Sorry, readers. Today’s post is very much geared for those who are authors or wish to be authors.
A lot of my friends have been having their preorders cancelled at Amazon lately, and all of them have had one thing in common: they’ve only put in one (maybe two) files with the corporate giant before their lock date.
What is happening is a rather nefarious bug where the file, instead of being loaded into the system, is being sent to “null”, which is essentially a data black hole. Once something goes into null, Amazon can’t read it. When their system doesn’t see the file (because it slipped into null instead of the processing queue), bad things happen… like your preorder being cancelled.
Whiskers on Kittens was hit with the null bug, but it appears to be fixed. Here’s how I handle it.
1: I upload early and often. I begin with my first proofed file, post formatting. This goes into Amazon’s system as V1. So, in this case, my file looks like this: Amazon-V1-Whiskers on Kittens.epub
Note: I ALWAYS load the previewer, which usually prevents this, but this time, it did not…
1A: The preorder processed immediately. Like, within a minute. This is when I understood that I had a problem.
1B: I verified this after waiting for the email and checking the book’s profile. It said there were 0 pages and 0 bytes in the file.
Fuckity fuck fuck fuck.
2: I duplicated the file and renamed it to be Amazon-V1.2-Whiskers on Kittens.epub.
3: I uploaded the file again, waited.
4: I immediately got a new email saying my book had been processed. (This was false; my book was not even through review.)
5: I waited for the next email saying my file was done (So I received 3 emails for the first 2 uploads; a VERY definitive sign something has gone wrong.)
6: I duplicated my file again and renamed it to Amazon-V1.3-Whiskers on Kittens.epub.
7: The preorder processed normally, with the expected 2-3 hours of wait for review.
8: I checked my profile page for the book, and it was now showing a file size and page count. (Hooray!)
9: I got more proofing notes in from betas, implemented the changes, and began making new versions for each set of proofing changes, uploading them into Amazon with a version number.
10: Everything is now working normally, and while there is a chance I’ll have the preorder dropped, it SHOULD be okay.
So, this is just one of the many pitfalls with Amazon right now.
In no particular order, this is what I’m seeing happening to friends:
1: Preorders cancelled due to content. (Usually sexual content / themes.)
2: Randomly dropped preorders with no reason or explanation. (But, I suspect it falls under sexual content/themes and Amazon just didn’t tell the author that.)
3: Cancellations due to the null error.
Authors… please don’t put all your eggs in the Amazon basket. Their basket is more like a sieve, there is zero accountability if you get hit with one of these problems… add in the error reporting tool and Amazon’s determination to overreach, and you’re setting yourself up for a lot of stress and heartache.
There are other options, but yes… you have to work harder for them. You have to be good about your editing. You can’t just slap a DIY cover on an expect good performance from the book. Yes… your writing has to be to a higher standard.
Having a higher standard for fiction is not a bad thing. (Yep, I said it… I DO think readers deserve us investing in our books to give them the best read possible. I just don’t think Amazon (and readers) should be dictating HOW we go about it.)
I don’t like typos in my books, and as mental health allows (outside of Amazon’s error reporting tool)I fix them
I mean, I was NOT happy that some asshole reader gave me a Thanksgiving Day gift of “I didn’t like this thing in your book, so you should fix it how I want it to be fixed.”
And yes… you may mean well, readers, but all you’re doing is shooting yourself in the foot.
I’m not going the distance for a platform that isn’t going the distance for me… and neither should any other author.
Diversification is ultimately why I’m going to be able to keep writing. Patreon has been hugely helpful for me on that. I’m hoping REAM will be helpful for me, especially as I get more books loaded and launched into the platform. (I did two last night, and I’m hoping to do two more today.)
In any case… be careful with your Amazon preorders. Start the uploads early, start them often… and don’t trust just one or two.
I do a minimum of ten, and thus far, I’ve dodged a cancellation. And I can confirm that yes, without a shadow of a doubt, I’ve had the problem. (And the proof will be in the pudding; if Whiskers cancels, my method is wrong… if it doesn’t, I had the right idea all along.)
Time will tell. (5 days to be specific.)
Good luck, and if you are preordering with Amazon, DO make sure you give yourself plenty of extra time to get those files uploaded in.
And if you’re not willing to do that little work… maybe pick a different career, because this is easy, doesn’t take more than an extra half hour of your life total, and saves your preorders.
This is a case where being lazy will not reward you.
I admire that you’re so helpful to and supportive of other authors.
Thanks for the insight into the pitfalls of the publication process! I’m not an author and never will be one (brain doesn’t work that way) but as a reader and librarian I appreciate all the effort you put into providing us with great reads, and giving us behind-the-scenes glimpses of everything it takes.
Amazon also has a preorder payments problem where readers get orders “on hold” on the day of publication waiting for payment method to be “reconfirmed” so readers check your emails carefully!