CT Biz Blogs

Amazon.com has a new feature called “Amazon Connect.” Authors will be able to create a profile page in Amazon.com, and post messages directly to readers. These will be displayed on the detail page of an author’s book.

These aren’t quite blogs, but they’re close. They don’t have comments, for one thing. But they’re a good first step for authors who don’t have blogs.

Cory Doctorow science-fiction writer and blogger, wrote an excellent article in BoingBoing about why authors need blogs: Amazon’s author-blogs and the Age of the Conversational Artist.

You need conversation. In practically every field of artistic endeavor, we see success stories grounded in artists who engage in some form of conversation with their audience.

In the post he cites a New York Times Book Review article about the Amazon blogs.

The Amazon blogs are, at least for now, intended as a one-way communication, with writers talking to readers. But some authors have already found a way around that: Anita Diamant, the author of “The Last Days of Dogtown” and other novels, guides readers from her Amazon blog to her own Web site, where they can write to her directly. Other authors post their e-mail addresses on their profile pages.

I think the Amazon blogs work best as a secondary blog — “leveraging” (to use some business jargon) your already existing and better blog. Better because a) it has more features (such as comments and categories) and b) you control it. If Amazon changes its mind or its terms tomorrow, you’ll still own your blog.

But if you don’t have a blog, get in on this.

I went to the sign up page to check it out. Basically, the process seems to be: submit your email address, bibliography, and the name of a third party contact (such as a publisher, editor, or agent) who can verify your claim. Here’s a link to the beginning signup page for Amazon Connect (you’ll have to log in).

And here’s what it would look like: the blog page for Meg Wolitzer, author mentioned in the NY Times article.

So what are you waiting for?