I just updated the events calendar with workshops that have been confirmed to date.
Events Updated
January 11th, 2010Ouch!
January 5th, 2010Just had a look at some year end numbers….as in total sales from 2009. I knew it had been a slow, shall we say bad, year, but seeing that final total hurt. It was less than my total sales for 2005….my second full year in business! But my expenses were not down an equal amount, so overall my loss was much bigger, even though I slashed my own salary.
This means some changes will have to be made….in fact the first one already has been made. I had to lay off Amber, which means the store will be closed on Sundays again so I can have at least one day off each week. It also means I’ll probably be closed on most long weekends as well…..though I’m hoping that by the time we get to the months with long weekends, business will have picked up and I’ll have Amber back at least working on them.
The low sales last year also should explain to you why my stock is so low….I was barely meeting expenses each month so there was nothing left to bring in anything new, let alone restock what had sold. I know that not having more inventory contributes to lower sales (it’s a vicious circle that I’m in right now) but there just is no money available to buy anything.
I know 2010 will be a better year…..but I beg your patience as I recover from an exceedingly bad year. I will be bringing in new items as I can as well as restocking the ‘old standbys’, but it will take time.
Shelley
Saturday Summary: July 25, 2009
July 25th, 2009Hello again. Sorry for not posting last week, but I was at a wedding in Harrison. (A beautiful and wonderful event, enjoyed by all who attended)
Blogs & articles on e-books and e-readers have been my main focus of reading the past couple of weeks. I’ve been trying to learn more about them both from the viewpoint of using them as well as what impact they will have on publishing in general and bookstores (especially independent bookstores) in particular. And my conclusions…..I don’t know!
It’s still so early in the adoption of the new technology that speculating is very difficult. The only concensious I can find is that there will be changes in publishing and retailing of books, but there are many different opinions on what those changes will be.
Here are some links to the more interesting, thought provoking articles I came across:
How the Ebook Will Change the Way We Read and Write
E-Book Pricing and Publication Debate Erupts
A Context in Which to Evaluate ebook Strategies
Environmental/Human Impact of E-readers, books and browsing
Do any of you have a Kindle or other E-reader? What do you think of it? Has it changed your book buying?
Until next time…..
Shelley
Saturday Summary July 11, 2009
July 11th, 2009Happy sunny Saturday! Not too much to ‘report’ on this week from the world wide web…..everyone seems to be in summer holiday mode!
Over at A Pagan’s Blog, Gus diZegera has been musing on Paganism and America’s Future (part I, part II). Part I discusses how spiritual beliefs can transform a society and how he sees the core beliefs of Pagans as having a “socially transformative impact”. Part II looks at the Divine Feminism and he discusses how it’s slowly influencing all areas of society.
And that’s been about it that I found of interest other than this story from the BBC about a Saudi Geni being sued for harrassment
Until next time…..
FAQ: Would you carry my book?
July 9th, 2009I am a bookseller because I love books. I admire authors and respect the time, effort and skill needed to create a book. I would love to support and promote every local author who’s ever come into my store asking that I carry their masterpiece…..but it just isn’t possible because:
- the book doesn’t fit the niche that I specialize in
- even if it fits the specialty, it may not be a topic that is of interest to my customers
- it’s obviously self-published (meaning poor cover graphics, poor binding, poor copy editing, etc….I have made exceptions for these, but only when I’ve had customers asking for the work)
- there’s no room left in the “Local Author’s” section (unfortunately I have to limit the space for unproven products and books as that pesky landlord keeps wanting his rent)
- I’ve learned to tell when an author will be a pleasure to work with, and when they won’t (another reason I opened my own business - I got tired of working with difficult people)
So how do you go about getting your book into a bookstore? Here are a few guidelines. Some are simple courtesy, others are common sense but I’m still amazed how often they are ignored.
Be professional. This is a business relationship you are setting up - so treat it as such and you’ll earn respect from the bookseller.
