Elizabeth Barone

Pulling my books from Kindle

Amazon won’t listen to authors’ concerns about their AI summaries tool for Kindle books, so we gotta make them listen.

My dear readers,

Recently, Amazon rolled out automatic AI summaries for Kindle books. They gave authors no way to opt-out of this or edit what the AI generates. They also have yet to update their terms of service, explaining how books will be processed by their AI and for what purposes. This is all problematic for several reasons.

AI doesn’t understand nuance or sarcasm or storytelling. Many authors have reported glaring errors in the AI’s summaries and trope lists, asking Amazon to let us opt-out or fix the mistakes, as well as asking how our books are being used with their AI—all these messages we’ve collectively sent have fallen on disorganized, deaf ears.

At the time, I decided to wait and see what Amazon did. The new feature was beta, after all, so it’s always best to focus on other things while they work out the kinks. Except… they didn’t. They haven’t given authors any sort of meaningful response. Their customer service reps seem to know next to nothing about this feature, and the company itself still hasn’t updated its TOS months later. This is concerning, since tech companies are stealing content to train their AI. It wouldn’t surprise me if Amazon is waiting to see how all the lawsuits shake out.

I’m not okay with my books being used to train AI, especially without my knowledge. I’m not okay with my books being incorrectly summarized by AI, with no way to revise errors or opt-out entirely. I’m also not okay with third-party book review sites scraping these erroneous summaries and using them as marketing materials. We’ve collectively dived headfirst into AI without much thought and certainly without baking in protections for artists—which artists have asked for from the jump. We certainly didn’t ask for these features, which are more like bugs.

Every book I wrote took months if not years of my life to write, and I put time, research, energy, and heart into every single one. I also spend hours crafting descriptions, summaries, trope lists, and other marketing materials that are readily available for Amazon’s use—right in their dashboard. It’s redundant and silly of Amazon to use AI for these materials. It makes me wonder whether they’re quietly working on AI-generated books, which would be a slap in the face of all authors who’ve dedicated years of our lives writing for Kindle.

It’s not enough for me to say I’m not okay with this. I have to walk my talk; I have to tell Amazon in no uncertain terms that this won’t fly. I believe that if enough authors pull our books, Amazon will finally listen to us.

Or maybe they won’t. Maybe they’ll keep pushing their AI onto authors and readers who don’t want it. That’s not my circus or my monkey.

Retailers need creators, not the other way around. There are other platforms we can sell our books on—places that support rather than push around authors.

That said, a lot of my readers are Kindle users. Amazon’s making it more and more difficult to sideload and backup ebooks, which is yet another way they monopolize the market. Reading should be easy and fun, especially now that we have so much technology available. That’s why I publish my books as widely as possible.

I’m in the process of re-launching my shop, which will carry ebook editions of my books in all formats (including Kindle). I’m also always expanding into new-to-me platforms.

In the meantime, I’ll start pulling my books from the Kindle store next week, updating here as I go. If there’s a book you’ve been eyeing, I’d grab it now if you don’t want to wait for me to roll out my new shop. (At the time of this writing, AI summaries don’t affect paperbacks, so those editions will remain available in the Amazon store for now.)

I really appreciate your understanding and patience during this process. It’s just another bump in my little author journey, and we will get through it. After all, I was writing and publishing before Amazon, and I’ll be writing and publishing after Amazon, too.

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out! You can email me privately, or reply to this to add your public comments.

As always, I wish you happy reading!

Photo by Perfecto Capucine on Unsplash

Get tattooed (fictionally) for $5, summer updates, and a free River Reapers novella

In the July edition of my reader newsletter Romance with a Body Count, I share my current lupus challenges, what I’m working on, and how you can get a (fictional) tattoo for $5.

The only constant in life is its challenges. We can either spend all our energy avoiding them, trying to fix them, or staying on our path. It’s all hard, so we have to choose the right hard for us. Sometimes there are no fixes, so the best thing to do is stay the course.

Romance with a Body Count

Author Elizabeth Barone’s Reader Newsletter

July 2025

Archive: January 2025 | February 2025 | April 2025

When I wrote A Touch of Gold in 2020, we’d lost my Noni and our family home. I baked my grief into the book, and wrote a way for Goldie to save her family’s home.

Cut to 2025, I’m working on the last book in the series while staring down the barrel of being homeless.

I really don’t need any more writing inspiration! 😅

The only constant in life is its challenges. We can either spend all our energy avoiding them, trying to fix them, or staying on our path. It’s all hard, so we have to choose the right hard for us. Sometimes there are no fixes, so the best thing to do is stay the course.

For me, that means writing.

