Just wanted to warn you about scams going on in the publishing community. For instance, yesterday I received a dm from someone wanting to kindly gift me with his book bounty points because he was leaving KDP - of course, this smells scam all around, so I didn't even bother replying. However, I just wanted to make you aware of things like this. As always, there will be someone out there trying to get advantage, so use good judgement. And if you are aware of other kinds of scams going, please share, so we are all well aware.

The last two weeks were unusually slow and silent in the Guild. I am not sure, but it feels like there was less activity in most of the communities I am involved in. Is it just my perception, or have you experienced the same? Anyway, the Guided Publishing System is now built and fully operational. I am in the process of creating the new book with the system, and it works exactly as it was supposed to - "blank page syndrome" gone. Every time I come back to the book, I know exactly what the next step is. The same thing applies to the Review Catalyst tracker - it removed a lot of hustle and ambiguity from the process. I used the Paperback 3D Mockup for the A+ content for a few of my books, and it totally changed the experience of creating marketing materials. I am not sure if it's interesting to anybody except @Yannick Di Mondo, @Sven Georgiev and me. Anyway, it's OK for me to continue developing the tools, even if only three of us will use them. Slowly, without a rush, providing functionality that publishers are interested in. So, what is on your mind? What are you doing now? What are you aiming for? P. S. @Ana-Rita Piirainen It's so nice to see you back!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KjPcw64Izg

I stumbled upon this YouTube channel by accident. Obviously, it's a fake AI sheikh spreading wisdom (this puts fake gurus on a whole other level. :D). Out of curiosity, I decided to check how many followers the creator has and what it is all about. To my surprise, it turns out it is about selling a book. The book is probably written by ChatGPT as well. I don't actually know and don't really care. But it is a great example of how each author finds their own unique way. This particular one has about 50,000 followers and is advertising to them for FREE. He is also selling his book directly via his own website. No commission for Amazon, no waiting two months to receive his royalties, not even bothering with reviews.I think it is an interesting case study. It is not my path, but I respect this guy's creativity and resourcefulness. Not only is the author not worried about the rise of AI, but he is utilizing it very well.What do you guys think? Do you know of other interesting and unorthodox ways to sell books? (Just to be clear, I am not promoting this author. I don't know him, don't really like his videos, and I haven't seen his book. I just find his strategy an interesting case study. Also, I am not even sure if it is working well and to what extent.) https://www.youtube.com/@TheSheikhTariq/shorts

I am right to think that I cannot get suggested bid amounts for a book BEFORE publishing the paperback? I can get the suggested bids for the kindle version if I add that ASIN to the campaign, BUT those bids would likely be quite different from the paperback version I am guessing? Any thoughts? Thanks for your help.