I've been having problems with the USPS myself. They seem to deliver only twice a week lately and I've currently had a package from Amazon that was supposed to arrive Monday out for delivery since Tuesday

On the flip side, Amazon said it was probably lost and will send out another one

Quote from: Spinachcat;1144433I'm unsure why any small publisher would not use Amazon for POD.

Anyone know?

Venger Ass'Nasty Satanis uses Amazon POD and everything I've gotten from them has been equal quality to DriveThru or Lulu. But I think Amazon POD only does softcover as that's everything I've gotten. Like any POD, there's ink issues with a couple images, but nothing notable. It's fun to order mundane crap for the house and find a crazy Venger book in the box too.

Amazon POD is terrible.

Ordering your own book copies for fulfilment is more expensive
Their margins suck
Their tools suck
Their margins suck
Their non-Amazon distribution channels suck
Their margins suck
Their print options (hardcover, etc.) suck
Their margins suck

Did I mention their margins suck?

ANYWAY, Amazon is great if you are an indie novelist. If you are a small press--Amazon isn't that good at all. Having a distributor that puts the book on Amazon, B&N (for a little while longer that they are here), and many other places is very beneficial. It's also the same process to take the Ingram files and use them On DriveThru RPG (more or less).

Ingram does have their issues, such as COVID-19 kicking their ass right now, the lack of semi-gloss paper, and a few other annoying things. But they can make a book that goes into many channels, and technically, their premium color comes off a digital offset press--it makes outstanding books.

I have 2 USPS that are a week late with no end in sight based on the tracking. They have been sitting in place at USPS facilities since July 29th.
(Pathfinder V1 modules via Amazon 3rd party)

Hah with the new changes taking effect in the USPS you'll have to wait 5 years before it's considered lost. Don't hold your breath.

Quote from: Spinachcat;1144433I'm unsure why any small publisher would not use Amazon for POD.

Because gamers don't window-shop on Amazon. They window-shop on DTRPG. And a lot of them are too lazy go over and look on Amazon if the PoD is not on DTRPG.

Well how about that, the "Wolves of god" RPG physical book I ordered from DTRPG did finally arrive today.
I'd assumed it was lost in the post.
But over 2 months later, it arrived.

It's an A5 sized hardback book and looks very nice.
I'll do a review later and post on YouTube.