It’s really hard to focus when everything is crashing around you. Lately I’ve been practicing my original reason for writing: to stay sane. Over the years, my why evolved first to keeping my mind occupied while sick and unemployed, then to giving my readers more of the story they loved. I struggle with the fawn trauma response, so I’ve done a lot of people pleasing over the years, almost always to my detriment. Going back to basics and writing for myself has been so healing.

Whether you’re struggling with health issues, horrified by the evils of the world, or going through something else entirely, it’s a good time to pause and reflect on your why. You don’t have to be a writer to have a why; my best friend says her five children are hers. It can be that simple and wholesome. We all need a light that keeps us going.

What’s yours?

What I’m Working On

Summer is in full swing, and for me that means a renewed focus on my work in progress, Sleeve of Hearts. It’s slow going as ever, but a change in attitude has made things a bit easier. Instead of beating on myself for only being able to do one thing a day—often that one thing is making a meal—I’m shifting to focusing on one thing at a time. I’m practicing prioritizing my needs and keeping my expectations realistic. Much like anything else in life, it’s a work in progress; it’s a practice, never perfect. I’m practicing remembering that.

I’m so grateful for my publisher for being so understanding and supportive while I duke it out with this book and my own body and brain. Their publishing schedule is set for the next two years, so I’m hoping Sleeve of Hearts will see a 2028 release.

You don’t have to wait three years to go back to Stagwood Falls, though!

Get a (Fictional) Tattoo for Only $5

Inflation’s fucking crazy lately. I’m sure I don’t even want to know the going hourly rate for a tattoo these days. Let my apprentice Kinsley tattoo you fictionally!

I’ll turn you into a character in Sleeve of Hearts and your fictional self will receive a tattoo, microblading or permanent makeup, or haircut or braiding from apprentice Kinsley. All you have to do is upgrade to a paid sponsor of my newsletter for $5/month!

I’ll post a rough draft of your scene on my website, and you’ll see the edited version in the published book.

Don’t worry, if you don’t want to upgrade, you’ll still get my free reader newsletter and occasional goodies. But if you do upgrade, you’ll also get access to serialized editions of my books and exclusive goodies (like new stickers before they even hit my shop).

Become a sponsor now!

Thank you so much to my Sponsors Lauren, B., Dee, and Katy! Look out for your characters’ scenes soon.

Free River Reapers novella

As my email subscriber, you can now read Her Mercy for free! All 25 chapters are now live.

If you’ve already read Mercy and Bree’s story, leave a comment with your emoji reaction to the novella. Mine would be like 🦋🦅🖤!

What’s your biggest challenge this summer? Let’s cheer each other on—tell us yours by replying to this email, or you can leave a comment on my website.

I hope you and your loved ones are as well as can be, and that your summer’s giving all the good vibes. Or at least good AC. 😉

This summer, I’m having six MRIs and a tilt table study to assess what lupus is doing all up in my brain and nervous system. I could let the fear freeze me in place, or I can choose to see these scary tests as a scheduled nap and amusement park ride. I’m somewhere in between—like I said, I’m practicing.

May you always be in practice as a beautiful work in progress, too.

Happy reading!

How age verification laws censor authors (and how to fight back)

Age verification laws have been spreading like wildfire, and now that Bluesky is requiring all U.K. users to verify their identity and the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a Texas law blocking minors from viewing porn, authors need to prepare.

Here in the States where I live, we are under a christofascist administration. Evil people have been passing laws targeting immigrants and transgender people, and if you’ve read Project 2025, you know what’s coming next. I believe this administration and other fascist lawmakers are using age verification and children’s safety to push their agenda. Don’t get me wrong—as an auntie of nine, of course I want kids to be safe online! But let’s leave that up to their parents to monitor, rather than instilling sweeping legislation that strips adults of privacy and access to information, and violates authors’ freedom of speech.

Age verification violates internet users’ privacy. If you use anonymous social media accounts to protect yourself from an abuser or simply because you want to talk about romance without your co-workers discovering your guilty pleasure, age verification will make it impossible to remain so. It can also be used to target authors, especially those writing romance, erotica, or LGBTQ+ characters. Fascists love labeling anything they don’t like as porn.

These laws are already effecting authors. If you live in the U.K. and use a pen name, you’ll have to provide photo ID, scan your face, or upload a pic of your bank card to continue using Bluesky starting July 25th. That’s only two weeks away.

There are a few things you can do.

I know I’ve been beating on this drum forever, but seriously, if you’re an author, you need your own website and email list. When you own your platform, it can’t be damaged by social media algorithms changing or new laws passing. Too many of us got dicknotized by Facebook/Instagram/Meta and the like; it’s time to take back control. Make sure you have a way of contacting your readers no matter what.

