Why Kindle Direct Program writers are better-off selling directly to fans

Such is the stranglehold of Amazon on the books industry that if you are an author there is no way to escape it. When it comes to eBooks, the majority of writers on the Kindle Direct Program make little by putting up their work on it. Even for those who do get paid, the formula for revenue sharing is opaque and requires millions of readers to earn a meaningful amount. All the terms are worse for the first-time or new-to-the-platform authors as Kindle pushes them to offer their books “free” as part of an unlimited subscription bundle. 

All this makes it important for writers to develop alternatives to Amazon-owned distribution. And it is time for authors to sell their work directly to fans. For example, one of the most successful authors on Amazon's K.D.P, Hugh Howey, also offers his book as a PDF  on his own website.

What stck.me has done is to take the pain and cost out of “going direct” for every one. Everything a writer needs to sell their book directly to fans is available out of the box. Including the tools to 

  1. Own your web presence: You get a short web address, a bio to highlight your best work, and a beautiful website that can host all your work and where everyone can find you. 

  2. Write or upload your work: You can write short or long form or upload your work in any format - posts, ebooks (PDF, ePub, zip), and even audio or video (AVI, MPEG).

  3. Share with fans: Gather you flock who you reach directly with the simple 1-click follow button. Every time you write something new, you can share a whole chapter or the full eBook or just send a notification by email and messaging/WhatsApp. 

When a writer gets to keep the majority of the cover price instead of chasing millions of “eyeballs” they can focus on their loyal audience. The fact is that even with a “1000 true fans” buying their books or supporting their work, writers stand to make more by reaching millions on an audience controlled by Amazon.

Here are some examples of authors directly selling to their readers:

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