No need to recap the conversation that has been had.  It started with Chris Miller stating that the Amazon Rush would no longer be as effective as it had been.  It continued when I stated that it wasn’t dead, but it isn’t what a lot of people thought it was.  The comments of both posts exploded, with both Chris Miller and myself taking our fair share of heat for it.

At the outset I have to give credit to Scott Breakall for being the first to disagree with me.  In his words, “Chris Miller is dead wrong, while you’re only half wrong.”  Thanks, Scott.  I think.  Thanks to J.C. Hutchins for coming on here and giving a very detailed and reasoned response.  It set me straight on a lot of things.  So here we go.  What have we learned?

The Amazon Rush Sells Books
It’s the most basic concept in the world, and Nobilis was the first one to shout that from the rooftops in the two blog posts.  In the immortal words of Scott Sigler, “…this conversation is retarded.“  It’s an author’s job to sell books, and the Amazon Rush does that.

Mur Lafferty made an excellent point.  “I’m not on bookstore shelves, the only way I have to grab ‘browsing’ types is to get my book cover on as many Amazon pages as possible.”  The exposure that these Small Press/Podcasting Authors are looking for is precisely the “new reader” I claimed was not buying the book!  When we established readers purchase the book in great numbers, pushing it up on the Movers and Shakers chart, pushing it up the genre charts, that book gets on recommended lists.  That book gets on the front page of the genre sections.  People who don’t know about the book but know about Amazon will see those high-performing books.

Our very own General Siglerissimo said it best: “Come up with new tactics, sure, but I’d say the Amazon rush is a tried-and-true method of free advertising that produces significant book sales and motivates your fans to spread the word to people that have not heard of you.”  It has been weighed.  It has been measured.  It works.

A Disconnect in Presentation
When Scott Sigler engaged us all in his run with Ancestor, there were literally people trying to stand in the way of his success.  There were problems in the stat tracking, problems with how the purchases were listed (as pre-orders), and there were industry people asking “what just happened?”  There was an honest-to-God “tell the industry what’s what” sort of vibe going on.

This has carried on in a trickle-down effect to this new media fiction sphere.  Smart people like Chris Miller himself, as well as Earl Newton, have given credence to this thought.  Chris even gave anecdotal evidence of potential Podiobooks.com authors expressing this sentiment.  They want to “do what Scott Sigler did.”  This is the “small-minded” sentiment to which I referred.

That idea is there, whether the Authors are buying into it or not.  Kris Johnson said, “the rush is typically sold as a revolution… forcing (yes, forcing; I’ve seen that language used by the more ardent acolytes) the big wigs to take note.”  Even J.C. Hutchins admits it exists when he says, “…I think authors who state this are using it as a marketing smokescreen to generate solidarity and an underdog vibe within the community.  There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this — authors rolling out via indie presses are indeed underdogs — but make no mistake: the rallying cry is ultimately designed to sell more books.”

The Author intent may not be to “stick it to the man,” made clear by Hutch and Mur, but somewhere along the way there came this disconnect.  The base buys into the idea, and Authors tap into that.  It’s a business, and it’s a legitimate way to pimp your work.

The Amazon Rush is Not About Getting Published
This should be a big giant “duh.”  You have to be published to be listed on Amazon.  The Author has a responsibility to their publisher to sell their books.  To show that they are an intrinsic part of the marketing machine for their work.  When people view the Amazon Rush through the lens of revolution, or “sticking it to the man,” then it’s viewed as a “tactic.”  It’s far more than a tactic, but a legitimate method for sales.

It’s really about staying published.  Holding up your end of the bargain.  The New Media mandate is providing content for free on the internet.  The Amazon Rush is a bridge between that mandate and publishing’s demand to make money.  The primary goal of it is not to make Editors and Agents to take note.  It’s simply to connect with more readers.  The most basic concept of being an Author.

The Amazon Rush is Not Suited to Sustainable Sales
This was J.C. Hutchins’ larger point.  “I have yet to see an indie podcast novelist continue to vociferously promote his/her print novel after its Amazon Rush date. A smart promotion strategy should not only embrace the early buyers (as Rushes do), but also include a plan to engage and attract latecomers or “fence sitters,” as well.”

If you’re going to generate momentum for your book, you are the primary motivator of that.  You’ve got to give your book “face time,” as it were, making yourself the spokesperson for this thing that otherwise would merely sit there doing nothing.  It’s a premise Scott Sigler made clear from the beginning.  When you connect with your audience on a personal level, they will follow you.  The Amazon Rush is a natural product of this community.  I say again:  It’s a natural product.

The Amazon Rush Makes Sense (and Cents)
It absolutely makes sense.  It is, as the General said, “a tried and true method.”  It should not be couched in some sort of philosophy about being “long in the tooth,” or “So Early 2008.”  To eat my own crow, it is neither annoying nor done too often.

Perhaps Mur said it best: “I think we won’t know until it fails – and the last time someone used it it worked quite well. I had fears that since I was doing it last of the authors this summer, my rush would suffer for it, but that didn’t happen. I don’t pretend to be able to predict how trends will go in the future; it’s not one of my strengths.”

Scott Breakall also said it very succinctly to me: “How can something be dead if it hasn’t failed yet?”

Where Do We Go From Here
I say that every new media author that has a small press title ought to celebrate their Amazon launch!  They ought to shout it from the rooftops and engage the cheering section at all times.  We all who either love what they do, or hope to do it ourselves one day, should be there supporting them and pimping their work at as many turns as are feasible.  I will never again complain, because this debate has energized me into preaching its benefits.

What about doing something different?  As I quoted Mur above, this is a way to get your book out in front of browsing eyes.  When you can’t get into a bookstore, why not get it as high as you can on Amazon?

If you want to do something different, look at Matthew Wayne Selznick as a trailblazer.  He did something vastly different than everyone else.  He presented as-yet unheard short stories from his universe.   He held court on a live feed where supporters and colleagues joined in the fun.  The Amazon Run was merely the event.  It was the party that MWS invited everyone to that was the real success.  It was truly community in action.

The Amazon Rush is not dead!  Don’t let anyone tell you it’s dead, or lost its luster, or needs a rest.  To quote a famous Christmas story, “Yes Virginia, there is an Amazon Rush.”  I’ve taken a turn ala Lois Lane.  First I thought the world didn’t need the Amazon Rush.  Now I know different.