Research the bookstores in your area and only approach the ones that sell your type of book (eg don’t approach my store for your book on fly fishing)
Don’t call or show up expecting to talk with the buyer or manager of the store on the spot. We often don’t have time for an unscheduled sales call (and that’s what you doing now - you’ve taken off your ‘author hat’ and put on your ’sales hat’). Your first call (whether by phone or in person) should be to
- set up an appointment to meet with the buyer/manager and
- to send or drop off promotional material and/or a copy of your book for them to review.
(But having said that, if you’re visiting the store, do be prepared to meet with them right away - maybe they’ve just had another appointment cancel, or it’s been a slow day and they have some time for you right then)
When you call or visit to make your appointment, do it at a time when the store is most likely to be quieter (ie don’t show up right at opening or even worse ……Saturday afternoon!)
Show up on time for your appointment. Call if you’ll be delayed or need to reschedule. (yes, I’ve had authors (and even publicists) not bother to show or even call to cancel)
Be prepared to leave your book on consignment and to offer standard discounts.
Have a consignment agreement prepared that spells out your terms , states how many copies you are leaving and has all your contact information. (I have a books in the store right now that I have no contact information on the author for- the authors just dropped them off when I was busy with customers and have never contacted me again).
The store will probably have their own consignment agreement as well, that spells out their policies and procedures (eg when cheques are issued). Ask about anything you are unsure of.
If you have some promotional material (bookmarks, posters etc) leave them with your books. Also provide the bookstore with your website address so they can link to it from theirs and add the store’s website to your own links. If you don’t have a website, offer to email digital copies of any graphics you have for the book as well as the books ‘blurb’ (and then send it as soon as you can….don’t make them chase you for it.)
Tell them what else you are doing to promote the book - workshops, talks, book signings, etc. Offer to hold one of these at their store and explain what steps you’ll take to help promote it.
For some more suggestions check out these links:
- How to get your books into Bookstores
- Promoting your book through bookstores
- And go here to learn about some wrong ways of promoting your book and the reasons booksellers are sometimes leery of self-published authors
I welcome more ideas or questions in the comments. Until next time…..
Saturday Summary - July 4, 2009
July 4th, 2009Here are some links of things I found of interest on the web this past week or so:
The 2009 World Police & Fire Games will be held at over 40 locations in the Lower Mainland later this month. Several events will be right here in Coquitlam and Port Coquitlam, including Archery, shooting, biathlon, wrestling and the “Toughest Competitor Alive” competition. They run from July 31 to August 9 and according to a press release on their site there will be around 10,000 competitors from 55 countries.
I wondered if this would come to pass and it has: Wizarding World of Harry Potter Theme Park! It will be at Universal Orlando and is expected to open early 2010. The link includes a peek at some of the concept art for the park….looks good, but it’ll be interesting to see if they keep the ‘magic’ of the books.
This next news story is actually from March, but I missed hearing about it then. Catholics were warned by US Bishops of the dangers of Reiki therapy. There is so much I could say on my thoughts on the quotes in this article. Ever since I found it I’ve been thinking about what I would say, and have decided that I will just let the article speak for itself.
Staying in the Catholic vein for another interesting news item, Michael Prescott reports on his blog that bones discovered in a tomb beneath the Basilica of St. Paul, may be those of Apostle Paul.
A nice neighbourly post wishing us a Happy Canada Day from Gus DiZerega on his A Pagan’s Blog. It is also quite a thoughtful post on love of country.
And to close, here’s a video from the Playing for Change: Peace through Music website. The producer has recorded various people, all over the world singing and playing songs and edited them together so that they are performing together….If you enjoy this one, check out the site. They’re all great. Enjoy!
Until next time……
Getting Organized
July 3rd, 2009As I mentioned in last Saturday’s post, I’ve been setting up a new organization system for myself. I used to be very organized (I am a Virgo, after all ;-)) but for that past 2 to 3 years, I’ve been struggling with keeping track of what needs to be done, or if I know what needs to be done, where the heck I put the items I needed to work on the task.
