Publishing
Universal book links are tidy for the writer and occasionally a nuisance for everyone else.
I can see the appeal. One link, less faffing, fewer places to update. But readers do not always want to be routed through a small administrative maze before they can buy the book from the shop they already use.
Sometimes the neatest system for us is not the simplest one for the person with their card out. That seems worth remembering, especially in publishing, where convenience is often discussed as if it belongs to the author alone.
I can see the appeal. One link, less faffing, fewer places to update. But readers do not always want to be routed through a small administrative maze before they can buy the book from the shop they already use.
Sometimes the neatest system for us is not the simplest one for the person with their card out. That seems worth remembering, especially in publishing, where convenience is often discussed as if it belongs to the author alone.
The trouble with “one link” is that it often means one more click before anyone reaches the shop they meant to use. Convenience gets defined from the publisher’s side too easily. A reader who already knows where they buy books should not be made to feel as if they are being shepherded through a booking office.