If you’re an author for a small publisher, trying to get your book into physical stores can be one of the most difficult tasks to accomplish. If you’re a POD author, the chances are next to impossible unless you deal with independent local bookstores which are generally more flexible and open to helping local authors. But as a rule, big chain stores won’t stock a POD book, mainly due to a lack of return capability and the poor (and mostly unfair) reputation of print-on-demand books.

But as I was saying, small independent bookstores are more open and flexible and more willing to take a little risk with an unknown author. While it is true that the majority of people (about 52%) buy books from large chain stores, here your book will be lost among thousands. In a small bookstore, on the other hand, the competition will be less because there are not so many books on the shelves. Of course, most people go to buy their books from big chain stores, hence their popularity.

If you want to market your book to bookstores, the first thing you need to do is locate them. You must also decide with what type of contact. You may want to contact bookstores by genre or geographic location. If you live in Los Angeles and your book is a mystery, for example, you may want to contact all of the mystery bookstores in your city first before moving to other geographic areas.

To locate bookstores you can consult:

* Directory of Yellow Pages in your city.

* Directory of Yellow Pages on the Internet.

*The ABA Bookstore Directory: [http://www.bookweb.org]

*The American Booktrade Directory (you can check it out at the library).

Another easy way to locate bookstores, but one that costs money, is to rent a mailing list. For $40, you can get a mailing list of the top 700 independent bookstores at http://www.bookmarket.com.

Once you have a list of bookstores you want to contact, there are a few guidelines to keep in mind before contacting their owners:

*Prepare an attractive brochure or media kit, which should contain your contact information, book information, author biography, a description of the book or blurb, quotes from reviews, and mention of any awards. If you don’t know how to put together a brochure or media kit, be sure to do some research online first. Amateur material will be thrown away, you can be sure of that.

*Some owners prefer a brochure, others a sample copy of the book. You should also include a personal (not generic!) letter introducing yourself and your book. Keep it short and professional, never brag about the great qualities of the book. The book must speak for itself. If you have quotes from rave reviews of your book, the place for them is your brochure or media kit. Many bookstore owners like handwritten letters or post-its. The ‘personal’ aspect of this will make you stand out. Of course, it is always a test, and the reality is that most of the material that the owners receive ends up in the trash. But the more personal and professional you are, the better your chances of success. Alan Beats of Borderland Books says: “Send a well-thought-out cover letter with a review copy. The quality of the cover letter is very important. If it’s misspelled or has grammatical errors, I won’t even look at the book. The letter will get strong points if it is clear that the person who wrote it investigated our store and if it is addressed to me directly.”

Some bookstore owners prefer to have the publisher send them sample copies rather than the author. Otherwise, these people won’t consider you a legitimate publisher and won’t stock your books.

*Do not call by phone. Bookstore owners are too busy to be bothered by desperate authors on the phone. “The worst thing we can do is get upset after you’ve sent it,” says Del Howison, owner of Dark Delicacies, a horror bookstore. “We are not a review service, so we will not give you a summary of what is good and bad. There are plenty of publishers out there that will do that for you.” Howison prefers a sample copy of the book rather than a brochure.

*Make sure your book is relevant to the store. If your book is a novel about witches or vampires, you’ll be out of luck with a Christian bookstore! Make sure your time and resources are not wasted.

*Keep track of your contacts and marketing efforts for future use for other books.

Although most marketers still insist that bookstores are not the best places to market your books, and while this may be true, one thing is for sure: there is nothing better than seeing your book on a bookstore shelf! !