Apple's New Self-Publishing App Restricts Your Work To iBooks
News by Rob Hart
Apple's new iBooks Author app, which lets writers design and self-publish their books, comes with a major restriction--if you design your book in the app, you can only sell it in iBooks.
Apple Makes Some Major eBook Announcements: iBooks 2, iBooks Author, iTunes U
News by Rob Hart
Apple just made some major announcements for their eBook platform- creating apps for self-published authors, interactive textbooks and college classes.
Can't Everyone In The Publishing Industry Just Get Along?
Column by Rob Hart January 16, 2012
We spend a lot of time arguing over what's better--print vs. eBooks, traditional vs. self-publishing, indies vs. Amazon--but can't we just agree that both sides have their benefits?
Ian Rankin Calls For Tax Breaks For New Authors
News by Rob Hart January 16, 2012
Scottish crime writer Ian Rankin calls for the United Kingdom to adopt tax incentives to support new writers, now that publishers are taking less risks and paying out less for advances.
Royalties For Authors In The Kindle Lending Library Up 449 Percent
News by Rob Hart January 13, 2012
Authors who are participating in the Kindle Lending Library are seeing increased royalty payments, from a fund Amazon put aside to compensate them.
Author JA Konrath Makes $100,000 In Three Weeks On Self-Pubbed Books
News by Rob Hart January 12, 2012
Self-publishing advocate JA Konrath just posted his sales numbers for the past three weeks. He's earned $100,000. In three weeks. On self-published novels.
Harvard Book Store Encourages People To Buy Where They Browse
News by Rob Hart January 12, 2012
The Harvard Book Store has put together a video that dissuades people from using bookstores as a showroom for Amazon.
James Franco Signs With Amazon For Next Book
News by Rob Hart January 5, 2012
After publishing his first book through Scribner, James Franco will buck traditional publishing by putting out his next, 'Actors Anonymous', through Amazon.
Rumored NYC Apple Event To Focus On eBooks And Sef-Publishing?
News by Rob Hart January 4, 2012
Apple is reportedly planning a press conference for the end of the month in New York City, and rumor is the focus will be digital publishing--possibly on digital textbooks and self-publishing.
Amazon Shows Huge eGrowth This Holiday Season
News by Rob Hart December 29, 2011
Amazon's 2011 holiday report shows that the online retailer posted huge gains this season, including the fact that they sold one million Kindles a week during December.
Barnes & Noble Not Christmas-y Enough, Says Religious Right
News by Rob Hart December 15, 2011
The American Family Association put big-box bookseller Barnes & Noble on their annual "naughty" list because their holiday ads say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas."
Why Independent Bookstores Matter: A Rebuttal To Slate's Farhad Manjoo
Column by Rob Hart December 14, 2011
Farhad Manjoo's Slate piece, 'Don’t Support Your Local Bookseller', makes the claim that Amazon is the true supporter of literary culture--but by my measure, it is riddled with hollow arguments.
Amazon Releases List Of 2011's Top Sellers
News by Rob Hart December 12, 2011
Amazon released their list of the top 10 sellers for 2011, and leading the pack is 'Steve Jobs' by Walter Isaacson--though two self-published books made the cut, too.
Kindle Fire Poorly Received Thus Far
News by Brandon Tietz December 12, 2011
After all the hype about the Kindle Fire being a game-changer in the tablet arena, the reviews so far indicate otherwise.
Amazon Wages War On Brick-And-Mortar Stores
News by Rob Hart December 7, 2011
Amazon will offer discounts to shoppers who scan bar codes at stores and upload them through the Amazon app--a practice that could spell bad news for indie bookstores.
Amazon Banning Reviews From Paid Publicity Websites
News by Rob Hart December 1, 2011
Amazon has dropped the banhammer on companies that accept payment in exchange for positive product reviews.
The Kindle Fire and the Betamax Problem: Confessions of an Early Adopter
Column by Paul Graham Raven November 28, 2011
Why is the Kindle Fire like an electric toothbrush?
Can The Kindle Add Fuel To The Fire Of The Public Library System?
Column by Hanna Brooks Olsen November 22, 2011
Amazon Kindle has changed the way consumers get their hands on books. Now the little eBook that could is showing that it can do more, by quietly creeping into libraries. Could this be a good thing?
Self-Published Author Amanda Hocking Breaks Sales Record
News by Rob Hart November 10, 2011
Amanda Hocking has become the second self-published author to sell more than a million eBooks through Amazon.
Amazon's Best Books of 2011
News by Brandon Tietz November 8, 2011
Just in case your Wish List was getting skimpy, Amazon has unveiled its top 10 of 2011.
Barnes & Noble Enters The Tablet Wars
News by Rob Hart November 7, 2011
The eReader wars are heating up: Barnes & Noble just announced the Nook Tablet, to rival the Kindle Fire and Kobo Vox.
Amazon Is Getting Into The Book-Lending Business
News by Rob Hart November 4, 2011
Amazon Prime members can now access the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library, allowing them to rent one eBook at a time for free--although the selection is a little anemic.
Amazon Courts Controversy By Selling A Children's Book Penned By A Serial Killer
News by Rob Hart November 3, 2011
Amazon is under fire for selling a children's book that was allegedly written by a serial killer.
Author Gets Shafted On Royalties By Amazon
News by Rob Hart November 3, 2011
Amazon goofed and gave away a self-published author's eBook for free--and with more than 5,000 free downloads, he lost out on more than $20,000 in royalties
'One Click: Jeff Bezos and the Rise of Amazon.com' by Richard L Brandt
Review by Paul Graham Raven
This biography of Jeff Bezos and Amazon.com may not be packed with literary merit, but it clearly shows how Amazon took the throne in internet retail: we, its customers, put it there.
