NOTE: Kindle Desktop Publishing terminated my account.
I made all my books free:
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/bruceb
******
CHAPTER 1: AMAZON KINDLE DESKTOP PUBLISHING
THIS IS AMAZON KINDLE DESKTOP PUBLISHING’S EMAIL TO ME (I read it 2-8-2022):
Hello,
We are terminating your account effective immediately because we found that you have published titles with misleading content that have the potential to mislead or defraud our customers.
You can see the violations reflected in the following title(s):
B08LNLCLBN/William Shakespeare’s "King Lear": A Retelling in Prose
As part of the termination process:
• We will close your account
• You’re no longer eligible to receive any outstanding royalties
• You’ll no longer have access to your accounts. This includes, editing your titles, viewing your reports and accessing any other information within your account
• All of your published titles will be removed from sale on Amazon
Additionally, as per our Terms and Conditions, you aren’t allowed to open any new KDP accounts.
You can find our Terms and Conditions, here: [REMOVED HERE BUT PUBLICLY AVAILABLE]
CHAPTER 2: DAVID BRUCE
THIS WAS MY REPLY:
The two books in question are
William Shakespeare’s King Lear: A Retelling in Prose
and
The History of King Leir: A Retelling
They are two separate books. The History of King Leir is a source for Shakespeare’s famous tragedy: King Lear.
How about we remove from sale The History of King Leir? That way, readers will not be confused.
While we are at it, I have two other books — not flagged by you — with similar titles:
The Taming of a Shrew: A Retelling
and
William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew: A Retelling in Prose
The Taming of a Shrew is a source for Shakespeare’s famous tragedy [Oops! Should be comedy]: The Taming of the Shrew.
How about we remove from sale The Taming of a Shrew? That way, readers will not be confused.
To avoid confusion and to provide a better value to readers I can combine plays.
The two Lear/Leir books will become one book.
The two Shrew books (a Shrew/the Shrew) books will become one book.
No misrepresentration [Oops! Should be misrepresentation] is/was intended by me.
David Bruce
CHAPTER 3: AMAZON KINDLE DESKTOP PUBLISHING
AMAZON KINDLE DESKTOP PUBLISHING GOT BACK TO ME QUICKLY
Hello,
Thank you for the email concerning the status of your account.
After reviewing your response, we have reevaluated the Content Guideline violations relating to the titles in your account.
We found that you have published titles with misleading content.
As a result, we are upholding our previous decision to terminate your KDP account and remove all your titles from Amazon.
If you have questions or believe you’ve received this email in error, reply to this message.
If you would like to review our Content Guidelines, please visit: https://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/help?topicId=A2TOZW0SV7IR1U
Kathryn
Amazon Content Review Team
AND:
Hello,
We’ve reviewed the information you provided and we are upholding our previous decision to terminate your account and remove all your titles from sale on Amazon.
As a result, we will not be reinstating your account.
Please note that, per our Terms and Conditions, you are not permitted to open new accounts and will not receive future royalty payments from additional accounts created.
Logan
Amazon Content Review Team
CHAPTER 4: DAVID BRUCE
I contacted KDP again on 2-14-2022:
Please check your emails to me.
The email before the account termination stated that KDP would NOT publish my book
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S KING LEAR: A RETELLING IN PROSE.
Since KDP stated that it would NOT publish the book, I assumed that I had plenty of time to finish other projects before looking at this book and perhaps deciding not to publish it.
One other thing to keep in mind is that the book is a retelling of a play. Shakespeare titled his play KING LEAR and I cannot change his title.
And Anonymous titled his play THE HISTORY OF KING LEIR and I cannot change that title.
Thank you.
David Bruce
CHAPTER 5: AMAZON KINDLE DESKTOP PUBLISHING
AGAIN, AMAZON KINDLE DESKTOP PUBLISHING GOT BACK TO ME QUICKLY (2-15-2022):
Hello,
We’ve reviewed the information you provided and we are upholding our previous decision to terminate your account and remove all your titles from sale on Amazon.
As a result, we will not be reinstating your account.
Please note that, per our Terms and Conditions, you are not permitted to open new accounts and will not receive future royalty payments from additional accounts created.
Logan
Amazon Content Review Team
CHAPTER 6: DAVID BRUCE
I did not send this to AMAZON KINDLE DESKTOP PUBLISHING, but let’s look at the two titles:
William Shakespeare’s King Lear: A Retelling in Prose
and
The History of King Leir: A Retelling.
***
William Shakespeare’s King Lear: A Retelling in Prose
Why did I write William Shakespeare’s?