It’s only a matter of time before platforms like WordPress.com and SubStack require age verification, so if you post chapters or excerpts of your spicy romance on these platforms, you could be fined millions of dollars. From the Verge article I linked above:

The UK passed the Online Safety Act in 2023, which privacy advocates have warned will “lead to a much more censored, locked-down internet for British users.” Another part of the law is coming into force on July 25th, requiring sites and apps containing porn and harmful content to provide “highly effective age assurance.” Platforms that don’t comply with the new rules will face fines of up to £18 million ($24 million) or 10 percent of their worldwide revenue, whichever is higher.

These laws, as written, are insane. Who decides which content is “harmful”? And why are lawmakers hiding behind the very same children they won’t pass gun control laws to protect? I digress, but what the actual fuck?

I’ve been posting excerpts, chapters, and whole texts from my romance books for years. Right now I have this content on my website freely available to everyone, some locked to my email subscribers, and some locked to paid members. Under these laws, authors won’t be able to post such content on our own websites or social media without some sort of “highly effective age assurance” if someone deems it “harmful.”

I’ve long been against self-censorship on social media to bypass bots flagging and people pettily reporting posts. I believe that in this political climate, with a convicted rapist in the White House, it’s obscene to soften the word rape to “grape.” Rape is real. It happens to 1 in 3 real people, probably more. It happens to children. It happened to me. It should be shocking to hear. And from an artist’s perspective, it’s fucking silly to use symbols or emoji to write words like sex or cock. Yet everyone just rolled over and complied, adopting ridiculous terms like unalived instead of killed (another word that’s supposed to be shocking).

An age verification bill just passed in Ohio, despite criticism from the ACLU that the way it’s written is vague and could be weaponized. The “blue” state I live in, Connecticut, is considering passing a similar law. We all need to be pushing back on these laws. Call and write your senators and representatives, submit comments on bills being written, attend town halls. We cannot rollover.

You can choose to not verify your identity, but unfortunately this results in a restricted account. Bluesky won’t allow unverified users to send or receive DMs, or view content that is “adult appropriate.” Considering Bluesky flags stock photos as porn because a woman is showing her *gasp* stomach, and doesn’t answer DMs or appeal requests, I don’t have much faith.

It’s only a matter of time before the other social media apps follow suit. Instagram has long been working on tools for age verification. I believe our best bet is sticking together and fighting these laws, while amending our own business plans and practices in preparation for a more restricted internet. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best, and fight like hell to protect privacy and information.

Do you think you will be affected by age verification laws? Let me know your thoughts in the comments, or send me an email! I’d love to hear what you make of all this.

Photo by Jansen Yang on Unsplash

Her Mercy, Epilogue

There’s only one thing left to do.

“It’s gonna be a long ride,” I warn Bree. “I’m not as young as I used to be.” Even as I say the words, I know they’re no longer entirely true. Overnight my heart is younger, my body lighter—more free.

“I don’t care how long it takes,” she says, nuzzling into me. “I just don’t know what I’m gonna say to her.”

Catch Up

Part 3: The Bohemian and the Biker

Epilogue

Now

Mercy

 In the morning, I borrow the kitchen and cook too much breakfast for just Bree and me. The thought of hundreds more breakfasts like this one makes me smile. She sits in my lap and I feed her bites of bacon and eggs, unable to physically separate. Not just yet.

Soon there’s nothing more to do. Our bags are packed—not an impossible task, since there are only two of them. I hold her in my lap, bringing her hand to my lips.

“It’s gonna be a long ride,” I warn her. “I’m not as young as I used to be.” Even as I say the words, I know they’re no longer entirely true. My body has aged, but overnight my heart is younger. Lighter. Freer.

“I don’t care how long it takes,” she says, nuzzling into me. “I just don’t know what I’m going to say to her.”

Read Her Mercy and the River Reapers MC series for $5/month!

Read Her Mercy, Part 2 for free

Parts 1 & 2 of my standalone dark romance novella Her Mercy are now live! Read this prequel to the River Reapers MC on its own, or as your appetizer for the series. Free when you join my email list!

🖤 Her Mercy Parts 1 & 2 are now live! 🖤

In case you missed it, I’ve been serializing my dark fake marriage romance Her Mercy on my website, free for all email subscribers.

This novella is a standalone prequel to the River Reapers series, and a little less dark than the main series. If you haven’t read it yet, now’s the perfect time!

what you can expect

standalone novella 📖
prequel to the River Reapers MC series 🖤
he’s 19 years older 😉
second chance romance spanning decades 💔
runaway bride 👰🏻‍♀️
SA survivor heroine 🙌🏼
wounded warrior biker hero 🎖
surprise baby (it’s not his) 🤰🏻
healing together ❤️‍🩹
quick read ⌛️

The last time Bree ran away, she put the love of her life Mercy in prison. Now that he’s out, he’s got to find her and convince her they belong together so they can both be free.

