What about libraries?

Sure, for your local library.

For others -- if your publisher isn't getting the book reviewed in Library Journal or Kirkus, the odds are against it getting bought by most libraries. Same if it doesn't have CIP data. No CIP data means the library has to catalog it by hand.

If, for some reason, huge numbers of people start requesting your book, the library would consider shelving it.

Libraries

azbikergirl said:

Obviously, libraries don't automatically buy a copy of every new book that comes out. Can an author have any influence over whether his book is ordered in libraries?

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Good question, and I don't know. First, to get many library sales, your book needs to be hardcover. I never worried too much about library sales, and I honestly have no idea how many libraries my books have been in.

I do know a good review in Library Journal seems to make a real difference.

Jamesaritchie said:

First, to get many library sales, your book needs to be hardcover.

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Is that still true? Maybe a librarian can clarify.

Libraries

brinkett said:

Is that still true? Maybe a librarian can clarify.

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I suspect libraries are buying more paperbacks than they used to on a national basis, but my state librarireis certainly don't. I work occasionally at a library, and they order hardcovers almost exclusively. A hardcover last longer, it's easier to place on a shelf, and it's what most of the patrons want.

Of the three libraries I go to monthly, none have more than fifty to one hundred paperbacks, and nearly all of these are books that were donated. There are a few trade paperbacks on the shelves, but not many.

Over the course of an average year, I visit twelve to twenty libraries around my state, including the largest one in the state, and none of them have many paperbacks at all. This policy probably varies from state to state, but here paperbacks are simply considered a poor investment.

Just to add anecdotal evidence to what James suggested, my library puts the vast majority of donated paperbacks into their "for sale" section.

paperbacks

hpoppink said:

Just to add anecdotal evidence to what James suggested, my library puts the vast majority of donated paperbacks into their "for sale" section.

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My local library does something very cool with paperbacks. They have a couple of racks that hold maybe a hundred paperbacks. You don't check these out, yu exchange for them. Bring in a paperback or three, and take a paperback or three.

But, yes, when this library gets too many paperbacks for these two racks to hold, the rest are stuck in a library book sale, usually at a dime each.

The head librarian at my local library bought my paperback book - because she knows me and because it's distributed through Ingram.

Carlene

Carlene said:

The head librarian at my local library bought my paperback book - because she knows me and because it's distributed through Ingram.

Carlene

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My local librray also has a couple of paperbacks of mine, though I always donate my books, hardcover or paperback, to local libraries. I've received so much pleasure from the libraries over the years that I really like being able to give back a little.

When you all talk about how your libraries handle paperbacks, are you talking about just fiction, or fiction and nonfiction? All the libraries I've been to--two of them have been Library of the Year in different years--have plenty of softcover nonfiction, because that's just how many popular books on certain topics come out. A few are library hardbound, but most are simply left softcover.

My local library has one long wall of mass market paperback fiction, and seems to fairly regularly buy trade paperback fiction. They do some sort of laminating process to stiffen and protect the covers. I know that both my books that came out in mass market only are in a lot of libraries (I've run searches through the Worldcat system). My hardcover books, however, are in many more.

A starred review in any of the major review venues can make a big difference in library purchases. Librarians read and pay attention to these publications. Like readers and booksellers, librarians can only buy books that they know exist.

- Victoria

By "softcover" do you mean trade paperback or mass market?

James D. Macdonald said:

By "softcover" do you mean trade paperback or mass market?

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Mostly trade, but some mass market.

victoriastrauss said:

My local library has one long wall of mass market paperback fiction, and seems to fairly regularly buy trade paperback fiction. They do some sort of laminating process to stiffen and protect the covers. I know that both my books that came out in mass market only are in a lot of libraries (I've run searches through the Worldcat system). My hardcover books, however, are in many more.

A starred review in any of the major review venues can make a big difference in library purchases. Librarians read and pay attention to these publications. Like readers and booksellers, librarians can only buy books that they know exist.

- Victoria

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Our local library tried the laminating proces on paperbacks, but it didn't help the pages inside, which are usually of much lower quality than hardcover paper. They abandoned the idea after four or five years, and never went back.

I do suspect it's on a library by library basis though. Or maybe a state by state basis. One factor here is whether or not the book can be repaired should a page fall out, the spine break, etc.

But knowing whether or not a book exists has noting to do with it here. The one thing our library does have is reams of information about paperbacks. They just think that, long term, it's a poor way to spend money.

I'd love to know how many paperbacks are ordered by public libraries across the country, but I think that will take some serious research. Last time I checked, there were just over 9,000 public libraries in the US, but many of these are tiny and order very few books of any kind.

I suspect someone out there is a whole lot better and faster at research than I am, but I may try digging into this a bit.

Aconite said:

When you all talk about how your libraries handle paperbacks, are you talking about just fiction, or fiction and nonfiction? All the libraries I've been to--two of them have been Library of the Year in different years--have plenty of softcover nonfiction, because that's just how many popular books on certain topics come out. A few are library hardbound, but most are simply left softcover.

