YA Indie Carnival: KDP Select

This week at the Carnival we are discussing Amazon's borrowing program called KDP Select.  If you belong to it and pay (whatever the cost to enroll) you get to borrow books for free.  The problem is they won't let authors have their books anywhere else.  It is Amazon or nothing.  Because I have fans with Nooks, not to mention people who buy my books from places like Kobo, I refuse to put my book on the KDP Select thing.  I did try it once for a short time.  Before I uploaded Witch Hunt anywhere else, I put it on Amazon and enrolled it in the program.  You have to give them exclusive rights for three months each time you enroll it.

Why did I do it?  Because Amazon allows you to offer it for free for five days for every three months enrolled.  This means people will see it and try it who otherwise wouldn't even know the book existed.  It worked.  Over a thousand downloaded it for free.  At least some of them have returned since then to buy Crushed and some of my other books.  After the three months ended I put my book on Smashwords.  As far as people borrowing it goes, not very many people have.

I also have a romantic suspense book available on KDP Select for borrowing called Pandora's Box.  Because I didn't care to put it on Smashwords or anywhere else, I've left it on Amazon's program.  Sometimes someone will borrow it.  Sometimes someone will buy it, but it is definitely not one of my best sellers.

Check out the other carnies to see what they have to say about it.

1. Laura A. H. Elliott author of Winnemucca & 13 on Halloween, Book 1 in the Teen Halloween Series
2. Bryna Butler, author Midnight Guardian series

3. Heather Self

4. T. R. Graves, Author of The Warrior Series
5. Suzy Turner, author of The Raven Saga 

6. Cheri Schmidt, author of the Fateful Trilogy
7. Rachel Coles, author of Into The Ruins, geek mom blog 

8. K. C. Blake, author of Vampires Rule and Crushed
9. Patti Larsen, The Hunted series and The Hayle Coven series 

10. Amy Maurer Jones, Author of The Soul Quest Trilogy
11. Fisher Amelie, author of The Understorey

12. Gwenn Wright, author of Filter  

13. Melissa Pearl, Author of The Time Spirit Trilogy
14. Heather M. White, author of The Destiny Saga

15. Courtney Cole Writes
16. Liz Long | Just another writer on the loose.

17. Ella James
18. Maureen Murrish

19. Valerie Sloan
20. YA Sci Fi Author's Ramblings
21. Terah Edun, author of Red Madrassa and An Amlah's Diary