Bookselling This Week: BTW Home Page

May 9, 2008

Trade Groups Call on Governors to Follow New York State's E-fairness Example
May 08, 2008 - Seven independent trade groups joined together this week to continue their efforts on behalf of e-fairness. In a letter to each of the governors in the 44 states other than New York that collect sales tax, the groups cited the Internet Sales Tax provision in the New York State budget -- which will require out-of-state merchants that have clear nexus in the state to collect and remit sales tax -- and asked state governors to follow New York's lead by clarifying their own existing sales tax laws.

More Day of Education Session Materials Now on BookWeb
May 08, 2008 - This week, materials relating to six more sessions at ABA's Day of Education at BookExpo America were made available to all bookstore members in PDF format on BookWeb.org. In an effort to be more ecologically responsible, ABA is providing all session "handouts" relating to this year's programming online rather than printing and collating them in a binder, which would then need to be shipped across the country.

LibraryThing to Feature BookSense.com Store Event Listings
May 08, 2008 - This week, BookSense.com announced that it will be providing LibraryThing, the popular cataloguing and social networking website for bibliophiles, with an events feed from all BookSense.com member stores. The events will be listed on LibraryThing Local, the place where LibraryThing's 406,000 or so members go to add their favorite bookstores, connect with friends, and keep track of interesting book-related events.

Booksellers Join Legal Challenge to Indiana Registration Law
May 08, 2008 - On Wednesday, May 7, booksellers joined book publishers, video and recording retailers, and an Indianapolis art museum in challenging a new Indiana law that requires any store that sells even a single "sexually explicit" book, magazine, video, or recording to register with the state and pay a $250 license fee. "Sexually explicit" is defined so broadly that the law could apply to bookstores that sell mainstream novels and other artistic works with sexual content as well as educational books about sexuality and sexual health.

Green Bagging It
May 08, 2008 - Indie booksellers are waging the green revolution on several fronts -- developing and expanding Green Living/Environmental sections, offering green sidelines, reducing waste, and increasing energy efficiency. Related green issues of particular interest, as evidenced by discussions at recent ABA Booksellers Forums, are how to reduce the use of merchandise bags and what to provide as an eco-friendly alternative. Several bookstores recently spoke to BTW about their creative, sustainable bag solutions.

Around Indie Bookstores
May 08, 2008 - The river's end bookstore to Celebrate 10th Anniversary; UConn Co-op Kids' Department Sports Whimsical, New Mural; Wooster Book Company Honored; Bookshop's Festival of Mystery a Rousing Success; New Jersey Bookstore on As the World Turns

Special Offer Discounts BEA Day Passes for Staff at ABA Member Stores
May 08, 2008 - This week, BookExpo America announced a special day pass rate for ABA member bookstores that would like to bring additional staff to the trade show in Los Angeles at the end of this month.

Last Call for Reservations for ABA Author Luncheon
May 08, 2008 - Monday, May 12, is the deadline for reservations for the ABA Author Luncheon at BookExpo America. Always a highlight of the show, the event, on Friday, May 30, at the Los Angeles Convention Center, is free and open exclusively to the owners and staff at stores with Book Sense.

ABACUS Help Available at BEA
May 07, 2008 - All ABA member stores can participate in the 2008 ABACUS Survey, now underway via a simple, confidential online form. For most booksellers, completing the easy-to-use ABACUS Survey form will take about an hour. For anyone with questions about the survey and how to use their individual store reports, David Walker, ABA's industry consultant, will be available at BookExpo America.

Last Booksellers Forum Focuses on Shop Local Efforts
May 07, 2008 - On Thursday, May 1, approximately 60 booksellers attended the ABA Forum held in conjunction with the New England Independent Booksellers Association in downtown Portsmouth, New Hampshire. ABA COO Oren Teicher and Senior Director of Editorial Content Dan Cullen attended the forum, where the day began with a presentation of the educational session "Booksellers at the Tipping Point: Leveraging Localism and Independence to Promote Your Store."

"Welcome to Hollywood" Tours & Reception
May 07, 2008 - ABA invites member booksellers to kick off their stay in Los Angeles for BookExpo America 2008 with fun activities on Wednesday afternoon, May 28. Special arrangements have been made with a local walking tour company, which has added a significant literary edge to its standard Hollywood Walking Tour, just for member booksellers (space is limited for this unique tour, so members are urged to sign up today). The association has also arranged a shuttle bus to take members for a special tour of the Getty Museum and Bookstore. There's also an alternative list of suggested activities. The afternoon will be capped with a "Welcome to Hollywood" Author Reception at the famed Egyptian Theatre.

