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There’s a lot of talk online right now about Amazon closing KDP author accounts for what seems to be no reason. This isn’t an alarmist post, but this is activity you should be aware of and be prepared for. Five years ago, this didn’t seem to be happening so frequently, and I believe we can thank Amazon’s adoption of AI tools for this sudden increase in account terminations. Because there is little to no human input when accounts are closed, this really is something we all need to keep in the back of our minds.

I used to think it wouldn’t happen to me because I don’t do anything sketchy and never have, but the fact is, you don’t have to be doing anything suspicious for them to close your account. Someone on Threads had their account terminated all because they changed the price of one of their books after running a sale. I sometimes put my books on sale too, and I would hate for that option to disappear because I’m scared of Amazon’s inconsistent enforcement of their unclear guidelines.

But, I am a “hope for the best but be prepared for the worst” kind of gal, so here are a few things I’m going to do for myself and some resources I’ve collected that you can bookmark in case you or someone you know ever needs them.

• Know this can happen to anyone and that it’s not your fault.
You might automatically think you did something wrong, but bots don’t have brains–they just snag on something while they scan. I know you’re gonna panic–I’ll panic too if it happens to me–but first and foremost, don’t blame yourself.

• Don’t panic.
I know this is going to be easier said than done. Hell, I get nervous now checking my reports, thinking one morning I’m not going to have access, and then when I check my email I’ll have the BAD NEWS. It’s very anxiety inducing, and I’ve heard that from other people too. Still though, not panicking will keep you from lashing out and replying to one of those emails in a not-so-nice manner. Staying courteous and level-headed will serve you well. I’ve had a pretty crappy last few years, so if this ever happens, I’ll probably literally throw up. It’s just not something I need on my plate right now.

• Get all your stuff together.
*Find your KDP account number and keep it in a safe place. In one of the Facebook groups I’m in, someone said to write down your KDP account number because if your account is terminated, you won’t have access to that information. That’s a really good idea, and I did it the minute I read it. To find it, sign into your KDP dashboard and click on Account in the upper right hand corner.

You’ll be asked to enter the two-step verification code, and once you do that, the account number is on the left where the red box is on my screenshot:

Save that in a place where you can find it easily.

*Keep all your ASINs of your books in one place

*Start a list of contacts of anyone you think can help, like an author who might have access to an Amazon rep.

*If you’ve gotten your rights back from a small press or publisher, keep their rights reversal letter handy.

*Keep copyright information of all stock photos and art you used on your covers.

*If you’re a member of an author’s association like the Authors Guild or the Alliance of Independent Authors, find their contact email so you don’t have to hunt for it.

*CD Reiss put this Google doc together, and it goes step by step with what you should do and how to communicate with the KDP reps. It’s not foolproof, but you’re dealing with bots, so you can’t expect anything to be perfect. It’s a great starting point: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PKd94sSvgD3XoFFWHaUC6Gxey2GOU6WH7cRLNpb3428/edit?tab=t.0

*Find an attorney that handles this sort of thing. Not everyone can afford an attorney, and I completely understand that. Hopefully between contacting KDP on your own and having help either from someone who has access to an Amazon rep or through an author’s association, it won’t come to that. But it never hurts to find an attorney now so you don’t have to choose one while you’re under duress.

Gather all this information now so you have it when you’re blindsided and can’t think.

• Email your association now and express your concerns.
There are a few authors I saw who aren’t waiting until something happens to email their author organizations. I am going to email the Alliance of Independent Authors as well–I’ve been a member for a few years now. I’ve heard from some authors that when they’ve asked for help, some organizations aren’t doing anything. I will take that with a grain of salt because they could be doing something in the background, and dealing with Amazon can take days or even weeks. So I’m not going to jump to any conclusions about their assistance or lack thereof, but one of the biggest reasons I joined Alli is to have someone on my side in case something like this ever happens. An email will also let your organization know that this is a huge concern in the author community. Stay polite, of course, because we have to believe we’re all in this together. And if you aren’t a member of an organization, it might be a good idea to look into it:
The Alliance of Independent Authors
Authors Guild
Independent Book Publishers Association
SFWA
RWA

Should you verify your identity if you haven’t been asked?
I wondered about this, since not long ago KDP was asking quite a few authors to verify their identity. I was not one of those authors, and maybe you weren’t either. I looked around online, and most people seem to agree that if you haven’t been asked, don’t volunteer the information. When dealing with Amazon, I think it’s safer just to give them the information they request when they request it. You may be tempted to overshare, thinking it will help, but giving them too many details when they don’t ask for it might actually muddy the waters and slow things down.

Make sure you do have proper identification on hand in case they ever do ask. Don’t let your state ID or driver’s license expire, and keep your banking information up to date. I know not everyone can afford to, but my kids and I recently got our passports. I’d recommend going through the process if you can. Not just to have it on hand if KDP asks to verify your identity, but to have it as a form of identification in general. The world is a messy place right now. Protect yourselves in every way that’s possible for you and your situation. If you want to read KDP’s help page on verification, you can find it here: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/GH7TYHP6FR9QAUM9

No one likes to think that something like this could happen to them, but being proactive can take a lot of the stress off if you find yourself in this kind of situation.

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I hope you all had a lovely Easter holiday if you celebrated, and that you’re having a nice spring so far. We just got a few inches of snow dumped on us, which is never great. It might be another month before the ground finally dries out, but, that’s Minnesota living for you.

Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you here next week!