Over 900 authors including JK Rowling, James Patterson and Donna Tartt, have backed a full-page ad in the New York Times, calling on Amazon "to stop harming the livelihood of the authors on whom it has built its business."

Amazon

The aggressive tactic is the latest move in a battle which has seen Amazon delay delivery and remove pre-readers on a slew of books by authors from Hachette - the French publisher. Amazon says it is attempting to "lower ebook prices" while Hachette argues that it is seeking "terms that value appropriately for the years ahead the author's unique role in creating books, and the publisher's role in editing, marketing, and distributing them."

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Now, the bestselling writer Douglas Preston has collected over 900 signatures backing a letter that will appear in Sunday's New York Times, calling on readers to contact Amazon's Jeff Bezos "and tell him what you think" about the situation. 

"As writers - most of us not published by Hachette - we feel strongly that no bookseller should block the sale of books or otherwise prevent or discourage customers from ordering or receiving the books they want. It is not right for Amazon to single out a group of authors, who are not involved in the dispute, for selective retaliation. Moreover, by inconveniencing and misleading its own customers with unfair pricing and delayed delivery, Amazon is contradicting its own written promise to be 'Earth's most customer-centric company',"  write the authors, who also include Stephen King and Paul Auster.

According to the New York Times, the full-page ad cost $104,000.