I love bookstores. They’re one of my safe places: the smell of fresh
paper, brewed coffee, and yummy pastries; the friendly crowds of fellow
booklovers; the space to sit and work on my laptop or peruse the periodicals,
the mountains of delectable books. It’s everything my little author heart
desires.
Although bookstore placement is a huge marketing asset and sales opportunity
for many publishers, including the big five, getting your small independent
book into physical stores isn’t always possible for indie authors.
Now, I totally understand that bookstores need to stock books that
sell—especially independent bookstores. The staff put a lot of thought and
effort into curating a selection of books that entice readers and will sell
enough copies to keep the doors open.
However, a number of bookstores also foster a wonderful sense of community and
prioritize showcasing a few smaller titles by indie authors.
With scams targeting authors at an all-time high (Authors Guild), I’ve been on high alert when vetting new opportunities. So, when I saw a
post on Instagram about book consignments, my eyebrows raised so far that they
launched above my head. But before I get into the details of that post, let’s
talk a little bit more about how books get placed in bookstores.
Option 1 - Wholesale
Wholesale is the gold standard for store placement for many goods. The store
purchases several items from a distributor at a discount and then sells the
items individually at retail price. The quantities required for ordering and
the discount from the retail price vary by type of goods.
Author Delivered
Some bookstores are more than happy to purchase wholesale books from indie
authors if they think their customers may enjoy that particular title. It’s up
to the store manager and the author to negotiate the discounted price
(anywhere from 40-60% off the retail price—I usually ask for 50%), and then
the author hand-delivers the books to the store.
I prefer this scenario because it means that the author gets paid upfront for
their books: you have money in your pocket as soon as those books leave your
possession. Although the author must pay to print copies of their book in
advance, if bookstores don’t order them, the author can still use or sell
them. Also, since the author personally distributes the copies of the book,
they can use any printer they want, even smaller ones with limited
distribution networks.
What about returns?
It would be wrong for me to offer wholesale book sales as the best option
without at least mentioning one potential drawback: returns. Typically,
bookstores expect the option to return unsold books. If you decide not to
accept returns, some bookstores might choose not to purchase your title or to
only order a few copies at a time.
If you do want to accept returns, you’ll want to negotiate the details for
this as well. Bookstores don’t always give back the “returned” books, or the
copies they want to return might be damaged. Be upfront about whether you will
collect unsold books or prefer that the seller donate or destroy them. No
matter what happens to the books, it’s up to you to pay back the bookseller
the wholesale price for those copies that didn’t sell.
Through a Distributor
A number of indie authors believe that by selecting “expanded distribution”
when uploading a title to KDP or selecting a wholesale discount through Ingram
(KDP and Ingram being the two top printers and distributors indie authors
use), their title will automatically start showing up in bookstores worldwide.
Unfortunately, this is not the case.
Behind the scenes, larger publishers, including the Big Five, do a lot of
marketing to booksellers to convince them to stock their new releases. Smaller
publishers, including indie authors, won’t have the healthy marketing budgets
to ensure that bookstores stock their books.
However, that doesn’t mean all hope is lost! There are instances when the
bookstore would want to purchase copies of your book for their store, such as
if you offer to come to the store and host a book signing. These events can be
a lot of fun and an opportunity to get friends and family to purchase copies
of your book. Additionally, regular patrons to the bookstore will be excited
to meet a real author and get to discover your work.
I will add that most bookstores will refuse to purchase the books through
Amazon or KDP extended distribution, so the book will need to be available
from a distributor like Ingram—or in the case of Barnes & Noble, the book
could be printed through their own small press platform B&N press.
Consignment
The much more common route indie authors take to get their books placed in
bookstores is through consignment.
In a consignment deal, the author brings copies of their book to the store,
and the store displays the books on its shelves. The author still technically
owns those copies of their books until each one sells. How the author gets
paid varies depending on the contract you sign when you drop off the books,
but typically the author will receive 60% of the sale price of their books,
paid out either monthly or quarterly.
Unfortunately, there is a lot of bookkeeping required for consignment deals,
and I’ve heard many stories from author friends about stores losing copies of
their books or forgetting to pay the author for sold copies. If you do offer
books through consignment, you’ll probably want to stop by the store
periodically and see how many of your books remain unsold.
When Things Get Fuzzy
An increasingly common practice, which I’m already not a fan of, is for
bookstores to charge a one-time placement fee for each title available through
consignment. This fee usually isn’t too steep, around $20-$35. These fees are
common in grocery stores and big-box stores, where they’re called “slotting
fees,” but less so in bookstores.
