Tuesday October 18, 2005

Yesterday, I visited five more Barnes & Nobles in the Phoenix, Arizona area, three of which I'd visited before but had been unable to meet the Community Relations Managers. So, I added two new stores basically: one in Suprise, AZ and one in Goodyear, AZ, both outlying suburbs on the west side of the valley (about an hour's drive from where I live).

I have three promising leads for bookstore signings, and I also learned about something I'd never heard of before: the Barnes & Noble Small Press Program. The Small Press Program, as I understand it, is a way for writers like myself who lack a major book distributor to get his/her books on Barnes & Noble shelves. It requires submitting a copy of the book with application materials, and it sounds like a great idea.

One of the biggest hurdles I've faced is distribution. If there's not a copy on the shelf, and the store managers can't order a "non-returnable" book, they opt not to order.

The way book distribution works for major publishers can be summed up in one word: volume. A major publisher like HarperCollins, Warner, or Penguin/Putnam may do a print run of -- just for an example -- say 500,000 paperback copies. They distribute these books through a wholesaler and distributor to bookstores and book racks around the country, and they're able to sell books very inexpensively to customers because their profit of margin per book can be lower if they're selling a whole lot of books. Bookstores buy these books under a contract from the distributors that allow them to return the books, if they do not sell within a given time.

Shelf space costs money. Volume buying is not good for up-and-comers, small presses, or self-publishers who are dealing in three or four-digit book sales, not six and seven-digit sales, and can't offer returnable sales to stores.

The Small Press Program at Barnes & Noble sounds like a way for writers like me to maybe have a chance to actually get a copy on the shelves by getting it approved through the Small Press Department headquarters in New York.

It looks like my first bookstore signing is likely going to be in January or February, though nothing is firm yet. Of course, as soon as I know any specific dates, I'll be advertising it here to get the word out as much as I humanly possibly can.

There are still two Barnes & Nobles in Tucson, Arizona I'd like to visit. There's also one in Prescott, one in Yuma, and one in Flagstaff. If I call-in on those five, that would mean I've visited every Barnes & Noble in the state of Arizona. California would be the next logical step...

If you know anything about Barnes & Noble's Small Press Program, about submitting books for acceptance, or have submitted books for acceptance to the Small Press Department, please drop me a line. As always, I love to hear from you, Dear Reader.

Stacey