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Why I'm Not a Fan of Publishing on Amazon but Do So Anyway

I kind of feel like I'm feeding the beast.

By Michael BrockbankPublished 2 years ago 7 min read
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Recently, I published my first book on Amazon's KDP platform. It was suggested by one of my viewers, so I decided to give the entire process of self-publishing a try. I wrote A Freelancer's Tale with the sole purpose of using it as a vessel to expand my knowledge of how to publish a book on my own. So, I'm not expecting to make a lot of money, especially since it's an autobiography of someone very few people know.

Still, the book itself has served its purpose by: a) helping me learn more about the process of self-publishing, and b) I now have a book on my shelf behind me with my name on it.

At any rate, I'm not all that thrilled about how Amazon works in terms of self-publishing. Since this is the only platform I'm on at the moment, I don't really have anything to compare it to. However, there are a few things about the platform that just irritate me in general. Though, it's not all bad, in the grand scheme of things.

It's Easy to Get Started

First of all, Amazon's KDP system is extremely easy to use. Most of the elements for Kindle Direct Publishing are self-explanatory with tooltips to further explain the purpose of each.

I suppose this is part of why I feel like I cheated to get my first book published. I mean, literally, anyone can publish a book and sell it on Amazon. For me, it kind of takes away a bit of the glitz and glamour of having a paperback with my name as the author.

Of course, this is also viewing books from someone whose dream it was to be a published author in the late 1980s.

Nowadays, anyone can publish while putting in far less effort than myself. This means it doesn't have the same appeal as it had for me 35 years ago. Having a book published was more of a symbol of skill and success. Today, all that's involved is a bit of time.

Don't get me wrong, there are some great self-published authors out there. It just doesn't have the same effect on me as it did from my teen years.

On the other hand, it may have been years before getting my book published any other way. In reality, I haven't spent a single dime producing my book, and every online tool I used was in its free version. I wanted to see if it can be done, and I don't have several thousand dollars to throw at editors, cover artists, or agents.

Marketing Tools for "Exclusives"

Perhaps one of the biggest hangups I have about Amazon's platform is that you get all kinds of marketing and promotional tools...as long as you make your book exclusive to Amazon. This means you can't sell it on other systems like Barnes & Noble or even through your own website with eCommerce.

I am quite against exclusivity in nearly every regard. So, even though I'd probably make more in sales and royalties through Amazon if I went exclusive, I refuse out of principle. Not to mention that the purpose of the book is to use it as a tool for learning. I can't learn how Barnes & Noble's self-publishing platform works if I can't use my book. Well, not without writing an entirely new book, anyway.

I might write a book specifically for Amazon just so I can learn about its exclusive programs and share that knowledge on my blog and YouTube channel. But for now, I'd rather be able to distribute my first book everywhere that I can.

Proprietary Free Formatting Tools

Amazon offers a free formatting tool for authors with Kindle Create. At the time I was publishing A Freelancer's Tale, this software was extremely buggy and difficult to manage. But that's not what ruffled my feathers a bit.

Kindle Create only exports files as KPF files. These are proprietary file types to Amazon, which means you can't use them on other self-publishing sites. In order to upload my book to Barnes & Noble, I need to find a formatting tool that is more universal. Besides, I would like to sell it from my website and everywhere else I can upload the eBook version. This makes Kindle Create kind of useless to my overall plans.

Although Kindle Create does have quite a few issues, I was able to figure it out and finally get my book available on the KDP platform. And for all intents and purposes, it came out relatively clean. I just don't like the idea of proprietary file types and having to use more than one tool to format the book.

Live and learn, I guess.

Easy to Sink Into Obscurity

Because Amazon is such a massive platform, it's easy to sink into obscurity without proper marketing. There are just too many books to choose from throughout every genre you can think of. So, if you don't plan to advertise your book, don't plan on making any sales.

That's true with just about everything, really. It takes money to make money. Just keep in mind the sheer volume of books Amazon has at its disposal.

Much like trying to manage a YouTube channel, you'll need to put in quite a bit of effort to market yourself as an author and your books that are published. Otherwise, it'll be exceptionally difficult to gain any traction if you're looking to make a bit of money from royalties.

Get yourself seen on as many platforms as possible.

Underselling Yourself

One thing that drives me absolutely nuts is undercutting a person's value. I've dealt with this a lot as a freelance writer since 2012. Too many people will drop their rates in the hopes to land a "gig," but wind up making less than half of what they would have made as a greeter at Walmart.

Amazon is no different.

A common strategy among most authors is to drop the price of their book in order to get the Amazon algorithm to show it more often to potential buyers. This is because it runs on kind of like a popularity system. So, 200-page books are often dropped to $0.99, if not offered for free. And when more people buy the 99-cent copy, it triggers the algorithm to think the book is popular. Thus, it puts the book front and center of the others.

Now, I can see how this kind of a strategy can vastly improve notoriety and popularity. But I still have a problem with people purposely underselling themselves for the potential to sell more books.

I guess I'm just one of the few who sees a creator's true value versus trying to appease algorithms.

The Printed Copies Look Beautiful!

I do have to admit, the printed copies Amazon puts out for your books look amazing! The cover was spot-on, the internal page print is clean, and the spine structure is solid. It's definitely worth the printed copy Amazon charges when selling your book.

I was half-expecting the font to bleed and the cover colors to be horrible. However, I was pleasantly surprised by how well the printing came out.

In fact, the overall printing looks on par with professional publishing house books I have on my bookshelf. So, for me, that was a definite bonus of using Amazon to sell the first book.

Still, It's Where Many People Read

Although I'm not a huge fan of KDP and Amazon's practices, I'll continue to use the platform for the foreseeable future. After all, it's where a lot of people get their books. I'm just unlikely to have more than one or two exclusives through Amazon.

But if you're interested in self-publishing, Amazon does make it quite easy to get started. And I've demonstrated how self-publishing on KDP can be done without spending money. So, the only thing stopping you is yourself.

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About the Creator

Michael Brockbank

I am the owner and operator of several blogs including WriterSanctuary.com. As a freelance writer since 2012, I have covered a range of topics and completed over 8,000 projects for clients. Follow me @WriterSanctuary on Twitter.

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