Dec
30
2008
In an effort to become THE entertainment retailer on the internet, Amazon is constantly improving itself which is why, in part, we hate it and love it in equal parts. Amazon has now launched "Author Stores ". Every Author Store includes a bibliography and can include biography, author photos and a discussion board. I would expect that Amazon would allow the author's blog to be placed on its "Author Store" as well. (See Nora Robert's Author Store ).
Authors must rely on Amazon to provide the content. You can't upload your own picture or add to your own biography without contact "Author Central" with requests. If you don't have an Author Store, you have to wait until Amazon decides to add you although you can ask to sign up .
I really like the idea of Author Stores and it would be great if Amazon let the consumer "favorite" the Stores and then be able to store a list of the Author Stores that she, the reader, would like to revisit.
Oh, boy. I can just see Amazon inundated with self-published authors screaming about getting their own stores…
All I know is, if they make it as ridiculously impossible to find these as they do to find and follow the discussion forums, there aren’t going to be a ton of customers reading them. Because, unless you participate in a specific discussion and mark the box to be notified, you’ll have a hell of a time finding it again because they change so quickly.
Right now, even when you do the Shop All Departments drop down, Author Store isn’t listed there.
*sigh*
Love/Hate…perfect description of my relationship with Amazon…
I’d love to be able to find a sorted bibliography, showing which books are part of which series and what order to read them in. I hate it when books don’t indicate that they’re part of a series, or tell you which book number they are. Sure, I can page through and note down publication dates, but I shouldn’t have to. [mutter]
Angie
Excellent idea. Will probably take some time to sort out the problems, but I can foresee it becoming great for authors and readers alike.
I think it’s an awesome idea. Hope they can make it user-friendly.
Guys, this is Amazon we’re talking about. Of course, they’ll screw it up.
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