“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