Recently I heard the news that Barnes and Noble were going to close up to one third of their stores. Their sales numbers were way down over the recent holidays. I guess they'll keep their college affiliated stores open but if you've ever been in those, you know they're not like regular B&N stores. I'm still mourning the closing of Borders and the BAM that moved in to replace isn't soothing the grief. What will disappear next? The local library? The book isle in Target and Walmart?
I buy lots of ebooks but I still love visiting the brick and mortar stores. I love browsing the new arrivals and searching the shelves for an author I've never read before. I like carrying an armful of books into the cafe and skimming a few pages of each to see if I enjoy the author's voice. Will I always be able to do that?
When I started writing I dreamed of having my books filling a shelf in Borders. I have had the chance to see my books on the Barnes and Noble shelves but will my next book end up there? Will my B&N be there? Where's it going? Traditional dreams of success may have to change whether I want them to or not. I often wonder where the industry is going and the only way to measure success is in the sales report from online retailers.
Do you wonder where things are going in the industry? Do you feel confident in your ability to predict what will happen next?
Alex is also featuring movie quotes every Wednesday with a different genre highlighted. This week is Crime/Thriller quote week. I hope I'm not showing my age with this one, but is there anything more classic than Clint Eastwood as Harry Callahan in Sudden Impact saying "Go ahead, make my day."
Please go visit Alex for more great quotes and to share your insecurities.
29 comments:
I have the same fears. I wrote about it on my blog recently. But some people seem to think ebooks/online shopping is the way things will go. If books, music, food and clothes are all online, there'll be nothing left in the high street or malls at all!
I live in Canada, but I know while our major book retail isn't shutting down doors, it is diversifying to non book items. This of course means less floor space for books. But at least we can order them online through the retailer.
I miss Waldenbooks. It was my favorite place to do booksignings.
BAM is a poor substitute. I don't even go in ours.
I miss Borders too. I really, really don't care for BAM.
The closest B&N to me is almost two hours away, but I have been known to make special trips down there just to walk around and look at all the pretty, pretty books.
I do wonder where things are headed, but I have no ability to predict where that might be.
I just read an author/acquisitions editor slam Borders because they didn't carry indie publisher books. As a reader, they were a great place though. Now with B&N's downsizing, the industry is a'changin'. Amazon has certainly changed the face of how we purchase and publish books.
I too worry. The whole business is being shaken up. I don't think ebooks will disappear, nor paper ones. I love them both and there's nothing like browsing a real store. I think that agents will rethink their work - they're the middlemen, aren't they? I think more will become professional editors and possibly small publishers too. It's very interesting that the small press Entangled Publishing has been incorporated into the giant MacMillan - that maybe how the future lies.
I can only ponder the fate of books in the future. My daughter and I often wonder what her children will read, and where.
Interesting post. Thanks for the thoughts and nice to meet you. Feel free to stop 'round the nut-tree if you'd like. You might find it looks very familiar...
~Just Jill
Although I've embraced the e-books (change and growth go hand-in-hand...) at heart, I'm a die-hard paperback girl...
I say that the library is one of the last bastions of civilization...
It is a sad things that book stores are closing.
I know that quote too! And I liked all of Clint Eastwood's movies. :)
I, too, worry about the Barnes & Noble stores. I'm glad for the college ones that, hopefully, will still exist.
Thanks for visiting my blog.
Monti
Mary Montague Sikes
My dream - the one I'm finally pursuing full time in my old age - has always been to walk into my local bookstore (specific chain didn't matter) and see a book with my name on it sitting on a shelf. Just one book was enough. Didn't have to be a best seller. But it was always on a bookstore shelf. Now I fear the shelves will be gone before I can get there.
I always think there will be brick and mortar stores around. Even if they become smaller than what we're used to now.
The 'big box' places, to me, are more like "merchandise stores" than 'book stores'.
Hopefully, down the line, this trend will change and the focus will be more on the books than anything else.
It is sad, the way bookstores are disappearing. As for the library, mine seems to have less books all the time, and they have an enormous electronic selection of all sorts of things. They're rearranging and renting meeting room space more and more. Seems odd, but it is what it is...not much we can do about it.
It's sad when a beloved book shop closes, it means having to shop around unless going to Amazon.
Enjoyed your post.
Yvonne.
Sad days ahead, no doubt. I miss my Borders. I still carry my rewards card on my key chain, unwilling to part with it.
It is something to think about. I for one have a kindle but I still like to walk into a bookstore sometimes and get an actual copy of certain types of books that I read.
Exactly! Though I was surprised when I heard some were closing because one just opened up closer to where I live. The other one I had been to in the area was a small one, barely compared to the one in wyoming but I'm going to see what this new one is like soon. I like the idea of e-books but also want paperback as that is my favorite type of book. And I want my novels to be in paperback too.
Yes, it is a wonder to think that maybe all of the book stores will eventually closed. As it is now, I'm surprised to see that there are still quite a few small shops and some larger ones still out there. We need to all find them and frequent them, see if they'll place our books on their shelves, so they will not all be a dying breed!
I was only in one BAM and it sucked. It was a mall store. Very tiny. Nothing great.
I love our Barnes cafe, hope it doesn't go.
Oh well.
I've seen my books on a Barnes and Noble shelf and it was really cool. I guess that joy will be lost for most authors now.
I wish we had a few more independent stores near me. The only two are used book stores. They are great about doing signings but their customers are looking for cheap used books.
I wrote a post about this very thing and am scared that one day there will be no more bookstores. It's very sad to think about but I almost feel like it's inevitable. :(
I think that's the way of most places in the UK right now - shops are closing left right and centre because people buy everything online these days. It's a sad state of affairs but my hope is that it'll mean more space and less competition for small, bespoke businesses since all the big retailers would have made the move to go fully online.
Jamie @ Mithril Wisdom
If B&N goes the way of Borders, the industry is going to change completely. Indie stores will rise again and it will become even harder to publish traditionally. That's what I predict, but I've been known to be wrong before ... from time to time ... :)
I too lament the B&N news even though there aren't any stores real close to me. We had a Borders right across the street from us and it was so sad to see them go. I'm no fan of e-books and I hate to think that hard-copy books are becoming a thing of the past. I think a lot of today's literature that is in digital only form will eventually be lost. Very sad. I don't know if many people are considering that.
Lee
Wrote By Rote
An A to Z Co-host blog
Twitter: @AprilA2Z
i don't ebook, i love to hold a tangible book and dog ear the pages...the downtown bookstore here is struggling too...hate that
I love going to book stores, but I can understand them not doing well if there are a lot of people who shop like me. I go to B&N to look at the books and then go to Amazon to actually buy them . The only books I buy at B&N anymore are on the clearance shelves. I should be supporting the brick & mortar stores, but I need to save money where I can.
Susan: We have nice little private book shoppe in town. Great little place but no where to sit and hang. I like the sitting and hanging part, as much as I love the books themselves.
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