How do libraries currently look for, select, and buy new books?
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1thorino
Having written a philosophical book with academic and public appeal (Philosophy of Happiness) and having founded a publishing enterprise (Palioxis Publishing) to undertake more publishing of this sort, I am wondering how libraries nowadays search for, select, and buy new books.
Is it really true that librarians focus, possibly even exclusively, on Ingram's Catalog or Bowker's Books in Print in the U.S. and equivalents in other parts of the world? Do you avoid paperbacks and prefer or even insist on casebound, eventually even sewn, editions? Do you only buy from wholesalers or do you also order directly from Amazon? Do you reject books that do not have cataloging information?
The answers to such questions have enormous impact on how small and even bigger publishers must gear themselves, including their economics. You comments are very much appreciated. - Martin Janello
Is it really true that librarians focus, possibly even exclusively, on Ingram's Catalog or Bowker's Books in Print in the U.S. and equivalents in other parts of the world? Do you avoid paperbacks and prefer or even insist on casebound, eventually even sewn, editions? Do you only buy from wholesalers or do you also order directly from Amazon? Do you reject books that do not have cataloging information?
The answers to such questions have enormous impact on how small and even bigger publishers must gear themselves, including their economics. You comments are very much appreciated. - Martin Janello
2DanieXJ
It really all depends. What's the library's budget like? Is it a Public or Academic?
If it is Public, how is the town set up? (Some towns don't let their libraries buy from Amazon and the like, others do). What do the people in the town read? (i.e. will more than one person actually take it out). How was it reviewed in publishers weekly and other such publications? What is it about? Is the consortium doing the buying or the individual library? Does the library have a rule about not buying self published stuff (I was surprised to learn that a few libraries do. i.e. they don't buy self published ever.)
As for your cataloging info question. Does the library/consortium have someone who can do original cataloging or just copy cataloging?
If it's Academic it's a whole different set of questions too.
I don't think that even in the US there is just one answer to all your questions, it really just all depends on so many different factors.
Also, as an aside, these days, even a lot of the hardbacks that are 'sewn' really actually aren't, they just look like they are.
If it is Public, how is the town set up? (Some towns don't let their libraries buy from Amazon and the like, others do). What do the people in the town read? (i.e. will more than one person actually take it out). How was it reviewed in publishers weekly and other such publications? What is it about? Is the consortium doing the buying or the individual library? Does the library have a rule about not buying self published stuff (I was surprised to learn that a few libraries do. i.e. they don't buy self published ever.)
As for your cataloging info question. Does the library/consortium have someone who can do original cataloging or just copy cataloging?
If it's Academic it's a whole different set of questions too.
I don't think that even in the US there is just one answer to all your questions, it really just all depends on so many different factors.
Also, as an aside, these days, even a lot of the hardbacks that are 'sewn' really actually aren't, they just look like they are.
3Cailiosa
I work at a mid-sized public library and we mostly discover new material through the various review magazines available, such as Kirkus, Publisher's Weekly, and Booklist (it's part of our collection development policy to purchase material that has been professionally reviewed, though we do make some exceptions). We do take patron and staff requests into consideration.
As the person in charge of selecting books for the Adult Non-Fiction collection, I order pretty much exclusively from Baker & Taylor, as it is much less of a hassle than ordering through Amazon (we do have that option available, though). We also have a rep come from a company twice per year from whom we can order books, though they're a bit more costly and not nearly as timely a process as ordering from B & T.
As our cataloger relies upon copy cataloging, an item has to have cataloging information available, which is why we aren't able to purchase most self-published titles.
Most of the new books I order are hardcover, though if I'm replacing a well-loved or missing item, I might go for a paperback edition (if it's just going to get stolen again, I might as well not have to pay as much to replace it). I have ordered the heavy-duty editions of some comic books (like Calvin & Hobbes and Peanuts) and Dave Pelzer's A Child Called It, as they do see a lot of use and I know it will be worth the extra cost.
