Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Bad News for Me, Perhaps Better for You

It turns out that the field reps and the independents did not make Sarah's Key break out; it was all due to Target.

Nathan Rabin gets an amazing review; it couldn't be before our event last Friday? Like Joe Meno's The Great Perhaps and Chris Cleave's Little Bee (which also got great reviews of late after our events, sometimes months later), it's just an "I told you so" to pay attention to what we're talking about.

B&N's ebook shop will fortify the $9.95 price point on the product. Customers consistently tell me that the industry can't exist on that model. So what will happen is that Boswell will buy the rights to sell ebooks at at something in the $15 range and competitors sell them at $10?

Now you know why I generally don't do this. And besides, you should all have a subscription to the daily New York Times.

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Dave of Next Chapter Bookshop and I attended a dinner for Dan Chaon's Await Your Reply. Some publishers like to host pre-pub dinners for authors to help create buzz. Very occasionally they've been in Milwaukee, but mostly they're in Chicago.

Here's some advice on the Metra schedule for trains back to Kenosha: "9:45 means 9:45, or maybe 9:44." The next train leaves at 12:45. Do I have to continue this story?

Dave loved the book, as did our buyer Jason. Praise is running pretty darn high. More later.

3 comments:

JMesjak said...

At least you and Dave presumably had copies of a new book to read while you waited for the next train? Perhaps signed by Dan Chaon, even?

Daniel Goldin said...

Actually, Dave and I hardly ever talk and it turned out to be a very nice, if tiring wait. Dave already read the Chaon (and loved it) while I had committed myself to the Walls (enjoying). But Chaon is next, if I can read quickly.

jmcc said...

Interesting that the article admits that Target is using Independent strategies - "Hand-picked emerging authors" without the fuss of a real human being telling you why they enjoyed it or helping you to find a book you'd enjoy even more.