Review Haiku, Volume 2

Posted on January 10, 2011

Last March I self-published the first 500 Review Haiku as a PDF ebook through Lulu. It was very basic and wouldn’t appear anywhere but Lulu. Later in the summer, I bit the bullet and bought a SAN (Standard Address Number) and some ISBNs and officially became a publisher.

After adding an ISBN (and some updates/corrections) to the PDF version and creating an EPUB version, I added both versions to Lulu and signed up for the iBookstore to publish there. There have been some teething problems along the way, but I’ve learned a lot from the experiences, so it will hopefully make the next book go much easier.

At the current rate, Review Haiku, Volume 2 will come out this spring or summer. At that point, the current Review Haiku book will be retired and replaced with Review Haiku, Volume 1. This book will have pretty much the same haiku (with some corrections for typos), but will have the new title and a new cover. Additionally, there will be another book with all 1000 Review Haiku. (I haven’t come up with a good title yet, but Review Haiku, Unabridged Edition seems a bit dull. I’m leaning towards Review Haiku, Ultra or something similarly awe-inspiring.)

But wait, there’s more!

I’m also thinking about doing some smaller editions based on genres, themes, or countries. The idea is that these ebooks would be cheaper because they have fewer haiku, possibly tempting buyers who don’t want to spend five bucks on a book of poetry. If they like it, they’ll buy more. These smaller editions will have 50 – 100 haiku and be priced between $.99 and $1.99. I’ll also earn more money per haiku with these smaller editions.

I’m still working out how to do good Kindle versions. There are some formatting errors. While the haiku are readable, they look odd because the Kindle indents the first line, but not the second or third. I don’t want to rewrite everything just for the Kindle if I don’t have to. I also plan on adding the books to the Barnes & Noble store for the Nook.

Review Haiku – #amazonfail

Posted on April 12, 2009

What’s Amazon Rank?
Protect people from ‘bad’ books
Can’t read if can’t see

Amazon Rank at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

More info in my previous post here.

How Amazon failed authors and customers

Posted on April 12, 2009

Probably the best place to start is here, with Mark Probst’s description about how Amazon has treated LGBT books – by delisting them from sales ranks. He points out the books were lumped categorized as ‘adult’ even if they had nothing to do with erotica. Meta-writer has been collecting a list of the delisted books, showing that it includes non-fiction books dealing sexuality.

So the Twitterverse has sort of exploded in #amazonfail. Reactions range from regret, anger, and disbelief. Generally, I like Amazon, but this idea is as misguided as it is misapplied. Doing my own research shows the delisting is inconsistent – quite a few books have different editions, so some editions appear to be delisted, while others are not. Still, it’s hard to see how Lady Chatterley’s Lover and Story of O can be delisted, while Tropic of Cancer still has its sales rank. Even some editions of Brokeback Mountain have been delisted. What delisting means is that it doesn’t matter how well a book sells, Amazon will not list it if they think it is ‘adult’ themed. If a book is not listed, it won’t show up in a general search of a topic, or it will appear very low in the search rankings.

I look forward to Amazon correcting, or at least clarifying their position. It’s a PR mess, so I expect they’ll get on it soon.

In the meantime, while I’m not a big believer in boycotts, I’m beginning to think Amazon doesn’t want my money, because they apparently don’t value my taste in books. Twitter hasn’t failed, because the twitterers have offered many alternatives, such as:

• Amazon Bookstore – A feminist bookstore in Minnesota
• Powell’s Books – An independent bookstore in Oregon
• Tattered Cover – One of the biggest things I miss about Colorado *sniff*

Of course, there are many, many more alternatives. Just check your local phone book and see.

Can’t forget to mention Smart Bitches Trashy Books idea about Amazon Rank, and here is a direct link to the definition itself. You can spread the word by passing this URL http://www.smartbitchestrashybooks.com/amazonrank/ to your friends.

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