As Black Friday in the U.S. launches the Christmas shopping season, people are turning their focus on gifts for those special loved ones in their lives. As an independent author/artist this is a time to try to attract attention to one’s wares in the hope of *gasp* sales. Recently, while checking on the listing for my novels on amazon.ca, the main marketplace for my books, I discovered the paperback of Book Four of The Witch’s Foundling series, The Sons of Enoch was listed at $47.98!! This was NOT the price I had selected for the paperback. Even the traditionally, more-expensive hardcover was listed at $39.45! How can that be you ask? Third Party Sellers.

Third Party Sellers are people who buy up copies of a certain book and then list them on places like Amazon at inflated prices. Due to their skilled massaging of the site’s algorithm, their over-priced offerings are placed at the top of the book’s listing. As you might expect, many potential readers will take one look at that price and keep scrolling. Or, if they’re truly dedicated readers of the series, they pay the inflated price; potentially making them feel like they’re being ripped off. I should also point out, that I still only receive my original royalty. Not to mention how frustrating it is for an indie author, knowing people who might truly like their book will pass on it due to the price.

Unfortunately, it’s also the case that Amazon and other platforms can’t really do anything to control the issue. At the present, thankfully, the other sites offering the books have not been affected by these shenanigans. One of the perks of going with wide distribution, is it gives authors and consumers the ability to compare prices. To that effect, all the links to my books in this blog are to their listings on the Chapter/Indigo website. As time passes, the Amazon.ca prices should return to normal but I have no idea or control as to when. As you might guess, it’s beyond frustrating. Who knows how many sales this may have already cost me.

Anyway, I hope this doesn’t prevent any readers from giving Indie Authors a try. There are some truly spectacular tales out there. I’ll continue to provide some word of mouth promotion through the Indie Book Reviews in the SillWill Saga newsletter; though I admit to a bias for fantasy and science fiction, so be warned. ; )

In the coming year, we plan to revamp our website and hopefully, be offering direct sales of my books. Though that’s not a full answer as platforms like Amazon and Chapters/Indigo or Barnes and Noble will always be a part of any author’s game plan. So, whenever you’re shopping on these sites and come across an outrageous price for a certain item from an independent producer, just remember those dastardly Third Party Sellers and check out a different site.

FEATURE DESIGN OF THE MONTH

The Angel of the Stars has secrets to share with you. Let her guide you through the holiday season as the cold winter weather brings the stars into sharp relief. Available on things like t-shirts, mugs, stickers, journals and more on our Redbubble shop. You can usually expect a sale of some kind during this time, too. So, extra-cool there.T