It really is remarkable how much every tech company is now just PURE FUCKING EVIL and intent on inserting themselves in between every human interaction so they can monetize it, monopolize it, control it...

...and now they want to insert themselves between you & THE ACTUAL ART.

It's deeply inhuman.

Kindle's New Gen AI-Powered "Ask This Book" Feature Raises Rights Concerns - Writer Beware

In a recent press release, Amazon noted that some new features were coming to Kindle. We’re adding new AI-powered reading features that preserve the magic of reading on Kindle. Story So Far lets you catch up on the book you’re reading—but only up to where you’ve read without any spoilers. For our endlessly curious readers,Read More

Writer Beware (writerbeware.blog)

@susankayequinn

I'm seeing authors taking their books off Amazon because of this.

I might, as well. I'm really, really, really not okay with this crap.

It will be a pain to set up print through other services, though, and it will wreck what little visibility I have. But I killed my business already, so what's leaving my biggest vendor?

Fortunately, I've been wide for years, I have sales through Google etc, I have my own PayHip store, so it won't be all gone.

@Firlefanz I will be setting up to sell direct in 2026 for sure. I hate this and READERS will leave because of it. I'm unwilling to (once again) hurt my ability to reach people in an attempt to hurt the tech companies--there are better ways to fight than self-injury, and I'm very leery of that. I'm also thinking theyay be forced to walk this back. Happens a lot. So I'm not pulling... For now.

But I will be building alternatives.
And buying a Kobo

@susankayequinn

Friend of mine suggested something he called "Amazon Last".

Meaning he will publish his books everywhere else first, and then, maybe two months later, on Amazon.

Because we need to teach and encourage readers to buy elsewhere. To side-load their Kindles, rather than take the very comfortable route.

I am so mad... and I'm channeling that anger into putting even more of my books into my own store (means reformatting them).

@Firlefanz @susankayequinn

I've been musing that approach as well. Does your friend have a list of platforms?

@juergen_hubert

Well, he's using the usual suspects, same as I:

Draft2Digital (including Smashwords)
Google Play Store
DriveThroughFiction
PayHip (as our own stores)

@susankayequinn

@Firlefanz @juergen_hubert

my books have long been available on the five major retailers: Amazon, Kobo, Google Play, Nook, Apple

I'm still waiting for D2D to distribute ebooks to bookshop.org — that would be my next preferred shop.

And lots of people host on their own websites with various stores.

@Firlefanz @juergen_hubert

my books have long been available on the five major retailers: Amazon, Kobo, Google Play, Nook, Apple

I'm still waiting for D2D to distribute ebooks to bookshop.org — that would be my next preferred shop.

And lots of people host on their own websites with various stores.

@susankayequinn @Firlefanz @juergen_hubert

They are taking WAY too long with that. Last correspondence I had from them said it would be this autumn, which is gone. Every time I see someone recommending bookshop I get annoyed all over again.

@crcollins

Same! I mean, how hard can it be to open up a cooperation with D2D?

@susankayequinn @juergen_hubert

@Firlefanz @crcollins @juergen_hubert

I frankly would MUCH prefer Bookshop had a portal that selfpub authors could upload direct to. And I know that Ingram will distribute your ebook to them (I think?) so I might have to look into that option again. I'm not excited about distributors of any kind for ebooks, not just because they take a cut, but because that's just another level of control that I don't have over pricing and cover changes... which can cause big problems.

@susankayequinn

Of course, that would be better. But it would also be a lot more complicated, and right now, I wish for progress in the right direction.

Thing is, Bookshop started out with booksellers in mind, not with authors. It shows.

@crcollins @juergen_hubert

@Firlefanz It's completely fine with me that they're supporting bookstores, though! That's... like the entire thing. But they've been slowly building on that core idea and I think that's super smart. They get no real complaints from me, just requests

@crcollins @juergen_hubert

@juergen_hubert

Well, he's using the usual suspects, same as I:

Draft2Digital (including Smashwords)
Google Play Store
DriveThroughFiction
PayHip (as our own stores)

@susankayequinn

@Firlefanz @juergen_hubert @susankayequinn
I've been using Wide via D2D, plus Amazon from the beginning, and so far I've made roughly equal tiny amounts from D2D and A. (Mostly A for the past few months: I need to do more marketing)

I have not set up my own store yet because with very low sales and only 2 books out so far, it's more trouble than it is worth. I will look at standing up a store once vol 3 is published, concluding the first arc.

I'll probably leave 1 and 2 on A until then.

@ElyseMGrasso

I will say that Amazon and Google Play Store make up the bulk of my royalties.

Visually, Google has the nicer interface (no ads!), but their search function is not very good. You basically need to know what you want to buy. And their delivery is not good unless you buy for a phone.

For aware readers, Smashwords and Payhip are the best bets. They give you a file, DRM-free, and you can decide what you want to do with it.

If readers only knew.

@juergen_hubert @susankayequinn