Behind the Scenes: Booksellers & Authors

I know I have been quite the absentee hostess of late. It turns out that starting a new blog just before the holiday when one works two jobs, one of them retail, is kind of a bad idea.

In any case, I have half a dozen unfinished entries that I hope to bang out shortly. In the meantime, I want to link y'all to today's entry at the Book View Cafe, written by Laura Anne Gilman. I had thought about doing an entry on book signings, but Ms. Gilman offered a great summary on the experience from an author's point of view. I particularly liked this bit:

"If you sell [only] one, and manage to make the staff think you’re just an utter delight, then they will be more likely to hand-sell your book – and your next book, and the book after that."

I cannot stress how true this is. Years ago, there was a local author (not a romance novelist) who so thoroughly pissed us off with his antics, we pretty much banned his book from the store. He used to repeatedly have his family & friends order multiple copies into the store, but then they'd never pick up the books. I would come in and find his book shoved onto displays, replacing titles that were supposed to be in FOS. As a result, we kept one copy on the shelf and sent the rest back. Didn't matter how many arrived in the pallets, we kept one and just threw the rest on the returns desk. Do you think we ever hand-sold his book? Hell no.

To contrast this, I'd like to mention Nelson DeMille. Mr. DeMille was friendly with our old GM and so he used to do signings in the store whenever he released a new book. We used to get a ton of people at these events and Mr. DeMille would stay until every single person got an autographed book. At one signing, he stayed half an hour past closing. He was also always polite and courteous to the staff. Many of the staff started reading him as a result and now when someone asks us for a mystery rec, Mr. DeMille's books are usually at the top of the list.

Motto of this story? Be nice to the people who are the gatekeepers of your books.

2010 Book Tally

Here's yet another post that got pushed to the back burner due to all the craziness. There was the two job thing, a family vacation to Walt Disney World for the half marathon, and the sinus infection from hell. I have high hopes that I'll be able to turn the slump around now that things have calmed down a bit.

I know I did quite a bit of reading in January and I should have the tally up tomorrow. For 2010, I read 207 books from my To Be Read journal, a rather low number. I read 105 ARCs, which is actually higher than 2009. I did try to read at least three ARCs a week to get my numbers up. NetGalley helped immensely with this because I can get away with reading E-ARCs at the library job. If an ARC was also in my TBR journal, I counted it under that total. My cumulative total is 312 titles. This doesn't count any re-reads, which is why I suspect the number is so low. I'm pretty sure I went on a J.D. Robb & Robin D. Owens re-read kick.

I don't have a category break-down this year, but I'll try to implement that going forward. Needless to say, the bulk of the 312 books fall under romance or young adult.

01/10: 13 A=13
02/10: 14 A=6
03/10: 28 A=4
04/10: 24 A=11
05/10: 23 A=12
06/10: 13 A=12
07/10: 24 A=9
08/10: 16 A=8
09/10: 13 A=10
10/10: 19 A=6
11/10: 9   A=9
12/10: 11 A=5

Final total: 207
ARCs: 105

Monthly Tally: December 2010

From the To Be Read Journal

1. A Werewolf in Manhattan , Vicki Lewis Thompson
2. Ruthless Game, Christine Feehan - I like this series so very much more than the Carpathian series these days. It was an excellent read and the twist of having the heroine be very pregnant was interesting. I also liked the little tidbits Feehan threw in about the Ghostwalkers' children.
3. Eternal Flame, Cynthia Eden
4. In Too Deep, Jayne Ann Krentz
5. Bitten in Two, Jennifer Rardin - I am so sad this author has passed away. Such potential.
6. Day of the Dragon, Rebecca York
7. The Broken Kingdoms, N. K. Jemisin - Orbit is proving to be quite the publisher for new science fiction authors. The world building here was phenomenal, but note that a) the ending isn't quite happy and b) you really have to read & remember the first book, The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms to fully enjoy this one.
8. Caped, Josh Lobis & Derin Mosielle
9. Lost Girls, Alan Moore
10. The Secret Life of Mrs. Claus, Carly Alexander
11. Santa Calls, William Joyce

