Eden

Eden Books for Indie Authors

Eden Books is a niche retailer founded specifically to support romance and erotica authors in an increasingly restrictive digital marketplace. While major platforms like Amazon have implemented opaque and shifting policies around adult content, Eden Books offers a censorship-free environment where authors can publish without fear of takedowns, visibility suppression, or sudden loss of income. With thousands of readers and a growing catalog of indie-published titles, Eden Books has become an essential pillar in the wide distribution strategy for romance authors seeking independence and creative freedom.

At its core, Eden Books is about control and community. Authors retain full rights, pricing control, and receive generous royalties while interacting directly with their audience. The platform emphasizes direct connection between writers and readers, with social features built into its storefront and dedicated space for books that push boundaries in the romance space. Though its audience is smaller than the giants of the industry, its niche focus creates a loyal readership and reliable income stream for those who publish in this genre.



Platform History: From Censorship to Sanctuary

Eden Books launched in 2018 in direct response to growing content restrictions on platforms like Amazon, Apple Books, and Facebook. Many indie romance authors found themselves blocked, shadow-banned, or even delisted simply for including adult themes or suggestive cover art. Founder Heather Roberts, herself an author, created Eden Books to give this community a safe, supportive, and permanent publishing home.

What began as a protest against corporate censorship quickly evolved into a polished marketplace with professional-grade retail features. The platform includes genre-specific browsing, author storefronts, and sales tracking—along with strong branding around inclusivity and creative freedom. Eden’s team actively supports authors via social media and promotional events, helping to amplify books that might otherwise be hidden in algorithmic shadows.

Over time, Eden Books has expanded its features to include series linking, preorders, coupon tools, and even a blog-style reader community, building a loyal ecosystem for authors who were otherwise underserved by larger retail ecosystems.

How Eden Books Fits in a WIDE Strategy

If you're an author following a wide publishing strategy, Eden Books is an essential niche partner. While it won't match Amazon or Kobo in volume, its contribution to your revenue and reader base is unique and targeted. Eden thrives in the romance and erotica space, genres that frequently run afoul of restrictions on other platforms. Here’s how Eden Books strengthens your wide strategy:

• Genre-safe platform: Eden Books welcomes content that might be hidden or penalized elsewhere.

• Direct sales model: Greater royalty control and customer access.

• Exclusive romance readership: Readers go to Eden specifically for the genres you write.

• Reduced reliance on algorithmic exposure: Instead of competing for placement, authors are featured via manual curation and community highlights.

• Social interaction tools: Helps build long-term engagement and series loyalty.

Authors using Eden alongside other storefronts gain not only income diversity but the freedom to express their stories without compromise.

What Eden Books Offers Indie Authors

Eden Books provides a full-featured self-publishing experience tailored for romance and erotica writers. Authors create an account and upload their books directly to the platform, set their pricing, and manage their metadata from a personalized dashboard. No aggregator is required—you maintain direct control over your publishing process.

Your books appear in Eden’s genre-curated storefront, searchable by tags, tropes, heat level, and themes. Readers can follow your author page, leave reviews, and engage via social updates or the author blog.

There’s no exclusivity requirement, and no content policing as long as your books comply with basic legal standards. Cover art, keywords, blurbs, and sample chapters are all under your control, giving you the freedom to showcase your work exactly as intended.

Terms, Royalties & Payment Structure

Eden Books’ terms are simple and author-friendly. The platform makes money through a commission on sales, rather than imposing hidden fees or exclusivity clauses.

• Royalty Rate: Authors earn 85% of the list price, minus standard payment processing fees. This is one of the highest royalty splits in the industry.

• Payout Threshold: $10 minimum for monthly payments.

• Payment Frequency: Monthly via PayPal or direct deposit.

• Exclusivity: None. Authors retain all rights and can sell elsewhere freely.

• Preorders: Available. You can list your title in advance and collect pre-sales.

• Coupons and Discounts: Available via your dashboard to encourage sales and reward readers.

The straightforward payment model makes Eden Books an attractive supplemental channel for maximizing return on each sale.

Comparison Chart: Eden Books vs Major Retailers

Marketing Through Eden Books

Eden Books does not offer a high-budget ad dashboard, but it provides a number of effective, grassroots tools that empower authors to promote and engage. Most marketing success on Eden comes from community participation and clever use of the tools built into the platform.

Here’s what you can leverage:

• Author Pages: A dedicated space for your bio, social links, full catalog, and blog posts. This acts as your homepage within the platform.

• Coupons & Discounts: You can create custom coupons for readers, newsletter subscribers, or social media promotions. These can be set for a limited time or ongoing campaigns.

• Preorders: Pre-release listing lets you build anticipation and capture early sales.

• Reader Community: Readers follow your updates and blog posts, encouraging deeper engagement and series loyalty.

• Homepage Features: Occasionally, Eden spotlights new titles, bestsellers, or holiday-themed books in curated carousels.

• Social Media Amplification: Eden’s official channels frequently highlight new authors, cover reveals, and content tags across Instagram and Facebook.

While Eden may not rival Amazon in scale, its highly engaged audience responds well to personalization, creative engagement, and serial storytelling.

Pros and Cons of Using Eden Books

Pros:

• Censorship-free for romance and erotica

• High royalty rate (85%)

• Preorders, coupons, and direct pricing control

• Strong reader community and genre alignment

• Direct author-reader interaction

Cons:

• Smaller audience than major retailers

• Limited advertising tools

• Manual curation can make initial discovery slower

ScribeCount Integration with Eden Books

While Eden Books is a standalone platform with a growing base of authors, it is not yet supported by ScribeCount as part of its wide tracking ecosystem. You can however upload your sales data manually via the "Other Income" feature and once you integrate Eden into your workflow ScribeCount can show your Eden Books sales data in your master dashboard, keeping your wide revenue visible in one place.

This allows you to track Eden performance alongside major storefronts like Amazon, Kobo, Apple, and Smashwords, giving you a clear picture of how your niche sales contribute to your overall publishing success.

For wide authors juggling multiple storefronts, ScribeCount's centralized dashboard and clean reports are a critical time-saver and strategy enhancer.

Conclusion

Eden Books is a powerful ally for indie authors who write romance, erotica, or any genre threatened by platform overreach. In a publishing landscape often dictated by algorithms and arbitrary rules, Eden offers sanctuary, freedom, and fair compensation. While it won’t replace your primary sales channel, it adds depth and security to your portfolio—particularly if you're serious about publishing wide and connecting authentically with your core audience.

If you write the kind of stories traditional retailers hide, Eden Books gives you the power to share them proudly and profitably. It’s not just a platform—it’s a statement of independence.