Big Bearded Update #118
Two weeks really seem to shoot by right now, but flowers coming out really help lift the spirits.
The commute has got far more interesting now that I can see the seasons changing and I've seen a buzzard and kestrel on the trip to and from work.
What I've been up to these past two weeks
Over the last fortnight I've completely transferred all the information and posts that were on the Indie Publisher blog over to the Big Bearded Bookseller blog and got the links and menu system up and working again.
I've also added a redirect so that if you go to any old links to the Indie Publisher site it redirects to the Big Bearded Bookseller blog.
There are currently 38 directory pages, some have Publisher Profile sections on them where the publisher has sent in some answers to a standard set of questions that any publisher can answer and will more than likely prompt me to make a directory page for them that little bit quicker than normal.
I've also made a start on doing the same with the Indie Bookshop blog so that everything is on Big Bearded Bookseller.
I always think I've not done much over the last two weeks when I sit down to write this as the time always just seems so full of work, but then I realise that if nothing else I've read and reviewed several books, and since I see myself as a book blogger that's enough. Anything else is just icing on the cake.
Bookshops added to the blog
No new posts this last fortnight.
Publishers added to the blog
No new posts this last fortnight.
Book Reviews
Unravelling Women's Art (11/05/24)
Woven Song (13/05/24)
Dandelion (13/05/24)
Houses of the Unholy (18/05/24)
A Court of Thorns and Roses (20/05/24)
How to Read a Tree (23/05/24)
Other blog posts
Gaming (19/05/24)
Book Lists (19/05/24)
Waterstones Children's Book Prize (19/05/24)
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction (19/05/24)
Short Story a Day(ish) (21/05/24)
20 Books of Summer 2024 (21/05/24)
Bauhaus Manifesto (23/05/24)
Questions for Independent Bookshops
As part of the development of the individual posts for each bookshop on the list I will be sending out the questions that I asked on the ‘Browse A Bookshop’ feature to all bookshops on the list.Â
I’m going to rehash the pages of the bookshops who’ve already responded to fit into the new format and get a good start on the new phase of the blog.
I’ll also be prioritising developing posts for bookshops who send some answers back as this really makes my job easier.
So if you want to go to the top of the pile please email (bigbeardedbookseller@gmail.com) me at least six answers to these following questions, or you could use the Google form:
Question selection
How did you come up with the name of your bookshop?
Who are you? Owns the bookshop? Bit of a bio and pics, please 🙂
Why a bookshop? What made you want to get into bookselling?
General background/history of the shop please
Do you stock a variety of genres or do you specialise?
Do you mainly sell new or second-hand books?
What makes your bookshop special?
What’s the hardest thing about being a bookseller?
What’s the best thing about being a bookseller?
What’s the most surprising thing about being a bookseller?
What are the goals for your bookshop?
Do you think owning a bookshop has changed your life? How?
What book do you wish would sell better?
What little-known book do you think is underrated?
What well-known book do you think is overrated?
What is your preferred reading genre?
Describe your store in three words.
What book is your greatest treasure? Why?
What was your favourite childhood book? Why?
If you could invite any author for a book signing at your shop, who would you choose?
Where do you think the biggest change in book publishing will come from?
How do you reach potential readers/customers?
How do you choose the books you stock?
Do you have a favourite publisher? Why?
Name three books on your TBR.
What are you reading at the moment?
What’s the greatest lesson you’ve learned from selling books?
What music, if any, do you play in your shop? Why?
What is the best book-related gift you’ve ever received?
What is the weirdest thing a customer has ever asked for?
What do you get up to in a normal bookselling day?
What is the nicest thing a customer has ever said to you?
and could you send stores details; social media links, website, address, and lots of photos!
What's happening in the next two weeks
The next week should see the completion of the Indie Bookshop information and post transfer to Big Bearded Bookshop as there were fewer posts on this to do.
I'll also be exploring another tarot deck over the next few weeks, this time it will be 'Tarot of the Witches' by Fergus Hall which was featured in the film 'Live and Let Die'.
I'll also be reading the short list for the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize over the next couple of weeks but there will be no clues anywhere, not on Goodreads or the blog, as to what these books are, and once the pubic announcement is made I'll get all the reviews public, so it may seem that I'm reading less than usual but you'll just have to wait.
I've also started (in the process of starting) two new reading challenges to keep my reading on track.
The first is a Short Story a Day(ish) challenge, realised that I've got so many short story collections/anthologies and since I'm in the process of reading and releasing physical books at the moment to get space for more art books I thought this would be a good way to make me read some of these.
The first collection I'm going to read is Twiggy Woman by Oein DeBhairduin, ghost tales from the Travelling community published by Skein Press.
The next challenge is 20 Books of Summer 2024 where I choose 20 books to read between the 1st of June and the 1st of September. This is the tenth year of the challenge but only the second time I've though about joining in, you can read more about it on Cathy's blog.
Both of these projects have pinned posts where you can follow the progress of each of them.
If anyone is going to Games Expo in Birmingham at the end of next week you will find me there as part of the Waterstones contingent, why not come up and say hi!
Supporting this project
One of the main way of supporting me in these projects is to follow me on one of my social media accounts and like/boost as this means people are seeing what I'm putting out there.
If you want you can always subscribe or donate on my Ko-Fi to help me pay for tattoos, coffee, and books (the essentials!)
To see what I'm up to and for links to social media pop across to www.bigbeardedbookseller.com