A Rant: Now You See it, Now You Don't?

I'm in the habit of checking on the statuses of my ebooks online.  I suppose this can be considered vain, but it's also good business sense. I don't derive much of an income from my work, but I do like to think it's being I'm being fairly treated.

In due course, checked the website of Chapters Indigo, the largest single Canadian book retailer.  As an independent Canadian author, I was proud to have both War Plan Crimson and Elvis Saves JFK! listed for sale, and a few posts back, I even commemorated the fact with fireworks.  But now, suddenly, as if it were yanked away by an invisible hand, Elvis Saves JFK! is no longer available for sale on that site. What gives? Do they honestly think it's as if I sell way too many books as it is, so I obviously don't need these sales? In truth, I'm just getting by, so I was floored when the Powers that Be decided to pull my book without a word to me. The arbitrary and rude nature of this move simply blows me away. It's bad news for indie authors such as me who don't have a huge publishing and promotion machine behind them (You're looking at the machine right here, folks.) Of course, I'm always willing conceede there's been some kind of accident... but talk to me, please folks!

Each time, a book is withdrawn from sale, it represents one less divergent voice that is out there. In the wake of the recent merger between publishing giants Penguin and Random House,  I believe we will see less and less divergent voices being published, as publishers and their corporate owners pursue the safe, mushy (and profitable) middle ground. Over the long term, this means that there will be less and less room for new authors and challenging ideas.

Enough of my rant. For now, thankfully, you can find the distinctly unchallenging Elvis Saves JFK! (and War Plan Crimson, A Novel of Alternate History, for that matter) on a whole bunch of other, more polite retail sites, including:

• Barnes and Noble
• Kobo
• Smashwords
• Apple I Tunes Store

If you want to help strike a blow with me and other indie authors who this may be happening to (and honestly, I don't know), you may wish for now, to keep your business away from Chapters Indigo until we work this out.

Are you listening Heather Reisman?