Shelved?

Lots of people are talking about how the online book shopping experience has hurt independent bookstores.

For example, Toronto's Glad Day Bookstore is facing its end after decades of service as a pioneering store.

The Toronto Star reports that John Scythes, who bought the store from founder Jearld Moldenhauer in 1991, has put a sign on the counter inviting anyone interested in buying it to contact him. According to a staff member, he began looking about a month ago, reaching out first to friends and customers first.

Glad Day first opened in 1970, operating out of Moldenhauer’s apartment in downtown Toronto, and was a hub for the city’s burgeoning queer community. (Giovanni’s Room, the oldest gay bookstore in the U.S., opened in 1973.)

So, it was with particular concern that I developed Every Time I Think of You and its marketing campaign, as well as its sales availability, knowing it would be predominantly online. Sorry, indie stores, but I don't have the time to consignment-ship books this time around, nor do I have time for a book tour. It doesn't pay off.

Well, now you can buy it from Giovanni's Room, the historic LGBT bookstore in Philadelphia. It's the oldest bookstore in the USA, and it holds a particular place in my heart. Giovanni's Room hosted the first reading of PINS, my first novel, and it snowed that day in 1999, most of Philly's gay wrestling team came by, plus it was my birthday.

Anyway, there won't be an East Coast reading tour this time around. So buy my books and others through their website and they get a share of the sale. (Sure, it's still the big conglomo I published it with, but you get the idea.)

Every Time I Think of You, now at Giovanni's Room's online store!