Jun
16
Selling books is harsh.
June 16, 2009 | Leave a Comment
That’s what booksellers are saying and I don’t doubt it. Just this past weekend I went into one of my favorite book stores in search of a specific book (BONK), was directed to it, picked it up, carried it around the store for 10 minutes, and then did not actually buy it. What went through my head:
1. This month is tight, but I can just order this next month from Amazon.
2. I don’t have time to read this, do I?
3. I bet I can borrow this book from my friend Tanya.
I wonder if it’s the mass panic state we all live in nowadays – that we live in a universe of lack – that caused me to not buy the book I most want to read? On the other hand, I was browsing in one of the oldest local book stores that day, and it crossed my mind how promising it is that this store is still open when about half of the restaurants in town and several large corporate stores have kicked the bucket. It seems that some people are buying books from bookstores more often than they are dining out (and what does it say about me that I’d rather eat out for lunch this week than buy a book I’ve wanted to read for months?)
Here’s the other problem with my behavior. Not only am I a reader, I am a writer – in fact, I’ve just begun to revisit a novel I’ve been working on for several years and I need all the good book karma I can get in order to finish it and then sell it. So, I am going to march right back down there and buy that book today dammit.
If you, like me, need a little impetus to buy books right now, check out the eye candy here, at the Book Design Review.