Much of my first decade as a writer was spent helping people read and write. I ran workshops and development projects for libraries, a part of my professional life I wrote about not so long ago. A big part of my work then was caught up with the question, asked in various different ways, “whyContinue reading “3 things books must do to survive in an attention economy”
Author Archives: Damien Walter
FUCK YOU AMAZON! Fuck you for being right! Again!
Sigh. Writers and publishers are again up in arms about Amazon, this time because of a letter sent directly to thousands of self-published writers by the book behemoth, and repeated on a new Readers United website. Full text of the email below for non-KDP authors who are curious. So here we are again. Amazon isContinue reading “FUCK YOU AMAZON! Fuck you for being right! Again!”
Authors! Book pirates aren’t your best friends, they’re your only friends.
There are 7 billion people on planet Earth. 7,000,000,000. That’s a vast audience that in the digital age is only really limited by language and literacy barriers. But let’s be really tight, and say that the operational potential upper audience for your book is 1 billion people. 1,000,000,000. “Your enemy is not piracy, but obscurity.”Continue reading “Authors! Book pirates aren’t your best friends, they’re your only friends.”
Can excellence survive in the era of digital publishing?
Excellence isn’t a word often heard in the world of digital self-publishing, where Good Enough has more force when backed up with six-figure sales. In a smart essay William Gosline asks and answers the question; can excellence survive in the digital era? Gosline is a talented writer of speculative fiction, currently writing a fascinating serialContinue reading “Can excellence survive in the era of digital publishing?”
What ebooks need are…ebookshelves
I have a friend who buys books on the basis of what will look good on his shelves to anyone inspecting them after he has died. Like always wearing clean pants just incase you get hit by a car, this motivation for book purchasing has a lot to do with how others see us. IContinue reading “What ebooks need are…ebookshelves”
The troll reviewers targeting women writers
Online abuse reminds us that while technology is upgraded, human qualities of jealousy and bitterness are not. It may contain some passages judged by one Amazon customer to be “brilliantly written”, but that isn’t enough to spare Monica Byrne’s The Girl in the Road a two-star kicking. The reason? Byrne has committed a political sinContinue reading “The troll reviewers targeting women writers”
How Fighting Fantasy beat traditional stories
In the three decades since Fighting Fantasy began, games have changed our concept of story forever. When I was 10 I wanted, for a brief period, to be a professional Fighting Fantasy player. I was so fascinated with the now-iconic green-jacketed gamebooks, emblazoned with the legend “Thrilling fantasy adventures in which YOU are the hero!”, that I hatchedContinue reading “How Fighting Fantasy beat traditional stories”
Today was a Good Day, in Chiang Mai
This is why I love Chiang Mai. Today was a Good Day “Chiang Mai Edition” – YouTube.
What is Hachette fighting for?
The Amazon books team deliver some interesting, but non-specific, data on ebook prices. Bottom line – lower prices deliver higher revenue and profits because e-book prices are “highly elastic”. So indie authors putting their work on for £2.99 against the standard publisher price of £8.99 are doing exactly the right thing. It’s worth noting hereContinue reading “What is Hachette fighting for?”
Look at the state of British Sci-Fi
Strange Horizons publishes a large an interesting report on “The State of British Sf and Fantasy” which with the input of six authors does a fairly good job of reflecting many current trends. I take issue with Juliet McKenna’s opening essay The Market and Trade. Not because it is incorrect – it is well researchedContinue reading “Look at the state of British Sci-Fi”
Why do you hate indie authors?
Hugh Howey once again shares another interesting perspective on the indie publishing revolution, in this case a refutation of the frequent criticisms of the Author Earnings reports methodology, from the unnamed Data Guy behind those reports. I do apologize to those whom this information proves troubling, but it is a fair view of what isContinue reading “Why do you hate indie authors?”
Where are my international Amazon Associate commissions?
Many book bloggers and even writers earn commission from Amazon by linking to books and other products sold by the giant online retailer. But many of them are leaving money on the table by not directing their international readers to the right international Amazon store! Jesse Lakes of GeoRiot steps up with a great guestContinue reading “Where are my international Amazon Associate commissions?”
Damien Walter 