Independent Coalitions Plan Regional Meetings to Grow Localism Movement
May 07, 2008 - In an effort to further expand the burgeoning localism movement, independent alliances will be gathering at regional meetings in various areas around the country to brainstorm and share ideas. Over the next two months, there will be regional gatherings in New Hampshire, Colorado, Massachusetts, and Michigan.

Booksellers School Registration Deadline Extended
May 07, 2008 - Prospective booksellers who are interested in participating in "Opening a Bookstore: Creating Foundations for Success," a school sponsored by ABA and facilitated by Paz & Associates at BookExpo America, now have until Wednesday, May 14, to register. The school program will run from Tuesday afternoon, May 27, through Thursday, May 29, at Hotel ABA, the Renaissance Hollywood, in Los Angeles. The school curriculum is right for anyone contemplating a career as a bookstore owner, or anyone working towards opening a bookstore or considering investing in one.

BEA at Night
May 07, 2008 - Evening and nighttime events for ABA member booksellers at this month's BookExpo America run the gamut, from the ABA/SCIBA "Welcome to Hollywood" Author Reception and ABA's "Celebration of Bookselling" to a "Celebration of Los Angeles Literary Life" hosted by Skylight Books and City Lights Publishers and a "39 Clues Party" thrown by Scholastic. For those who want to have fun while supporting a worthy cause, there's the Book Industry Benefit, featuring comedian Lewis Black, and "Novel and Memoir Beginnings," produced by the nonprofit WordTheatre and starring world-class actors.

Hotel ABA: Limited Number of Rooms Now Available
May 07, 2008 - Due to cancellations, a limited number of rooms have become available at Hotel ABA 2008, the Renaissance Hollywood. ABA member booksellers who would like to reserve a room should contact the association as soon as possible. ABA is also asking anyone with a reservation that is no longer needed to contact the association rather than cancel with the hotel, so the room remains in the Hotel ABA block and can be assigned to another member.

BTW News Briefs
May 07, 2008 - NYC Indie Booksellers Invited to Discuss New Alliance; Authors Guild Honors Howorth and Rubin

Booksellers Urged to Report Summons
May 06, 2008 - ABA members summoned in a civil action brought by Rev. Herman Douglas, Sr., who have not already contacted industry consultant David Walker are urged to do so.

Flying Pig, Kepler's Win 2008 Pannell Awards
May 06, 2008 - On Tuesday, May 6, the Women's National Book Association named Kepler's Books and Magazines in Menlo Park, California, and The Flying Pig Bookstore in Shelburne, Vermont, the winners of the 2008 Lucile Micheels Pannell Awards. Presented annually since 1983, the awards recognize a general bookstore and a specialty store that excel in bringing books and young people together. Honorable Mention was awarded to Vero Beach Book Center in Vero Beach, Florida.

For ABA Members: The Welcome Desk, Lounge, Bag Check & Shipping Center
May 06, 2008 - A Hotel ABA welcome desk and a lounge, bag check, and shipping center at the Los Angeles Convention -- all exclusively for ABA members -- will make life easier at this month's BookExpo America. Among the new features this year, member booksellers will be able to pick up their BEA show badges along with an exhibitors' guide and other information at the Hotel ABA Welcome Desk, and an ABA Discount Shipping Program FedEx Shipping Center will share space with a bag check sponsored by Harper Mass Market, across from the ABA Lounge at the L.A. Convention Center.

Users Groups to Share the Latest Developments, Tips & Tricks
May 06, 2008 - ABA's gift card and e-commerce programs will be the focus of staff-led users group meetings on Friday, May 30, at BookExpo America. Participants, and those who are new to each of the programs, are invited to join in meetings at the L.A. Convention Center, where they'll hear about the latest program developments, as well as have a chance to share tips and tricks with fellow booksellers. On Saturday, Above The Treeline staff will be conducting three sessions: a demo of new enhancements for current publisher subscribers and those who have never seen the product before and separate meetings for current retail users and prospective users.

PartnerShip Announces Additional Discounts for Online Processing
May 05, 2008 - PartnerShip, the firm that manages the ABA Discount Shipping Program, has announced a new five percent bonus discount for ABA members who process select FedEx Express shipments online. Simply by arranging a FedEx shipment online at FedEx.com or through any FedEx approved electronic shipping device, ABA members now receive an additional five percent discount on select shipments from FedEx.

Amazon.com to Start Collecting New York Sales Tax
May 02, 2008 - On May 2, Amazon.com, LLC, and Amazon Services, LLC, announced that as of June 1 they would begin collecting sales tax on sales to New York State residents. This decision comes even as Amazon.com pursues its legal action against New York State over its Internet Sales Tax provision.