[Prestidigitweeze]

One problem with indie books is the fecundity of previously unpublished writers. It isn't necessarily a paucity of quality that creates this sense of demoralizing abundance. The problem is the difficulty of organizing a clear path through the enormity no matter how organized an indie site might be (Scribd and Smashmouth being two of the more famous examples).

Commercial sites often privilege books according to an hierarchy of sales, advertising, prominence or publisher. This is unjust and says little about ultimate quality, but it does impose order on the chaos and offers a less-threatening path though a smaller list of texts.

Personally, I prefer sites that convey a particular aesthetic or involve particular schools of writers. There the reader can familiarize themselves with specific concerns and objectives, and judge accordingly which writers do the best jobs of meeting or attempting to meet them or even rebelling against them.

As in the novel, so in the list of novels: Discernible form is more effective -- not just visually or sonically but temporally, as one navigates the material through time.