Digital age poses challenges for authors

　　数字化时代的版权纠结

　　导读：百度文库侵权事件让我们看到，电子图书的繁荣为我们的生活带来了方便和快捷，但同时也带来了侵权和盗版 (piracy)等诸多问题。电子图书，究竟该何去何从?

　　When Chris Morphew started writing stories about dinosaurs and time machines as a kid, he never imagined he would become a best-selling author.

　　当还是孩子的克里斯?墨菲(音译)开始写关于恐龙和时光机器的故事时，他完全没有想到自己会成为一名畅销书作家。

　　Several years and countless books later, the 26-year-old Australian is still wondering about the future.

　　在几年内出版了无数的作品后，这位26岁的澳大利亚人仍然对未来感到疑虑。

　　It seems anything is possible for young authors like Morphew in today’s digital age, where electronic books can be purchased and downloaded with only one click.

　　在当今的数字化时代，对于像墨菲这样的年轻作者来说，似乎什么事儿都能发生。如今，只要点一下鼠标，就可以购买并下载电子书。

　　Morphew, who has published two kids’ adventure series, says e-books can *entice readers because most retailers allow a sneak preview before buying.

　　墨菲已经出版了两个儿童冒险书系列，他表示，电子书可以吸引更多的读者是因为大多数零售商都会在读者购买前提供试读。

　　“It’s a great way to introduce potential readers to a novel, and hopefully get them hooked enough to pay for the rest,” Morphew said.

　　墨菲说：“这是个将小说推荐给潜在读者的好方法，可以寄希望将他们牢牢吸引，使得他们愿意购买剩下的部分。”

　　The e-book phenomenon is taking off among consumers.

　　电子书在消费者中掀起了购买热潮。

　　The global e-book market grew by more than 200 percent last year, according to a new report from Futuresource Consulting.

　　据英国未来咨讯发布的新报告，去年全球的电子书市场增长超过了200%。

　　The market is boosted by a rising number of e-book services, e-reading devices and tablets like the iPad.

　　越来越多的电子书服务、电子阅读器和像iPad这样的平板电脑让电子书市场繁荣起来。

　　But in a world of such easily downloadable material, Morphew says piracy and copyright issues are concerning.

　　但墨菲也表示，在这样一个可以轻易下载资料的世界里，盗版和版权问题值得关注。

　　“As an author who pours months of his life into each book he creates, it’s disheartening to think that people might be willing to take what I’ve created without giving any thought to the effort that went into producing those projects in the first place,” he said.

　　他说：“首先，作为一个在每部作品中都投入了数月精力的作家，想到人们可能在想要阅读我的创作时，完全没有想过这些作品里所倾注的努力，是令人沮丧的。”

　　It’s no secret that the Internet is awash with unlicensed, free digital copies of books on file-sharing websites.

　　互联网中充斥着文件共享网站上的无授权的免费电子书已不是什么秘密了。

　　This has led some successful authors to worry about dwindling profits.

　　这让一些成功的作家担心收入会减少。

　　“If readers lose the habit of paying me for my work, I can’t work. Writing is how I make my living,” British novelist Chris Cleave told the Guardian.

　　英国小说家克里斯?克利夫(音译)在接受《卫报》采访时表示：“如果读者已经不习惯花钱买我的作品，那我将无法工作。写作是我谋生的手段。”

　　William Kostakis, a 21-year-old Australian author who is currently completing his second novel, isn’t so concerned.

　　21岁的澳大利亚作家威廉?科斯塔基斯(音译)最近完成了他的第二部小说，他并不是很担心。

　　He says book digitization can actually make it easier for young writers to support their careers. “Competitive pricing and self-publishing through Amazon means that authors can get their work out to the world, and start making money,” Kostakis said.

　　他表示，实际上，图书数字化使得年轻作家能更为容易地发展他们的事业。科斯塔基斯说：“价格上的竞争优势以及通过亚马逊网站进行自助出版，都意味着作家可以让他们的作品走向世界并开始获利。”

　　Kostakis says freelancing is another great way to help pay the bills. He is currently writing for the online Australian news site Ninemsn.com.

　　科斯塔基斯说做自由作家是另一个能帮自己付账的好办法。他最近就在为澳大利亚新闻网站Ninemsn.com撰稿。

　　“Freelancing is the key to making money until you’re established, with most authors turning to journalism after publication to support themselves financially,” Kostakis said.

　　科斯塔基斯称：“在成名之前，做自由作家是挣钱的关键，大多数作家在作品出版后，便转向新闻业以获得经济来源。”

　　So is there hope for young authors out there? It appears so. Life in the technological fast lane has them charging full speed ahead.

　　那么对年轻作家来说还有希望吗?似乎是有的。科技快车道上的生活使得他们正在全速前进。

编辑：张雨

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