ARCs

1. Devoured by Darkness, Alexandra Ivy, out now
2. The Darkest Secret, Gena Showalter, 4/2011 - I so love this series. Sabin & Gwen are still my favorite couple ever, but I'm eagerly awaiting Paris's book. This one focuses on Amun, Keeper of Secrets. 
3. Driftwood Cottage, Sherryl Woods, 4/2011
4. Kiss of Darkness, Loribelle Hunt, 1/2011
5. The Heiress, Lynsay Sands, 2/2011

Books Discovered along the way

1. Strange Neighbors, Ashlyn Chase - Got the second book as an ARC, finally got to read the first one. For fans of Dakota Cassidy.
2. Spiral Bound, Margaret Ronald - This book took FOREVER to get. I requested it from a bunch of different libraries and when it was finally filled, the library sent the wrong book. I met the author in October at the NY Comic-Con. That's how long I was trying to get it. Since October. It was definitely a good book, although not precisely my cup of tea. Now to try to track down the second one...
3. Running the Books: The Adventures of an Accidental Prison Librarian, Avi Steinberg - Books about librarians interest me, for obvious reasons, and I liked this book because it wasn't so much about librarianship as what books & libraries can represent.
4. Bear Necessities, Dana Marie Bell - Shifters are usually canines or felines, so it's always refreshing to encounter a different species. The hero is a bear shifter and quite interesting. The heroine is a more traditional wolf, but an unique person with two humans as her best friends. It ties into Bell's Puma series, but I was able to enjoy the book just fine, even though I only read The Wallflower.

I also started and did not finish Goodnight Tweetheart by Teresa Mederios. Meg Cabot's 'Boy' series is infinitely better and totally blew this book out of the water. Tweetheart didn't even have a happy ending per say.

I didn't read as much as I normally do, likely due to the holidays, but I already know I'll be blowing January out of the water! 

Laydowns for 12/21/10

Dark Harvest - Karen Harper (QP reprint)

Seducing a Vampire - Michele Hauf

Trouble - Linda Howard (MM reprint)

Ignited by Passion - Brenda Jackson (MM reprint)

Hawk's Way Rebels - Joan Johnston (MM reprint)

Prelude to a Scandal - Delilah Marvelle (I wasn't thrilled by this one. Not by a long shot. The premise involves the hero suffering from sexual addiction. As those of us based in reality know, addiction isn't ever really cured. However, the hero is miraculously healed by the power of the heroine's love and no longer has the slightest craving. Bull. Shit. The second book in the series is so, so, so much better.)

Caine's Reckoning - Sarah McCarty (MM release)

Enchanted No More - Robin D. Owens (As previously mentioned, I really enjoy Robin D. Owens' books and this one was no exception. However, it only got 2 stars at Romantic Times. I think the key here is to read this book like it's not a standalone. There will be backstory you are probably missing and there will be some loose ends for the next book to tie up.)

Laydowns for 12/07/10

No Place to Run - Maya Banks

Goddess of Legend - P.C. Cast (in To Be Read journal)

Outrageously Yours - Allison Chase (in To Be Read journal)

Mine Until Morning - Jasmine Hayes

Dreams of Desire - Cheryl Holt

Explosive - Beth Kery

Star of the Morning - Lynn Kurland (MM release)

Nauti Nights - Lori Leigh (MM release. So very hot & steamy. Leigh writes passion extraordinarily well.)

Sex on the Slopes - Susan Lyons

Heart Fate - Robin D. Owens (MM release. Robin D. Owens is one of my favorite authors and this is a pretty good title. Both the hero & heroine suffer from emotional wounds and they heal together. Rec'd if you haven't read it already.)

Border Lord & Lady - Beatrice Small (MM reprint)

Day of the Dragon - Rebecca York (in To Be Read Journal)

Monthly Tally: November 2010

From the To-Be-Read Journal

1. Cookies! Good Housekeeping's Favorite Recipes- Good Housekeeping is my favorite publisher for cookbooks. 
2. A Bewitching Bride, Elizabeth Thorton
3. Rules of an Engagement, Suzanne Enoch
4. Somewhere Along the Way, Jodi Thomas
5. Living Nightmare, Shannon Butcher
6. Prince Charming Doesn't Live Here, Christine Warren- I bought this & then returned it when I realized it was a mainstream printing of the Ellora's Cave ebook. Bah.
7. In the Company of Vampires, Katie MacAlister- I was a little disappointed by this. I loved Fran & Ben so I had high hopes that weren't met. 
8. The Whales' Song, Dyan Sheldon
9. Beneath the Thirteen Moons, Katherine Kennedy- Featuring the one & only Date Rape Drug flower

