lauraanne_gilman (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
lauraanne_gilman) wrote2009-04-12 04:08 pm
lauraanne_gilman) wrote2009-04-12 04:08 pm
Entry tags:
WTF Amazon?
EtA: This is all breaking news and the updates are coming too fast for me, at least, to keep up. The alarm went up in the LGBT community but it seems to have spread to anything that has any overt inklings of even slightly non-straight or overtly non-vanilla sexuality (including the Kushiel books). A quick looks shows that my books are still listed, as are Anne Bishop's books, even the ones that involve the sexual abuse of an underage child. EtA: Lynn Flewelling is waiting to see if they go after her books next. If they do, and my books remain listed... my books are slightly more explicit than hers, only difference is mine are m/f and hers are m/m.
Meta Writer seems to be on top of it, so I point you there or to Dear Author or Smart Bitches
My comments below stand. I will not buy there, I will not send people there, I will not include them in any of my announcement links. Until they get the head back on the chicken that's running that place, they are dead to me.
ETA: on the road. updates when I'm home.
Via EBear, via http://community.livejournal.com/meta_writer/11369.html:
"If you write books with homosexual characters, read books with homosexual characters, please look at this: http://markprobst.livejournal.com/15293.html
Mark, Erastes, and Alex (among others) had their Amazon sales rankings removed over the last few days for The Filly, Transgressions and False Colours respectively. On enquiring about this, Mark was told the following:
In consideration of our entire customer base, we exclude "adult" material from appearing in some searches and best seller lists. Since these lists are generated using sales ranks, adult materials must also be excluded from that feature.
Hence, if you have further questions, kindly write back to us.
Best regards,
Ashlyn D
Member Services
Amazon.com Advantage
-----------
suri here. it seems, at first glance, that the only books getting hit with "adult" ratings are those dealing with homosexual or transgender characters -- even if the books are YA. I haven't had a chance to check into this further (pending a call in to romance editors on Monday) but I haven't heard of mainstream 'sexy' or 'adult' books getting the same treatment.
Amazon, being a privately-owned company, is free to make whatever marketing decisions they choose to. And I, being a private citizen, am free to make whatever buying decisions I choose to. And until this is reversed -- or applied across the board to any book that has adult material -- which would include my own! -- I will not be buying from Amazon; not books, not music, not anything. And certainly not a Kindle. And I will be telling Corporate Headquarters of my decision.
You might want to do the same, if you're feeling the same disgust at their actions....
Meta Writer seems to be on top of it, so I point you there or to Dear Author or Smart Bitches
My comments below stand. I will not buy there, I will not send people there, I will not include them in any of my announcement links. Until they get the head back on the chicken that's running that place, they are dead to me.
Via EBear, via http://community.livejournal.com/meta_writer/11369.html:
"If you write books with homosexual characters, read books with homosexual characters, please look at this: http://markprobst.livejournal.com/15293.html
Mark, Erastes, and Alex (among others) had their Amazon sales rankings removed over the last few days for The Filly, Transgressions and False Colours respectively. On enquiring about this, Mark was told the following:
In consideration of our entire customer base, we exclude "adult" material from appearing in some searches and best seller lists. Since these lists are generated using sales ranks, adult materials must also be excluded from that feature.
Hence, if you have further questions, kindly write back to us.
Best regards,
Ashlyn D
Member Services
Amazon.com Advantage
-----------
suri here. it seems, at first glance, that the only books getting hit with "adult" ratings are those dealing with homosexual or transgender characters -- even if the books are YA. I haven't had a chance to check into this further (pending a call in to romance editors on Monday) but I haven't heard of mainstream 'sexy' or 'adult' books getting the same treatment.
Amazon, being a privately-owned company, is free to make whatever marketing decisions they choose to. And I, being a private citizen, am free to make whatever buying decisions I choose to. And until this is reversed -- or applied across the board to any book that has adult material -- which would include my own! -- I will not be buying from Amazon; not books, not music, not anything. And certainly not a Kindle. And I will be telling Corporate Headquarters of my decision.
You might want to do the same, if you're feeling the same disgust at their actions....