Thursday, December 14, 2023

Kindle Unlimited is introducing unsolicited smut to comic book fans


 









Hello Folks,

Part of being an author and a minister for young adults is you get to recommend media that lifts people up and discourage media that hurts people. It is my passion to set you up for success spiritually, mentally, and emotionally.

Today, I have to speak out against something dangerous and reckless that manga writers are doing on the Kindle Unlimited platform. Kindle Unlimited is a subscription service that allows a reader to have unlimited comics, audio books, novels, and self-help books in a massive library. Any author that uploads their work on the program is added to Kindle Unlimited. You can even read Larna Versus The Lifepires through this service.

But sadly, I cannot recommend Kindle Unlimited if you are a fan of manga or comics. For the uninitiated, manga are comic books that originate from Japan, but the US, South Korea, and China have made them too. They vary in genre from romance, sci-fi, and action. It is wildly popular for adults and teenagers.

Recently Kindle Unlimited has made a very dangerous error. Certain artists are learning that the fastest way to a man's wallet is through his hormones. They upload comic books that are erotic and sexually charged. The covers of these books depict bare chested women with very little censorship over their exposed bodies. Some of these novels depict rape and incest fantasies as well. Other artists, who do not even draw, are using AI image creators to make photo books of lifelike nude Asian women. 

Normally, I would just advise you to avoid it, but Kindle Unlimited has made this impossible. A simple browse in the manga category places these erotic books on page 1 of the search (the photo above depicts page 1 of a manga search). There are no NSFW setting or a proof of age warning, it just sits next to other harmless manga offerings. I experimented with this under different browsers and log-ins and found the same results. Anyone, adult or child, will see these erotic drawings when searching. If a teenager is looking for the Disney Lilo and Stitch manga they need to pass at least three erotic adult graphic novels to get it. If a tween wants to get into the age appropriate Bakugan series, they need to skim past a few adult novels that promise sexual promiscuity. If a man who is battling a porn addiction wants to read a Power Rangers graphic novel, he has to be tempted by these books.

A simple browse in the manga category places these erotic books on page 1 of the search (the photo above depicts page 1 of a manga search)

To make matters worse, the graphic novels come with free samples that can be accessed through the Kindle app or the website. The listing even gives new recommendations of other prurient novels for reading. You don't even need a Kindle Unlimited subscription to experience them. No proof of age or account sign-in is asked for. Imagine if Netflix put hardcore adult videos in their romcom section. That is what Kindle Unlimited is doing.

This is reckless. The Kindle platform already has shady dealings with people who get AI to write nonsensical books and publish it under popular author names, but this adds a whole new level of unhealthy behavior. I will tell any young adult man or parent to treat this service like the plague.

Imagine if Netflix put hardcore adult videos in their romcom section.

There have been instances where digital book subscriptions have put adult reading material in someone's search algorithm. I had to get rid of my Scribd account because of this. But this new aggressive tactic from Kindle Unlimited is for anyone who hits the search button on manga.

We need to open up a conversation about what self-publishers should be allowed to put on Amazon's platform. It gives artists an amazing way to share their ideas but, anyone can post a dangerous idea and their work will show up in the hands of a minor.

Three softcore options next to a Disney Nightmare Before Christmas comic book


Buy books in paperback or digital instead of using this service. If you want a decent comic book subscription service you should use DC Infinite Universe or Marvel Unlimited. Kobo, the competitor to Kindle, has a reading subscription that is slowly getting better. A free subscription to Hoopla is my go to choice for getting digital indie comics and manga.

 I make it my mission to warn everyone on manipulative sexual fantasy publishers that have no accountability and thrive on greed. Kindle Unlimited needs to divorce themselves from this or suffer the consequences from irate parents and wise readers.

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