Amazon.com...do we love you or hate you?

So my last post was dedicated to defending Amazon.com from the angry law suits of the British government. This week we're going to look at another side of Amazon-- a decidedly less positive one.

Amazon.com has a form of independent, self-publishing called CreateSpace. Through it you can supposedly reach millions of potential readers and maintain control of your intellectual and creative property. After 50 reviews, Amazon.com will start suggesting your book to readers and potential purchasers. You can publish to print, to the Kindle Store, or even make an audio book, all the while skipping over traditional publishing schemes which leave little control in the author's hands, little in sales, and little in progress in even breaking in to the industry.

 



Sounding good so far? Pretty much. I have heard CreateSpace touted...but usually only be people who don't use it. Friends and family have suggested I use the platform to self-publish and get my books out there, if nothing else as a jumping-off point for my writing career. It's far quicker and far easier than the traditional way with more chance at success. Right?

Not necessarily. It's got a lot of bugs that don't really look to have much in the way of being solved. Bugs that only have the customer in mind, and not the author. And really no common sense in mind at all.

For one, Amazon's return policy. You get a product, it's not what you thought it was, you send it back for a full refund. Everyone loves it, especially when dealing with used items that may or may not be as advertised. But did you know that Amazon also extends this policy to eBooks? Not only can a reader purchase an eBook and decide they don't like it, returning the 'file' for a full refund, but that also means that the author's royalty for that sale is retracted. Which means that any regular Joe out there could essentially turn eBooks into a free-library system, purchasing books only to return them for full price after having read them. And no income for the author. The tag is going to be, and most certainly is already, left on that little black dress for a full refund after date night. You only wore it once, right? The same is going to happen with books. I only read it once, it's just a digital file, so it's not like it has any damage, right? I can use that money for something else. Why not just return it.

There is currently also a huge controversy going out due to Amazon.com regarding their idea to opening eBooks to the 'used' sales. I can't believe this is even being contemplated, for one. If we have used eBooks, then there will only ever be one file of any document. It will merely circulate and pass back and forth on the ether, and the author will only ever make the smallest of sales from it. There is no physical integrity to an eBook that would merit the used-properties that one can find in a book that has shelf-life or ex-library status. Once a book is printed and sold, that money goes to the author and isn't lost. Once an eBook is sold and passed around, who needs more than just the one? The digital properties that make eBooks so convenient are the same properties that would kill authors if this digital 'sharing' occurred.

So far, I'm not bitterly declaiming Amazon.com as the source of all publishing evils. I love Amazon and will continue to patronize its sites for a long time to come. But no source is above making stupid decisions or overly committing to 'the customer is always right'. EBook sales should be final. Period. EBooks should be a one-purchase commodity. No recycling. Frankly, if eBooks get any greener, any more biodegradable, they'll likely dissolve out of the market entirely. Or they'll take the market with them.