Borders to Close 200 Walden Outlets in January

Reprinted with permission of Publishers Weekly

By Jim Milliot -- Publishers Weekly, 11/5/2009 

Borders Group is accelerating the pace of closing stores in its Waldenbooks Specialty Retail group, announcing Thursday that it will shut approximately 200 outlets in January. The retailer has been steadily closing its mall-based stores since 2001 and will have about 130 mall stores after the downsizing is completed. Stores to be closed fall under the Waldenbooks, Borders Express and Borders Outlet names. Superstores are not part of the downsizing nor is the company’s mall kiosk business and airport stores.

Borders CEO Ron Marshall said that “through this right-sizing, we will reduce the number of stores with operating losses, reduce our overall rent expense and lease-adjusted leverage and generate cash flow through sales and working capital reductions.” The closing will result in the elimination of about 1,500 jobs, the majority of which, Borders said, are part-time positions.A company spokesperson said the stores slated for closing "will be fully stocked for the holidays," but will begin clearance sales in mid-December that will run into January. She had no comment on the total amount of sales generated by the stores targeted for closure.

The company also said it plans to integrate the remaining Walden stores into its superstore computer system to create a single platform. Despite attempts to merge the two operations in the past, Borders and Walden have always operated on separate systems, much to the frustration of publishers. The spokesperson said the company hopes to have the stores moved into superstores' inventory and point of sale system within the first quarter.


Commenting on the closing, Simon & Schuster CEO Carolyn Reidy said she is "never happy to see the number of outlets diminished." She added, however, that if closing the stores helps to strengthen Borders, the move is a positive one.

Free Book Contest for November!

November - This month we have TWO books in our giveaway package! The first is The Three-Legged Kitten and the second book is Stinky Little Scroungy. Both books are by Samuel Lopez. Read the reviews here and here. Note that these books are paperback. We will contact the winner on or about the first of the following month and request a mailing address. Again, we will NOT keep this address on file. Ready to enter? Click here!

Author Interview with Lorna Barrett

Our interview today is with New York Times best-selling author Lorna Barrett, author of the Booktown Mystery series. Today we're interviewing her on the newest book in the series, Bookplate Special.




FQ: Tricia Miles was wondering if there was “something in the Stoneham water supply causing relationships to crash and burn.” Do you think there was something in the water supply that made her take a closer look at Captain Grant Baker and do you think we’ll be seeing more of him?


I think (like my readers) she was just relieved not to have to deal with Sheriff Adams. The readers spoke, and I listened. And yes, Captain Baker will be back.


FQ: Unfortunately we didn’t get to know Pammy Fredericks very well before she ended up head first in a trash cart with only her worn jeans and pink Crocs sticking out. Were you thinking of someone you knew when you developed her fascinating, but annoying character? No names please.


Pammy isn't based on anyone I know. Most of my characters are composites. I'll take a trait from one person I know, and add another from someone else. Sometimes my women characters might have a trait that some man I know has/does--and vice-versa. And, as a matter of fact, the scuffed up pink Crocs are mine!


FQ: I had never heard of the term “freegan” before I read it in Bookplate Special. We’ve all heard of dumpster divers, but is this an increasing phenomenon in this day and age and where does the word “freegan” come from?


According to Wikipedia, "Freeganism is an anti-consumerist lifestyle whereby people employ alternative living strategies based on 'limited participation in the conventional economy and minimal consumption of resources'. The lifestyle involves salvaging discarded, unspoiled food from supermarket dumpsters, known as dumpster diving. Freegans salvage the food for political reasons, rather than out of need."


The term freegan comes from the words "Free" and "Vegan," although you don't have to be a vegan to be a freegan. (And my characters certainly aren't.)


I first heard about freegans while watching Oprah and was fascinated by them. (I've also seen the lifestyle featured on an episode of "The F Word" (cooking show).) I was already thinking about writing about a food pantry, and adding the freegans just seemed like a natural fit. (And may I add that my editor was very nervous about it until he read the manuscript.)


FQ: We didn’t see much of Miss Marple in the Tricia’s Haven’t Got a Clue bookstore this time. She must have been hiding out in the stacks taking a catnap.


Yes, she likes to take long naps in the front display window, where there's ample afternoon sun.


FQ: Are you a cat lover and do you have any cats of your own?


I'm definitely a cat lover and currently have four cats: Betsy, Bonnie, Chester and Fred. (You can see their pictures on my web site: http://www.lornabarrett.com/cats.html). It just seemed natural to add cats to my stories. (And, as it happens, my editor requested Tricia have a "store cat.")


FQ: As your Booktown Mystery series develops you have been adding more characters. How do you keep track of them and their little idiosyncrasies without getting lost?


I keep what I call the Booktown Bible, it's a computer document that lists all the people I've used in my stories, where they live, what they look like, and anything else I might need to use in a future book. That way I don't have to go searching through the books when my memory is faulty. (As it often is.) Even if I mention a character in passing and they don't show up in the current story, I note it in the Bible in case I need to use them again. It works out handy.


