Have you heard of Write On by Amazon yet? Writer friend Brian Basham (@ninjadueces22) recently mentioned the soon-to-come service in his Goodreads group, Author Superfriends Teamup, and I’d never heard of it. Apparently it’s Amazon’s answer to Wattpad – in fact, it’s pretty much the same thing.
Right now it’s in beta testing mode, and writers and readers can sign up to help test it. Naturally I signed up to get the skinny, and there’s one thing you absolutely must know before you get excited about Write On. Amazon will own the rights to any work you post on Write On. I’ve copied the relevant terms for signing up below. Don’t post your work until you know what you’re getting into!
Write On by Amazon:
“All content included in or made available through any Write On Service, such as text, graphics, logos, button icons, images (including images made available in any cover creator tool), audio clips, digital downloads, data compilations, and software, is the property of Amazon or its content suppliers and protected by United States and international copyright laws. The compilation of all content included in or made available through any Write On Service is the exclusive property of Amazon and protected by U.S. and international copyright laws.”
Wattpad:
“For clarity, you retain all of your ownership rights in your User Submissions. However, by submitting User Submissions to Wattpad.com, you hereby grant Wattpad.com a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable license to use, reproduce, distribute, display, and perform the User Submissions in connection with the Wattpad.com Website. You also hereby grant each user of the Wattpad.com Website a non-exclusive license to access your User Submissions through the Website. You understand and agree, however, that Wattpad.com may retain, but not display, distribute, or perform, server copies of User Submissions that have been removed or deleted.”
This is a serious difference that can make the decision for you of whether to post your work on Write On or not. Personally I won’t do it. I don’t know if using an Amazon service would give me more visibility, but my work is my own, and there’s no way I’ll give up my rights to it without a publishing contract.
What do you all think? Would you sign on anyway? Also, how can you go on to publish whatever you post on Write On when the rights no longer belong to you (read above: exclusive property of Amazon)?
raisingdaisy
That “fine print” is so important to read – I’d hate to make assumptions and lose the rights to my own work! Thanks so much for making us writers aware of this important difference between the two sites.
christiestratos
Yes, the fine print is the first thing I check on anything, whether it’s a site or a contract, even more casual things. You just never want to lose the right to your own work!
Rachel McAlpine
So, books published on WriteOn will be “the property of Amazon or its content suppliers.” Everything hinges on one word: “or.” Surely a writer is one of Amazon’s content suppliers. So if I supply content to WriteOn, I may or may not retain copyright? That’s a little too fuzzy.
christiestratos
I feel like it’s too fuzzy for comfort as well, Rachel. It seems like they’re leaving it open to claim the writer’s work as their own property, maybe even depending on the situation. I don’t know, but I don’t want to risk it!
flyingtothehorizon
I’d definitely never give up my work. Seriously, its MY WORK. I have the right to retain ownership of MY WORK! Thanks for clarifying
christiestratos
I feel exactly the same way! Happy to help. 🙂
Taylor Pagliaro
I’m on both and I think wattpad is WAY better!!!!
christiestratos
Thanks for sharing your opinion!