book piracy is theft, not fandom
There’s a rot in some areas of the book community that has been supported and even encouraged: piracy. The endless sharing of free PDFs and shady download links is treated like a cheeky act of rebellion or, worse, a way of “supporting” authors. Let’s not mince words – it’s theft. Nothing more, nothing less.
And yet, people will line up to defend it. The excuses are pathetic and predictable. “Books are too expensive.” “I can’t get it in my country.” “I’ll buy it later if I like it.” Spare me. None of these justifications make you any less of a thief. You’re taking someone else’s work without paying for it. If you can’t afford a book, you don’t get the book. That’s how the world works. You don’t waltz into a café, help yourself to a coffee, and justify it by saying lattes are overpriced. So why does anyone think pirating books is fine?
The sheer entitlement is disgusting. Authors spend months, often years, writing. They go through endless edits, revisions, stress, and rejection. Then they finally get their book into the world, and readers who claim to “love” books thank them by stealing their work. Worse still, whole sections of the community wink and nod at it, as though pirating is just part of being a “real reader.” No, it isn’t. It’s spitting in the face of the very people you claim to support.
And let’s kill the romantic nonsense once and for all: “authors do it for the love of the craft.” Absolute rubbish. Love of the craft doesn’t pay rent. It doesn’t put food on the table. It doesn’t cover childcare, bills, or medical expenses. Writing is a job. Authors need income, just like anyone else. When their books are pirated, that income disappears. If writing stops paying, authors stop writing. Why would they keep producing stories if readers show them that their work has no monetary value?
This is where piracy becomes more than just theft – it’s a poison. It erodes the very foundation of publishing. If enough people pirate, publishers cut back. Advances shrink. Fewer voices get a chance. Creativity suffers. Piracy doesn’t expand access; it destroys opportunity. It’s a slow, parasitic bleeding of the industry.
What’s truly revolting is how piracy gets normalised in the book community. Influencers who claim to be champions of authors turn a blind eye, or worse, quietly share illegal links. Many of the loudest voices cheering it on sit on the left, the same people who bang on about fairness and protecting creators, yet happily promote theft when it suits them. The hypocrisy is staggering. They’ll call out corporations for exploitation, but think nothing of exploiting authors who can barely scrape by. If you do this, you’re not part of the book community you’re a parasite feeding off it.
Here’s the truth no one likes to say out loud: if you pirate books, you don’t deserve books. You’re not supporting literature, you’re destroying it. Authors owe you nothing. Don’t demand sequels, don’t beg for spin-offs, don’t act like you’re part of a fandom when all you’ve done is steal.
Book piracy isn’t rebellion, accessibility, or a victimless act. It’s theft. And if you condone it, you are the reason fewer authors will bother to keep writing.
