I think that you have both misinterpreted the author’s purpose in posting. It’s not to convince you that Amazon is evil or that the publisher is angelic (we all know how false that dichotomy is when it comes to business) but rather to point out that the author has no control. So e-mails to the author will do nothing but make the author frustrated and angry that a situation beyond their control is 1) upsetting and inconveniencing their fans [who they love, by the way] and 2) making them feel guilty because they can’t do more.

I would say that Lilith is being very direct and calm about this issue. Did you realize that, as well as writing authors e-mails, people are giving 1-star reviews to books because they are not available for the Kindle? There is some mistaken impression that this is a logical means of voicing their discontent about the lack of e-book format. Which I hope everyone can agree is just insane since reviews are for content and not for format!

Anyway, to finish, thank you for the post, Lilith. I hope that the issues are resolved so that you and your fans don’t have to deal with this any longer. And have a great weekend!

Amazon is not stopping ebook sales. If they had the right to sell these books right now they would – because they would be making money off of them. Penguin won’t let them sell the books because the two can’t/won’t come to an agreement. Is it all Penguin’s fault? No, but it isn’t all Amazon’s fault either but most authors want their readers to believe it is.

Maybe I have a hard time reading blogs like this because I disagree and think Amazon should be able to price books any way they want. I can go over to Target or Walmart right now and buy brand new books at a discount. Why should that be any different for my Kindle?

I was actually quite stunned that you are getting emails to that extent regarding this. I’ve read a few other posts about the issue and it seems pretty straight forward. It seems obvious who to blame. I don’t think it ever crossed my mind at any point to question the authors regarding it.

I have a thing for books. I think I’ve read novels 12 since last month. You’re one of my favorites. I also have secret desires to be a writer though -in my heart- I think everything I have is a trunk piece. I have researched the publishing and distributing processes just incase there’s some gem that comes from my work. That said, I can grasp the fortitude and commitment writing takes and some of the powerlessness writers have when their work is taken to print.

Since I seem to be getting long-winded, I just wanted to say in closing; you’re doing a great job and, if it comes to it, I’d scour the globe to read and support your work.

Way more than that. Standard trade paperback price is $33. About $22 or so for MMPB.

Serenity,

Sorry, but I doubt you will talk people that want mp3s that are not available into buying LPs, either.

Also, in the real world most of us live in, this sort of thing is happening: Some not so bright publishers sell through one outlet. Have dispute. Books no longer on sale *anywhere*. How do you buy them elsewhere in that case?

Or they’ll let say Apple or Barnes and Noble sell them, and no-one else, which means no-one outside the USA can ever buy them.

On the whole agency thing. It is also possible that this will cause a considerable sales decline. If that happens, we would expect that there should be no complaints from the publisher/writer camp then?

It’s not up to Lilith to come up with the solutions to the problems the distributors are causing.

See it this way, you are a writer, it’s your sole income and suddenly you’re getting less money because the distributor wants to make a bigger profit. A profit he wouldn’t see a cent of if you hadn’t written the book in the first place. And take it a step further, if writers can’t make a living off writing, there won’t be very many books to buy.

Remember: It’s up to us as consumers to keep the suppliers honest, because we all know they cannot do it themselves. If an author’s books are dropped by one distibutor because they are not prepared to pay the ferryman as it were, well then we just have to move on to the next one. They’ll catch on very quickly that they’re losing business and make it available again. And really, if ebooks aren’t available, just go back to buying an old fashioned book. There’s nothing as satisfying as cracking the spine of a new book.