I understand that this fee both helps deter poor-quality books and covers the
administrative costs of adding a new title to the store’s catalog, especially
for titles that ultimately don't sell but still take up shelf space.
However, my view is that the bookstore gets to choose which books they place
on the shelves. They are paid for every book they sell, so they have an
incentive to pick books that appeal to readers and to do their best to
encourage customers to purchase the books in the store.
Some authors are willing to offer their books for consignment and pay a modest
placement fee, even if it means taking a financial loss, just for the local
exposure and prestige of having their book in that bookstore. For me, it’s a
little too pay-to-play, but I understand that some writers view their books as
more of a hobby than a business, and are willing to spend money for access to
traditional author perks.
It just makes it a little ickier for those of us trying to run a profitable
indie writing business.
The Post That Set Off My Alarm Bells
I came across this post on Instagram, and immediately felt my blood pressure
rise.
Even sadder were the dozens of comments from authors expressing interest in
participating in this “opportunity.”
I shared the post privately with some writer friends, adding the comment:
“Tell me you hate indie authors without saying you hate indie authors.”
Was that dramatic? Maybe.
But the fee structure bothered me. A $50 review fee just to be considered is
already a major red flag. The fact that the fee would then be applied toward a
separate placement fee if the book was accepted made me even more
uncomfortable, especially because I couldn’t find the full consignment terms
publicly listed.
How much is the placement fee? What percentage of each sale goes to the
author? How long does the book stay on the shelf? How many copies are
requested? What happens to unsold books?
Authors should know those answers before paying to submit.
I’m a firm believer that bookstores should make their money from *selling
books*, not from charging authors vague upfront fees.
Since I couldn’t find additional information about the placement fee or
consignment terms, I sent them a friendly message asking for clarification.
They replied promptly and answered all of my questions, including confirming
that the placement fee is well over $150. I appreciated the clear response,
but the email ended with a telling next step: “If you would like to move
forward, reply and I will send the invoice to this email address.”
Local Bookstores are Not the Bad Guys
There are many businesses that take advantage of indie authors, but on the
flip side, authors can also unintentionally overwhelm bookish spaces.
For instance, I read this on another independent bookstore’s website:
(Our bookstore) receives a lot of inquiries for consignment. Charging a
review fee is one of the few ways we are able to make the work of
maintaining active business relationships with independent creators
financially viable while also welcoming the connections of new
ones.
Honestly? I can understand that.
Bookstore employees should spend their time helping customers find and
purchase books they’ll enjoy, not reviewing endless consignment applications
from authors who may or may not be a good fit for the store.
This particular bookstore also seemed genuinely committed to supporting the
local author community. They even asked whether authors would like
constructive feedback if their book wasn’t accepted for store placement.
That is very different from a vague pay-to-play opportunity where authors are
asked to pay before they know the full terms.
Libraries also get inundated with requests from local authors to carry copies
of their self-published books, leading them to put policies and practices into
place that can look pretty hostile toward indie authors. Read more about my
experience with the local library in this post:
Why I’m Mad at the Library
What’s an Author to Do?
Of course, my first piece of advice is to avoid consignment deals that require
fees unless it’s with a bookstore you already have a relationship with and
whose staff are excited to share your book with their customers. That might
mean your book won’t be available on bookstore shelves, and that’s okay.
However, do make it easy to purchase your physical books online, whether
through your website or a major online retailer.
There are other avenues for selling physical books, including craft fairs,
book festivals, art markets, conventions, and more. These all have the benefit
of meeting interested readers and potential fans who will follow your career
as you write and release more books. While there are scammy actors in these
spaces as well, there is much higher potential for book sales at these types
of events.
And if you do decide to look into a consignment deal for your books, ask these
questions (and get the answers in writing!) before paying any fees, handing
over any books, or signing any agreements:
- What percentage of each sale do I receive?
- Are there any upfront fees? What exactly do they cover?
- How long will my book be displayed?
- Where will my book be displayed?
- How many copies will the store stock?
- How are sales tracked?
- When and how will I be paid?
- What happens to unsold or damaged copies?
- Can I pick up my books if I decide to end the agreement?
Conclusion
I hope this post hasn’t given you the impression that I dislike bookstores.
There’s simply a balance of booksellers operating as businesses and working
with indie authors, who are also trying to find success in their careers as
writers.
I’ve actually been thinking a lot about bookstores because I want to plan a
small local book-signing tour for the upcoming release of
Puzzling Escapes: The Secret of Shipwreck Island this fall. There
are a lot of moving pieces that need to fall into place in order to make this
tour a reality, and I’ll make sure to keep you posted as I add bookstores to
the list!
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