This is Read an eBook Week, with thousands of titles available at no cost, offered by many publishers in the hopes of attracting permanent devotees of downloads. E-Reads is a participant with a Warren Murphy “Destroyer” adventure and a Highlands historical romance by Hannah Howell. If the spike in visits to our website is any indicator, thousands of bargain hunters are endorsing the program. There is no better bargain than gratis.

Smashwords founder and blogger Mark Coker has interviewed Rita Toews, whose brainstorm seven years ago led to this annual tradition. “I hope to introduce electronic books to people who have been skeptical about them in the past,” she tells Coker on Huffington Post. “I also hope to give Joe and Jane E. Author a place to get their writing noticed. Now that the traditional publishing houses have shown an interest in e-books it is hard for the unrecognized author to spread the word about their books.”

RC