I think what you’re doing is great. It makes a lot of sense. At this point I’m scared of the list of publishers you’ve signed on, but that doesn’t change my opinion that you’ve created something really worthwhile.

On the issue of the name, it’s not THAT bad. Maybe it’s slightly uncomfortable because (to me) it suggests self-publishing. Which is actually something I’m not totally against in principle, so okay.

I assume you’ll be at the City Lit Festival. I hope we can discuss it more there.

I think what you’re doing is great. It makes a lot of sense. At this point I’m scared of the list of publishers you’ve signed on, but that doesn’t change my opinion that you’ve created something really worthwhile.

On the issue of the name, it’s not THAT bad. Maybe it’s slightly uncomfortable because (to me) it suggests self-publishing. Which is actually something I’m not totally against in principle, so okay.

I assume you’ll be at the City Lit Festival. I hope we can discuss it more there.

Thanks so much for posting about AuthorsBookshop! I really appreciate your mention and the conversation that has followed here. You guys all bring up some great points, and any time indie books are being discussed I am happy.

One comment I wanted to address, and I think it’s a great one, is this:

“What if the service just sent an email to whatever press you ordered from and it would be their responsibility to ship the order?”

I think this a a great idea, and I very seriously considered it when I was doing my early research. In the end however, I rejected it, and I think for some very good reasons.

The first is that authors and publishers should spend there time writing and publishing. Take if from me – taking orders, packing and shipping books, dealing with the post office, unhappy customers and credit card companies is a major undertaking. This is all time that could be much better spend getting the next book written, printed and ready for market. If every author or publisher had to deal with the drama, we would have no new books.

Second, I am very firmly committed to quality of service. When you get a book from AuthorsBookshop, it should arrive at your door on time and in perfect condition. Each order should be packed consistently, and should contain a secret toy surprise. If I were counting on the publishers to pack and ship, there is no way I could guarantee timeliness, quality or consistency. Call me old-fashioned, but these things mean a great deal to me. (And trust me, I receive books from publishers all the time – you would be amazed at some of the crazy packing jobs I have seen!)

Third, the model you suggest has been tried by others and has failed, mostly for the reasons I state above.

And fourth, with my model, I am a real bookstore with real inventory. This allows me to sell books through more avenues than just online – book festivals, readings, word of mouth, friends and fans, etc. I have sold more than a few books to visitors who have physically browsed the shelves.

Finally , and perhaps the most important to me personally, (other than the secret toy surprise issue mentioned above), I have held each book in my hand… flipped through the pages and read from them. I _know_ the books and can – and often do – recommend and make suggestions. I love these books, and have a relationship with them. There is no way I would have that if they were all shipping from their publisher.

I’m sorry I have gone on too long here… brevity is not my forte. But know that, beyond the terms I offer, or the model I have chosen, or even the name of my business (is it really that bad, Adam?) I really care about indie publishing. If I could list and sell these books for absolutely nothing, I would do it in a second. I want to help as many authors sell as many books as possible. That’s my motivation, my objective and my passion. If nothing else, please understand that.

Oh, one question… is Amazon really _that_ much easier? In choosing a slightly easier path, you may be costing the author $2-$6 per book you buy! It may be one or two more steps in a shopping cart, but we are committed to paying authors and publishers more. It would be an awesome thing if you could support that.

Thanks so much for your time, ideas, and care,

Brad

Thanks so much for posting about AuthorsBookshop! I really appreciate your mention and the conversation that has followed here. You guys all bring up some great points, and any time indie books are being discussed I am happy.

One comment I wanted to address, and I think it’s a great one, is this:

“What if the service just sent an email to whatever press you ordered from and it would be their responsibility to ship the order?”

I think this a a great idea, and I very seriously considered it when I was doing my early research. In the end however, I rejected it, and I think for some very good reasons.

The first is that authors and publishers should spend there time writing and publishing. Take if from me – taking orders, packing and shipping books, dealing with the post office, unhappy customers and credit card companies is a major undertaking. This is all time that could be much better spend getting the next book written, printed and ready for market. If every author or publisher had to deal with the drama, we would have no new books.

Second, I am very firmly committed to quality of service. When you get a book from AuthorsBookshop, it should arrive at your door on time and in perfect condition. Each order should be packed consistently, and should contain a secret toy surprise. If I were counting on the publishers to pack and ship, there is no way I could guarantee timeliness, quality or consistency. Call me old-fashioned, but these things mean a great deal to me. (And trust me, I receive books from publishers all the time – you would be amazed at some of the crazy packing jobs I have seen!)

Third, the model you suggest has been tried by others and has failed, mostly for the reasons I state above.

And fourth, with my model, I am a real bookstore with real inventory. This allows me to sell books through more avenues than just online – book festivals, readings, word of mouth, friends and fans, etc. I have sold more than a few books to visitors who have physically browsed the shelves.

Finally , and perhaps the most important to me personally, (other than the secret toy surprise issue mentioned above), I have held each book in my hand… flipped through the pages and read from them. I _know_ the books and can – and often do – recommend and make suggestions. I love these books, and have a relationship with them. There is no way I would have that if they were all shipping from their publisher.

I’m sorry I have gone on too long here… brevity is not my forte. But know that, beyond the terms I offer, or the model I have chosen, or even the name of my business (is it really that bad, Adam?) I really care about indie publishing. If I could list and sell these books for absolutely nothing, I would do it in a second. I want to help as many authors sell as many books as possible. That’s my motivation, my objective and my passion. If nothing else, please understand that.

Oh, one question… is Amazon really _that_ much easier? In choosing a slightly easier path, you may be costing the author $2-$6 per book you buy! It may be one or two more steps in a shopping cart, but we are committed to paying authors and publishers more. It would be an awesome thing if you could support that.

Thanks so much for your time, ideas, and care,

Brad

I track where I buy my books. I agree with PR; Amazon’s ease makes it so tempting.

I track where I buy my books. I agree with PR; Amazon’s ease makes it so tempting.

He not only read it, he reads it aloud!, February 17, 2006
The Bible is probably one of the most famous sci-fi novels of all time. It’s probably 150-200 years old and peolple (people) still freak over it like they did when MASH had that last episode. There’s all kinds of fan clubs and everything even though it’s all old. (Talking about the Bible still.)

But I dont’ get it, yo. It’s mostly about some guy who goes nuts and thinks he’s the son of God. And there are no real creatures or monsters. Just like a devil, some gays, and a cyclops.

Now even though it’s not music, James Earl Jone’s reading the Bible…you treat it like it’s a music CD even though it’s not music, just put it in a CD player or something else that plays CDs and press Play, or a button that says something like “Play.” (What sucks though is that in most copies of the Bible I’ve seen there’s some ribbon you use to mark what page you’re on. This CD doesn’t have that, so you have to mark your spot with a piece of paper or, less advisably, a piece of toast or something.)

Anyways, when James Earl Jones (as I like to calll him) reads “I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” I just not sure like hearing Darth Vader say something so woosy. And, later, in this part where he’s sayin’ who’s the son of who and all that, Lord Vader actually sighs and says “yada yada” a few times. That’s kinda cool.

And there’s the part about the main character, Jesus, who turns water into wine. I guess that was cool to Bible fans back in the old days, but anyone can do that now, so it’s sort of like eh…who cares.

But, hey, all and all it’s alright. Its stood the test of time, I mean my grandma’s still a fan of this thing, the pope is apparently like a huge fan… I don’t know..will Lord of the Rings or Fantastic Four and all them stand the test of time? Or won’t they stand the test of time?