Finally, somebody gets the future of the e-book. It's not just about price and ease of access -- it's about content. David Baldacci, taking a hint from material commonly found on DVDs, will provide one of the first examples on April 20, with an enhanced e-book version of "Deliver Us from Evil." His publisher, Grand Central, plans to provide a look at how books are written, with audio, video and photos explaining his creative process as well as an ending that he discarded.
Baldacci said in Publishers Weekly that readers often want to know where he gets his ideas, what his work day is like and how he researches his books. The enhanced e-book will sell for $15.99 and will be released simultaneously with the hardcover that lists for $27.99 (but which Amazon is discounting to $15.11), PW said.
This is the way e-books should evolve. I'm reading a new bio of Willie Mays, and would love to see outtakes of the author's interviews with the San Francisco Giants' slugger. Even better: a video of Mays making his famous, over-the-shoulder catch in the 1954 World Series -- why make me go to YouTube for it? The sooner authors and publishers start adding this new content to e-books, the better off they'll be.