Several weeks ago, a writer representing The Concord Bridge, a locally-based newspaper requested an interview with me. I’m not usually someone who is fond of speaking publicly. In fact, I’d be more inclined to avoid the limelight. But, seeing that I also needed the publicity (and also to earn a living,) I took them up on their kind offer. Plus, it would be foolish for not wanting to be mentioned in the same vein as the other famous local artists that preceded me. Those residents of this small town included Louisa May Alcott, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Daniel Chester French.
Much to my family’s surprise, The Concord Bridge wrote a full-page spread about my work. It did however coincide with some very unfortunate timing. Within an hour of receiving this paper in the mail, the main best-selling title, The Art Nouveau Coloring Book: Hats, Cats, & Vintage Romance was pulled without any warning by Amazon’s Content Team for alleged copyright infringement. The immediate thought that came to my mind was that this was the result of a swatting incident as the coloring book sphere on Amazon is highly competitive.
I ended up spending over a week desperately trying to plead my case as I knew that I hadn’t infringed on anyone’s work. Not only did their action threaten my reputation, but it also killed a very high BSR (Best Seller Rank) that I had spent a lot of time fostering through campaigning and spending money on ads. KDP initially made the statement that I should change my cover and the items within, then resubmit the work for approval again. I refused because I was concerned that this would set a precedent, however I honestly entertained the thought because I started to wonder if this would have been faster to get it back online. To complicate matters even further, their Content Team has an intentional policy of being extremely vague and even non-responsive to authors finding themselves in a similar position.
In the end, my Art Nouvea title was completely restored but the damage they inflicted without any due process had already been done. A rep from Amazon KDP even had the audacity to “congratulate” me via email that the title was restored. Nevertheless, I’m not happy about the whole ordeal and it’s left a very bitter taste in my mouth when it comes to the way this corporation operates. I have provided a lot of very helpful suggestions and feedback as to how they might improve their reporting process in the future, but quite honestly I wonder if these suggestions will have fallen on deaf ears.
As for Amazon, they still haven’t offered up any solutions for helping me repair the damage that inflicted. I ended up having to spend even more money on advertisements and more time fighting something I shouldn’t have in the first place. But keep in mind, I have a feeling that their actions are more commonplace than they will ever let the public know. I feel terrible for other people who have put their sweat and tears into producing their works, only to be at the mercy of a modern day Goliath.
Anyways, back to the article and a little bit more about how I work:
https://theconcordbridge.org/index.php/2024/03/12/hue-knew-concordian-is-creative-force-behind-adult-coloring-books/