What is Author Ring?
Author Ring is a reader discovery network built around direct sales. The core problem it solves: authors can build a direct store, but getting readers to find it is the hard part.
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What it is:
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A network of author websites linked together in genre-specific "rings" — literally a circle of connected stores readers can hop through
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A modern take on the old-school 1990s web ring concept, rebuilt for today's direct sales world
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Hosted at authorring.net, with a reader-facing browsing experience at demo-readers.authorring.net
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How it works for readers:
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Browse by genre and sub-genre (Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi, Thriller, and their sub-categories like Paranormal Romance or Dark Fantasy)
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Find an author they love, click into their store, then hop to the next author in the ring
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No algorithm deciding what they see — just curated, genre-matched authors
How it works for authors:
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Join a ring in your genre/sub-genre
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A small widget or link on your direct store connects you into the ring
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Readers who are already primed to buy direct discover you organically through other ring members
The big idea:
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No Amazon. No algorithms. No middleman taking a cut.
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Readers who find you through the ring are already looking to buy direct
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Authors in the same niche lift each other up instead of competing
In the video demo, the network already had 15 active authors, 16 rings, and 4 genres — small but fully functional and live.
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The authors who join early get found first. Author Ring grows with every member. More authors means more readers browsing the ring — and more chances for your books to land in front of someone who's already looking to buy direct. Don't wait for the ring to come to you.
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