French booksellers kicked Amazon out of Paris Book Festival while Audible launched budget subscriptions and the Authors Guild expanded human authorship certification. These seemingly separate events reveal a publishing industry grappling with Big Tech dominance and authenticity.
Most writing goals fail because they’re too ambitious from the start. Learn why starting embarrassingly small and focusing on process over product creates sustainable writing habits that actually lead to finished books.
The 2025 indie author income survey reveals a growing middle class of sustainable earners who are diversifying beyond book sales and leveraging AI tools to build profitable publishing careers. The data shows promising trends for authors willing to adapt to new technologies and revenue strategies.
Draft2Digital’s new partnership with Bookshop.org creates an unprecedented bridge between indie ebooks and independent bookstore customers. This collaboration represents more than just another sales channel—it’s a fundamental shift toward community-driven book discovery that benefits authors, readers, and local bookstores alike.
Jane Friedman’s annual publishing predictions have become essential reading for authors trying to navigate industry changes. Her latest 2025 retrospective and 2026 forecast offer crucial insights into what actually happened versus the hype, and what authors should prepare for next.
In our digital-first world, the simple act of sending signed books and bookmarks to independent bookstores creates surprisingly powerful marketing connections. This old-school approach to building relationships with booksellers often outperforms expensive online campaigns.
ALLi’s new Indie Author Bookstore and the return of major bookstore chains to public markets signal a pivotal moment for independent publishing. As audiobooks drive discovery and traditional formats decline, the publishing landscape is reshaping in unexpected ways.
Poor audiobook production quality doesn’t just hurt individual sales – it creates a devastating cycle of listener dropout, negative reviews, and algorithmic punishment that can torpedo an author’s entire catalog potential. With the audiobook market hitting $2.22 billion and growing 13% annually, professional audio production has become a baseline requirement for competing in today’s sophisticated listening landscape.
While major publishers access premium BookScan data and exclusive conference insights, indie authors are building their own intelligence networks. The real publishing trend isn’t hidden behind paywalls—it’s the democratization of tools that make traditional gatekeepers increasingly irrelevant.
Metadata might be invisible to readers, but it’s the digital bloodstream that determines whether your book gets discovered or disappears into the void. Understanding how to set up and maintain your book’s metadata correctly can make the difference between sales success and obscurity.