“I would read your book, but I don’t support Amazon.”

"If you don’t use Amazon, where do you actually look for books?"

What followed surprised me. The discussion reached 20,000+ readers and generated 100+ thoughtful replies. There was disagreement, nuance, contradiction, and—most importantly—clarity.

First: This Is Not a Culture War

Let me be clear upfront: I’m not interested in “Amazon good vs Amazon evil” debates. I don’t believe readers are morally obligated to buy anywhere, and I don’t believe authors should be shamed for how they make their work available.

What Readers Actually Use (Spoiler: It’s Not One Thing)

One of the strongest takeaways was this:

Most readers don’t use a single platform. They use ecosystems.

From the responses, clear patterns emerged:

🔹 Bookshop.org

The most frequently named alternative for new books. Readers love that it supports independent bookstores while still offering online ordering.

🔹 Libraries (Libby / Hoopla / OverDrive)

Far more dominant than I expected. Many readers rarely buy books at all—they borrow digitally. Libraries aren’t “dying”; they’ve just gone digital.

🔹 Kobo

The leading Amazon alternative for ebooks. Especially popular with sci-fi readers who own Kobo devices or dislike Kindle’s ecosystem.

🔹 Used-Book Platforms

ThriftBooks, World of Books, Better World Books, eBay. A significant group of readers buy only used books.

🔹 Google Play Books & Apple Books

Often overlooked by authors, but clearly in use.

🔹 Niche Indie Platforms

itch.io, DriveThruFiction, StoryBundle—smaller audiences, but highly aligned with indie sci-fi readers.

Not All “Non-Amazon” Readers Are the Same

Another important insight: avoiding Amazon means very different things to different people.

Some readers are:

• Library-first readers (borrow digitally, buy rarely)

• Used-book readers (sustainability + cost)

• Indie-support readers (Bookshop.org, local stores)

• E-reader loyalists (Kobo, Google Play, Apple)

• Pragmatists (avoid Amazon when possible, but won’t punish an author)

Many explicitly said:

“I don’t use Amazon—but if a book is only available there, I’ll still buy it.”

That matters. Avoiding Amazon does not mean avoiding authors.

My Publishing Choice (Transparency Edition)

Since I asked readers to be honest, I owe the same in return.

Here’s my current approach:

📌 Launch Phase

This was an experiment—not a belief system.

📌 What Happens Next

After the KU period ends, I plan to:

• Expand to Kobo

• Explore wide distribution

• Look into library availability

• Consider indie-friendly platforms readers actually mentioned

For many international self-published authors, Amazon isn’t a preference; it's infrastructure.

It offers:

• Global storefronts

• Simple onboarding

• Tax handling

• Worldwide delivery

• Reader familiarity

Using Amazon is often about access, not endorsement. That doesn’t mean it’s the only path—but it explains why so many of us start there.

What I’m Taking Away From This

This conversation changed how I think about distribution. Not because Amazon is “bad” or the  alternatives are “better.”

But because readers are far more diverse than platform debates suggest.

If there’s one lesson here, it’s this:

Choice matters. Availability matters. Listening matters.

Thank You

As a writer who learned English as a second language, I’ve spent a lot of time stressing about "The Anglosphere." You know the feeling: if you aren't selling in the US, the UK, or Canada, you aren't really making it. We agonize over prepositions, stress about phrasal verbs, and worry that our lack of "native flow" holds us back.

But recently, I dove into the EF English Proficiency Index (EPI) 2025 report, and let me tell you—it was a wake-up call. The data suggests that being a non-native writer isn't a handicap; it might actually be a strategic asset in a global economy.

Here is what I found, and why I think it’s time we rethink our maps.

1. The World is Better at Reading Than Speaking

If you take nothing else away from this, take this: In nearly 80% of countries, reading is the strongest English skill.

The report highlights a fascinating gap. While people might struggle to speak English fluently—what the report calls "productive skills"—their ability to understand written text ("receptive skills") is significantly higher. In fact, reading is the easiest skill for school systems to develop and the one people practice most on their own.

What this means for us: There is a massive "Silent Majority" of readers out there. They might not feel comfortable hopping on a Zoom call with a native speaker, but they are perfectly comfortable curling up with a book in English. The barrier to entry for reading your work is much lower than you think.

2. We Write the "Global Standard"

The report talks about English functioning as a "bridge," enabling dialogue between global knowledge and local understanding. It also notes that listening comprehension trails reading scores by over 20 points globally because understanding spoken accents and fast speech is difficult.

Why does this matter? Because native English writers often alienate international readers with complex cultural references, regional slang, or overly flowery prose.

This is where our "non-native" status becomes a superpower. We naturally write what I like to call "International English." We don't use obscure baseball metaphors or regional British slang that confuses a reader in Brazil or Japan. We write cleanly. We write clearly. We are the bridge the report is talking about.

3. Redrawing the Map: It’s Not Just About London

We usually market our books to the obvious suspects. But the 2025 rankings threw up some surprises that we shouldn't ignore.

Did you know that Croatia is ranked #2 in the world for English proficiency? Or that South Africa (#13) and Kenya (#19) are in the "Very High" and "High" proficiency bands?

Here are a few places where English proficiency is skyrocketing, yet most authors ignore them when setting up their ads:

• The Netherlands: Consistently #1. They read English as easily as Dutch.
• Malaysia & The Philippines: Both are in the top 30 globally.
• Portugal: Ranked #6 in the world.

The industries with the highest English levels are Information Technology and Professional Services. These are people hungry for knowledge, self-improvement, and entertainment, and they are consuming it in English.

The Takeaway

The report states clearly: "English remains the world's most common shared language". But that shared language doesn't belong to the US or the UK anymore. It belongs to everyone.

So, the next time you set up a Facebook ad or choose keywords for your book, maybe look beyond the usual borders. There is a whole world of high-proficiency readers out there, and they are waiting for a voice they can understand—yours.

The Silence is Louder Than the War.

For twenty years, the Terran Alliance fought a simple war against the "Spacer" colonists of Galatea. The propaganda was easy: Spacers aren't human. They are biological machines bonded to a hive-mind chorus they call "The Verse." They have no souls, no individuality, and they must be destroyed.

The standing order was absolute: No Prisoners.

Until Lieutenant Lucian Aris broke the rule. He didn't bring back a corpse; he brought back Commander Gordon Monihan—a legend among his people—alive.

THE SPACER (The Galatean Saga)

By Jasmine P. Antwoine

Now trapped in a Terran interrogation cell, Monihan has been stripped of the neural connection to his people. Plunged into a deafening, solitary silence for the first time in his life, he faces a new kind of warfare.

He is no longer a soldier; he is a specimen. Dr. Hayden, a cold xenopsychologist, is determined to dissect Monihan—mentally and physically if necessary—to prove once and for all that Spacers are just hardware waiting to be broken.

Monihan must endure the silence, resist the torture, and hold onto his sanity in a system designed to erase him. In a war built on lies, the most dangerous weapon of all is the truth hidden inside that cell.

Perfect for fans of military sci-fi that delves deep into the psychological toll of conflict. If you enjoyed the moral complexity of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game, the gritty factional politics of James S. A. Corey's The Expanse, or the existential questions of identity in Martha Wells' The Murderbot Diaries, step into the interrogation room with The Spacer.