So, I just read this blog post and this blog post which made me start to question whether or not I should do KDP Select for my upcoming self-published book, Training Season. My fellow m/m romance authors, what is your experience?
*chinhands*
So, I just read this blog post and this blog post which made me start to question whether or not I should do KDP Select for my upcoming self-published book, Training Season. My fellow m/m romance authors, what is your experience?
*chinhands*
Leta Blake 
The short answer is no. The long answer involves several reasons.
1) Given a choice between shooting myself in the foot and supporting a move that is designed to drive competition out of the market, I’ll take shooting myself in the foot. I don’t feel like anyone is served by one company having a monopoly on the market, least of all the people who will be stuck relying on that company for their livelihoods when they get to the point that they can dictate any terms they want.
2) After Amazon, ARe is my best outlet, and unlike Amazon, sometimes they offer me promo, sometimes at no charge. Just a couple weeks ago, The Laird’s Forbidden Lover had a write-up as a recommended read in the ARe Wildfire newsletter, and I didn’t have to pay a cent for it. Maybe for non-romance authors who don’t have a thriving secondary outlet like ARe, KDP could be worth it, but I sincerely doubt I would have enough people wanting to borrow my books at Amazon to offset the exposure I get there.
3) I am deeply uncomfortable with giving ANYONE exclusive rights to my work. Just a personal thing. My work is mine, I decide where it gets distributed, and no one dictates to me where I may and may not distribute it.
4) The ability to generate coupon codes at Smashwords is a hugely important promotional tool, and Amazon has nothing like it. Whenever I participate in guest blogs that involve a giveaway, I use a coupon code from Smashwords instead of just sending the file. This not only allows the recipient to download the format of their choice without going through the usual back-and-forth, but it also enables them to leave a review at Smashwords, which I don’t believe the can do otherwise. I also use it for distributing review copies.
I’m sure I have a number of other reasons, but I’m tired, need coffee, and my brain no worky, so that will have to do for now.
I tried it, but it didn’t do me much good. And once you sign up, you’re stuck until your time runs out. I was pretty disappointed and I was glad to only do it with one book.
I believe your best bet is using other ways to improve your author platform, such as publishing shorter forms of writing, being involved in social media to connect with readers, finding book clubs, connecting with book reviewers/bloggers, targeting your market, etc. People rely way too much on KDP Select. The secret is to start promoting a book long before it launches, which will give you time to build your platform without soleky relying on giving away free books.