One of my favourite pass times is going to the book store. There are two fabulous ones in the centre, one of which I enjoyed browsing through. In fact, at times I resisted the temptation because I don’t leave the bookstore without buying something.
What I love about the bookstore is the atmosphere. As well as look at books, I’m interested in seeing who goes there. There’s a cafe and sofas to sit comfortably and read books before you buy them. They sell book accessories as well. I bought a small book lamp and a book bag, for example.
One day I decided to go in when it wasn’t very busy and ask if they would consider selling my book. I had it in my book bag, the one I bought from them, handy just in case they asked to look at it. I wanted to tell them that I could order a batch of books and try them out. Fastpencil was having a special; 7 US dollars for as many books as I wanted.
I tried to keep calm and thought that whatever the outcome I was going to learn from this. At least I would know the possibilities and I wasn’t doing anything wrong or illegal.
‘Would you consider selling a book from an independent author,’ I said.
I will never forget the look on the attendant’s face. ‘No, not usually,’ he said.
‘So what does that mean? Would you consider selling my book?’
‘No, sorry,’ was his reply. ‘We have our own suppliers’.
‘Would you know of any other book store that might.’ I said.
‘Yes, there’s a small bookstore down the road from here. They might.’
I gave a smile and walked out. It was the last time I went back. Not because of the disappointment or embarrassment. But because I didn’t understand their ethics. Furthermore, I contacted the small bookstore and they also politely refused. They have their own suppliers.
A key point to this story is that they lost my business. Not that they care? Perhaps the small bookstore might. She sounded quite in need for customers. Writers are readers. If I can manage it, I’d prefer to buy my books online from now on.
I don’t understand why bookstores don’t want to sell independently published books. They could have a section of books just for this purpose! They could have writing workshops and encourage your average person to write and publish books. Imagine the rich source of books they would have from the community.
I’m more of a writer than a reader. There are books I buy from impulse, start to read them and never finish. If a bookstore can’t provide for me, I won’t go back.
The most disappointing part was that neither bookstore asked to see my book. My book is beautiful and unique. I have never seen any other book like it. Why won’t they sell it?
I have quite a few readers online and am happy doing my every day creative work. But I can’t help but feel annoyed at the book stores. I want to reach out to the community. Get involved and meet like-minded people. Get my book out there and known. Why won’t they allow this? If it doesn’t sell, then so be it. There’s nothing much to lose from trying.
I can’t afford advertising. It feels that my book might never reach my community, which is a shame. Deep down, perhaps it might be a blessing. Perhaps it’s wise to stay anonymous where I live.
That’s my spiel for the day. Have you had similar problems? I’ve heard people say that self-publishing is ‘not publishing’. It takes months of hard work to produce a poetry book and that’s not taking into account the creative process to write the poems. That’s the fun part.
For this reason I decided to dedicate more time to other things. This isn’t a bad idea, considering that life is about trying different things and having fun.
