Post Viewed Most in 2013

Loreen Niewenhuis is an author, adventurer, and Great Lakes speaker. She has completed a trilogy of 1,000-mile adventures exploring the Great Lakes and has written three books about the Great Lakes [A 1,000-Mile Walk on the Beach *a Heartland Indie Bestseller*, A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Walk *winner of the Great Lakes Great Reads Award*, and A 1,000-Mile Great Lakes Island Adventure]. To learn more about her work, or to book her as a speaker, go to http://LakeTrek.com

Thank you all for reading my blog! It has now surpassed 150,000 page views!

Here is the most viewed post from 2013. It's unusual because it is a "think piece" instead of my usual photo essay. This post explores  the way Amazon.com conducts business when it comes to selling books. And it urges readers to think about where they buy their books:

Amazon is Evil

If you know me or my books, if you've met up with me on the lakeshore or hiking path or while I'm touring with one of my books, our conversation may have touched on the future of books or the importance of indie bookstores in our discussion of the Great Lakes. As an adventurer who has explored over 2,000 miles of the Great Lakes shoreline, I love talking to people about these vast waters encircling my home state of Michigan. 

And as an author (and avid reader), "bookish" topics 
are important to me, too.

I am encouraged in these conversations as more and more people are coming to understand the value of our Great Lakes and the importance of independent bookstores. These lakes are essential to life in the Midwest (almost 40 million people get their drinking water from them), and indie bookstores are vital to keeping literature rich and diverse. 

The Great Lakes nurture life, recreation, commerce, industry.

Our indie bookstores nurture our communities, pay into the tax base, are gathering places for discussion, and play an important role in launching new writers. 

Am I pushing the parallel too far? I don't think so.

People ask me how I got my book to be on the shelves of Barnes & Noble stores (B&N). The answer is that indie bookstores sold so many copies (my first book was on the Heartland Indie Bestseller List for several weeks in 2011) that B&N began stocking it. B&N will stock what SELLS because the big chain is interested in SELLING. They call their workers BOOKSELLERS. There's nothing inherently wrong with that business model, but the primary focus of this model is to stock books that will sell, not seek to enrich the book world by what they stock.

Indie bookstores want to sell books, too, but the people who own and work at these stores also tend to LOVE books. 

I was at Saturn Booksellers in Gaylord, Michigan on my book tour this month, and doing book reviews to post in the store and online was part of the job description for the workers there. READING was part of the job. I've seen listings for postiions in indie bookstores that read, in part, "...candidate must be well read..." (in an ad for a job at Women & Children First Bookstore, Chicago). I've seen indie bookstore people greet patrons with exciting news about a new book they know the patron will love because they've had long conversations with that person about books. Book conversations. 

Now, I titled this essay "Amazon is Evil" and haven't even gotten around to talking about Amazon.com yet. Let me first say that all the good things that the indies give to their communities (and even B&N supplies on some level), Amazon does not provide. They will not donate books for a fundraiser in your community or pay into the tax base. They don't provide jobs (in general) near you. 

But beyond being contrary to the smart-headed "Buy Local Because the Money Stays in Your Community" philosophy, Amazon.com has pushed their business model toward one of being a predatory marketer ("scan the barcode in the store and see what Amazon sells it for" sales pitching), a bully toward suppliers including publishers (they delisted some publisher's books if the publisher dared to disagree with Amazon's discount pricing [article HERE in New York Times), and -- Amazon's most recent move -- they've purchased GoodReads.com (article HERE) in order to market directly to the reader using GoodReads data and to push readers toward the Kindle.

From the New York Times:  

Amazon.com Inc., with a market capitalization of $117.48 billion, is the largest company in the Internet and Catalog Retailing sector. 

I don't have a problem with big businesses, but I do have a problem with a big business that actively tries to crush small businesses or actively bullies other sectors of the publishing world.

The consumer has the real power in this equation, though, because it is YOUR dollar that these businesses are competing for. 

I released my new book, 

A 1,000-MILE GREAT LAKES WALK, 

to select indie bookstores 8 weeks prior to putting it into distribution  (where Amazon.com can access and sell it). If you're going to purchase my book -- or any book -- I encourage you to think about the importance of indie bookstores.

Go HERE for a complete listing of indie stores that have the early release edition of my book.

And thank you for your 

time, thoughtful consideration, and comments.

WHERE You Buy Your Books is Important

I've blogged about the importance of independent bookstores, most recently here. And I've blogged about the indie bookstores visited while on my Great Lakes Adventures. I've even mentioned bookstores encountered when I'm not hiking, like my recent visit to Chicago's awesome Sandmeyer's Bookstore on Printer's Row. 

For a time, there were predictions that most bookstores would close due to the rise of the eBook (the sales of which have now gone flat) and the ease of purchasing books online. 

These predictions were wrong.

Shelf Awareness reports:

"Some 43 independent bookstores opened in 20 states during 2013, including a dozen established stores purchased by new owners and six branches of existing businesses."

(full report here)

Many established authors recognize the role indie bookstores have played in getting their books into the hands of readers. Some of those authors are now giving back. 

James Patterson, the wildly successful author of thrillers and, more recently, children's books, has pledged to give $1 million to indie bookstores. 

James Patterson

These grants are now being distributed. Read all about it here. 

And Sherman Alexie proposed that authors work at indie bookstores on Small Business Saturday. 

Sherman Alexie, the man with the plan

His plan:

"We book nerds will become booksellers. We will make recommendations. We will practice nepotism and urge readers to buy multiple copies of our friends' books. Maybe you'll sign and sell books of your own in the process. I think the collective results could be mind-boggling (maybe even world-changing)."

Many authors partnered with indie bookstores that day.

I consider my relationship 
with indie bookstores to be a 
lifetime partnership. 

As an avid reader, I cannot imagine a world without bookstores. They are places of wonder for me, places to discover new works by favorite authors, or discover a new author who will become a favorite. I value the expertise of indie booksellers and trust that when they put a book in my hands, it will be a wonderful read. 

As a writer, I partner with many indie bookstores to purchase the books I need to illuminate the history, geology, and other aspects of our Great Lakes. I absorb this information and then weave it into my books about my Great Lakes Adventures.

As a published author, I am honored that so many indie bookstores have placed my books on their shelves and into the hands of readers. As a thank you to the indies, I pre-released my second book to a dozen stores so they would have it before Amazon.com. (Details here.)

Author and Indie Bookstore Partner, me, Loreen Niewenhuis

Remember:  Where you buy your books is important. Support your local indie bookstore, or find one in your region here.

And if you are a customer of Amazon.com, consider this article before you order from them in the future.