The Complete Literary Network
Indie Authors - You need to know this
Just today, I received a call from someone who went into an independent bookstore in New Jersey and tried to order one of my books, and more specifically, my first book which was published under contract with a publisher that has an ISBN number with Bowkers. He was unable to order the book from the store as their distributor did not have the book available.
I called the bookstore and inquired further. This bookstore uses a distributor by the name of Baker and Taylor, who does not distribute P.O.D. books. So, my fellow indie authors, even though you have an ISBN from Bowkers and your book is available through B&N, Amazon.com, Powells, etc.. if someone walks into their local independent bookstore, they may not be able to order your book.
Somehow, I believe this is just the tip of the iceberg insofar as researching our independent bookstores and the distributors they deal with.
Fortunately, however, I believe this was a very lucrative discovery for me today. I will now be working with the bookstore on consignment - they will be giving me bookshelf space for my books.
In the interim, I will be contacting Baker and Taylor and inquiring further. I know of at least five other people who will be going to their local indie bookstores to order my book and if Baker and Taylor is their distributor, then that would mean a loss of 5 potential sales.
Does anyone have any information regarding Baker and Taylor? Has anyone else run into this situation? Any advice?
I called the bookstore and inquired further. This bookstore uses a distributor by the name of Baker and Taylor, who does not distribute P.O.D. books. So, my fellow indie authors, even though you have an ISBN from Bowkers and your book is available through B&N, Amazon.com, Powells, etc.. if someone walks into their local independent bookstore, they may not be able to order your book.
Somehow, I believe this is just the tip of the iceberg insofar as researching our independent bookstores and the distributors they deal with.
Fortunately, however, I believe this was a very lucrative discovery for me today. I will now be working with the bookstore on consignment - they will be giving me bookshelf space for my books.
In the interim, I will be contacting Baker and Taylor and inquiring further. I know of at least five other people who will be going to their local indie bookstores to order my book and if Baker and Taylor is their distributor, then that would mean a loss of 5 potential sales.
Does anyone have any information regarding Baker and Taylor? Has anyone else run into this situation? Any advice?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Yvonne Mason on -
Baker and Taylor is like Lightening Source. none of them will sell our books because they are POD and the return on those books is nill for them. They can't get their money back from the Distributor so they refuse to distribute them. That is why we are not in book stores. It is only publishers like Penquin, Simon and Sushter etc. I have been fighting this for as long as I have been in print. Even when I was with the one who screwed us all we were not in stores.
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