As the person in charge of selecting books for the Adult Non-Fiction collection, I order pretty much exclusively from Baker & Taylor, as it is much less of a hassle than ordering through Amazon (we do have that option available, though). We also have a rep come from a company twice per year from whom we can order books, though they're a bit more costly and not nearly as timely a process as ordering from B & T.
As our cataloger relies upon copy cataloging, an item has to have cataloging information available, which is why we aren't able to purchase most self-published titles.
Most of the new books I order are hardcover, though if I'm replacing a well-loved or missing item, I might go for a paperback edition (if it's just going to get stolen again, I might as well not have to pay as much to replace it). I have ordered the heavy-duty editions of some comic books (like Calvin & Hobbes and Peanuts) and Dave Pelzer's A Child Called It, as they do see a lot of use and I know it will be worth the extra cost.
4HoldenCarver
(UK perspective here)
The library system I work for, buying self-published non-fiction is pretty much a non-starter.
We're a public library system, so what we buy has to be justified; that is, will it issue enough times to be worth the cost? Non-fiction is disadvantaged from the start as it costs more than fiction and circulates way less than fiction.
A lot of the time, we use patron requests as an indicator to what non-fiction we should purchase. I think we used to track pre-publication publicity and reviews more closely, but not so much these days, as it turns out that patrons notice the latter too and them putting requests in is a better guide to us spending our money to better use - the main difference is that patrons may have to wait a little longer for the books, but we don't spend our money on books that end up not issuing.
We only order from Amazon in exceptional circumstances. This is slightly outside my own sphere, but what I can say is that as far as I know, we've only ordered from Amazon in situations where we've accepted a patron request and the order from our normal suppliers has failed, in which case given we've made the commitment to the patron, we'll have a look at Amazon and see if they can supply.
The library system I work for, buying self-published non-fiction is pretty much a non-starter.
We're a public library system, so what we buy has to be justified; that is, will it issue enough times to be worth the cost? Non-fiction is disadvantaged from the start as it costs more than fiction and circulates way less than fiction.
A lot of the time, we use patron requests as an indicator to what non-fiction we should purchase. I think we used to track pre-publication publicity and reviews more closely, but not so much these days, as it turns out that patrons notice the latter too and them putting requests in is a better guide to us spending our money to better use - the main difference is that patrons may have to wait a little longer for the books, but we don't spend our money on books that end up not issuing.
We only order from Amazon in exceptional circumstances. This is slightly outside my own sphere, but what I can say is that as far as I know, we've only ordered from Amazon in situations where we've accepted a patron request and the order from our normal suppliers has failed, in which case given we've made the commitment to the patron, we'll have a look at Amazon and see if they can supply.
5thorino
Thank you so much for your detailed comments! These are very helpful for all non-traditionally published authors.
6Cynfelyn
> 4
I would hope that a library spending public money would put as little as possible, ideally none at all, in Amazon's direction.
Google Amazon UK tax avoidance. Substitute the country name of your choice.
Some of us still associate Barclays Bank with apartheid South Africa. Similarly it will take Nestlé a generation to live down marketing baby foods in developing countries, when they finally bite the bullet. Mention Amazon and I (and other tax payers thirty years younger than me) hear "tax avoiders".
I would hope that a library spending public money would put as little as possible, ideally none at all, in Amazon's direction.
Google Amazon UK tax avoidance. Substitute the country name of your choice.
Some of us still associate Barclays Bank with apartheid South Africa. Similarly it will take Nestlé a generation to live down marketing baby foods in developing countries, when they finally bite the bullet. Mention Amazon and I (and other tax payers thirty years younger than me) hear "tax avoiders".
7jjwilson61
Wouldn't it be illegal for any publicly owned corporation to not avoid taxes to the extent that it can. To do otherwise it could be sued by its shareholders for neglecting its fiduciary duty.
8ArthurRansome
This message has been deleted by its author.
