CATEGORY POWER vs CATEGORY PRIDE
A short story about the shelves we choose — and the readers we lose
Mara had dreamed of seeing her book on the big shelves since her first scribble on paper.
The classics.
The thinkers.
The authors with leather journals and coffee that always looked philosophical.
So when it was time to publish, she didn’t hesitate.
She scrolled past the warm, chatty categories where her real readers hung out…
and chose the ones that sounded important.
“Literary Fiction,” she whispered.
It felt like walking into a room of chandeliers.
And just like that, she thought she’d made it.
But when her book reached Amazon’s digital shelves, something strange happened.
Crickets.
A few polite clicks.
No spark.
The readers who would have loved her voice never even saw the cover.
Without knowing it, Mara had chosen Category Pride instead of Category Power.
The day everything clicked
One morning, a friend sent a quiet message:
“Hey… I think your readers might be shopping in a different aisle.”
That line hit like a cold glass of water.
She had never thought of categories as doorways — she thought they were declarations.
Declarations of status.
Of belonging.
But now she looked around the “Literary Fiction” aisle and realized something.
Those books didn’t sound like hers.
Didn’t feel like hers.
Her book looked like a guest at the wrong dinner party.
Curious, she peeked into the category she’d once scrolled past.
The titles there felt like cousins.
Their blurbs spoke her language.
Their readers felt like home.
That’s when it hit her:
Category Power wasn’t about ego.
It was about connection.
The gentle truth Mara learned
Choosing a category isn’t about pride or prestige.
It’s about placement — the honest kind.
It’s saying: “Here’s where my readers already hang out. Let me meet them there.”
Amazon doesn’t care how glamorous the category name looks.
Readers don’t care either.
They just want to find the book that speaks their emotional language.
So Mara moved her book to the aisle that once felt “less shiny.”
And everything shifted.
More clicks.
More curiosity.
More people who stayed long enough to buy.
Her book didn’t suddenly become better —
its placement became true.
Three takeaways Mara will never forget
The right category isn’t the fancy one — it’s the familiar one.
Readers buy what looks like home.The strongest position is emotional truth.
Categories aren’t trophies. They’re signals.Clarity beats ego — every single time.
Category Power is humble.
And that humility sells.
Final Thought
There’s no shame in wanting your book to shine.
But shine happens where your readers are waiting — not where your pride feels validated.
Choose the shelf that welcomes your book as it is,
not the one that intimidates it.
Choose Category Power.
Leave Category Pride behind.
Your readers will find you faster.
And your book will finally breathe.