I pitched my Patreon subscribers about giving Cindercorns and Spicy Ponies with Bite new releases of audiobooks. (And while I asked for their feedback, the reality is… the Cindercorn and Spicy Ponies with Bite bracket is absolutely fair for adding audiobooks to, so I’m going to. I mostly asked so they can add to the conversation.)
Here is the post I sent to the Patreon membership. (You can check out the Patreon here.)
Howdy, folks!
The Findaway Voices problem (where they tried to grab unlimited rights from me on all my books) has led to a huge mess. I’ve removed all my audiobooks from distribution for them, and I’m looking into new options for distribution.
Kobo will return soon.
There are seven books that will have a bit of a fuss over at audible until rights reverse, but those are older mag rom coms, and they’ll be restored after I win the rights dispute. (It will be the exact books restored to the exact same spot if all goes well.)
I am going to be having the early mag rom coms rerecorded.
There will be two new versions of the male led ones, one by Cameron Hill, one by Ivan (you first listened to him in the Star nosed mole story.)
Some people love Cameron. Some liked Ivan. Because of Patreon, I can do both, so I’m doing both.
The only Mag Rom Com (with male parts) that won’t be Cameron will be Burn, Baby, Burn, because Cameron doesn’t work with the same studio Ivan and Keira do. I’m fine with this.
The current retail versions of the Mag Rom Coms will remain the retail versions of the Mag Rom Com. (I just bought rights back for the originals, and I’m having the rerecords done.)
Patreon will be the home of all of the versions, so you CAN have it all.
But that leads me to my Patreon.
As an upgrade to Cindercorn perks, I will include all new audiobook editions as part of the membership.
Sirens will continue to get their listen alongs of old material, but Cindercorns and Spicy Ponies with bite will receive new audiobooks as they release.
Does this seem to be fair to everyone?
Please pitch in in the comments below.
(End Post)
So, Patreon is one of my primary focuses. Cindercorns and Spicy Ponies with Bite have mostly the same perks. (I am working on putting together a physical swag pack for my Spicy Ponies, but my plans are going haywire due to Findaway Voices.)
My plans, RUINED, I tell you, RUINED. (Insert drama here, goddamnit, I need some drama.)
Anyway, here is what Cindercorns and Spicy Ponies with Bite will be getting moving forward:
1: Work-in-Progress access (posts are removed after 3-4 weeks as a general rule, or if there’s a bunch of material in the same process; this is a piracy prevention measure, and it’s generally been working okay.)
2: Digital copy of all new books with Patreon notes
3: digital copy of all new audiobooks (same as retail)
4: audiobook listen along of older material (Build your own audiobook from the listen along) Old material is kept up on the site in full for a month after its conclusion to allow people to grab all their files and build their own audiobook copy, after which it goes away.
5: Polls, fun shit, voting rights on things I might do or am on the fence over
6: question and answer sessions (I’ve been answering directly on the post lately because easier)
7: photography access (Reminder to self: post new photography to the photography patreon)
Cindercorn tier is $25 a month. So, yes… I would be absolutely paid fairly for both ebook and audiobooks at this tier (and the above tier.)
For older books, the Patreon store will have copies available to purchase. You can listen in a variety of different programs, and while it’s not quite as easy as using something like Chirp or Kobo, the files are yours once purchased. If you want to buy an audiobook as a gift, I recommend just making a new gmail account and having additional Patreon accounts to purchase your gift copies. (And yes, I absolutely have NO problems with someone buying a copy from the store if they’re a Cindercorn and gifting that when they got their personal copy from being a Cindercorn. That’s absolutely allowed and encouraged.)
So, the Cindercorn/Spicy Ponies with Bite audiobooks will ONLY be new audiobooks (never before released.) The rerecordings will NOT be included, because they’re special edition old material being redone so people have more options. (This is an extra expense, and they’re not technically new releases.)
The audiobook currently in progress of being proofed will be offered to Cindercorns. (Expect 1-3 weeks for the first audiobook to be released to the Cindercorns/Spicy Ponies tiers.)
