Normally, I would have posted this link in the POD Diary section since I came across it while working on marketing for my own book, but it was just too good not to post here on the main page.

Check out this newspage.com link which is a small directory for Independent Bookstores in the U.S. and Canada.  It’s divided by state, and although some of the addresses are incomplete, it’s a great start to finding stores in your area to call upon during a book promotion!  Booksense.com, which I did mention in the POD Diary, is now called Indie Bound. They’ve just made a ton of improvements to their site and it is much more user friendly!

Today’s indie bookstore highlight goes out to a favorite of mine in my old stomping grounds of Memphis, Tennessee.  Burkes Books was established in 1875. When I lived in Memphis, they were in a nice big building with lots of windows right up close to Poplar Avenue.  John Grisham loved to sign there (and still does), and I can still remember driving by the day Anne Rice was there and seeing a line of people outside that wrapped around the block.

They had some hard times recently, but downsized to a quaint shop in the hip Cooper Young district in the Midtown area.  If you are thinking about Memphis, get down there in September for the arts and crafts Cooper Young Festival, visit all those cool shops and restaurants, and then head over to Burkes and buy a book!  They have a fantastic collection of new and old, and a lot of signed first editions up for grabs.

So, what’s coming in July for the LLBR site?  I’ve got six more reviews lined up as promised for my summer reading spectacular, and lost more to tackle in the POD Diary as I continue to market my new book like crazy.  Join me on this self-publishing roller coaster and let’s see what happens!

“The book business is getting a little soft. It’s not selling as much as it used to,” Olsson said. “Our music sales went from 50 percent of our business to maybe 15. We lost a lot of revenue, and at the same time rents went up and real estate taxes went up. I don’t know what we would have done differently. It’s a killer.”

Olsson’s yesterday closed its Penn Quarter store, which opened 15 years ago. Olsson said rents and taxes had risen beyond affordability at the store and acknowledged falling behind on payments to booksellers.

Last week, two of its biggest publishers, Random House and Penguin Group, as well as Hachette Book Group petitioned the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Greenbelt to place Olsson’s in involuntary Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which would force the company to liquidate.

Read the complete story here!

I hear it time and time again.  Tourists and locals love a quaint little shopping district with a coffee shop and an old independent bookstore, but you never go inside and buy anything.  Here’s your chance to save one of your own!  It may be too late to save the business, but money in the till may relieve just a bit of tension this bookstore is experiencing right now.  Heck, it will help keep the employees paid!

“We sort of helped make the neighborhood what it is. And it’s a great neighborhood, but we can’t afford the rent,” Olsson said. A few years ago, the store’s rent in the renovated Lansburgh department store building was $30 a square foot. Now, it has risen to $50 to $60 a square foot.

I’m going out on a limb here, but I’ve got a challenge for you. To the first 5 people who can get to one of the Olsson stores and buy at least $25 this weekend, scan a copy of your receipt and then post a comment below on this post.  I’ll shoot you an email and you can reply with a copy of the receipt as proof.  Then, I’ll send you a crisp 5 dollar bill.  That’s right, I’ll give you five bucks of the money you spent right back to you.

Or do you really want to see your bookstore turn into a Beanie Baby haven?

“It’s hard to compete against megastores like Barnes and Noble,” Gins said. “We’re looking at it positively, and we’re hoping to come out of it. It depends on how many stores we can have.”

Over the years, Olsson’s has battled to maintain profitability, selling alongside its books and CDs such impulse items as Beanie Babies.

Now, get out there and get shopping!  You’ve got a bookstore to save!

The monthly routine as been four reviews, one each week with some other commentary in between such as this post.  I’m happy to say I’ve read far enough ahead to bring you six reviews in June.  I’ll be shooting for another six in July. Since Summer is the time for vacation and beach book reading I wanted to try to cover a little bit more. So, if you have a juicy summertime read for us, post about it on the “Pick Me!” page.

I’ve also been contemplating a contest of sorts to increase comments and feedback on the reviews.  It will probably consist of having to make comments on the book reviews as an entry into a drawing to win free books.  We all love free books, don’t we?  More details on this to follow as I give it some thought.  Any feedback on this or what you’d like to see is much appreciated.  Post it as a comment here or on The Lulu Book Review tab at the top.

Today’s In-News highlight goes out to the SoBo Book & Bean in South Berwick, Maine. They are going through new management transitions, but have been going strong for seven years serving up coffee and pastries, used and new books. They will even give you store credit if you bring in your own used books!

Check them out online or visit them at:

Sobo Book & Bean
241 Main Street
So. Berwick, ME
03908
(207) 384-8300

In other news, if you’ve been reading my own POD Diary, then you know I’m reaching the final stages of my Lulu POD experience with my next book.  I just created a Book Trailer for it. Thanks to Todd Fonseca.  He encouraged me to give it a go.

That’s it for May, folks.  See you in June!

Why focus on independent bookstores, you ask? The majority of them love POD authors. Since your big time authors often schedule with the main B&N’s or Borders first when they come to town, the indies sometimes get passed by. Indies tend to focus more on local flavor, therefore, they are more willing to take a chance with a local POD author, and more apt to let you do a reading or signing there.

Most of my recent tips and advice which I normally post between reviews can now be found under the POD Diary tab at the top of the page. There, you can learn about my recent personal experience with giving birth to my next book. But don’t worry, more references, resouces, and tips will return to the main page soon.

For today, say hello to The Sly Fox Mystery & Children’s Bookstore in Virden, Illinois. The store will have been open for 10 years come this July. They focus on children’s literature, mysteries, and yes, local books about Illinois and Ab Lincoln. If you are traveling on 55 between Chicago and St. Louis, then the Sly Fox is only about 20 minutes off your route, located 20 miles south of Springfield on Illinois Route 4 (Historic Route 66).