Giants Battle, David Might Get Crushed Underfoot While Looking for a Stone to Sling

I share with you a Wall Street Journal item from today (Warning: as [blogger] is not among the choices for sharing, this link is not a permalink and thus, may disappear on us at WSJ.com's convenience).
The article is about walmart.com figuratively rolling up its sleeves and taking on amazon.com. There must have been taunts exchanged and tongues stuck out at some point, as walmart.com CEO Raul Vazquez is quoted: "If there is going to be a 'Wal-Mart of the Web,' it is going to be Walmart.com.... Our goal is to be the biggest and most visited retail Web site."
Walmart.com wants to be the biggest and most visited retail Web site?? Classic business school strategy studies says, first pick off the competitor's fringe markets and then, when it doesn't have additional legs to stand on, attack at its (seemingly) strongest point. Gee, had walmart.com been attacking amazon.com's toaster oven and disposable diaper sales online as well as its brick-and-mortar big box bookstores cum acre parking lots which also ban non-family-oriented music CDs and sell five kinds of lettuce all this time and we weren't paying attention?

So, while these two duke it out, the publishing industry is supplying its fingers for ammunition and big-name authors are weighing in.

WSJ probably could not get Stephen King to comment, so Dean Koontz and James Patterson (sometime co-author with Maxine Paetro, Michael Ledwidge, Gabrielle Charbonnet, Martin Dugard,... sorry if I missed anyone else) did the honors:

James Patterson, whose coming novel, "I, Alex Cross," is being discounted from $27.99 to $10, said he was happy to be in Wal-Mart's top 10. However, he warned any industry that sets low price points may later have a difficult time re-establishing those prices. "Obviously e-books have gotten this thing going," said Mr. Patterson. "E-books are terrific and here to stay. But I think that people need to think through the repercussions....But I'm not taking sides....I'm not the endangered species here."

"I'm not the endangered species here." What does that mean? No matter what happens to books -- any kind published by anyone bought from anywhere, he'll still get his advances and royalties? Who then is the endangered species, Mr Patterson? Is his quote just like a character's non-sequitor thoughts or is this poor reporting/editing?

(By the way, steet date for his new book is November 1, 2009. Books on First offers 20% all adult hardcover fiction. Reserve your copy now!)

Dean Koontz expresses conflicting emotions of the writer's need for recognition and readership (see blog post on "aspiring" writers) and his acknowledgement that it's actually a good thing to have small, independent bricks-and-mortar bookstores where a writer and his work can be discovered by a new reader a rainy day browse or through trusted bookseller's personal recommendation.

"Any time people are fighting over your work it's a good thing, especially when you've worked all those years hoping it would be fought over," he said.

Mr. Koontz said he's more worried about the independent bookstores. Although most limit their stock of best-sellers, a price war on the most popular books may hurt.

Thank you, Mr Koontz. Keep on feeling conflicted; that means you're thinking ahead of tomorrow to day after tomorrow. (By the way, just in time for holiday giving -- street date is November 24, 2009, is Dean Koontz's latest book, Breathless.)

Stephen King too looks kindly on us indies although his sales are nothing to sneeze at. He has a book, Under the Dome, also out November 1, 2009, and also, discounted by Books on First at 20% off list (no cover art yet available for posting).

All in all, we independent booksellers cannot sit on our hands (or wring them) while bigger, better-funded retailers trample all over the published book landscape.

I am especially interested in the comments that WSJ.com articles sometimes generate. This one has inspired over 30 of them at last look, and it 's a (generally) good discussion about capitalism, civil society, culture, elitism (whoa, Sherman Alexie!), technology, socialism, ...

Capitalism and writers: So, these price reductions supposedly would result in reductions in an author's royalties. One comment was about how no one is forcing someone to be an author. If it doesn't pay, then, don't be a professional writer. There's still distribution, recognition and readership to consider. I am trying to imagine Mr Patterson with a website offering a couple of free chapters and a BUY NOW TO CONTINUE READING as well as DONATE button, because yes, that's what might result, when there are no publishers to nurture, edit, be passionate about, promote and publicize, print, ... [repeat] writers new to a genre, less known authors (critically acclaimed or otherwise good or bad), and eventually, well-known and bestselling authors like Koontz and Patterson. And, that's just the publishers. I haven't begun to talk about independent booksellers and the costs they incur to offer the value they add. Why stop at watching walmart.com succeed at selling hardcover copies of titles listing at $25-$30 for only $9 but fail to become "the biggest and most visited retail Web site," or amazon.com survive but struggle to maintain its community of reader-contributed reviews and its mighty search engine and network of small used & rare book vendors in the effort to serve two groups: the "I know what I want and I want it now buyer" and the "let's see what might be interesting to read today reader"? Just cut out the middleman entirely.