Because William Shakespeare’s wrote the play I was retelling.
Why did I write King Lear?
Because King Lear is the title of the play I was retelling.
Why did I write A Retelling in Prose?
Because I was retelling the play in prose.
Why did I spell LEAR as LEAR?
Because that is how Shakespeare, the author of King Lear, spelled it.
The History of King Leir: A Retelling
Why did I write The History of King Leir?
Because The History of King Leir is the title of the play I was retelling.
Why did I write A Retelling?
Because I was retelling the play.
Why did I spell LEIR as LEIR?
Because that I how the anonymous author of the play spelled it.
CHAPTER 7: CONCLUSION
I don’t see how the two titles are misleading.
Also, the two different BOOK DECRIPTIONS gave additional details about the two books.
AMAZON KINDLE DESKTOP PUBLISHING kept my royalties.
Does anyone know who gets that money?
My outstanding royalties were a few hundred dollars.
Since then, I have drastically reduced the price of my books in an attempt to create a lasting legacy.
A look at APPENDIX B: SOME BOOKS BY DAVID BRUCE ought to show that I want to create a lasting legacy.
APPENDIX A: ABOUT THE AUTHOR
It was a dark and stormy night. Suddenly a cry rang out, and on a hot summer night in 1954, Josephine, wife of Carl Bruce, gave birth to a boy — me. Unfortunately, this young married couple allowed Reuben Saturday, Josephine’s brother, to name their first-born. Reuben, aka “The Joker,” decided that Bruce was a nice name, so he decided to name me Bruce Bruce. I have gone by my middle name — David — ever since.
Being named Bruce David Bruce hasn’t been all bad. Bank tellers remember me very quickly, so I don’t often have to show an ID. It can be fun in charades, also. When I was a counselor as a teenager at Camp Echoing Hills in Warsaw, Ohio, a fellow counselor gave the signs for “sounds like” and “two words,” then she pointed to a bruise on her leg twice. Bruise Bruise? Oh yeah, Bruce Bruce is the answer!
Uncle Reuben, by the way, gave me a haircut when I was in kindergarten. He cut my hair short and shaved a small bald spot on the back of my head. My mother wouldn’t let me go to school until the bald spot grew out again.
Of all my brothers and sisters (six in all), I am the only transplant to Athens, Ohio. I was born in Newark, Ohio, and have lived all around Southeastern Ohio. However, I moved to Athens to go to Ohio University and have never left.
At Ohio U, I never could make up my mind whether to major in English or Philosophy, so I got a bachelor’s degree with a double major in both areas, then I added a Master of Arts degree in English and a Master of Arts degree in Philosophy. Yes, I have my MAMA degree.
Currently, and for a long time to come (I eat fruits and veggies), I am spending my retirement writing books such as Nadia Comaneci: Perfect 10,The Funniest People in Dance, Homer’s Iliad: A Retelling in Prose, and William Shakespeare’s Othello: A Retelling in Prose.
By the way, my sister Brenda Kennedy writes romances such as A New Beginning and Shattered Dreams.
APPENDIX B: SOME BOOKS BY DAVID BRUCE
Retellings of a Classic Work of Literature
Ben Jonson’s The Alchemist: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s Bartholomew Fair: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s The Case is Altered: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s Catiline’s Conspiracy: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s The Devil is an Ass: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s Epicene: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s Every Man in His Humor: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s Every Man Out of His Humor: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s The Fountain of Self-Love, or Cynthia’s Revels: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s The New Inn: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s The Staple of News: A Retelling
Ben Jonson’s Volpone, or the Fox: A Retelling
Christopher Marlowe’s Complete Plays: Retellings
Christopher Marlowe’s Dido, Queen of Carthage: A Retelling
Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus: Retellings of the 1604 A-Text and of the 1616 B-Text
Christopher Marlowe’s Edward II: A Retelling
Christopher Marlowe’s The Massacre at Paris: A Retelling
Christopher Marlowe’s The Rich Jew of Malta: A Retelling
Christopher Marlowe’s Tamburlaine, Parts 1 and 2: Retellings
Dante’s Divine Comedy: A Retelling in Prose
Dante’s Inferno: A Retelling in Prose
Dante’s Purgatory: A Retelling in Prose
Dante’s Paradise: A Retelling in Prose
The Famous Victories of Henry V: A Retelling
From the Iliad to the Odyssey: A Retelling in Prose of Quintus of Smyrna’s Posthomerica
George Peele: Five Plays Retold in Modern English
George Peele’s The Arraignment of Paris: A Retelling
George Peele’s The Battle of Alcazar: A Retelling
George Peele’s David and Bathsheba, and the Tragedy of Absalom: A Retelling
George Peele’s Edward I: A Retelling
George Peele’s The Old Wives’ Tale: A Retelling
George-A-Greene, The Pinner of Wakefield: A Retelling
The History of King Leir: A Retelling
Homer’s Iliad: A Retelling in Prose
Homer’s Odyssey: A Retelling in Prose
Jason and the Argonauts: A Retelling in Prose of Apollonius of Rhodes’ Argonautica
The Jests of George Peele: A Retelling
John Ford: Eight Plays Translated into Modern English
John Ford’s The Broken Heart: A Retelling
John Ford’s The Fancies, Chaste and Noble: A Retelling
John Ford’s The Lady’s Trial: A Retelling
John Ford’s The Lover’s Melancholy: A Retelling
John Ford’s Love’s Sacrifice: A Retelling
John Ford’s Perkin Warbeck: A Retelling
