Maryelizabeth Hart wrote, in part:
>
>
>
> If determining what books get published is about dollars, shouldn't we be
> making an effort to put our money where our philosophies are? To me, this
> means buying the kinds of books we say we want to see more of, and doing so
> at the kinds of stores that make them available.
>
> And, heck, while we're at it, why don't we all just agree to make all our
> purchases from my store. ;) Okay, self-interest aside, I think we need a
> number of sources for all sorts of SF: mainstream, small press, media
> tie-in, magic realism, whatever. And I think this means supporting the
> sources that offer them.
>
> My $.02.
>
lg: To add my two cents (hey, there's no more cents sign on the
keyboard!!):
I agree with you, Maryelizabeth. It's important to support independent
booksellers who can't compete with the big booksellers or Costco/Sam's,
etc. On the balance, it's hard to buy books when one is broke! I try
to spread my money among the three smaller indies in my city, including
the SF/Fantasy/Mystery store, the women's book store, and a bookstore
specializing in African American books. For harder to find stuff, I
shop at ssecond hand stores. I ain't no saint -- I DO buy discount
store books sometimes.... but lately it's a question of triage: I've got
$15 for a book purchase this week, how much do I want those smaller
sellers I've counted on for the past decade to remain open? I get less
book for my buck maybe, but I hope my $ helps keep the doors open....
luz
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu May 25 2000 - 19:07:18 PDT