Avoiding Romance offerings at ebook sites? - Page 2

Joykins · 04-11-2011, 02:47 PM

I'm just going to follow MrsJoseph around and harvest her recommendations

I used to write S&S stuff...

Worldwalker · 04-11-2011, 02:48 PM

Back before I figured out how to get gifts off the list, Amazon seized on some mindless celebrity biography I got for my (now-ex-)sister-in-law for Christmas or her birthday or something, and tried incessantly to push more of the same on me. One celebrity bio in maybe a hundred books that are anything but, and that's what the thing got fixated on.

They also keep trying to sell me new hardcover fiction. A quick check of my ordering history would demonstrate that I have never bought a single HC novel from them, but I've bought many MM paperbacks, and perhaps give their little bot a moment's pause ... maybe if we recommeded MM paperbacks instead, WW would buy them? But nooo ... they keep pushing the stuff I don't buy, and not recommending the stuff I do buy, and buy from them, and have bought many times.

There's that, and there's the fact that unless it's been changed recently, it's not possible to search for just the English-language books by any given author. So if the author you're looking for has books that have been translated into a dozen different languages, you have to dig through all of them to find the handful you can actually read.

Oh, and there's no way to make it not try to sell you a Kindle. So if you're looking for a book in MM, and you search on (or click on) author, you can't de-select Kindle, either, so for the one book you want, you have listings in every possible language, and listings for an ebook reader you don't own and don't want ... and it's just not worth it. I've stopped paying any attention to their recommendations at all, whereas I used to buy a lot of them because they recommended the books I wanted.

Amazon thinks by pushing HC's to me, I'll buy HC's instead of MM, by pushing foreign-language books to me, I'll learn a dozen new languages (and buy the same book in all of them, apparently), and by pushing Kindle books to me, I'll throw away my Sony Reader and buy a Kindle. Amazon is dead wrong. And I'm pretty peeved, because after years of training their recommendation engine to know my library and my preferences, now I can't use it ... because it's recommending what Amazon wants to sell, not what I want to buy. Amazon is leaving my money on the table.

Well, that's my screaming, spittle-flecked rant for the day. It's just frustrating, though: I liked that system so much more when it recommended books I wanted to buy, so I could, y'know, buy them.

MrsJoseph · 04-11-2011, 03:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joykins

I'm just going to follow MrsJoseph around and harvest her recommendations

I used to write S&S stuff...

I warn you now...my book buying habits will cause your TBR list to explode.

Right now I'm reading Fool Moon (Dresden Files), Kushiel's Dart, The Name of the Wind (gosh, it is sad), and I just picked up Midnight Riot (Peter Grant Series), Moon Over Soho (Peter Grant Series), Daemons Are Forever (Secret Histories 2), and Bone Crossed (Mercy Thompson 4).

I know there's something missing in there somewhere...

BTW: What S&S??

abookreader · 04-11-2011, 03:15 PM

Send your wayward romance novels to me. I'll read them.

MrsJoseph · 04-11-2011, 03:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by abookreader

Send your wayward romance novels to me. I'll read them.

Especially if they're free...

abookreader · 04-11-2011, 03:20 PM

or especially if I'm feeling extra "frustrated" these days I guess.

Although I think the OP is kind of missing the point. My husband likes it (wink, wink) when I read Maya Banks.

Fbone · 04-11-2011, 03:39 PM

Recently, I have noticed romance novels bouncing and throbbing into other genres.

Also noticed that alien females' anatomy resembles plastic surgery post-op. Or according to the cover art there is helium on other planets.

Joykins · 04-11-2011, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrsJoseph

I warn you now...my book buying habits will cause your TBR list to explode.

Right now I'm reading Fool Moon (Dresden Files), Kushiel's Dart, The Name of the Wind (gosh, it is sad), and I just picked up Midnight Riot (Peter Grant Series), Moon Over Soho (Peter Grant Series), Daemons Are Forever (Secret Histories 2), and Bone Crossed (Mercy Thompson 4).

I know there's something missing in there somewhere...

BTW: What S&S??

Sword and Sorcery.

I have Name of the Wind and the 1st Dresden files book in my TBR queue and just picked up some Patricia Briggs. Sometimes with these long series I just lose interest though. I think next I might be reading the Macdonald/Doyle Mageworlds books tho--went to a used book sale and got most of the series now (it's not available in e-book).

MrsJoseph · 04-11-2011, 04:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joykins

Sword and Sorcery.

I have Name of the Wind and the 1st Dresden files book in my TBR queue and just picked up some Patricia Briggs. Sometimes with these long series I just lose interest though. I think next I might be reading the Macdonald/Doyle Mageworlds books tho--went to a used book sale and got most of the series now (it's not available in e-book).

No, I mean where's the S&S, lol! Any titles?

Joykins · 04-11-2011, 04:35 PM

Most of it's on my hard drive.

I did have a story in MZB Fantasy Magazine in the mid '90s, but I think outside of my basement it'd be hard to rustle up.

MrsJoseph · 04-11-2011, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joykins

Most of it's on my hard drive.

I did have a story in MZB Fantasy Magazine in the mid '90s, but I think outside of my basement it'd be hard to rustle up.

I devoured the Sword & Sorceress series - I just noticed that they are slowly being converted into ebooks (and the new ones, of course, already are).

Any chance there?

Joykins · 04-11-2011, 05:01 PM

I'm trying to write something longer than about 10 pages. Like, a novel. It's not going well with my short attention span.

