[markpauloleksiw]

Recent information compared to last year.

With a vaccine in sight, summer of 2021 will be interesting. My guess is you will have delayed releases coupled with the regularly schedules ones...safe to assume there will be reduced bookshelf capacity since some sellers are out of business.


Mark

 

[jb1111]

With the lockdowns and a recent survey that showed that around 30% of Americans are having trouble paying for necessities, this statistic -- unfortunately -- does not surprise me.

 

[chrisstevenson]

Kristine Katherine Rusch (sp?) backs this up. The recovery is going to last a little longer than we thought, and it will not approach what once was. We're going to lose (if haven't already) quite a few book stores. Libraries are also shuttered. I hope and pray that we can eventually recover everything and add to it, as far as book retail outlets.

 

[unkownwriter]

Our governor is discussing doing a full shut down again. We have huge increases in cases (and more and more people not wearing masks), and now possibly shortages at the grocery store again. I'm not surprised bookstore sales are down. They'll likely fall further.

 

[markpauloleksiw]

The other shoe to drop will be the publishing houses who signed authors to large advances in the last two years expecting big launches in 2020-2021...they will all be fighting for limited shelf space.

Note while bookstores sales are down...print book sales have actually increased (I cannot remember the exact amount but they have)....so the ground has shifted dramatically to Amazon's favor even more so.

Mark

 

[alhawke]

Last I stepped into a big name bookstore, I saw rows of like twenty to thirty books per one lucky author. Even pre-covid, to stay in business, it seems these book stores aren't taking any chances.

Perhaps Amazon should branch out with their stores? Here's an idea, have a section of rotating paperbacks by authors selling ebooks well on the Zon. I think a lot of us here would like that. But, alas, seems like any purchases must wait until after this blasted pandemic anyway (which, God willing, will soon be over).

 

[nightwork]

Kristine Katherine Rusch (sp?) backs this up. The recovery is going to last a little longer than we thought, and it will not approach what once was. We're going to lose (if haven't already) quite a few book stores. Libraries are also shuttered. I hope and pray that we can eventually recover everything and add to it, as far as book retail outlets.

libraries being shuttered isn't bad for indie e-books or at least it wasn't bad for mine

i don't mean to be cold but i no longer have much bookstore presence & haven't for years, moving more people to online purchases has actually increased my income

many local libraries did a LOT this spring to reach out & teach people how to get books online or arrange to browse books online, then pick them up curbside

would i rather have less money & less disease? of course but it is what it is...

 

[nightwork]

Note while bookstores sales are down...print book sales have actually increased (I cannot remember the exact amount but they have)....so the ground has shifted dramatically to Amazon's favor even more so.

Mark

i've seen this too

 

[chrisstevenson]

I agree. I don't know why my paperback sales are up nearly all across the board. First time I've seen it like this for my stuff.

 

[Simon Haynes]

Same. I've had a good run with print copies.

 

[markpauloleksiw]

My print sales are double to triple my ebook sales in 2020. 2019 they were closer to 1 to 1.

Mark

 

[jb1111]

Last I stepped into a big name bookstore, I saw rows of like twenty to thirty books per one lucky author. Even pre-covid, to stay in business, it seems these book stores aren't taking any chances.

Don't tell me -- it was James Patterson, Nora Roberts, Lee Child, and one or two others? In box stores and drugstores I see multiple books by these authors taking up half the space on shelves sometimes. The retailers are definitely sticking with the big names / brands.

 

[chrisstevenson]

Don't tell me -- it was James Patterson, Nora Roberts, Lee Child, and one or two others? In box stores and drugstores I see multiple books by these authors taking up half the space on shelves sometimes. The retailers are definitely sticking with the big names / brands.

Absolutely. Either the A-listers are taking up several shelves or occupying full end-caps in the aisles. It used to be that publishers paid for this "acreage", but I'm not certain if retail bookstores are now participating in this or designing this presentation on purpose. Anything, it seems, to shove the little guy out of running and flag the big timers.

 

[alhawke]

Don't tell me -- it was James Patterson, Nora Roberts, Lee Child, and one or two others?

Yeap. And magazines. And biographies of famous people. That's about it.

Sad thing is I think it's worse than a few years ago. But I don't buy books in bookstores much anymore anyway.