It’s with a heavy heart I am announcing that I have unpublished all three of my books off of A m a z o n. This decision has come after a series of policy changes have let it be known how they feel about their queer, black, and brown authors and customers. I cannot, will not, stand for this sort of willful quashing of diversity in a medium as important as literature where all our voices need to be heard.
The platform has allowed me to become an author and to learn what it takes to do everything from start to finish from writing a book, to editing, to creating a cover, to marketing. And I am grateful for that opportunity but it’s time to move on. Monopolies might make certain technologies and paths easier but they also make it easier to take advantage of creators. I started writing at a time when magazines routinely paid cash for their stories and if you were lucky enough to be traditionally published you’d only have to worry about writing the book, everything else would be taken care of for you. I began writing at a time when being a book author could be a legitimate full time job you could comfortably live off of. I’ve watched and witnessed as first the pay for magazines (and then e-zines and online platforms) went from cash, to a few pennies, to “exposure.” I saw authors scramble after they were now expected to do all their own advertising including keeping up on multiple social platforms. Essentially we went from having one job to multiple jobs, to multiple hobbies because these jobs weren’t paying anymore, they were merely passion projects. And then I watched in horror as AI began to systematically take over writing, cover design, marketing, and even audio narration!
But this is not a letter of resignation. I am not quitting. Writing is in my blood and in a world that’s failing to teach its children to read I think it’s even more important now. So yes, although I have taken my books down, I am not done. I’m merely waiting for my three month contract to run out and I will be seeking a new more creator friendly platform to republish better versions of my books. And I’ll continue to offer my voice to add a human touch to the audio books of both myself and others. If you want to help then join us in supporting independant bookstores, smaller platforms, new ebook suppliers, and saying no to AI produced books and audio books. And if you’re a creator of any kind consider going where you are treated as valuable and not just a cog in a machine. We can do this. We can create a creator-based industry and thrive once again.
