Published on August 1, 2012
Thank you for your article about republishing book reviews from Amazon.com. As a professional writer who often posts reviews there, I would be very annoyed if another author lifted my work without asking me first! Obviously, I hold the copyright to my review. I have never given Amazon the right to hand my work to anyone else.
Although I don’t get paid for those reviews, I enjoy writing them as a favor to other authors. It would be a real slap in the face if one of those authors stole my writing and published it without my permission!
Keep up the good work, Angela. Your newsletter has been quite helpful to me over the years.
PUBLISHER RESPONDS:
You should know that some employees at Amazon are indeed giving authors the right to republish book reviews in their entirety.
Here’s an email from an Amazon employee that was forwarded to us last week –
On Jul 16, 2012, at 6:57 AM:
Hello (author),
You can certainly use your book’s Amazon reviews on your website. While the Terms and Conditions allows for adding those reviews on your website, it does not allow you to use Amazon trademarks on your website. For more information, please review our Terms and Conditions…
Published on August 1, 2012
As writers, we all long to earn the big bucks by penning the next best selling novel or Hollywood-bound screenplay. The reality of this scenario is that it is a reality for very few people. Often, it is years in the making. Not many writers see their first novel or screenplay gain the status of fame, fortune and six-figure royalty checks.
The truth is, while we’re working and writing and waiting for our well-deserved global recognition, we have to pay the bills. For that, I suggest you think local.
Published on August 1, 2012
I messed up. I published my book with 1st Books, now named AuthorHouse. I want to have an ebook to sell, but not thru AuthorHouse. Do they own publishing rights? I know they have sold some books, but I have not received any money from them in years.
Published on August 1, 2012
All freelance writers strive to find interesting gigs that pay well, and also offer a sustained income over time. There are many avenues to this goal. My success story happened with the grace of God and a person serving as a writers’ headhunter of sorts (a representative) working for some publishers in Liverpool, England. My story is all about being a decent writer and having extensive personal knowledge of casino and poker gaming. It was this knowledge base that landed me the representative and several years of steady, well-paying jobs.
Published on July 25, 2012
The roofer found a 36-hour window between storms and quickly replaced the flat roof on the back of our house. Thankfully, it no longer rains in the living room!
Published on July 25, 2012
At BookLocker.com, authors frequently copy and paste their Amazon reviews (in their entirety!) into an email, asking us to republish those reviews on their book page on our site. Doing so would be a copyright violation. Other authors also contact me on occasion asking if they can republish Amazon’s reviews. Here’s what I tell all of them.
Published on July 25, 2012
This column will return next week.
Published on July 25, 2012
writing career advice
Do you have to be paranoid when you deal with editors and publishers? No. Should you be aware of your rights, responsibilities and potential red flags? Yes.
Published on July 25, 2012
Your price (at BookLocker.com) for cover design is much lower than freelance designers, I find myself wondering what I would get for $200.
Published on July 25, 2012
Freelance jobs can come in starts and stops. Having a bad day? It’s an experience any freelance writer can relate to. You can turn a bad day into a good day by getting to your computer every day and trying to become the freelance writer you want to become. Here’s a presentation of five days that actually saved my writing life because I kept on trying to write in various medias. I didn’t want the 9 to 5 ball and chain so I linked to new markets to keep me going. It’s free advice!
