Amazonfail

Saga continues to pry Nina Kimberly from their greedy hands. Venting at 11.

How to Lose a Customer

While I have used Amazon.com in the past, here and there, to collect things to clutter my room with, I tend to go to a local store. In the case of buying books lately, I have been exclusively buying from Amazon to help out fellow authors. After all, it's not if your good or not, it's how high that ranking gets. I don't feel this way, but clearly there are people who do, so I do my best to help where I can. Sure, I can get awareness as well by making sure my local bookstore carries them, especially if I have to special order the damn thing, but most people seem to feel more comfortable with those ranking numbers. Oddly, even more-so, the ones found on Amazon.com.

A couple of months ago, I pre-ordered Personal Effects: Dark Art by J.C. Hutchins. Later, I added to that order Nina Kimberly the Merciless by Christiana Ellis, and then chose to just have both orders sent once the books are available. Since Nina Kimberly was already available at the time I ordered it, all I had to do was wait for June 9th for them to be sent together. Color me surprised when I received a email from Amazon.com stating that my books had shipped on the 3rd of June, meaning, as long as it was sent via standard mail (using gas powered machinery), I should receive my books by June 9th, or close to. Yay!

This was not the case.

Today, thirteen days after the order was said to have shipped, the man carrying my order, I'm guessing by foot from Kentucky to Utah, finally arrived. Proof in the picture below.

Despite this, I am not happy. Not by the fact it nearly took two weeks for my order to travel what should have taken much less. I say this because I can send BACK an game to Gamefly and have them send my NEXT game and get it in less time.. These said games being forced to travel just as many states, if not more in the process. I'm upset because even though my shipment order sheet clearly states that Personal Effects and Nina Kimberly were shipped in the same package, only Personal Effects exists in said package.

Now I've been forced to deal with Customer Support where I was asked almost right off the bat, "Did you double check the box?" What, did the rep really think they sent a box the size a Live Doll comes in? The box was barely big enough to contain Personal Effects, so I doubt I missed where Nina might be hiding. (I swear I'm not Francis, Nina, Really!)

Now, after supposedly convincing them I did not receive the book, I have to wait for Amazon to send me my missing book. A book they say they will be sending to me via Two Day Shipping. Let's see if it take this package the 2 days, or 13. Either way, not the best way to keep a customer.

Promo for Misdirection in the Works

Well, going to throw down the gaunlet and attempt to record the promo audio for Misdirection today. If all turns out well, I'll start recording episodes soon after, or next week; all depending on how well things go, the quaility of the sound (still battleing background crap), and if my voice behaves. Until then, the pic to your right is the current choice I have made for the cover of the podcast novel. Let me know what you think.

1000th post - Misdirection News

Well, decided that for my 1000th post I'd talk briefly about Misdirection and where I'm going with it. I hope to start recording the podcast novel version of it soon. This is happening much later then planned thanks to a few last edits and the fact I'm still waiting for the second half to be looked over by my guest editor. *glares* You know who you are.

I'm also working on a new idea to help spread the word about Misdirection, but still need to see how it will all turn out. This new idea will involve something that I'm calling 'backgrounds', and I plan on posting them here and on Twitter, maybe even Facebook. Yet, I'm getting ahead of myself here, as I still need to work this idea out, make some test versions, and insure that my long run goal with them works.

Until then, I will try to actually start posting again a bit more frequently ... well, any amount is a hell of a lot more then I have been doing. So, hopefully everyone that pokes their head in here just to see if I've done anything won't completely be disappointed.