blairmacg | Readerly-Writerly Thoughts (Reply)

Books were going to die because the kids had no appreciation for stories. For them, reading required too much effort when compared to movies and video games. The threat increased when movies could be viewed at home, even more so when game consoles and joysticks resided in the living room. Besides, people weren't going to the mall so much anymore. How could people make their book purchases if they didn't go to the mall?

That's the fear outlined in a NY Times story from 1991 which outlined the busting of "publishing myths" that resulted from falling sales. (The article concludes with: " Another publisher, who insisted on anonymity, said, "The biggest myth of all survives: that we know what we are doing.")

Then, between the late 80s and the early 90s, the percentage of folks who reported reading for leisure went from 36% to 49%. By 1992, book sales were on the increase and were expected to "lead the retail industry" for the first half of the decade. Barnes and Noble had arrived, changing the way most folks found and purchased their reading material. It matched the book-browsing experience with the social and cultural components people found pleasant and comforting. It made people want to go to the bookstore for the experience as well as the books--the relaxing atmosphere, the inviting chairs, the sense of community and, I think, indulgence. People liked that it felt like a library without the shush-ing. They liked the notion they could spend lots of time comfortably choosing to make a purchase. And yes, they liked bestsellers at deep discounts.

There were consequences to liking and indulging in those things. Smaller stores that offered only shelves of books weren't as popular. Stores with full-priced books didn't sell as many. Core patrons stayed with their favorite smaller stores. Other book purchasers did not. But what is lost in the discussions of independent bookstore loss is the an increase in book sales that came with the growth of B&N. B&N didn't simply take over an existing consumer base; they added to it.

Now, B&N claims it sells three times as many ebooks online as physical books. Three. Times. I haven't a clue what Amazon's numbers are. Throughout the industry, though, physical book sales are off by something like 15%. Ebooks sales are growing. And I know there are many more readers like me--buying more books now than in previous years because I have easy access to not only the purchase them, but browse through them at my leisure.

I live in a rural county. There is a small bookstore that carries books of interest to the local reading group, to young children, and local authors. They are nice people, but their store experience isn't what most buyers are seeking. Our nearest large-appeal bookstore is about 35 miles away--nearly an hour of combined back roads and highway driving, and up to ten or twelve dollars in gas consumption. Purchasing a book requires an investment of time and treasure before the actual purchase is even made. And if browsing time is needed to find just the right book, the investment is even greater. Those bookstore trips are treats, not habits. Treat-spending is rare.

A relatively small investment was made when I purchased my ereader--about the same as two large hardcover novels at list price, or a bit over a tank of gas. Now I can browse by almost ridiculously narrow parameters (award-winning children's works published in 2009 that have a 3-star customer rating, sorted by highest to lowest price), or broad categories (fiction). This means I buy more books. My fellow rural-county residents are buying more books. Again, we are not today spending our "book money" at a different place than yesterday. We are allocating "book money" we hadn't allocated before. We are increasing the number of units sold.

Why? Because the experience of buying ebooks matches what we want. It gives us access and simplicity we didn't have before. This is good news for people who write stories. More people are becoming (or re-becoming) regular readers, and regular readers are buying more books.

And, as a writer, I think that's pretty damn promising.

In other news, expected emails shall be completed tonight!

And in other other news, yesterday's karate tournament went well. It was big and crazy and loud, but my students were awesome (no first places, but three second places) and the company couldn't have been better. This year, I can get away without competing. I don't think I'll get away with it next season. I'm not certain if I'm daunted or excited at the prospect.