9Cynfelyn
> 7
Possibly in the USA, but not in the UK. In September 2013 the London law firm Farrer & Co. gave the Tax Justice Network a legal opinion that fiduciary duty cannot be stretched that far in English law.
The opinion included: "It is not possible to construe a director's duty to promote the success of the company as construing a positive duty to avoid tax".
See the article in the Guardian and the Tax Research UK blog. For the view from the other side of the fence see for example the Financial Director and Slaughter & May.
Possibly in the USA, but not in the UK. In September 2013 the London law firm Farrer & Co. gave the Tax Justice Network a legal opinion that fiduciary duty cannot be stretched that far in English law.
The opinion included: "It is not possible to construe a director's duty to promote the success of the company as construing a positive duty to avoid tax".
See the article in the Guardian and the Tax Research UK blog. For the view from the other side of the fence see for example the Financial Director and Slaughter & May.
10thorino
I would suggest to consider that it is the government that allows tax planning. This is where all of the blame belongs. Would you personally not take advantage of lowering your tax bill if it were available to you?
Just consider whom you are punishing by not buying books from Amazon. Amazon does not care about your boycott. Nothing will change until your government revises its policies. However, the often struggling authors you are boycotting do care and are being unjustly made to suffer.
By the way, let's just get some facts straight that show just how gullible people are to believe every nonsense that jealous competitors or politicians feed them about big, bad Amazon:
The issue in the UK and in any other EU countries is about corporation tax. Reports that show with false outrage how little Amazon pays in corporate taxes always quote its huge sales numbers in the billions. However corporate tax is paid on PROFITS, not SALES. Because of its aggressive pricing and reinvestment of earnings IN CREATING GROWTH, Amazon has hardly any profits. See http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/may/16/amazon-tax-avoidance-profit...
Amazon already pays tax on SALES according to the requirements of every destination country. It charges and pays VAT of up to 27% in the EU. The VAT rate for books sold in Britain is 0%, so there is no tax that could be avoided here. The tax on digital books is currently 3% but will likely be increased to 20% by 2015. See http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/mar/23/george-osborne-tax-loophole-music-d....
If you really care about tax policy, you will be interested in the following article http://www.baekdal.com/opinion/the-other-side-of-amazons-apples-and-googles-tax-.... It points out that U.S. companies like Amazon are charged corporate taxes by multiple countries on their European profits (at least once in the EU and again in the US). Unless they can find some relief in Europe, they could not have a European presence under current tax schemes, at least if they make a profit in Europe. This is a problem that requires international cooperation. The U.S. Government currently refuses such cooperation. http://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/jul/14/us-tax-avoidance-google-amazon
As for the U.S., Amazon is subject to corporate tax, supports a uniform U.S. sales tax, and charges sales tax in the following U.S. states:
Arizona, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin.
Enough said.
Just consider whom you are punishing by not buying books from Amazon. Amazon does not care about your boycott. Nothing will change until your government revises its policies. However, the often struggling authors you are boycotting do care and are being unjustly made to suffer.
By the way, let's just get some facts straight that show just how gullible people are to believe every nonsense that jealous competitors or politicians feed them about big, bad Amazon:
The issue in the UK and in any other EU countries is about corporation tax. Reports that show with false outrage how little Amazon pays in corporate taxes always quote its huge sales numbers in the billions. However corporate tax is paid on PROFITS, not SALES. Because of its aggressive pricing and reinvestment of earnings IN CREATING GROWTH, Amazon has hardly any profits. See http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/may/16/amazon-tax-avoidance-profit...
Amazon already pays tax on SALES according to the requirements of every destination country. It charges and pays VAT of up to 27% in the EU. The VAT rate for books sold in Britain is 0%, so there is no tax that could be avoided here. The tax on digital books is currently 3% but will likely be increased to 20% by 2015. See http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/mar/23/george-osborne-tax-loophole-music-d....
