After learning that in spite of my efforts to have all of my books removed from GoodReads, where they were listed without my publishers consent or mine, I FINALLY have some closure--so to speak.
You see, sites like GoodReads and Amazon and Shelfari think they're doing authors a favor by listing their books once they're "published/printed" (btw anyone, qualified or not, can publish these days and yes, there should be qualifications for something that is considered a profession duh!) It gives them content. They encourage folks to leave their thoughts or reviews on the content but do so very little to monitor said reviews or comments nor do they do anything to protect publishers or authors from personal attacks or from folks who just think it's fun to post ludicrous reviews and hateful words just because they can.
I've met so many authors and publishers who were targeted and not protected that it isn't even funny or worth the time to use GoodReads, Amazon or any of these third-party sites as a source of publicity. I deleted my account on GoodReads only to find they were still posting my blog post from my personal blog as if I cared to show up at ALL on this site. Having a friend and fellow author remind me that this was a copyright issue, I set out to fix this problem by presenting GoodReads with this question:
question:
After participating on Goodreads and being subjected to an atrocious lack of monitoring, I opted out of participating. I attempted to pull my books but was told in a ninny-ninny-poo-poo sort of way that this couldn't happen because my books were available everywhere. I solved this problem by making all of my books short-run so sites like GoodReads can't post my books. ;)
However, it seems that as of late, GoodReads is posting feeds from my personal author blog as if I authorized this. I may have at one time but deleted my account. Please do whatever it takes to stop my blog feeds from showing up on GoodReads. I don't support this site or sites like it. Also syndicating a blog without permission is copyright infringement. If you had my permission once, you most certainly do not have it now. Thank you in advance for "unsyndicating" my blog from GoodReads.
Sue Dent
I will tell you that I expected another, "we don't have to do anything you say," response but was pleased to read this. This will be my first post since the email to follow so we'll see if they stuck to their word. ;)
GoodReads response:
Hi Sue,
Thanks for alerting us. We’re so sorry for that mistaken oversight! I just removed all the remaining personal information that was added to your author profile, including that blog feed and all the former posts: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/313656.Sue_Dent
Once again, we apologize for the inconvenience!
Cheers,
Those who run this site have been nothing but rude and arrogant to me when I approached them with obvious issues that were going on with other authors as well as myself. The fact that they continue to list my books even when I've asked them not to is absolutely insane. Same with Amazon. Same with all of these third party sites. I certainly appreciate being able to use sites like this for publicity but not when they do nothing to make sure things don't get out of hand and even move into the "slander" category. Of course they don't do anything because that takes money they don't want to part with. They'd have to hire others to keep track etc . . . At least with my books NOT being listed there, they can't make what little money they make at MY EXPENSE!!
It will be interesting to see if they've corrected THEIR admitted oversight.
First off the comment was left by a fantastic author Werner Lind who wrote Lifeblood, a book I thourghly enjoyed.
Werner said in regards to my blog on the "industry standard" return policy blues:
WHOA! That's an eye-opener! I'd always surmised that "returned" books were called that because they were at least actually returned to the publisher for re-sale. But leave it to Big Business to create ever more Orwellian distortions of language. The "industry standard" return policy is beginning to stink even more pungently!
Here's my response:
I can't believe how many times I've posted about this problem and still folks act surprised. LOL That "industry" standard return policy allowed for bookstores to NEVER return books to the publisher. There was a "great" uproar about this when bookstores started trashing the books behind their bookstores as opposed to having to store "unsold" copies. All the bookstores were required to do according to that "industry standard" return policy was to return the book cover!!! That's why you see this printed in books sometimes: Do not buy this book if the cover has been removed. LOL Yeah, right!
Distributors such as Lightning Source don't work a "new" deal for small publishers either. They don't even offer for the small publisher to get the "returned from the bookstore" book back. They print you a "new" copy and charge you $2.00 for shipping which in reality is just to cover the cost of reprinting the book. So if you made 1.25 off a book you sold to B&N, you eat seventy-five cents when it's returned. AND you never see the returned-from-the-bookstore book again.
