PVPF 2024

Amazon Established the Ortega-Maraón Foundation's First Self-Publishing Library in Madrid

Amazon's self-publishing library at the Ortega-Maraón Foundation promotes written culture by supporting independent authors and reading with its collection of 200 titles.
on Oct 04, 2023

Amazon expands its support for written culture and independent authors by donating an initial collection of approximately 200 titles.

Amazon has constructed the first self-publishing library, housed at the Ortega-Maraón Foundation's headquarters, as part of its dedication to reading and writing. The Ortega-Maraón Foundation is a social sciences and humanities institution dedicated to fostering culture, education, and research.

A social gathering place for self-published authors and readers

The library's goal is to serve as a meeting place that brings the world of self-publishing closer to all types of readers, as well as to contribute to the analysis of the relevance of this new model of production in the Spanish literary scene.

The work must be unique and self-published in order to be considered for inclusion on the library's shelves. Thus, the area will be shared by successful writers who began their careers by publishing through KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing), winners and finalists of previous rounds of the Amazon Storyteller Literary Prize, and the highest-rated novels published through KDP.

On September 28, 2023, the library's inauguration ceremony included a panel discussion conducted by journalist and writer Marta Fernández. Federico Buyolo, Cultural Director of the Ortega-Maraón Foundation; Andrea Pasino, Head of Amazon KDP Spain; Jorge Gonzalvo, Founder & Director of Atrapavientos (an association promoting reading and writing); and Raquel Ortega, KDP author and winner of the Amazon Storyteller Literary Prize 2022, were among those in attendance. They talked about reading, writing, and self-publishing in Spain.

In Spain, we support reading and literary creation.

With the launch of the library, Amazon demonstrates its commitment to promoting new forms of literary creation in Spanish, making the work of emerging authors accessible to all types of readers, and raising awareness of the possibility of self-publishing for both independent authors and Spanish readers.

The "Reading, Writing, and Literary Creation in Spain" study, performed by Beruby for Amazon, polled 3,000 Spaniards, with more than one-third (37%) reporting to like writing as a hobby. 37% have published at some point, either on their personal blog (30%), through a traditional publisher (31%), or using a self-publishing service (39%).

One of the key benefits highlighted by Spaniards familiar with self-publishing technologies is the possibility it provides for new authors to reach readers, which 40% of respondents acknowledged. Furthermore, more than one-third (35%) of respondents believe that self-publishing makes it easier for readers to find new authors.

Supporting self-publishing for ten years

The library presentation also served to reveal the names of this year's Amazon Storyteller Literary Prize finalists, which will celebrate its tenth anniversary in 2023. Since its inception, the award has established itself as the preeminent literary competition for self-published authors and has grown to include over 25,000 titles from authors from more than 60 nations.

The award will be presented on October 26th at the Ortega-Maraón Foundation as part of the Ee Festival. The winner will get a monetary prize of €10,000 as well as a €20,000 marketing campaign on Amazon to promote their work. They will also get the opportunity to sign a contract with Amazon Audible to produce their book as an audiobook.

All works entered in the competition are accessible in the Kindle Store and may be read in both print and digital versions on a variety of devices, including iPhone, iPad, Android phones and tablets, PC, and Mac, as well as Kindle eReaders and Fire tablets, using the free Kindle app.