Bookstores: To Be or Not to Be (In)?

When you self publish, you should be prepared for certain questions.  One common one is, "Are you in any bookstores?"  Your answer should be, "Yes."

I admit I originally got us into a few bookstores because I thought it would be kool.  I knew Phoenix Books, our neighborhood independent bookstore, had a section for local authors.  Why not us?  Phoenix said yes.  Full of Power & Success, I went on to two other independent bookstores in nearby neighborhoods: Dog Eared Books on Valencia and Alley Cat Books in the Mission.  Great names and fun places to spend your money.

I didn't think of chains but other people did.   "Why aren't you in Books Inc. (local chain)?"  I said to myself: Get real, Ricky.  Ginger Snaps is a self-published book we did on blurb.com.  No chain is gonna take it.  But I buy books from Books Inc. so next time I went I noticed that the Castro Books Inc. had my friend Vince Meis's self published books, Eddie's Desert Rose and Tio Jorge.  It's like Gingers: Once you notice us, we're everywhere.

How important are bookstores though?  Well, we are asked more often "Is it in bookstores?" than "Can I buy it on Amazon?" so that seems like a hopeful sign for brick and mortar.  However, don't expect to sit back and let bookstores sell your book onto the NY Times bestseller list.  My own experience is: if you self publish you better self sell.  If you can get into bookstores, great! but it's just one way to sell your book.  Doesn't it make sense to use every way?

What are they?  Online sales outlets are essential.  We're tied to blurb.com but you should definitely get your book on amazon.com and Barnes & Noble online.  Take your book on the road at readings, especially beyond your friend network.  Do an ebook edition; it aint that hard.  Authors I meet who are making a living at writing say they make more money off ebooks than print.  Sell your book on your website or blog.  Ask your author friends to sell it on theirs.  Also, people like free content.  Seth Harwood is the Master of Free Podcasts, followed by a paperback edition.  Take a look at his site.

Happy selling!

(If you think of other ways to sell books I haven't mentioned here, please let me know.  We all can learn from one another.)

Check out our Ginger stuff!

   Ginger Snaps: the Book http://blurb.com/bookstore/detail/3577527
   Ginger & Gingerphile tshirts http://gingergingerphiletee.logosoftwear.com