Readings, Rated
The Benefits and Faults of a Small Press Section
"So many possibilities!"
Franny the Bookstore Cat, here. If you’ll recall, I’m reporting in from the trenches of spending 40+ hours a week in a bookstore.
Lately, at my lovely workplace, we’ve been wondering about the possibility of starting a small press section. Wandering into Myopic, you see a nice little shelf for McSweeney’s goods. At Unabridged, there’s just about the prettiest row of the solid-color-spined Europa Editions. And if you’ve ever been to Europe, you know the joy of browsing books by publisher rather than genre or author.
One of the reasons this has been on my mind is the increasing number of small press titles coming into our store. I’ve been trying to keep a close eye on new releases that don’t show up in major publisher catalogs: things distributed by Small Press Distribution, or not at all. I know of a healthy handful of people who can spot these titles on the fiction wall by their size and well-designed spines, but I’m wondering if it might not benefit the books to be separated out into a Small Press section. That way people who love Dalkey Archive, but aren’t familiar with Tarpaulin Sky can find similar books that much easier.
There are a few problems with this idea though, and some logistics to be worked out.
#1: Would sorting these books out into their own section increase or decrease the likelihood of a customer (who’s not particularly interested in supporting small presses) taking a chance on these books?
#2: Where should the line be drawn? Obviously, fledgling and limited edition presses (like Orange Alert or Green Lantern) would be placed in this section, but what’s the upper limit? Is a press like Soft Skull too big? Dzanc? Melville House? Those three presses all have wider distribution, making them more likely to be ordered to more bookstores. However, it seems each of these publishers are all still on the small side with very easily recognizable styles, not interested in forcing out bestsellers, but in making available books that will engage a more specific audience.
#3: Once this shelf is constructed, should all of the books of each press be placed in small clumps together? Or should they be alphabetical by author in the hopes people might make discoveries by exploring the whole rack?
Would you be interested in such a section? This is a project I’m excited about, but I want feedback from like-minded people to kick it off. Speak, and Franny will make your desires fact.
– Franny the Bookstore Cat
The small press section at Powell’s in Portland is totally glorious. Dzanc is definitely included, but not folks as established as Dalkey or Soft Skull, I don’t think. You should ask Kevin Sampsell what criteria they use for categorization.
Ya, Powell’s is amazing. The section is also huge. I think that helps.
I think it’s good. If it promotes instead of marginalizing.
This is a hard question. I want more time to think.
In general.
Sadly, I have yet to visit the Powell’s in Portland, Tim. Maybe I need to make a pilgrimage, but then I’d have to get an escort, because they don’t allow cats on planes if they’re not in a carrier.
I will indeed ask Kevin about the criteria, though; that seems more feasible for the time being.
Yes, Zach, I also need more time to think about this, but I feel like the shelf would just be so darn pretty, how could people not be drawn to it? Right? How is it possible that people, judging only by cover, would want to read the book with the airbrushed picture of the little girl looking at her feet instead of, say, the sepia-stained watercolor whiskey glass of Mary Miller’s Big World? Am I right? The more I think about it, it’s nothing like putting baby in a corner. I’m puttin’ baby on a stage.