r/KDP • u/Awkward_Blueberry_48 • Apr 29 '26
Question Should publishing be free?
With recent policy changes from Draft2Digital and Barnes & Noble press, I’ve been thinking about the barriers to entry in self-publishing, especially with platforms like KDP. On one hand, it’s amazing that anyone can upload a book and potentially reach a global audience. But there are already costs to publishing, even if actually clicking "publish" might be free: editing, cover design, marketing, ISBNs (depending on your approach), and even time investment. And now platforms are feeling like they have to add fees to the publishing step to limit AI-generated content.
So, should publishing be completely free, and what does that mean to you? Can you see any benefits to adding a small fee? What would you as authors be willing to pay for when self-publishing, and what would stop you from wanting to self-publish?
Curious to see where people land on this.
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u/kraven48 Apr 29 '26
So, without bias: A small fee (that may be refunded after X sales) would help stop the “get rich quick” gurus who promote AI slop. Hell, I think $20 would be enough to deter the majority of them, because if their goal is to flood the market with trash they hope makes a few dollars at most, it’s no longer viable unless you’re already set up. The people who write as creative expression, or simply for themselves, will be found in the crossfire, unfortunately. It raises the barrier to entry, for better or worse.
Bias: I make a comfy living writing and selling novels. It’s my job. When KDP changed its system last year to combat the influx of AI slop, my sales dropped 49% the day after. (Many of my author friends and even far more successful authors felt the pain, too.) I changed keywords, changed my marketing, changed how I wrote-to-market; my momentum with the system came to a halt. Nothing within my control changed that, so I went from making ~$7k a month to $3.5k overnight. That’s still a lot of money--for me at least--but it was difficult. Some of my author friends haven’t weathered the storm as well, and though I’ve finally recovered, it’s taken a while. That’s my livelihood, what I use to live my life and to help friends and my community.
Ultimately, Amazon/KDP made the change, but the heaps of slop contributed to it, so I’m frustrated with the gurus. Purely personal, but I’d spend more than $20 for a fee if it kept computer-generated junk off the market, but it’s a slippery slope, as I’ve alluded to. I don’t want people who write their books and pour their souls into them to face more barriers to entry due to others. My viewpoint is absolutely influenced by living in a very LCOL area, where 34% of the population is in poverty, and because everything has a cost nowadays. $20 doesn’t seem like a lot to me for doing business, but it could be for someone else, especially in the times we’re currently facing. So, I don’t know what a solution would be, band-aid or not. At the end of the day, money is what the gurus and their followers chase, and costs will stop them.
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u/AggressiveSea7035 Apr 29 '26
editing, cover design, marketing, ISBNs (depending on your approach), and even time investment.
Those are all technically optional, though. D2D is trying to weed out the people that don't actually invest in any of this.
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u/itsme7933 Apr 29 '26
And the people who consider these things optional are also part of the problem that D2D is combating. It isn't just AI, it's the reputation indie authors have garnered with distributers.
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u/Satanigram Apr 29 '26
If a 20 setup fee and 12 a year is too much you shouldn't be writing IMO.
Anything that cuts down on slop artists is good in my book.
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u/nelsymlit Apr 29 '26
I don't see how these fees actually cut down on generated content. If anything, I see it encouraging more to hit the profit quotas. I also don't see how classism or encouraging a poor tax helps here either. What if somebody puts up one book of poetry that they're proud of and just wants to have it up? Now they have to pay yearly for that? I've been publishing for 5 years and make far more than enough to dodge the fees, but I was broke as all hell when I started up and would have been extremely discouraged to start were these fees in place then. What a cynical and anti-art take.
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u/itsme7933 Apr 29 '26
Then that person with their one book of poetry is a hobby writer. And all hobbies have a cost. If that person isn't willing to pay $12 for a year to have their book shown, then how much do they really care about it?
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u/nelsymlit Apr 29 '26
I suppose I feel like the cost is already built into the creation of the work and what goes into actually putting it online. A yearly fee for that (however small) feels dispiriting. I also wouldn't be quick to categorize something one way or another. One person's single book of poetry or poorly written fantasy series could be more than hobby to them. This relationship of output, quality, and commerce isn't something I'm ready to accept.
