|
sulcus
|
|
|
|
Was shocked to hear from a bookseller that he managed to order & receive 2 copies of my book. Many weeks after he placed the initial order and after he thought he'd cancelled it because of the dilatoriness fo them filling it, but no, they turned up in a delivery. So in theory your POD books CAN be ordered wholesale by shops. But he felt that small orders get pushed to the back of Gardner's queue as they seek to fill large volume orders first and that this will keep happening until they have a lull in their orders and might then deign to service us more humble mortals.
"A,B&E", "Not In My Name" and "52FF" (flash fiction anthology) all available on Amazon Kindle"How a psychopath makes sweet love. I can get you ringside. Royal box even."
|
|
annswinfen
|
|
|
|
Quote: sulcus, Monday, 15 Mar 2010 14:32Was shocked to hear from a bookseller that he managed to order & receive 2 copies of my book. Many weeks after he placed the initial order and after he thought he'd cancelled it because of the dilatoriness fo them filling it, but no, they turned up in a delivery. So in theory your POD books CAN be ordered wholesale by shops. But he felt that small orders get pushed to the back of Gardner's queue as they seek to fill large volume orders first and that this will keep happening until they have a lull in their orders and might then deign to service us more humble mortals. It seems to vary a lot. My local Waterstone's found Gardners slow. They can't order YWO books through their hub, and YWO hasn't set up direct sales to Waterstone's retail shops - which they could do very easily. A local independent bookseller ordered 10 copies initially, and they came quite quickly. Then a local book group wanted to discuss it, so she ordered another 10, and these took a long time to arrive. The sooner YWO can supply directly to shops, cutting out the middleman, the better. Interestingly, I notice that Barnes & Noble in the US is selling The Testament of Mariam to its retail customers at a 10% discount. Yet over here the bookshops can only BUY it from Gardners at a 10% discount. Curiouser and curiouser.
|
|
YouWriteOn
|
|
|
|
We did a spot check with Waterstones, Piccadily, Cambridge and Bath branches. They can order through Gardners usually at 10 to 14 days for your book, or if a store advises an order through the Waterstones website that is currently listing as dispatched with 24 hours. It depends who the potential book reader may talk to, e.g. the faster deliveries through the Waterstones site. Our printers dispatch to wholesalers, such as Gardners within 4 days, including manufacturing time, then the wholesaler time is in addition to that but usually our printers report that they deliver quicker than listed via booksellers. Probably extra time is allowed for when delivery times are quoted.
|
|
sulcus
|
|
|
|
Quote: annswinfen, Monday, 15 Mar 2010 15:42Quote: sulcus, Monday, 15 Mar 2010 14:32Was shocked to hear from a bookseller that he managed to order & receive 2 copies of my book. Many weeks after he placed the initial order and after he thought he'd cancelled it because of the dilatoriness fo them filling it, but no, they turned up in a delivery. So in theory your POD books CAN be ordered wholesale by shops. But he felt that small orders get pushed to the back of Gardner's queue as they seek to fill large volume orders first and that this will keep happening until they have a lull in their orders and might then deign to service us more humble mortals. It seems to vary a lot. My local Waterstone's found Gardners slow. They can't order YWO books through their hub, and YWO hasn't set up direct sales to Waterstone's retail shops - which they could do very easily. A local independent bookseller ordered 10 copies initially, and they came quite quickly. Then a local book group wanted to discuss it, so she ordered another 10, and these took a long time to arrive. The sooner YWO can supply directly to shops, cutting out the middleman, the better. Interestingly, I notice that Barnes & Noble in the US is selling The Testament of Mariam to its retail customers at a 10% discount. Yet over here the bookshops can only BUY it from Gardners at a 10% discount. Curiouser and curiouser. I ought to say my book isn't through YWO, but is through Legends Press
"A,B&E", "Not In My Name" and "52FF" (flash fiction anthology) all available on Amazon Kindle"How a psychopath makes sweet love. I can get you ringside. Royal box even."
|
|
Temperance
|
|
|
|
Hey Sulcus. Bit off topic but this is a very succinct description of what commercial publishers do to sell their books. The final para is interesting given it comes from someone who in general has a negative attitude to self-publishing unless it is non-fiction or niche. Although plain spoken she isn't given to being snarky so I think it can be taken at face value; admiration for anyone who puts creative effort into trying to sell their books against the odds. http://howpublishingreallyworks.blogspot.com/ If you, or anyone else, can make this link live I'd be grateful because as usual it has defeated me.
This post was last edited by Temperance, 17 Mar 2010, 13:20
Everyone has a price - mine is chocolate Chocolate is important.
|
|
k0306
|
|
|
|
|
|
Temperance
|
|
|
|
Thanks, Kate. It works perfectly. Tx
Everyone has a price - mine is chocolate Chocolate is important.
|
|
Nestat
|
|
|
|
Quote: k0306, Wednesday, 17 Mar 2010 13:37Hope it works, Kate Link's working fine, thanks Kate. The problem with advertising books is that it only generally serves to remind people that a book is available. Once you walk into a bookshop, it's so full of books that no single one catches your eye unless a whole section is dedicated to it. If a customer walks past the chart section, it boils down to a title catching their eye and the back cover sounding interesting. And that will have to be in the genre they have chosen to browse. Obviously, booksellers can do things to make titles more noticeable on the shelves. But at that point, previous advertising will only have a small impact which is completely destroyed if someone has told you it isn't very good (including lukewarm reviews).
Writing for yourself is writing for others: "My book could very well end up being reconstituted as a trestle table in a home for battered women." - Alan Partridge
|
|
Temperance
|
|
|
|
Advertising brings people into my shop, although reviews, good, bad and indifferent have most effect. A review in the right publication is priceless and often bad ones achieve as much as good ones. Yes, customers browse but a lot of them come in knowing what they are going to buy because the publicity for that title has caught their interest. Of course the best ones are those who buy something else as well; often another book by the same author.
This post was last edited by Temperance, 17 Mar 2010, 14:14
Everyone has a price - mine is chocolate Chocolate is important.
|
|
Nestat
|
|
|
|
Fair enough. Must just be me projecting my idiosyncracies onto others again, as I almost never enter a bookshop with a specific title in mind, only the genre. Exceptions to that are/were: Terry Pratchett; Douglas Adams; my last purchase, Princess Bride; if I have bought a random book previously, enjoyed it, and wish to purchase the next in the series (though when I was 15, that covered an awful lot of Star Wars books).
This post was last edited by Nestat, 17 Mar 2010, 14:21
Writing for yourself is writing for others: "My book could very well end up being reconstituted as a trestle table in a home for battered women." - Alan Partridge
|
Gardeners
15 Mar 2010, 14:32