Bookmasters, a much larger distributor, says they return "return from the bookstore" books to the publishers inventory but I can tell you that they don't do this in every instance. If they did then nearly 50 copies of my now out of print Forever Richard wouldn't have ended up at Books-A-Million, a store that only shelves "returned from the bookstore" books. My publisher didn't sell the books to BAM.
Bookmasters also sent me "returned from the bookstore" books when I ordered author copies of Forever Richard. How do I know? They were signed by me and had a B&N sticker on the dang cover that said, "Signed By Author." They said I could keep them and they'd send me "new" copies. Then they asked if I'd send them back so they could show their folks what to look for next time. I said, "no thanks." I'll keep them and I'll spread the word that Bookmasters doesn't operate according to their contract. Yes it's real fun out there. UGH!
You won't see reviews popping up on Electric Angel overnight as is the case with soooooooooo many books an author publishes. The reason: A) I'm not with a large publisher therefore news of a new release takes a LOT of time to get out there. B) I don't solicit reviews therefore they come in their own time.
I also do not think reviews do anything to help sell a book and shouldn't. It's nice to know someone read my book and enjoyed it. And the kind words are certainly appreciated. But reviews aren't moderated and in most cases can't even be left unless the fan "joins" the site or at least "purchases" another product from that site. For instance, to leave a review on Amazon, you have to have bought a product in the past or purchase a product straight away. And that's to leave a comment on a product you bought SOMEWHERE ELSE!!! And Amazon is where most other bookseller sites go to get reviews. Either there or Goodreads, a site heavily sponsored by large publishers who don't give a "darn" about small pubbed authors period.
So to learn the "truth" about what "real fans" say about my book, you best start looking here as I'll post responses as I get them. Mainly because it's so dang encouraging to me. ;) Here's the latest:
Laurie Froehlingsdorf, part owner of Shoutlife.com says of Electric Angel: "I started reading it last night and I am hooked! Love the fact I can read it on my kindle."
In reference to authors/publishers/readers of that targeted "Christian" market that so frequently ignore the fact that I exist AND appeal to their readers ergo offer NO support whatsoever publicity-wise or in any other way: "still sucks that people are so closed minded!"
Love me some Shoutlife!!!
Love ya, Laurie!
Someone asked me today if I was on Goodreads and since I'm a published author with some modicum of success (not of the financial kind of course) I almost laughed. Of course I'm on Goodreads whether I like it or not. See I joined up to have SOME say over MY published works.
"So, Sue, what sort of gripes do you have against Goodreads?" Well, since you asked I'll tell you. I will state right away that if I weren't an author I probably wouldn't know enough about the publishing industry to have a gripe. But since I am, here's my biggest one. Goodreads states that their main goal is to help support authors. Without knowing any more about how the publishing industry works than most do, that sounds like a noble cause. However, the cause is too broad. You can't help all authors if you don't differentiate between large published authors and Indie and self-pubbed ones. If discussions about large published authors are allowed to happen or books by these publishers listed (and don't even mention large publishers SPONSER the damn site) then these are the only authors who will be helped. All Indie and self-pubbed authors are like dogs at a cat show.
Indie and self-pubbed authors can't get into the same venues (meaning large brick and mortar bookstores) that large publishers can and neither have access to the monies large publishing houses have access to in order to pimp their authors as voraciously. Therefore no site can claim to help promote "authors" and actually be successful at doing that.
So I suppose I'll have to set up my own book site, perhaps call it "BetterReads" and only promote Indie and self-pubbed authors. That way when a large publisher releases their latest and greatest from some obscure author who happened to be in the right place at the right time, and that book shoots immediately to the NYT #1 best-sellers list, because large bookstores did the obligatory buying of millions of copies to put it there, the Indie and self-pubbed authors on my site won't have to be subjected to the circus that follows. How deflating to have to sit on a site and watch all the chatter about a book that only got attention because thousands of them sold to large bookstores who subsequently sell just enough of said book to readers to satisfy the status quo, if they're lucky.
Sort of stinks, doesn't it!
GoodReads?
Only there because I can't keep my books from being listed. I do accept friend request but trust me, it's not worth your time to add me. Friend me on FB or follow my blog at SueDent.net which subsequently posts to Goodreads. ;)
