Privacy and Disclosures
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AI
SMA Publishing does not utilize "AI" or Large Language Models of any kind, in any capacity. All book covers are fully illustrated and designed by Stephen M.A. unless otherwise credited, and all illustrated or photographic assets and other stock materials are presented under paid license from fully human artists.​
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Cookies
This site does not set any first-party cookies of its own, but does utilize Facebook Pixel, explained below.
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GDPR and CCPA
The only user data that SMA Publishing directly collects is your email address IF you sign up for the newsletter, further explained in the next section. Our newsletter sign-up form contains a GDPR-compliant active opt-in function.
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New CCPA regulations only apply to companies with more than $25M in revenue or with user data from more than 50,000 users. We do not meet that criteria in either respect, but eagerly await the day when we do.
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Mailerlite
What is it? SMA Publishing uses Mailerlite as our email marketing platform. If you sign up for the newsletter, all data use is covered by the Mailerlite privacy policy. SMA Publishing does not otherwise retain, process, or utilize your email address except to send you the newsletter. Your address will never be sold, shared, or distributed by SMA Publishing.
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Why do you use it? Newsletters are one of the strongest tools for connecting with book fans, and we trust Mailerlite's history of data integrity and good practices.
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Facebook Pixel
What is it? Facebook Pixel collects depersonalized tracking data for advertising, marketing, and user management purposes. If you are a regular web browser, you undoubtedly are already recorded in the Pixel ecosystem, unless you have very stringent privacy settings and have never installed social or browsing mobile apps. Including a Pixel on our website allows us to access that anonymized data which is already collected, and enables us to find other likely fans of our books. All Pixel activity is covered by Facebook's data policy.
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Why do you use it? To call our feelings about Facebook complicated would be putting it lightly. We do not believe Facebook should exist in its current form. We KNOW Mark Zuckerberg is a legitimate villain and a true threat to this world. We know a single business should never have so much control over user data.
However, without that data it's impossible to engage in the advertising and marketing required to find and build an audience in today's publishing landscape. This is particularly true for niche-focused media, which is often impossible to advertise for based solely on traditional methods like keywords, because interest-targeting features are frequently censored or limited (including on Facebook advertising itself). Meanwhile, Amazon advertising is a fickle game of chance for independent publishers, since without the clout of a traditional corporate publisher, we're forced to bid at unprofitable rates in order to have ads served at all.
We rely on Pixel data to point us toward readers interested in subversive science fiction based on anonymized demographic and interests profiling. We do this by directing the Facebook advertising platform to build "lookalike audiences" for us, which identifies users with anonymous data profiles that are similar to fans who have already visited our website.
We will take every opportunity to be good stewards of data collected from the fanbase, and will always keep an ear open for the day when we can abandon Pixel and all other forms of user tracking while still remaining competitive in modern marketplaces. (Wanna help out? Signup for the Newsletter! A large and profitable fanbase in direct contact with us is our best shot at being able to abandon corporate advertising methods! We promise to never share or sell your email address!)
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Accessibility
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Conformance
SMA Publishing is partially conformant with WCAG 2.1 at level AA. This means that some portions of our content may, inadvertently, not fully conform to the accessibility standard.
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Feedback
We welcome questions, comments, or concerns about accessibility. To send feedback, email us at:
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