How can you prepare and protect yourself before it happens to you.
I have a very sad heart today and I needed to reach out to you all immediately so that you can all have this information and be prepared.
One of my clients recently reached out to me and shared an article written by Alesha Brown for BookLife. It addressed recent suspensions that are occurring in Amazon on books for copyright infringement. I must admit that I skimmed the article, and then shrugged it off as a sad issue that others will have to face. I was wrong.
This morning, a fabulous author of mine reached out and told me that her account has been suspended. I confirmed that they have pulled her books from Amazon’s inventory. We published wide, so she is still available in other bookstores, but that doesn’t solve this issue. She was told that her account was terminated because they have linked her to another account that was terminated. Citing their email, “As stated in our Terms and Conditions, if we terminate an account, you are not allowed to establish a new KDP account. As a result, we are terminating this account effective immediately and you may not open any new KDP accounts.” She never opened another KDP account with Amazon, so this is completely inaccurate.
I teach my clients to publish with KDP directly to appease the big bad monster, and over 80% of book buyers buy from Amazon’s store.
Well, that monster is awake and pillaging.
We, the villagers, must fight back!
According to the terms and conditions on Amazon’s site, they can terminate an account without cause and keep royalties owed, including for the sales of any inventory they have on hand. The terms also only permit the author to dispute claims using the American Arbitration Association. That could be an expensive and very long nightmare.
According to the article “Protecting Your Work” by Alesha Brown, she lists some of the reasons that authors are being suspended. For those of you that publish with me, none of these would apply, except possibly the last one. These excuses are being used, nonetheless.
- Using two different ISBNs for the same book format. If you have two ISBNs for a paperback and hardcover, this doesn’t apply.
- Rights reverted to you from a previous publisher and not properly clearing it with KDP
- Changing your metadata that changes the rights of ownership
- Changing the imprint name
- Someone reports you for copyright infringement, even if the claim is not valid
- A bot error that is beyond the author’s control
So what can you possibly do?
According to the same article, Brown listed:
- Take a screenshot of your ISBN registration and account showing you are the owner of the imprint.
- Have your approved copyright documentation. If you haven’t already registered for your copyright, do that now! The application paperwork will not suffice.
I will have an instructional video out within the week to show you how to do that if you need it.
This takes up to eight weeks to get the documentation, so don’t wait to get this done.
- Show your contract, invoices, and statements from me that prove you paid for editing costs.
- If you have similar statements for the cover design, keep those handy as well.
- Use strongly worded emails with website links showing you are the author.
- Have affidavits from distributors (bookstores)
- Write a letter of proof of ownership if you have purchased rights for anything related to your book.
Whether or not you agree with other authors, reporters, artists, or activists, we are all free to print our words, just like we are all free to not buy a book we don’t like, change the channel if we don’t want to watch it and turn off the radio when we don’t want to hear that song. We are free in this country, and we need to make sure we, the artists and authors, fight to keep those freedoms that have been afforded to us.
With my client, I have my sword in hand, and we are fighting to reopen her account. In the meantime, she is on radio shows and continuing to schedule her signings. Fortunately, she was published in Ingramspark and on Draft2Digital, which means her book isn’t gone from the world; it is only missing from Amazon’s bookstore. I am not saying that is acceptable, but she is still standing. If you are strategically distributed, like my clients are with me, then you will be okay if hiccups occur.
Actionable items for you to do today:
- Create a file on your computer that includes copies of all your legal documents and proofs that you own your book (i.e., receipts, invoices, contracts, screenshots, etc.)
- Register your copyright asap.
- Advocate for the freedom of the press and speech, and fight against book banning in all its forms.
I am a member of the Independent Book Publishers Association for a reason. They are advocates for independent book publishers, like each of you who has published your book. They provide resources and strength for authors who have to fight against some of the issues facing publishers today. I am not saying you have to join this organization–or any of them, for that matter–I ask that you take a proactive stance in this free market we live in.
Contact me at EditsByStacey.com for more information or for a free consultation.