John Ford’s The Queen: A Retelling
John Ford’s ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore: A Retelling
John Webster’s The White Devil: A Retelling
King Edward III: A Retelling
The Merry Devil of Edmonton: A Retelling
Robert Greene’s Friar Bacon and Friar Bungay: A Retelling
The Taming of a Shrew: A Retelling
Tarlton’s Jests: A Retelling
The Trojan War and Its Aftermath: Four Ancient Epic Poems
Virgil’s Aeneid: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 5 Late Romances: Retellings in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 10 Histories: Retellings in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 11 Tragedies: Retellings in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 12 Comedies: Retellings in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 38 Plays: Retellings in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 1 Henry IV, aka Henry IV, Part 1: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 2 Henry IV, aka Henry IV, Part 2: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 1 Henry VI, aka Henry VI, Part 1: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 2 Henry VI, aka Henry VI, Part 2: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s 3 Henry VI, aka Henry VI, Part 3: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s All’s Well that Ends Well: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s As You Like It: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Coriolanus: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Cymbeline: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Hamlet: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Henry V: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Henry VIII: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s King John: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s King Lear: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Love’s Labor’s Lost: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Macbeth: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Othello: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Pericles, Prince of Tyre: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Richard II: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Richard III: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s The Tempest: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Timon of Athens: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Troilus and Cressida: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s The Two Gentlemen of Verona: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s The Two Noble Kinsmen: A Retelling in Prose
William Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale: A Retelling in Prose
Children’s Biography
Nadia Comaneci: Perfect Ten
Anecdote Collections
250 Anecdotes About Opera
250 Anecdotes About Religion
250 Anecdotes About Religion: Volume 2
250 Music Anecdotes
Be a Work of Art: 250 Anecdotes and Stories
Boredom is Anti-Life: 250 Anecdotes and Stories
The Coolest People in Art: 250 Anecdotes
The Coolest People in the Arts: 250 Anecdotes
The Coolest People in Books: 250 Anecdotes
The Coolest People in Comedy: 250 Anecdotes
Create, Then Take a Break: 250 Anecdotes
Don’t Fear the Reaper: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Art: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Books: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Books, Volume 2: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Books, Volume 3: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Comedy: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Dance: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Families: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Families, Volume 2: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Families, Volume 3: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Families, Volume 4: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Families, Volume 5: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Families, Volume 6: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Movies: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Music: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Music, Volume 2: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Music, Volume 3: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Neighborhoods: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Relationships: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Sports: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Sports, Volume 2: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Television and Radio: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People in Theater: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People Who Live Life: 250 Anecdotes
The Funniest People Who Live Life, Volume 2: 250 Anecdotes
The Kindest People Who Do Good Deeds, Volume 1: 250 Anecdotes
The Kindest People Who Do Good Deeds, Volume 2: 250 Anecdotes
Maximum Cool: 250 Anecdotes
The Most Interesting People in Movies: 250 Anecdotes
The Most Interesting People in Politics and History: 250 Anecdotes
The Most Interesting People in Politics and History, Volume 2: 250 Anecdotes
The Most Interesting People in Politics and History, Volume 3: 250 Anecdotes
The Most Interesting People in Religion: 250 Anecdotes
The Most Interesting People in Sports: 250 Anecdotes
The Most Interesting People Who Live Life: 250 Anecdotes
The Most Interesting People Who Live Life, Volume 2: 250 Anecdotes
Reality is Fabulous: 250 Anecdotes and Stories
Resist Psychic Death: 250 Anecdotes
Seize the Day: 250 Anecdotes and Stories
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