There are many things an author can do to undermine themselves in the eyes of a bookseller. In some cases, they’re rookie mistakes – things done because the author has little experience in the world of books. In other cases, they’re just rude, thoughtless and close-minded. In rarer instances – I’m glad to say they’re rarer – it’s because the author is just cruel.
But let’s deal with rookie mistakes: you’re a new author, the publisher gives you a carton of books as part of your contract and of course everyone wants you to give them a copy of your book and, of course you want to be a pal, so you give away all your author copies. How can you tell your college roommate to buy a copy, or Aunt Zelda who sends you $20 for your birthday every year even though you’re now 42? On one hand, it’s understandable. On the other hand, you’ve just drained the natural pool of buyers: friends and family members. If they love you, ask them to buy the book to support you, the bookseller and the publisher, and put that carton of books in a safe place so that you have copies when you’re rich and famous and you’re looking back on a long and lustrious career.
Another rookie mistake is to do too little. Do not for an instant think that your work is done once the book is published. Uh uh. You need to be the chief bookseller. Or do too much; just because you have a book published doesn’t mean every bookseller owes you a signing. Or wants you to drop in unannounced.
But something came up yesterday that combines the rookies mistake with the rude and thoughtless variety. I will not name the author. We’ve already let our thoughts be know to him/her.
Author X wrote a wonderful first book last year. Three of us here read it, loved it and promoted it heavily. We spent the money to send copies to the author since X’s publisher wasn’t paying for a tour. That takes quite a bit of time and money – first to pack the books well for the shipping and then the costs of shipping both ways and the call tags. (We add $1 to the price of the books when we do that but that nowhere near covers the costs of doing this.) X seemed impresssed with our efforts and promised to come in to sign the second book due out this year. Now, last year’s debut is out in paperback and the second one is out soon in hardcover.
We must not be the only shop happy with the first book. We belong to the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association and, each year, well all vote on the book we most enjoyed selling. Others must’ve liked X’s book too as it is one of the finalists for the award.
Yesterday, we get an e-mail from X that was clearly sent to a large number of people, undoubtedly all of the readers who’d e-mailed after the debut was published. X starts off relaying the great news that the book is a finalist for this award from the Independent Mystery Booksellers and isn’t that great and here’s how to order it from Amazon and nicely provided a live link to that corporate behemoth.
In the next paragraph, X informs everyone how the second book is coming out in hardcover soon and, if you click on this other link to Amazon, you can order it in advance for $11.26. Isn’t that nice of X? In my reply to X, I pointed out that this price was $2 less than what the publisher was charging us. I also informed this X that I would be cancelling my order with the publisher for this book (which I have done).
So, if you’re a new author, here’s what you don’t want to do: trumpet the news that a group of independent booksellers has nominated you for an award and then direct potential buyers to a corporate outfit that is destroying their industry. If you do want to spread the word about your forthcoming hardcover, you might also check your mailing list to ensure you’re not sending advice to booksellers that you’re instructing book buyers how they can cut the legs out from underneath small businesses.
Think of it this way: X had a large number of booksellers handselling these books across the country. They were all probably thrilled about this second book and have been looking forward to reading it and selling it. Now, since we all talk and exchange news from our little pond, they all know what a careless and rude author X is and many have already let me know that they’ll stop carrying the books – as will we – altogether.
So, by directing fans to buy from a heartless corporation that cares for sales and profits more than what is between the covers of a book, X will be left to rely on them to sell the books. Here, X would have been a writer we’d have cared about, hand-sold and talked up, one of a few dozen we’d help to nurture and promote. Now, X’ll be just one of MILLIONS, sold along with household products and electronic gizmos.
We no longer care about X or the books. Think they do?
This is fascinating. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Sandra Beckwith | February 16, 2011 at 12:54 PM