It's Spring, and many publishing houses are releasing their new titles. I have several friends whose books are due out soon. My friend Linda Leaming, who wrote Married to Bhutan, is rightfully excited about the April 1st release date for her book. She has encouraged people to preorder the book as preorders are suppose to push interest in a title. So I popped over to Barnes and Noble online to do just that—to preorder—but no need; the book is already in stock and on sale—AT A SIGNIFICANT DISCOUNT. Gasp! The same is true at Amazon; Amazon even offers a Kindle version, at a few pennies less than the discounted DTB.
Doesn't a release date mean anything?
I decided to check on other friends' titles. Charlotte Hinger's second mystery for Poisoned Pen Press, Lethal Lineage...I got the date wrong. It was released March 1st, but by golly, it's at a reduced price too.
Next stop, Michael Sims. I know his schedule includes readings for one of his Penguin Classics, The Penguin Book of Victorian Women in Crime, that came out in January, but The Story of Charlotte's Web is not to be released until June. Or is it? Ah! 7 June is the release date and, yes, preorder is still in place at a reduced price, no less.
And these discounts before the book is officially on the market—do the publishers arrange for that? It really doesn't seem economically sound, but maybe I'm missing something. At least the authors take isn't reduced.
To drum up a bit more business, I decided to go back to B&N and post the review I wrote for Leaming's book, but, sadly, that wasn't possible. I hadn't purchased the book from them, so I can't write a review. Of course, B&N didn't tell me that, they just kept declining my "submit" and I assume that's why (I read all the rules and directions, really I did!).
I'm making a trek to town tomorrow and will stop by my local independent bookseller to "preorder" my books. That should generate interest and improve sales demographics. And as for release dates...I'll put no stock in those anymore.
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