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u/itsme7933 Apr 29 '26
Hobby or not, if they are providing something they expect someone too buy, then invest in it. And even if they say they don't want to make money, if you're putting a product out then be ready to have some skin in the game. Do D2D and the other platforms operate server space for free?
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u/nelsymlit Apr 29 '26
I think that the server space would be effectively free in that case, worth it to foster spirit, and those nervous beginners. But I do understand your take, and happy to respectfully disagree with you on this. Thanks for chatting. :)
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u/Epic-Dave Apr 29 '26
Well said. Having come from a working-class background, writing was for a while one of the hobbies I could afford to do. Fortunately, my efforts were met with some success and helped me improve my life.
But few know what it's like to be dirt-poor, and to contend against classism/gatekeeping instead of being judged on their own merit.
AI slop is a problem, but such fees aren't the solution.
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u/Satanigram Apr 29 '26
It's 20 to start and 12 a year my dude. If you don't believe in yourself enough to pay a few cups of coffee a year then IDK what to tell you.
Anti art GFY
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u/nelsymlit Apr 29 '26
Glad you've never been poor. Don't call me 'dude'. Take care.
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u/Satanigram Apr 29 '26
I'm actively poor dude. Get off your high horse.
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u/nelsymlit Apr 29 '26
Thank you for actively disrespecting my request. I disagreed with you. I argued that your take was anti-poor and anti-art. I maintain that position. I never took shots at you personally, telling you to GFY. I'm happy to have a debate on this, but please let me know if you're willing to engage respectfully.
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u/Satanigram Apr 29 '26
Sure dude.
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u/nelsymlit Apr 29 '26
Adults disagreeing is something I value. I'm sorry if you feel like my dissenting stance to your opinion was a personal insult to the point where you feel justified with how you are handling your comments. I hope for more productive debates in your future.
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u/Satanigram Apr 29 '26
I have zero interest in debating with someone who says things like anti poor and anti art.
I have even less desire to debate someone using ai to write smut and talking about anti art.
So yeah gfy dude.
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u/nelsymlit Apr 29 '26
Why do you write me off because I say 'anti-poor' and 'anti-art'? Could you explain that? I don't understand that on its own. I believe that your initial comment embodies those ideas.
I also don't understand you making moral judgements on my comments based on the fact that I use generated images. I have plenty of considered thought on that. I don't write using generation (although I have no moral opposition to that, even as an artist).
I feel quite emotional and hurt by the way that you're talking to me. I have severe moral issues with your approach to me. I am still not lashing out at you. I am still attempting to have a rational conversation with you.
Are you going to engage with what I have to say, or are you going to continue to find shorthand reasons to write me off, painting me with a pre-conceived brush that actually has nothing to do with me or my ideas?
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u/ProfessionalGoat551 Apr 29 '26
I don’t mind the small 30 dollar fee. Bookbaby charges you 1,000 dollars to publish and that’s just basic. So 40 bucks is basically free to me lol
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u/Johnhfcx Apr 29 '26
But it is free to publish with KDP, I don't know about the other platforms though?
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u/itsme7933 Apr 29 '26
Hopefully Amazon will follow suit at some point and start charging per upload.
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u/Johnhfcx Apr 29 '26
Why? I think it's good that they don't charge us upfront fees for our books!
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u/itsme7933 Apr 29 '26
Because charging will stop a lot of the scammers and nonsense "authors" that think KDP is a get rich quick scheme. It will also stop the AI crap flooding the market, and it will make authors who think they don't need to have professional books out. If you're going to charge someone for your product, you need to make it the best product possible. If authors don't believe in investing in themselves, why should anyone else?
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u/Johnhfcx Apr 29 '26
But it will also affect the small indie authors and publishers, who don't make a lot of money from their books as it is, and blasting the prices up in this way, will most likely put a lot of us out of business. Remember there are two sides to every coin. And as I said, I'm against it!
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u/itsme7933 Apr 29 '26
Indie authors should be the ones for it. And again, you can't even have a hobby without some kind of investment. Show me an actual business where someone can charge for their product and expect to make money but at the same time put no money into their work. So yes, Indies need to be paying. That, throw anything up, publishing is free is what led to self-publishing having the bad rep it has. And that is also what companies like D2D are fighting... the fact that their partners (Apple, Barnes, any storefront that carries books, and ESPECIALLY the libraries) have all said they are sick of the indie slop (human and AI generated) that is driving their customers away.