Another wisdom I learned at graduate management school -- price competition is bad for everyone. It's a downward spiral and lots of stakeholders lose, including readers.

Think about the day after tomorrow, when we must all find a reason for existence that goes beyond the numbers.

I just found Graham Beattie's Book Blog in which you may be interested, also. (This does not happen everyday, as "browsing" on the internet is a lot less fun than browsing in a bookstore -- my opinion.) He has a great quote from the author of The Art of Racing in the Rain Garth Stein (speaking at a gathering that Larry and I did not attend) about selling books. Check it out!

More on Aspirations of Writers

We can now move to the distinction between professional writers (who must by definition be published, right?) and non-professionals (are they the ones who are not getting paid to write, or not published?). If you are a brochure writer, you're still a writer, in my book/blog. Again, the distinctions become blurred. And, now, the FTC is regulating blogs and thus, reminding readers that some bloggers are not or no longer writing out of the goodness of their hearts.
Some writers are up in arms. How dare the government regulate free speech!
We Americans used to believe what was printed in the newspapers ("they wouldn't print it if it weren't true" rationalization). Now, some people still say they found it over the internet, as if that decides it, it must be right. Are you a doctor or just play one on TV? Are you a writer or a blogger?
We writers (those of us who actually consider ourselves so) have a responsibility to write well. Do we have the responsibility to tell the truth?

Well, I have already disclaimed I get payola for anything and probably will not "monetize" this blog, simply because I doubt anyone's going to pay to have the cover of a book on here.

I will add that as a bookseller, I receive what we call in the biz ARCs -- advanced reader copies. This is to enable us to read a book, review it and sell it to our customers. We booksellers would love free stuff or to be paid to sell a book, but as a group (I believe I can almost speak for probably 99.94% Ivory-soap pure), we will only push that about which we are passionate. And, if we are passionate about a best-selling author, we still read his works, although we may not "push" them as hard as a newly published writer or a little known author or little known but well-written book. We don't have to do it. Are we falling down on the job? Just because he's a very very good seller, does it mean we are allowed to "ignore" him? Well, no, first off, we'd never ignore someone's work that can actually bring in some funds to meet the payroll. Secondly, what kind of expectations do publishers, writers, makers of products and Federal regulators really have of us little indies (whether we are booksellers or bloggers) influencing large blocks of sales?

First Post: a Dual Review

The proprietor/manager of Books on First recommends the book, Fool.
Christopher Moore's wit is singular and not universally appreciated. But, if you get it, you'll really have a fun time, and you won't even have to have read or seen the play.

(recommended to him by his wife Carolyn!) In the afterword ("You Cheeky Git -- Author's Note"), Moore tells how he was persuaded to write in the voice of Lear's fool and all the research he conducted in order to do so properly. That is an interesting story unto itself. But, we digress.

Fool is a masterly, tongue-in-cheek (to name one body part) re-telling of the tale of King Lear, but not simply the most famously known one being Shakespeare's, but basically the very English play about this really out-of-touch king giving away his kingdom to the two daughters who love him least and living not simply to regret the act but to rage and lament (and lament) about it. I find I have always been at one with Moore on Lear's "whining" and the great desire to reach into the written word (or to leap upon the stage) and "kill the old man myself." With irreverent nods (or tosses) to Hamlet, Macbeth, Green Eggs and Ham, and more, Moore's version, in his inimitable style, is at least as reasonable and original as Shakespeare's, but so much more fun! As with Lamb, there is just enough adherence to historical allusions to stimulate questions and a consideration of, if not actual, re-reading of "The Great Works."

For more recommendations, check out our "Staff Picks" For our most popular books, go to our "Best Sellers." Otherwise, simply contact us if you need help finding a book.