Mike Cooley · 04-12-2011, 06:59 PM

Y'all are funny.

I write S&S as well. (some would call it High Fantasy or Dark Fantasy)

I agree with the OP--and most of you--that it would be nice to have
some sort of checkbox thingy where I can check the things I'm NOT interested in and it would give me a better list.

But that would count on the books actually being listed in the correct categories (which isn't always true).

--Mike

Joykins · 04-12-2011, 09:04 PM

Wouldn't it be nice if they allowed us to use SQL to search the database?

Worldwalker · 04-12-2011, 11:05 PM

Three words: SQL injection attacks.

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04-11-2011, 02:47 PM	#16
Joykins Wizard Posts: 1,610 Karma: 9211856 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: kindle Oasis 2018, kindle 4 NT, kindle PW2, iPhone, iPad mini	I'm just going to follow MrsJoseph around and harvest her recommendations I used to write S&S stuff...

04-11-2011, 02:48 PM	#17
Worldwalker Curmudgeon Posts: 3,085 Karma: 722357 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: PRS-505	Back before I figured out how to get gifts off the list, Amazon seized on some mindless celebrity biography I got for my (now-ex-)sister-in-law for Christmas or her birthday or something, and tried incessantly to push more of the same on me. One celebrity bio in maybe a hundred books that are anything but, and that's what the thing got fixated on. They also keep trying to sell me new hardcover fiction. A quick check of my ordering history would demonstrate that I have never bought a single HC novel from them, but I've bought many MM paperbacks, and perhaps give their little bot a moment's pause ... maybe if we recommeded MM paperbacks instead, WW would buy them? But nooo ... they keep pushing the stuff I don't buy, and not recommending the stuff I do buy, and buy from them, and have bought many times. There's that, and there's the fact that unless it's been changed recently, it's not possible to search for just the English-language books by any given author. So if the author you're looking for has books that have been translated into a dozen different languages, you have to dig through all of them to find the handful you can actually read. Oh, and there's no way to make it not try to sell you a Kindle. So if you're looking for a book in MM, and you search on (or click on) author, you can't de-select Kindle, either, so for the one book you want, you have listings in every possible language, and listings for an ebook reader you don't own and don't want ... and it's just not worth it. I've stopped paying any attention to their recommendations at all, whereas I used to buy a lot of them because they recommended the books I wanted. Amazon thinks by pushing HC's to me, I'll buy HC's instead of MM, by pushing foreign-language books to me, I'll learn a dozen new languages (and buy the same book in all of them, apparently), and by pushing Kindle books to me, I'll throw away my Sony Reader and buy a Kindle. Amazon is dead wrong. And I'm pretty peeved, because after years of training their recommendation engine to know my library and my preferences, now I can't use it ... because it's recommending what Amazon wants to sell, not what I want to buy. Amazon is leaving my money on the table. Well, that's my screaming, spittle-flecked rant for the day. It's just frustrating, though: I liked that system so much more when it recommended books I wanted to buy, so I could, y'know, buy them.

04-11-2011, 03:15 PM	#19
abookreader Wizard Posts: 1,516 Karma: 2567610 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: Kindles - Keyboard, Fire, 2-US, iPhone, iPAD	Send your wayward romance novels to me. I'll read them.

04-11-2011, 03:20 PM	#21
abookreader Wizard Posts: 1,516 Karma: 2567610 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: Kindles - Keyboard, Fire, 2-US, iPhone, iPAD	or especially if I'm feeling extra "frustrated" these days I guess. Although I think the OP is kind of missing the point. My husband likes it (wink, wink) when I read Maya Banks.

04-11-2011, 03:39 PM	#22
Fbone Is that a sandwich? Posts: 8,296 Karma: 101697116 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: Nook Glowlight Plus	Recently, I have noticed romance novels bouncing and throbbing into other genres. Also noticed that alien females' anatomy resembles plastic surgery post-op. Or according to the cover art there is helium on other planets.

04-11-2011, 04:35 PM	#25
Joykins Wizard Posts: 1,610 Karma: 9211856 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: kindle Oasis 2018, kindle 4 NT, kindle PW2, iPhone, iPad mini	Most of it's on my hard drive. I did have a story in MZB Fantasy Magazine in the mid '90s, but I think outside of my basement it'd be hard to rustle up.

04-11-2011, 05:01 PM	#27
Joykins Wizard Posts: 1,610 Karma: 9211856 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: kindle Oasis 2018, kindle 4 NT, kindle PW2, iPhone, iPad mini	I'm trying to write something longer than about 10 pages. Like, a novel. It's not going well with my short attention span.

04-12-2011, 06:59 PM	#28
Mike Cooley Mike Posts: 24 Karma: 396886 Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Minnesota Device: Kindle	Y'all are funny. I write S&S as well. (some would call it High Fantasy or Dark Fantasy) I agree with the OP--and most of you--that it would be nice to have some sort of checkbox thingy where I can check the things I'm NOT interested in and it would give me a better list. But that would count on the books actually being listed in the correct categories (which isn't always true). --Mike

04-12-2011, 09:04 PM	#29
Joykins Wizard Posts: 1,610 Karma: 9211856 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: kindle Oasis 2018, kindle 4 NT, kindle PW2, iPhone, iPad mini	Wouldn't it be nice if they allowed us to use SQL to search the database?

04-12-2011, 11:05 PM	#30
Worldwalker Curmudgeon Posts: 3,085 Karma: 722357 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: PRS-505	Three words: SQL injection attacks.