If you really care about tax policy, you will be interested in the following article http://www.baekdal.com/opinion/the-other-side-of-amazons-apples-and-googles-tax-.... It points out that U.S. companies like Amazon are charged corporate taxes by multiple countries on their European profits (at least once in the EU and again in the US). Unless they can find some relief in Europe, they could not have a European presence under current tax schemes, at least if they make a profit in Europe. This is a problem that requires international cooperation. The U.S. Government currently refuses such cooperation. http://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/jul/14/us-tax-avoidance-google-amazon
As for the U.S., Amazon is subject to corporate tax, supports a uniform U.S. sales tax, and charges sales tax in the following U.S. states:
Arizona, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin.
Enough said.
11kqueue
I'm the director of a medium-sized Midwestern library and I do some of the non-fiction purchasing.
If you had asked me even three years ago, I would have said that we don't purchase self-published non-fiction unless it was written by a local author. My attitude has changed a lot recently, as the quality of self-published titles has improved, and also as established authors have begun to leave traditional publishing behind.
That being said, your book would still have to have some sort of appeal to my patrons, or fill a gap in my collection for me to consider it. We buy the majority of our materials through Baker & Taylor, but will purchase from Amazon if needed, or directly from the author as long as they are willing to send me an invoice and wait for a check. We don't do credit card purchases. Like others, we rely on reviews from Booklist, Publisher's Weekly, Kirkus and Library Journal to make purchasing decisions. Books published by University Presses are also considered favorably. As far as format goes, I'm not too picky and will take what I can get. If your book is of a limited run, and a hardback edition is very expensive, I probably won't buy it unless I think it will have mass appeal.
Sending me an e-mail with a synopsis of your book, why you think my patrons will like it, blurbs from reviewers and a cover image will usually get me to at least take a look at your book. Nothing pisses me off more than authors who try to trick me into buying a book by posing as a patron, and believe me, I get a couple of those e-mails every month. It goes something like "Dear Librarian, I just heard about the most wonderful book, "Flatulence and Disassociation in the 21st Century" by Harold J. Beans and I was hoping you would buy it for our library system...."
If you had asked me even three years ago, I would have said that we don't purchase self-published non-fiction unless it was written by a local author. My attitude has changed a lot recently, as the quality of self-published titles has improved, and also as established authors have begun to leave traditional publishing behind.
That being said, your book would still have to have some sort of appeal to my patrons, or fill a gap in my collection for me to consider it. We buy the majority of our materials through Baker & Taylor, but will purchase from Amazon if needed, or directly from the author as long as they are willing to send me an invoice and wait for a check. We don't do credit card purchases. Like others, we rely on reviews from Booklist, Publisher's Weekly, Kirkus and Library Journal to make purchasing decisions. Books published by University Presses are also considered favorably. As far as format goes, I'm not too picky and will take what I can get. If your book is of a limited run, and a hardback edition is very expensive, I probably won't buy it unless I think it will have mass appeal.
Sending me an e-mail with a synopsis of your book, why you think my patrons will like it, blurbs from reviewers and a cover image will usually get me to at least take a look at your book. Nothing pisses me off more than authors who try to trick me into buying a book by posing as a patron, and believe me, I get a couple of those e-mails every month. It goes something like "Dear Librarian, I just heard about the most wonderful book, "Flatulence and Disassociation in the 21st Century" by Harold J. Beans and I was hoping you would buy it for our library system...."
12thorino
kqueue: Thank you - and all the other librarians who have posted here - for the very instructive insights you have shared.
Are there forums where librarians share recommendations regarding the acquisition of particular books with one another? Is there a forum where courageous authors or independent publishers can post the type of information that is necessary to get purchasing librarians to consider a book for acquisition?
Are there forums where librarians share recommendations regarding the acquisition of particular books with one another? Is there a forum where courageous authors or independent publishers can post the type of information that is necessary to get purchasing librarians to consider a book for acquisition?
13AlanHJordan
Hi Cailiosa,
Thanks for your comments.
I'm curious about two things. First, do any of the reviews on Amazon influence your decision?
