Name: PODCAST DROP: Latest Self-Publishing News with Dan Holloway
Start: 2026-01-30T13:00:00+00:00
End: 2026-01-30T14:00:00+00:00
Location: ALLi Podcast

News Podcast: Nebula Awards Reverse AI Policy and Authors Challenge Amazon’s ‘Ask This Book’

In this episode of Self-Publishing News, Dan Holloway examines the Nebula Awards’ abrupt reversal on AI eligibility rules, moving from disclosure to a blanket ban and sparking debate across the science fiction and fantasy community. He also looks at growing concerns over Amazon’s “Ask This Book” feature, including a rare public response from Amazon and renewed questions about licensing, derivative use, and author consent in AI-powered reading tools.

News Summary: Authors Guild Pushes Back on Amazon’s ‘Ask This Book’ AI Feature

The news starts 2026 as it ended 2025, with Amazon's new Ask This Book feature for Kindle books. When I first reported on this, I had yet to see the response from authors. Thanks to a link in Jane Friedman's newsletter, I have now been able to read and digest a very robust response indeed from the Authors Guild.

News Podcast: Amazon’s ‘Ask This Book’ Feature Sparks Debate as 2025 Wraps Up

On this episode of the Self-Publishing with ALLi podcast, Dan Holloway closes out 2025 by examining Amazon’s new “Ask This Book” AI feature for Kindle and the backlash over its always-on use with no author opt-out. He reflects on a year shaped by AI controversies, including the Anthropic class action, contrasts Amazon’s approach with Spotify’s push for greater transparency, and looks at wider industry shifts, from romance’s continued dominance to the rise of Bookshop.org as a meaningful alternative for both print and e-book sales.