Kit Perez - The Machine is Designed to Reward Itself, Not You (And What to do About It)

Dec 10, 2025

Kit Perez, an author and counselor specializing in trauma-informed approaches for creators, shares her insights on resistance in the publishing world. She argues that Amazon isn't evil but functions to maximize its own rewards. Kit highlights the importance of owning your audience and controlling distribution to achieve independence. She warns against the pitfalls of people-pleasing and explains how to handle online criticism with indifference. The discussion also touches on the need for a parallel economy in publishing, aiming for real connections over superficial metrics.

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ANECDOTE

From Trauma To Disciplined Tools

Kit describes using profiling and protective instincts shaped by personal trauma to help others.
She kept the tools as she healed and now applies them more deliberately for clients.

INSIGHT

The Machine Rewards Itself

Amazon and similar platforms are predictable machines that reward themselves, not creators.
Reorient from chasing platform optics to building measurable reality-driven systems.

ADVICE

Trade Performance For Consistent Work

Move from performative resistance to needle-moving work by publishing consistently and treating it like a job.
Build outside platform performance pressures to focus on substantive output that attracts real readers.

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Kit Perez joins to discuss the art and science of resistance in the publishing world, why Amazon is not evil but simply a machine designed to extract value, and how independent authors can build a true signal in a noisy marketplace.

Kit applies her unique background in intelligence and trauma counseling to the struggles of the modern creator. She explains why unhealed attachment wounds and “people-pleasing” leave authors vulnerable to industry scams, and breaks down the three non-negotiable rules for escaping the ecosystem: owning your audience, controlling your distribution, and setting the narrative. She also discusses the “Jersey Shore” effect of traditional publishing and why the only valid response to a cancellation mob is indifference.

In This Episode

* Why “fighting the system” is a waste of time and how to treat Big Tech as a tool.

* The difference between performing resistance online and actually moving the needle.

* Kit’s background: applying intelligence analysis and trauma counseling to the author community.

* Why you need to stop renting customers from Amazon and start owning your readers.

* The danger of “people-pleasing” and how it makes authors prime targets for scams.

* The “Sellout” Myth: A nuanced look at creative autonomy and envy.

* How to handle online mobs and why being disagreeable is a superpower.

* The future of the Big 5 and why they are chasing the “Reality TV” demographic.

* How to build a parallel economy based on structural trust.

Guest Links

Kit Perez

* shepardscale.substack.com

* The Mindset of Resistance - https://a.co/d/eYasFJC

Kristin’s Links

* Services & Content

* Editing Services: nonsensefreeeditor.com

* Newsletter: Fictional Influence on Substack

* YouTube: Nonsense-Free Kristin

Sponsors

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https://try.web.clickup.com/nonsensefree

Timestamps

00:00 - Introduction and Guest Overview02:02 - Kit Perez’s Background and Expertise02:55 - The Intersection of Trauma and Resistance04:23 - Challenges in the Publishing Industry05:23 - Strategies for Independent Authors13:09 - Building and Owning Your Audience18:25 - Defining Success and Selling Out22:26 - The Complexity of Character Identification23:27 - Alan Moore’s Stand on Movie Adaptations25:00 - Diverse Perspectives in the Indie Community25:53 - Facing the System: Resistance and Infiltration27:50 - Managing Writing and Marketing Tasks with ClickUp28:45 - Memoirists and the Risk of Scams30:04 - Protecting Yourself from Publishing Scams30:42 - The Dangers of People Pleasing33:41 - Navigating Cancel Culture35:13 - Balancing Independence and Capitalism38:56 - Steps Towards Meaningful Independence41:44 - Predicting the Future of Indie Publishing44:43 - Final Thoughts and Where to Find More

About This Podcast

Nonsense-Free Kristin is where independent authors and creators learn to build their platforms, master their craft, and create on their own terms—without begging for permission from gatekeepers who hate them.

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