Since this started during the time that Bruce’s health deteriorated, and then really got bad while he was in hospice, I didn’t beat myself up about it as I knew it was a result of stress and grief. But now, 2+ years later, I’m still having problems so it was time to admit that it’s also due to an aging brain, and find a solution.
First I tried updating and revising systems I’d used before and they helped, but not completely. So, I invested in a Circa Notebook (which I still use and love) and it works great for current projects/ideas, but once I moved something out of the notebook, it may as well have been recycled as filed. I tried setting up new folders in Outlook to organize email, but most often things just stayed in the inbox because if I moved them to a folder, I wouldn’t remember which one . I tried revamping both physical paper files and all the computer ones to make it easier to find things.
All of these things helped, but what was frustrating me were the times I knew I had the information somewhere, but could not remember where (for example, my inbox was overflowing with so many emails I could rarely find the one I needed). I was spending too much time looking for things. I joked to myself, one day, that I needed a way to Google my brain! I also wanted to find a way to reduce the amount of paper that I deal with at the store (and at home) not only to be more green but because filing is always the last item on the to-do list meaning it rarely gets done (and thus compounding the ‘where did I put it’ problem).
And I think I’ve found an application that seems to be working for me….Microsoft’s OneNote. Now, I’m not one to generally promote their products (I seriously dislike Word for example) but OneNote is blowing me away. It allows you set up Notebooks that you can then create sections in and each section can have multiple pages. You can ‘print’ to OneNote and then make notes right on the ‘print out’. Anytime you copy something into a section, it automatically adds a “pasted from <URL>”.
But the BEST parts for me are the search function and the tags. The search is very fast and lists all pages that include what you searched on. The tags let you mark items and then you can search for just tagged items. I don’t have to remember anything more than I put it into a notebook in OneNote! And my reward for all those days of setting up OneNote: peace of mind that I’ll be able to find things when I need them and………..
an empty inbox!
Until next time…….
Saturday Summary - June 27, 2009
June 27th, 2009No summary this week….I’ve been too busy setting up my new organization system (hope to write more on that next week). So, here’s a bit of fun instead: find out what Tarot Card you are…I’m the Wheel of Fortune apparently!
You are The Wheel of Fortune
Good fortune and happiness but sometimes a species of
intoxication with success
The Wheel of Fortune is all about big things, luck, change, fortune. Almost always good fortune. You are lucky in all things that you do and happy with the things that come to you. Be careful that success does not go to your head however. Sometimes luck can change.
What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.
Saturday Summary - June 20, 2009
June 20th, 2009Are you ready for summer? It begins tonight at 10:45.
Gus DiZerga has a post on the Midsummer: The Summer Solstice discussing the spiritual aspects of this day.
There are of course various events going on in the area as well:
Scandinavian Midsummer Festival 2009: Family Summer Solstice Celebration in the park
St Jean Baptiste Day Celebrations
Summer Solstice Drum Circle - Sunday June 21st, 7-9pm. Coquitlam Town Centre Park/Lafarge Lake (hill near the dirt bike jumps; east side of lake)
Have you ever had orbs show up in your photographs? Here is an interesting blog post on them. It includes tips for getting even more orbs in your photos, as well as links to some other articles about them.
Until next time….
Saturday Summary - June 13, 2009
June 13th, 2009To lead off today, here are the results from the Twitter experiment on remote viewing. Unfortunately, they’re not very good. In fact, Richard Wiseman calls it a fail.
Did you hear about Eckhart Tolle’s latest high-profile project? He and Jim Carrey headlined at the inaugural meeting of GATE (Global Alliance for Transformational Entertainment) last week. The goal of GATE is to ” build up “a genre of transformational media entertainment”. You can read more here.
Fiona Broome has an intereting post on her blog Hollow Hill about whether or not paranormal research psychics should learn the history of a place before going there. She feels they should and presents a good case for why. I very much agree with her concluding comments about integrity, which I feel is just as important for every aspect of psychic work, not just ghost hunting.
And on the topic of psychics, I found this article interesting: What Does the Bible Really Say About Psychics and Seers.
That’s it for this week….
Shelley