Very soon I will be pulling the entire Something Like… series from all retailers except for Amazon. I do so with mixed feelings. The way we consume media has changed drastically over the past decade. Most of us have discovered the irresistible convenience of subscription-based services. For one flat price (usually around ten bucks) we get to stay home and enjoy an all-you-can-consume buffet of content. In my household, that’s how we listen to music (Spotify!) and how we watch movies and TV (Netflix, Hulu, etc.). Considering the state the economy is in, I can only imagine that these price-friendly services will become even more popular. That includes books. Kindle Unlimited is Amazon’s subscription service for eBooks, and I’ve been willingly ignoring it for most of my career. Why? Because they demand exclusivity.

That means, if I want my books to be included in the Kindle Unlimited program, they can’t be sold on iBooks, Google Play, Barnes & Noble Nook, or anywhere else. This makes me uncomfortable. I’ve always wanted my stories to reach the widest audience possible… while still making money. If I didn’t have to worry about paying the bills, I’d be happy to give my books away. I can’t do that though, and each year I’ve seen sales from other retailers shrink while my Amazon sales represent a bigger slice of the pie. The writing is on the wall, and I feel I at least need to try Kindle Unlimited once to see how it goes. Here’s what you need to know:

-If you’ve bought an eBook from me on any platform, you will still have access to that book. You own it. That won’t change.

-If you are in the middle of reading the Something Like… series on any platform except for Amazon Kindle, you might want to buy the others before the end of this week, if you don’t like using the Kindle app.

-Paperbacks will remain exactly as they are. You can still buy them wherever you can find them. The exclusivity only applies to eBooks.

-If this becomes a successful model for me, I’ll still release new books to all platforms first. I’ll only enroll new books in Kindle Unlimited once people have a reasonable opportunity to get them through their preferred method.

I think that covers everything. I only have to commit to three months of Kindle Unlimited. If it isn’t profitable, I’ll bail and things will go back to how they were. I’m hoping it’s successful though. If I score new readers while still getting paid, I’ll be happy. If my books become more accessible to those of us who have less money to spend—and let’s face it, we’re all in that boat now—then hopefully you’ll be happy too. I only wish that Amazon would allow me to do both. Maybe someday. For now, I’ll play ball in the hopes of making it to the major leagues.

If you’d like to check my back catalog to see which books of mine you might be missing, you can do so here.