I had a very interesting discussion with someone from Amazon today. I told them about my fears, why I left KU, what happened to MSE, and that I would love to come back to the KU program. However I think I'm entitled to a warning if there's something wrong so that I can fix it, rather than just end up completely banned. I've been with Amazon for seven years now, and I've worked hard to get where I am and have never abused any of their programs Nor would I, it's just not worth it.
They agreed with my sentiments and said that they would take my case up with the business unit and see if my fears, and the fears of a lot of other folks, could be addressed. If I get a positive response to this, I will definitely go back into KU.
I just don't know how long it will be until I hear something however. It took them two months to get to the awareness of this problem, so I have no idea how long it will take them to address it.
well that is unfortunate but hey nothing can ever be perfect but good luck with the writing man haven't kept up too much so idk much but I hope the next Valens legacy comes out soon
ReplyDeleteThanks for keeping us in the loop! Wish you and other authors like MSE nothing but the best. I know you guys rely so much on the KU. I'll keep buying your releases either way...
ReplyDeleteI certainly hope you can work out your issues with Amazon soon and rejoin KU. I love reading your stories, but since I already pay for KU I just cannot see paying twice for a book. I read from 10 to 20 books a month and even at $3.99 a pop that's too expensive a habit.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, I am married with 2 kids and we currently have a single income so KU is stretching my budget as is. I hope this works out as I was looking forward to finishing the Valens series
DeleteAgreed. I read about the same volume, and KU is a godsend.
Deletewell they just officially terminated MSE.
ReplyDeletewhere is this at?
DeleteKU suspended MSE for a week or so, then terminated his account. Why? Because they could. Seriously, that's what was in their termination letter.
DeleteAmazon terminated MSE and didn't even provide a reason. They merely cited that they have the right to terminate someone at any time for any reason. I am hoping a lot of independent authors will pull their material from Amazon until someone in their organization fixes these issues.
ReplyDelete>Amazon terminated MSE and didn't even provide a reason. They merely cited that they have the right to terminate someone at any time for any reason.
DeleteBecause if anything is going to reassure authors that they won't have their accounts deleted with no warning and no reason given, doing exactly that is sure to do it.
Truly a brilliant move there on their part with perfect timing to defuse the concerns of other authors worried about what could happen to them.
I'm hoping that they hear you out and you rejoin KU. As I don't live the US, although my KU account is based there, it would become quite expensive for me to purchase your books and that of other authors that I enjoy. Please update us with anything they tell you and thank you for your great books
ReplyDeleteYou keep Sean kicking but and I will keep buying looking forward to book 10
ReplyDeleteActually just canceled my KU subscription last week when I found out that two of my favorite authors are just completely missing. Nothing else seems to get through to Amazon and frankly I've been finding less and less worth for the program as legitimate authors are leaving to avoid these kind of problems. The trend seems to be just destroying the program because of Amazon's horrible management in all aspects.
ReplyDeleteIts suck about KU, but i will keeps buying your books regardless. I have no problem spending money on one of the best Indie authors out there, keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteHey, love your books and good luck getting back into KU. I thought I should let you know something though. I was reading through the details of what you agree to when you publish with them and their general rules, and I saw that no one is allowed to have more than one author's profile. Maybe I read it wrong but I wanted to give you a heads up.
ReplyDeleteI have only one profile or account. You're allowed to make pen names under that account. You're just not allowed to have two separate accounts.
DeleteThis is what their terms and conditions say, but I have talked to somebody at Amazon and they specifically said that having two author accounts associated with different emails was fine.
DeleteWell that's cool. I didn't know that about how they do pen names. So once more, good luck!
DeleteSorry to hear about the problems. It's unfortunate as I really enjoy your books. Sadly I am disabled and on a very tight budget, so can't afford to feed my book addiction any other way than KU. I really hope you can make it back on to MY so I can continue reading all your different series.
ReplyDeleteSorry didn't notice autocorrect striking again, the MY was supposed to be KU
DeleteYou'll have to take it up with Amazon. I cannot risk my career by being in KU.
DeleteLike i said before, Amazon is not offering a KU program in my region, i always bought all the books and ofc i will continue doing so.
ReplyDeleteI am really hoping you will get some kind of an agreement and proof of dealing with good faith from them so you can get back into the KDP program yourself.
I'm not stupid, i know your books being in KU means a more stable income to you which also means more books for me to read :D
I am Very pissed off at what they did to MSE, i was hoping (still am) that it's all a big mistake.
i'll probably still buy his books on Kobo or what ever, (i dunno about pateron, depends how he set it up i guess) i hope he will stay successful enough to keep writing but honestly i doubt it, no amazon account for an author = no growth in readers.
I'm just really bummed from this entire situation, i read about 200 books a year and You, MSE & Randi Darren, William D. Arand are my current favorite authors for casual fun/action books.
You guys being treated like this sucks.
FYI: Randi Darren, William D. Arand are the same person.
DeleteI know, i always say/write both names because i don't know which one i should pick, he is a dominant author with both of the pen names and they are too different from each other so i can't merge them into one nick name.
DeleteKinda wonder if Barnes Noble is paying attention to any of this? Second chance at missed opportunities and all that...
ReplyDeleteI take in all my reading in audio format while I work. And, I really like your books. How does you leaving amazon effect the release of your books on audible? I would really like to find out how everything turns out in your later books.
ReplyDeleteI haven't left Amazon. I've just left the KU program. My audiobooks will be completely unaffected by this.
DeleteLeft a review of your latest book and can't wait for the next one, that being said if you and Michael Scott Earle have to leave Amazon, they can kiss my prime membership good bye, because it's authors like you that make keeping Amazon worth it! : D
ReplyDeleteWow. I've been following this mess for a few weeks now. Initially, I thought the server issues related to "Prime Day" caused the problems I had trying to get MSE's Dragon Slayer 4. Then I heard rumors of a ban, and started hearing whispers about other authors getting hit with the Amazon stick. I don't do much with social media- I left Facebook over 2 years ago because of privacy/security (and sanity) concerns. I use Twitter to keep up with football news (Go Seahawks!), and Insta-snap-gram-chat-whatever only to monitor what our daughter is posting. So it was tough to get any news (thanks for posting here Jan, it's been a great source for updates). Based on what I've read here and on a thread or two Jan posted to on Reddit (I still don't know how that thing works) that I found, I cancelled my KU subscription today. I'll miss being able to try out books to find new authors there- it probably means I'll spend more time playing video games while I wait for my favorites (Jan, MSE, Blaise Corvin, Nathan Lowell, Travis Bagwell, John Conroe, Carrie Summers, Neal Stephenson, etc.) to write faster. :)
ReplyDeleteOn a final note (sorry for being so long-winded), I'm a little dismayed by the dislike and/or outright hate I've seen on various threads, posts, etc- mainly towards MSE, but some aimed at other author's as well. As I mentioned, I've spent hours looks for news and updates and some posts I've seen are just... blatantly false, or based on assumptions and myths. This further cements my belief that having the power to instantly voice your opinion or thoughts on social media, doesn't mean that you should. Take the time and look at the reasons behind the actions- like MSE trademarking Dragon Slayer. If he's only TM'ing that one, and not Star Knight, Tamer, etc- there's probably a reason (such as a copycat that lacks the ability to write an original paragraph, let alone book).
Thanks again Jan- I just bought (and finished) Secret Treaties, and look forward to what's coming next.
Cheers,
Ben