I apologize for the huge floofa of stuff on audiobooks this week. Trust me when I say that I did not want the foundational distributor for my audiobooks doing a rights grab.
And while they changed the language significantly, the company (Spotify) has displayed their true colors for authors to see. I’m packing my shit and going home from them… and I would rather just add audiobooks to the Cindercorns/Spicy Ponies with Bite tiers and call it a day.
I don’t want readers to keep losing their books because of disreputable so-and-sos.
And yes, for a rare change, Audible isn’t a bad guy. GOOD JOB, AMAZON! You have actually been an excellent example of preserving author intellectual property. You get a gold star for not being complete jerks. (Now… if you could please pay us better, that would be nice.)
I am looking into options for distribution, but for the moment, I think this is the best route for everybody.
As time, sanity, etc, allows, I’ll be working on setting up audiobooks in Payhip (for those who need bookfunnel) and the Patreon store.
Please note that bookfunnel/payhip will be the absolute LAST thing done; the process is… not fun. In the slightest. (It’s very slow and painful.)
And no, I will not be using bookfunnel for the Patreon distribution. You will have to be savvy enough to download directly from Patreon. (Sorry. It’s just not viable to use Bookfunnel. The bookfunnel app has serious issues, and I spend far longer troubleshooting issues than I do with even the Patreon downloads.)
I will be trying to see if I can write a guide that can help people get their Patreon stuff onto their devices so I can pin it to the Patreon page, but… there’s one of me, and time isn’t infinite. (Oof, is it ever not infinite.)
If you’re in the audiobook crowd, and you want to join the party, you can click here to check out my Patreon. It’s a pretty hip place.
Thank you so much for all you do trying to get your work out there so everyone can enjoy your writing. I know from what you’ve said in the past that you cannot listen to audiobooks and enjoy them, for this I’m sorry, especially as they’ve been such a massive pain, even more of late.
I do hope things start getting much easier from now on so you can do what you truly enjoy, and create stories instead of taking so much time and effort in getting them out in the wilds so we can hunt them down and catch ’em.
I’m pleased that you produce audiobooks to give access to the visually impaired. If I understand correctly the audiobooks don’t actually pay for themselves. I applaud your good deed.
I’m the opposite case. I am hearing impaired. I buy text ebooks because I am unable to use audiobooks.
Question? How does this disaster effect my previous purchases of virtually all your ebooks and audio book. Will i lose access to what I have. Also kick their ass.they need it.
You should retain access to everything purchased; that’s what our contracts state should happen. In Audible, you have to look by title for the specific book, and I don’t know how sites other than Chirp and Kobo handle it; both of those leave libraries intact, but audiobooks may be removed from series listings.
But they should stay in the libraries. (But that is in the hands of the vendors.)
I use KOBO for all audio books and most ebooks . So you know i have really enjoyed your books they are great company. Thank you for your talent and caring.
Yeah, Kobo should maintain your library, but you’ll have to double-check you already have the audiobook moving forward, as I’m transferring all my books to them direct.
For as long as I can remember, I’ve fought for every possible minute I could spend reading. The recent problems I’ve been having with my eyes have complicated my life in many ways. Being able to escape to the worlds created by my favorite authors via audiobooks has helped me avoid giving way to despair, Hearing about the challenges you have to deal with to continue having your books recorded, I just want to let you know how much pleasure your audiobooks add to my world. I understand that the expense of producing the audiobooks is significant. Please know, if you produce them, I will happily buy them!
Ps. On your Patreon pages, is there a way to add a navigation link to your store? I always seem to flail around before finding my way.
Unfortunately, I have no way of changing how the Patreon store functions. However, I will be updating my website with an audiobook page that will let users click from my website and go directly to the audiobook sale page for the title they wish to purchase. It’s a work in progress, as… thanks to this audiobook stuff, I have to redo the entirety of my website for anything regarding audiobooks. (Not my favorite, not gonna lie!)