If you are like me and self-publish your writing, protecting it from plagiarizers and other thieves can be challenging, to say the least. Well Amazon has made that challenge even more difficult. They have instituted a policy where legitimate readers (and thieves looking to steal) can simply download books to PDF or EPUB ebooks. This was done quietly and if not for the author friends I have, I might never have known. I suspect you wouldn’t have known either.

They did provide instructions that would protect published works by enabling the DRM (digital rights management) feature on each published ebook. Enabling this will protect your work. If you are interested in learning how to do this. I am including the steps in this post.

1. Log into your KDP Bookshelf
2. Find the book you want to update, click the ellipsis button (“…”)
3. Choose Edit eBook Content
4. In the Manuscript section, find the Digital Rights Management (DRM) selection
5. Select the option to enable DRM
6. Click Save and Continue to save your changes
7. At the bottom of the Pricing page, click Publish Your Kindle eBook to make the changes live

Now I am not the best seller like other authors and I write because I enjoy the experience of writing. I enjoy seeing my writing being read and I especially appreciate the feedback, both good and not-so-good. It helps me become a better writer and storyteller, but it is important that we as writers protect our work. Whether you write fiction or non-fiction, graphic novels or books about personal or professional growth.

I am not suggesting you stop using Amazon, since it is a source that many readers gravitate to. Just protect yourselves and consider other avenues to get your written words seen. Theey are out there and while they may cost some up-front money, it might be the same amount of revenue Amazon is already taking from you.