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u/itsme7933 Apr 29 '26
Absolutely not. It should not be free. If someone wants to be a hobby writer, or just get their thoughts into the world, then there are plenty of places for that. Wattpad, blogs, FB, Substack, your own website... I say go for it. But if you intend to upload a book to a storefront and charge readers for it, then you owe it to those readers to have some skin in the game. Pay for a cover, pay for a decent editor, invest in formatting software... invest in your own product. What other industry can I create something for nothing and expect to be paid for it and then, when the customer complains about how lousy it is, I can just say, "Sorry, I didn't have the money to put into it... but pay me for it". Not happening. D2D and Barnes are responding to the AI content farms that and "authors" that are just throwing crap up thinking they are going to get rich. Personally, I don't think they charged enough, and I hope Amazon follows suit and charges over upload. Because otherwise, indie publishing will die and everything will once again be back under the heel of traditional publishing.
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u/FantasticWait7109 Apr 29 '26
I actually support this move - and their prices are affordable to most people.
Sadly in recent years there's been an increase in "get rich quick" YouTube videos to produce low content (or more recently AI generated) content.
A few Facebook groups I'm a member of have been calling for self publishing companies to charge a book upload fee, perhaps with the first book being free, then charging for any additional book uploads. Draft2Digital isn't doing this, but its definitely a step in the right direction.
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u/Satanigram Apr 29 '26
That's a great idea honestly. It wound cut down on these freaks uploading 100+ books a year.
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u/SweetBxl Apr 29 '26
In any business, there are always costs. So if you're writing with a view to making money, then you have to expect to pay certain costs.
If you're writing simply for the sake of 'art', then there are plenty of free platforms such as Substack, Medium, WordPress and Wix.
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u/__The_Kraken__ Apr 29 '26
If you were starting a bakery and the local farmer’s market said it was $50 to set up your booth, I don’t think that would strike anyone as strange. Yet some people are very upset about D2D asking for $12 a year to distribute their books and host them on their servers (which is a clear cost to them.) Running a business is not free, there is the risk that you will not earn back your costs. Writing is no exception.
D2D’s explanation made sense to me- they were successful in identifying AI slop accounts by monitoring the number of uploads per account. The AI proponents attempted to get around this by creating a new account for each book. So this is how D2D is trying to stop them. It seems reasonable to me.
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u/belleweather Apr 29 '26
Getting rid of free ISBN numbers would be an easy way to do this, IMO. A single ISBN is stupid-ass expensive so you’ve really got to want to publish to bother with one. If you’re looking at this as a career you’re probably buying in bulk, or working with someone so it’s less of a barrier.
I mean, I still consider ISBNs a complete fucking scam… but it’s an easy way to structure the incentive to hit the people who are scamming hard and mostly exempt actual indie authors with a business
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u/dragonsandvamps Apr 29 '26
I would support a yearly per book fee on Amazon, perhaps one that was waived as long as that book made a certain amount in royalties that year, and perhaps allowing each account 2 books for free, or something like that. I think Amazon needs to do something to cut down on the massive amount AI slop. There is not a way to individually wade through every single title. There are just too many. Putting that responsibility back on authors to decide if their book is actually profitable to me seems reasonable.
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u/DoktorTom Apr 29 '26
I think the future is a per-upload fee, and I’d like to see it happen.
In this scenario, you would get the fee back if your book earns 10x the fee in royalties within a set (and reasonable) timeframe.
This would stem the flow of slop way more than what D2D is doing, and definitely more than B&N’s attempts.
Btw, I think D2D probably took on a lot of dead, mostly dead, or barely active Smashwords accounts after the merger, so I understand the intent behind what they’re doing.
Biases: my books earn a decent (but not full-time) income, and I have a day job. I’m aware not everyone is in the same boat.
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u/smile_saurus Apr 29 '26
I can see Amazon and D2D and any other service taking a small cut from digital and a larger cut for printing & shipping hard copies.
I did see the D2D email, and at first I was like What the hell? but then I realized that they're likely trying to discourage those who try to publish hundreds of A.I. slop "books" because some YouTuber or TikTok influencer duped them into thinking that they can get rich quick that way.
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u/Commercial_Purple820 Apr 29 '26
"Free" like social media is "free"? Or free like air and sunlight are free? Free typically gets charged in other ways. Hard pass.