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Other authors endorsing the letter include James Patterson, Andrew Solomon and Scott Turow. Some on the list are Hachette writers, but many are published by rival companies. The authors include best-selling novelists such as King and Roberts, prize-winning historians such as Robert Caro and Taylor Branch, children's authors Laurie Halse Anderson and Mary Pope Osborne, Pulitzer Prize-winner Tartt and memoir writers Elizabeth Gilbert and Mary Karr.

"We're in this for the long haul, as Amazon may well be, too," Preston says.

Meanwhile, best-selling science fiction author Hugh Howey has written a petition addressed to readers that praises Amazon for offering low prices and for paying generous e-book royalties-as high as 70 percent, compared to the standard 25 percent from traditional publishers-to authors published by Amazon.

Howey, who has had great success selling e-books through Amazon, has been a leading defender of the Seattle-based company and an advocate for self-publishing.

"You probably aren't aware of this, but the majority of your favorite authors can't make a living off their book sales alone," reads the petition and is supported by J. A. Konrath and other popular Amazon writers.

"Very few authors could when New York Publishing was in charge. That is changing now that Amazon and other online retailers are paying authors a fair wage."

Preston may be the leader of the current round of Amazon criticism, but he emphasized that he did not support a boycott and that he hoped the dispute would be resolved "in a friendly way".

Just the other day, he bought some computer equipment from Amazon.

"I'm an Amazon Prime member and plan to remain so," he says.

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