Second, when you buy a book from Amazon for your library, do they automatically calculate a discount, or do you buy the book at the online price?
Thanks
Alan
Thanks for your comments.
I'm curious about two things. First, do any of the reviews on Amazon influence your decision?
Second, when you buy a book from Amazon for your library, do they automatically calculate a discount, or do you buy the book at the online price?
Thanks
Alan
14Cailiosa
@AlanHJordan:
To be honest, I don't even look at Amazon reviews (unless it's something I'm considering purchasing for myself). I'm lucky to get through all of the review magazines we get in a timely manner before another batch of them arrives.
I've never personally ordered anything from Amazon, but I believe we don't get any sort of discount, not even on shipping, which is why with our tight budget, we've been encouraged to stick to B&T. The shipping costs for Amazon really add up quickly.
To be honest, I don't even look at Amazon reviews (unless it's something I'm considering purchasing for myself). I'm lucky to get through all of the review magazines we get in a timely manner before another batch of them arrives.
I've never personally ordered anything from Amazon, but I believe we don't get any sort of discount, not even on shipping, which is why with our tight budget, we've been encouraged to stick to B&T. The shipping costs for Amazon really add up quickly.
15Nycticebus
I work at a large academic library in the US. My purchasing is driven by: 1) patron requests (and yes, I will go out of my way to avoid any title or publishing house that is promoted by a fake patron or spam); 2) curricula, course reading lists and faculty publication reference lists; 3) reviews in Choice magazine, Library Journal, and in various literary and disciplinary journals and annual reviews; 4) lists, bibliographies and recommendations from Choice, RCL (Resources for College Libraries), and disciplinary publications.
Sometimes I will check an authors' publication history in WorldCat or scholar.google.com to see if they seem to have any profile in their discipline. I never look at Amazon reviews, although once or twice I have checked LT reviews. I prefer university presses and avoid self-publishers unless it is a special topic.
Most libraries of our size purchase through distributors (such as Baker&Taylor or YPB) that build in discounts and offer processing services (cataloging, labeling etc). Once in a while we must purchase a title outside the distributor, but that adds to our costs. As for format, these days I buy as much paperback as cloth, but paper also adds cost/labor, as we reinforce it with extra plastic film.
I recommend working to get the book reviewed by relevant scholarly journals (legit ones), although that can be difficult. Some authors "seed" a few libraries with free copies of their book with the thought that if it shows up in WorldCat then another library is more likely to purchase it; but some libraries do not accept such donations.
congratulations on your book!
Sometimes I will check an authors' publication history in WorldCat or scholar.google.com to see if they seem to have any profile in their discipline. I never look at Amazon reviews, although once or twice I have checked LT reviews. I prefer university presses and avoid self-publishers unless it is a special topic.
Most libraries of our size purchase through distributors (such as Baker&Taylor or YPB) that build in discounts and offer processing services (cataloging, labeling etc). Once in a while we must purchase a title outside the distributor, but that adds to our costs. As for format, these days I buy as much paperback as cloth, but paper also adds cost/labor, as we reinforce it with extra plastic film.
I recommend working to get the book reviewed by relevant scholarly journals (legit ones), although that can be difficult. Some authors "seed" a few libraries with free copies of their book with the thought that if it shows up in WorldCat then another library is more likely to purchase it; but some libraries do not accept such donations.
congratulations on your book!
16SmileyButton
As a self published author (with a niche book) I am interested to read your responses here. Don't forget, that many of us who self-publish do so on a shoe string and cannot necessarily afford the reviewing fees charged by some of the big names. Also, not having come from the publishing industry, many of us don't get the big name reviews simply because we didn't know to!! Also, some reviewers will only review a title prior to release (and have long response times).
When I showed my niche book to our local librarians, they ordered a copy for each of the city's 31 libraries. They did not have a problem ordering from createspace.
When I showed my niche book to our local librarians, they ordered a copy for each of the city's 31 libraries. They did not have a problem ordering from createspace.