Bree has been running for decades. Every time she gets into trouble, the River Reapers MC covers her tracks. That’s how she met Mercy, the only man who’s ever loved her, and the reason she’s running again.

Mercy has an ache in his bones that not even freedom can soothe. When Bree disappeared, she put him in prison both metaphorically and physically.

Mercy needs to find Bree and reclaim the home they once found in each other. But Bree is still buckling under the weight of her own prison, and if Mercy doesn’t find her before her past does, she’ll disappear forever.

Catch Up on Part 1

Read part 2: The War Hero

Part 3 begins Tuesday, May 6th! Be sure to join my free email list so you don’t miss a chapter.

You can also become a sponsor for $5/month.

keep bree & mercy for your shelf

Buy the book

Available everywhere books are sold!

catch up on the series

If you’re enjoying this serialized edition of Her Mercy, give this post a like! And if you’re excited for more River Reapers stories, give this post a like for that. 🖤

Photo by Edward Cisneros on Unsplash

A dark second chance romance told with 11 songs

Music is a powerful tool. All of Mike’s concussion clinic providers are about 45 minutes away from our apartment—plus traffic. “Exhausted” is my baseline, but when he started having seizures, I took over as driver. It’s been good for me, in a sense, challenging me out of my comfort zone and into pushing myself a little bit more. But driving requires a lot of focus, which eats up a lot of my spoons—especially when I’m in a flare.

“Hit me with something high octane,” I beg Mike, passing him my phone. He puts on Kylesa, and it actually perks me up.

This isn’t the first time I’ve used music to set my own mood. I do it a lot when I’m writing, especially when writing dual POV romance. The two lead characters are often different as night and day, even down to the music I put on to get in their heads.

When I wrote Bree’s chapters for Her Mercy, I listened to a lot of Liela Moss’s My Name is Safe in Your Mouth. All of the songs on this album have a sad, romantic, nostalgic feel to them. There’s wisdom woven into the heartbreak, a constant thread of self-discovery. The novella is dual POV but the story is really driven by Bree; Mercy’s all in, it’s Bree who has to face and save herself.

The playlist for Her Mercy is shorter than the other books’ playlists, mostly because I listened to that Liela Moss album quite a bit. I kicked it off with Fleetwood Mac’s “Gypsy” to set the mood of the book. It’s pretty much the soundtrack to a then 14-year-old Bree having run away.

When she stumbles upon The Wet Mermaid and walks into the strip club, “American Woman” is playing. This song is required for all biker gatherings. I’m pretty sure it’s an unwritten rule. This is the first time Bree has a run-in with Bastard, and it won’t be the last.

As Mercy searches for Bree in the present, both of their past selves grapple with everything they know exploding.

Mercy struggles to believe the evil things his lifelong friend Bastard does, hoping to rescue him from the darkness before it swallows both of them and the club they built.

Bree is alone in the world, reeling after a shocking event that sent her running. She’s convinced Mercy and the others to let her stay, but she doesn’t really belong.

Not that she belongs anywhere or to anyone, not anymore.

To keep Bree safe from Bastard, Mercy pretends to marry her, making her forever off limits. But he can’t keep her safe from herself, no more than he can stop the fire burning inside him.

Being fake married only brings them closer. Bree’s balm soothes the pain in Mercy’s bones, and when he tells her the truth about Bastard, she urges him to take it to the MC’s table for a vote. Mercy knows she’s right, that Bastard can’t be allowed to hurt anyone else ever again, but it’s soul-crushing, accepting what his best friend’s become.

As everything comes to a head in the past, Mercy searches for Bree in the present. He’ll never break the vows he made to her, but she sure doesn’t make it easy.

Especially when she runs away again just as he closes in.

When they finally reunite, even though they have much to reconcile, it’s clear that they belong together.

It won’t be easy, but now that they’re together, they can heal the past and face the future.

Read Her Mercy

Ebook, serial, and paperback editions of Her Mercy are now available! Read serialized chapters for free on my website. All you need is a valid email address. You can also purchase the ebook or paperback through your favorite retailer.

Photo by Eric Ward on Unsplash

Read Her Mercy, Part 1 for free

Part 1 of my standalone dark romance novella Her Mercy is now live! Read this prequel to the River Reapers MC on its own, or as your appetizer for the series.

The last time Bree ran away, she put the love of her life Mercy in prison. Now that he’s out, he’s got to find her and convince her they belong together so they can both be free.

Mercy has an ache in his bones that not even freedom can soothe. When Bree disappeared, she put him in prison both metaphorically and physically.