Posted on 09/02/2014 11:52:09 AM PDT by Mad Dawgg
Last August, Amazon flew about 80 writers on its Thomas & Mercer mystery and thriller imprint—including me—to Seattle for a conference. They put us up at the Westin downtown, a nice hotel by any standard, and spent the weekend feeding us well and serving us top-shelf booze at an increasingly fabulous series of parties. There were tourist outings, the usual conference mix of panels and workshops, and a non-stressful visit to the Amazon Death Star. Also, they gave us a free Kindle Paperwhite, a nice touch.
With a few exceptions, none of the writers at the conference were particularly famous; some had only published one or two books, all with Amazon. The Seattle trip wasn’t normal treatment for them, or for anyone. I’ve published books with independents and with big corporate imprints, and I’ve published books on my own. Each of these experiences was positive in its own way. But never before had I been treated quite like this. It felt like I’d entered a glorious new age. Amazon had given me a free sneak preview of what book culture would be like from now on.
As usual, I was naive.
A year later, Amazon is embroiled in an ongoing dispute with the Hachette publishing company over e-book pricing, in which Amazon has delayed shipments and removed discounts and pre-order buttons from Hachette titles. This is a literary feud unparalleled in vitriol since Gore Vidal compared Norman Mailer to Charles Manson. One evening, I turned on The Colbert Report to find Hachette author Stephen Colbert sticking his arms up through an Amazon box, middle fingers extended. On Twitter, Colbert urged his viewers to #burndowntheamazon...
(Excerpt) Read more at slate.com ...
What is your take on the supposedly “EVIL AMAZON”...?
I love Amazon. You can buy anything you need, get your stuff really fast and in decent shape, and you don’t have to leave your recliner to do it. Just let your fingers do the walking.
Yeah, but it would be cool if they really had one cuz I would become an Amazon author just to get a chance to visit it!
Same here. I do just about all my Christmas Shopping on Amazon. I buy about all my clothes there also.
I buy a lot of stuff through amazon.com — good prices and excellent service. If you have a problem with a shipment, it will get solved unlike ebay.
I lived in Seattle for 45 years and was in IT since 1983. I left in 2011 for a variety of reasons. But I was shocked to find a huge Amazon distibution center in the town in Central KY to which I’ve moved.
I’ve learned a few things about them. They pay, on average, $10 an hour. They treat their employees like dirt (confirmed over and over again. One friend worked there for two days and couldn’t take it any more). They have an RV park next to the center that is specifically there to house all the temporary workers for Christmas.
Since moving here I avoid using Amazon at all costs. And being in a rural location, I buy pretty much everything of substance online.
I mentioned living in Seattle because I knew people in IT who worked at Amazon. The place was so awful that my manager actually quit and went to work there and lasted only a month or two and went back into the “real” world.
Coupled with the experience of the people in my small town in KY it just added confirmation.
There’s just something to the thought of an abusive employer locating in a state called ‘KY’.
Interestingly, I've been buying less from Amazon. Book-a-million has similar price, free shipping for club members and regular sends out coupons which makes it cheaper than Amazon even with taxes.
I started with Amazon a few months ago. The only danger for me was that I came dangerously close to becoming an Amazon junkie. Had to put the brakes on purchases from them for awhile.
There’s just something to the thought of an abusive employer locating in a state called ‘KY’.
Somehow that doesn't compute. All the plants around here supposedly treat their employees like dirt yet there is a waiting list to get hired.
After talking with folks that do the hiring at the local Wal-Mart and the local food processing plants apparently "treated like dirt" translates to requiring employees to actually show up on time AND actually put in a full day's work.
I guess all them folks actually thought a liberal arts degree translated into getting a cushy job where you do nothing all day and get paid for it. You know like being a U.S. Congressman or Senator.
“Amazon Bucks” could easily be an alternate currency.
There’s not a lot that you CAN’T buy through their site.
Yep. Exactly.
I will say that what turned me off regarding Amazon was the actual experiences of my friends. The actual stuff that caused them to quit. In one case I told my friend the problem was that he had a REALLY bad manager. But that is probably because good help is hard to find for really low wages.
I remember working at Radio Shack for a few months while I went to computer school. I was shocked at the pay scale. The rank and file were very low paid, but the store managerse were very well compensated (if it was a fairly high volume store). It did mean the employees were treated well by a professional.
I know this is true because I read it on the...
wait for it...
wait for it...
wait for it...
INTERNET...!
(BTW I luv your Enemies Foreign and Domestic series and have asked Santa Claus to get me the Hard Copies for Christmas... Mrs. Dawgg sez she will see if she can work out a deal my Santa...)
BTW you should try Bing Rewards(sign up with Bing do searches and get points which can be traded in for Amazon gift Cards.. I average a 5 buck card about every month)
I spend several thousand dollars a year on Amazon.
Geez, I haven’t been in a shoe store in 15 years. When my shoes get worn, I read the number on the ID tag in the tongue of the show and put it into the Amazon “find it” utility.
A few days later, my new pair of shoes arrives and I’m set until they wear out.
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