As an indie author (https://frequal.com/novels), this makes me glad I haven't submitted my novel yet to any of these contests. The chance that a submission fee could be wasted by chance (not a match for the reviewer's interest or mood that day) is just too great. It seems that the larger publishing houses are more willing to shell out on the chance to win this lottery, according to the article.
Having books on several devices makes reading more convenient. DRM-Free books make that easy, so you can read whether you have your phone, tablet, or PC. For a list of DRM-free authors and publishers: https://frequal.com/Perspectives/DrmFreeAuthors.html
In several countries, you can find Little Free Libraries, a non-profit with a registry of small libraries like the book boxes in front of homes described in the article: https://littlefreelibrary.org/about/
Thanks for sharing this. New authors have enough challenges without getting scammed. I've written a (free) guide for the writing process here: https://frequal.com/forwriters/
The writing is just the first step, however. Promotion is a whole another set of hurdles. I can easilybsee an eager or despondent author falling victim to a promotion scam.
Even if you _can_ hold it, you may not own it if the player is internet-connected or even receives a firmware upgrade during maintenance or from a disc. New discs may not play unless you upgrade, and an upgrade can also remove keys, blocking you from watching discs you already have.
Yes, they explained that's like parking facing the other way after driving at lunchtime. They also describe optimal parking strategies for no-move charging.
Even though I started Means and Motive ( https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GYCZJVGX ) 5 years ago, and it was written without any AI use, I was worried people might have this concern, given the 2026 publication date.
For a sanity check, I did run the first page through an online AI checker and it confirmed what I already knew: 100% human.
EPublish converts HTML to EPUB. It has numerous quality-of-life tools for authors, such as generating custom versions for reviewers and promotions. It handles formatting and most menial tasks, letting you focus on your story. It even includes progress reports so you can see how close you are to completion.
I remember using Dillo on a Compaq iPaq with Linux installed. No Dillo screen shots, but plenty of information about apps for Linux on the iPaq 3765 here:
When building EPublish ( https://frequal.com/epublish/ ), an HTML-to-epub converter, I faced similar hurdles. Trying to keep compatibility with numerous e-readers built with different stacks and varying degrees of EPUB versions is frustrating.
So far I haven't heard of compatibility issues, so I think EPublish has hit the sweet spot of EPUB targeting. I agree, however, that it feels like the old days of targeting IE6 on the web. Old readers still exist out there, so we have to aim for the lowest common denominator.
I chose the DRM-free route on Amazon for "Means & Motive" ( https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GYCZJVGX ) . Self-published authors can choose to be DRM-free on Amazon now. You can also buy it via Barnes & Noble (paperback), links here: https://frequal.com/novels/