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I was talking about fiction. There are a few trade paperbacks in libraries here, but no mass market paperbacks, and as few trades as possible.

Nonfiction is a somewhat different matter here. As many hardcovers are still bought as possible, but many types of nonfiction exist only as softsover, so there is no choice. And many types of nonfiction will be seriously out of date in a year or two, and there's no reason to buy a hardcover for this, even if a hardcover exists. If you're going to throw a book out, or place it in a sale, in a couple of years, it would be silly to buy hardcover.

With nonfiction, the decision is based on how long the the library thinks the book will be of interest, and on availability. If it's something that will soon be out of date, or that will be replaced in a couple of years anyway, then a softcover will usually be bought, if it's available.

But if it's something expected to have a long shelf life, then hardcover is still the first choice everytime. Assuming there is a hardcover.

Libraries

One othe rnote on libraries. Rather than spending more money on books, the biggest change I've notive in librraies is that so many are now trying to be all things to all people. Our local library is going through an extensive remodel and expansion, and there's a very large computer center, mostly for internet surfing. There's a large DVD and CD section, there's even a comic book section. There's also a media center, and an area where plays can be staged.

This is probably all to the good, but at times I really wish they'd used the budget to buy more books.

Cataloging in Publication--helps libraries shelve your books in the correct category. It's printed on the copyright page.

Library Sales

azbikergirl said:

Obviously, libraries don't automatically buy a copy of every new book that comes out. Can an author have any influence over whether his book is ordered in libraries?

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This could be a completely Canadian spin on the question, but what the heck. We ain't all Americans.

My experience with libraries (being a bookseller who deals with librarians on a daily basis) is that they have budgets set aside for hardcovers and paperbacks. There are further budgets for YA, for adult, for fiction and nonfiction. Then, often, even those break down into further budgets. In this day and age having your book bound either hardcover or softcover won't influence a library to buy it or not to buy it. But, if given a choice between the two options, each library has their reasons for buying either or.

That being said, librarians tend to purchase their books several ways:
#1 - reviews. They want to know that people will read the books they buy. If a book is popular, or getting good reviews, it may even prompt them to buy more than one copy of your book. In Canada, while librarians do read Kirkus, they also read our Choice and one other (sorry, I can't recall the name of it for the life of me) as their main choices of information.

#2 - their local bookseller. Every librarian has a favourite bookstore and a favourite bookseller (they love books - why would this be otherwise?). They know that a good bookstore stays afloat because the staff read voraciously and know the great books that work from the duds that wind up in the "used books for sale" bin.

#3 - publisher reps. Publishers know the value of having their books in libraries. Publisher's reps will do what they can to get your book in libraries. (Which usually involves #'s 1 & 2).

#4 - awards. If your book wins an award, such as YRCA, Red Cedar, GG or Silver Birch (a sampling of the few) you are pretty much guaranteed a certain number of sales. Libraries love award winners.

What can you do as an author to help? Make sure you publish with a company that has a great sales force. This is not the same as a distributor. A sales force will send out press releases with a book and then follow up to see if they can get you reviewed. They will talk your book up to the bookstores in locations other than where you are locally. The publisher will submit your book for awards (and most of the ones taken seriously *must* be submitted by the publisher), and the rep will make sure everyone knows when it wins.

And, if you're Canadian, as an author you can register your book for PLR. This will net you a nice little profit at the end of the year for nothing more than having your book in public libraries.

That's my two cents.

C. James

Just a couple of comments on library purchases in general:

• Most libraries are buying a higher proportion of paperbacks than they used to—particularly trade paperbacks—and rebinding them. This is not entirely surprising, given the shoddy quality of many hardback bindings these days (which are nothing more than perfect-bound trade paperbacks with hard covers glued on—look at any of the last three Harry Potters). Libraries still prefer to have hardbound books in the collection, but they're now "unbundling" the process—something that typically saves $2 or so per copy. Although the bulk of library purchases will remain hardbacks, that is softening a bit—particularly in fiction.
• There is one additional source that libraries look to for purchasing decisions: Patron requests. Focussed requests from patrons whose reliability is known to the purchasing librarians will almost always get results. That means not handing in a list of 20 books every month! It also means showing the librarians that one really does understand the purchasing process, and sticking to material within one's perceived expertise. For example, I wouldn't dream of making recommendations on, say, crafts; but the librarians pay a lot of attention to my recommendations on legal/contemporary affairs, writing, and speculative fiction.
• Reviews are important, but equally important is how a book fits into the library's existing collection. That's why libraries buy books like, to name some from a dead author, the last three Patrick O'Brien books—despite the substantial disdain for their quality (if I recall correctly, they were all in draft at O'Brien's death), they complete the series. Similarly, a book on (to pick an outlandish example… which someone will no doubt point out exists) Korean/Italian fusion cooking may get purchased to fill a perceived hole in the collection, even if it's not a very good book.
• With very rare exceptions, POD is not on the menu. There have been too many instances of the poor durability of the binding resulting in two or three circulations before being withdrawn for repair—even of hardback POD books (see the first point above).