All the bookish corners of the internet are buzzing about Amazon’s book sale day starting three days before Independent Bookstore Day, April 23 and April 26, respectively.
Considering Amazon has been trying to put all bookstores out of business since they opened their virtual doors about 25 years ago, this timing was no coincidence.
As expected, the announcement reignited the debate over how to support indie authors while making value-based consumer choices.
Remember that the book publishing industry is a raging dumpster fire that caters to large publishers and big booksellers. Small authors and small bookshops are trying to work within a system that wants them to fail and readers are in the middle.
Here are some options to help you navigate all that.
And as I tell my yoga students, take what you need, leave what you don’t.
On Amazon Book Sale Day: April 23
- Only purchase books from indie authors who are exclusive to Amazon or consider Amazon to be their preferred retailer
- Skip Amazon completely and buy direct from the author
- Buy books from your favorite indie bookstore three days early
- Don’t buy anything and borrow a book from your library
- Don’t buy anything and wait until Indie Bookstore Day
On Indie Bookstore Day: April 26
- Buy traditionally published books from your favorite indie bookstore
- Buy self-published books from your favorite indie bookstore.
- Place an order for your favorite indie author through your favorite indie bookstore
- Use Bookshop.org and shop using an indie bookstore’s affiliate page
How to Buy my Books this Week
I suck at marketing but just a heads up that two of my books are already on sale for Earth Month.
But for this week specifically:
- Buy ebooks and paperbacks through my website
- Buy my ebooks at EdenBooks.com, a small woman-owned bookstore
- Buy paperbacks through Bookshop.org
