise, that man picks fucking long book titles.

Then finally, the absolutely fantastic Erika Lopez‘s first book, Flaming Iguanas: An Illustrated All-Girl Road Novel Thing to which there was no option in regard to whether I bought it or not because it’s Erika FUCKING Lopez. Oh yeah, and you should buy her other book, The Girl Must Die: A Monster Girl Memoir because quite frankly… that’s just required reading.

I guess I’ll just keep my nose stuck in a book for awhile.