ARCs

1. How to Wed a Baron, Kasey Michaels, out now
2. The Guy Next Door, Lori Foster, Susan Donovan, and Victoria Dahl, 03/2011
3. Call Me Mrs. Miracle, Debbie Macomber, out now
4. Enchanted No More, Robin D. Owens, 01/2011- I loved this book. It's not quite Holy Shit worthy and I'm biased 'cause Owens is one of my favorite authors, but I thought it was excellent. Which is why I was baffled that Romantic Times gave it two stars. WTF?
5. Once Upon a Scandal, Delilah Marvelle, 02/2011- Way, way, WAY better than the first one. 
6. Promise Canyon, Robyn Carr, 01/2011
7. The Wolf Prince, Karen Kelley, out now
8. Archangel's Consort, Nalini Singh, 02/2011
9. Dragon Bound, Thea Harrison, 05/2011 - Pretty obvious how I felt about this one!

Trust me when I tell you that this is pitiful. I've kept track of my TBRs since '06 and this is my worst output. I was on track with ARCs, but good Lord, only 9 TBRs? I double-checked too. Like, maybe I missed something and, no, just the 9. I know I've been very restless lately and watching a lot of TV on DVD.  I also re-read some Shelley Laurenston and Dragon Bound like five times. Still. I'm ashamed. Bad Lady Lioness.

Twitter Thursday

This week I chose to follow @SmartBitches. This twitter account belongs to Sarah Wendell, one of the founders and current headmistress of the Smart Bitches, Trashy Books blog. The tag line is "All of the Romance, none of the bullshit." That should give you an inkling of what the tone of the blog is like.

I found out about the Smart Bitches via word of mouth. I believe it was BEA 2007 and I went with a friend who I met through Bookstore. She was working in a public library by this time and she introduced me to some wonderful ladies she'd met through her job. We were all hanging out on the lower level of Javits, waiting for the show to open. We'd gotten there early to snag tickets for the 'big' signings.  When N and I discovered we shared a mutual love of romance, the recs flew fast and furious. Then she said, "Do you know the Smart Bitches blog?"  I believe I was a little hesitant at first, but she made it sound so fabulous, I googled it when I recovered from the BEA daze. Now it's one of my daily sites.

This is not a serious blog. No, this is a blog that offers a tongue-in-cheek perspective on romance-related issues, topped with a hefty dose of snark. One of their regular features is Caption that Cover. The person who comes up with the snarkiest & funniest caption wins and Sarah usually has a prize for them. There's also Help a Bitch out (someone's looking for the book, but all they remember is the plot) and Friday videos (a humorous or touching you-tube vid). Sarah does cover industry-related issues, but they tend to be strictly romance related (Judith Griggs debacle aside) and from a layman's perspective. She also uses quite a bit of colorful language so it may not be work-safe, strictly speaking. Her professional website, Smart Bitch Sarah, is more, y'know, professional, but it's a good reference for Sarah's appearances & publications. Her professional website is, like, her day job, and the Smart Bitches blog is Sarah kicking off her heels & curling up on the couch with a glass of wine for a good gossip. Her twitter is snippets from that conversation.


The tone of her twitter is very true to who Sarah appears to be. Sarah shares glimpses into her personal life, talks about the book she just finished reading and what she's writing now. She doesn't tweet much about industry happenings unless she gets excited or riled up. I've "met" Sarah twice now. Once was at BEA 2009 when she signed my copy of Beyond Heaving Bosoms (an academic look at romance that's not very academic. With man titty). The second time was at RomCon 2010 where I was bold enough to ask if I could sit at her table at what turned out to be a rather bad panel. Jane from Dear Author was there as well and I was an absolute stuttering idiot from intimidation. Sarah basically told me I was crazy and then did her best to put me at ease. Her twitter account sounds exactly like she does.


I leave up to you to decide whether @SmartBitches sounds follow-worthy or not, but I'd put her squarely in the entertainment category.