FQ: Tricia and her sister Angelica seem to be getting along much better now and Tricia was even seen at Angelica’s café, Booked for Lunch, waiting tables. You have a few of Angelica’s recipes in the back of the book. Your favorite and why?


My favorite of all the recipes I've mentioned in the books happens to be in Bookplate Special--the mini spinach quiches. I just love hot hors d'oeuvres, and try to find any excuse I can use to make (and eat) them. It doesn't hurt that my husband loves them, too, and encourages me in this.


FQ: You’re now, understandably, garnering a large fan base with this series, but what kind of book do you like to read when you have a few moments to relax?


Who has time to relax? Seriously, when I'm on deadline (which seems to be every three months), I tend to read non-fiction; decorating and cookbooks. When I'm not on deadline, I read a lot of manuscripts written by my friends (other published authors) either for critique or for a blurb.


FQ: Any favorite authors, genre, books?


These days I mostly read cozies, and I love books by Julie Hyzy, Leann Sweeney, Cleo Coyle, Mary Jane Maffini, Krista Davis, Jeff Cohen, Maggie Sefton, Kate Collins, Jennifer Stanley, Heather Webber, Hannah Dennison, and Sheila Connolly. When I want a chance of pace, I'll read books by Doranna Durgin, Kate Flora, and the always wonderful Julia Spencer-Fleming.


For more information on Bookplate Special, read the review at Feathered Quill Book Reviews. Also, please visit the author at http://www.lornabarrett.com/

Borders Offers "In-Stock Guarantee"

Reprinted with permission of Publishers Weekly

-- Publishers Weekly, 11/3/2009
Borders, which earlier in the year struggled to keep books in stock as it reduced inventory levels, has introduced a new holiday program under which the retailer will provide free shipping on any item listed on Borders.com that is not carried in a store where a customer is shopping. The goal of the “In-Stock Guarantee,” said Mike Edwards executive v-p and chief merchandising officer for Borders, “is to have every single customer leave our stores happy this holiday season.” There is no minimum price level to qualify for the free shipping and there are no per-customer limit on the number of items eligible for the program. The guarantee program will run through most of the holiday season, with December 16 as the final date items can be located and reach customers in time for Christmas. Items will be sent via the U.S. mail.

The guarantee applies only to Borders bricks and mortar stores, but there is also a free shipping program available at Borders.com. Generally, orders over $25 purchased on Borders.com will be shipped for free. Orders placed on the site before December 16 will reach customers in time for the holiday.

How Your Book Can Serve Your Information Business

Today we're happy to welcome Joel Orr of Joel Trains Authors. Joel "is a refugee from high-tech who has written 11 books, and now teaches others to write books--and to build businesses." He has graciously provided a post on using your book to help build your information business.

A book can serve your information business in a number of ways:

• Book sales. Well, duh! Of course you can write a book that people will buy. That's an important reason to do it. But it might not be the only one. If your book offers a solution to a problem-- "Get rid of eczema using natural remedies"; "Teach your parrot to talk"; "73 sample eulogies to inspire you"--it will be relatively easy for you to locate buyers, and you can publish an ebook for little or no cost.
  
• If you are a solo professional seeking to position yourself as an expert, a book can be your credential, your business card, your brochure, and your persistent link to buyers. Here's why: In our cultural, a book--meaning a physical book--is a mysterious cultural artifact. Write a book, and you are an author; authors automagically have authority. Poof! You're an expert.
  
• We don't throw away books. We discard gorgeous brochures, we trash thick booklets, and we pick our teeth with business cards; but we do not throw away books. A book hangs around, reminding its possessor of you, especially if your face and name are on it.
  
• Writing a book can be a transformative process. It requires you to nail things down, to get specific about stuff that may have been just floating in your consciousness. And if you do it right, the process can lead to the creation of a "backbone" of content for your information business.
  
• If you want to be a public speaker, a book gives you a leg up on your competition. A book is easier to promote than an idea; it can be a way to build your list.

Author Interview with Jerome Peterson

Our interview today is with Jerome Peterson, author of Thumb Flagging.

FQ: Okay, Mr. Peterson, fess up. How much of Thumb Flagging is autobiographical?

None.

FQ: Which adventures really happened to you, and where did you take artistic license?

Although I have had hitchhiking experience, Thumb Flagging is based on artistic license. Without it, true life rides would be too dull and monetous.

FQ: With every ride he takes, Jaybird learns a new life lesson. What do you hope readers learn from you book?

Just as music, painting, scuplture, and any other art form is judged objectively so it is with novels. Thumb Flagging is about levels of emotion and mental barriers. You get what you get depending on your belief system.

FQ: What life lessons did you personally learn from hitchhiking that continue to serve you to this day?

Extending vision daily to understand the nature of things, which include accepting people for what they do and who they are.

FQ: Tell us about looking “cross-eyed” at a situation? What exactly does that mean to you?

Looking "cross-eyed" is looking out of focus or like looking through a kalidoscope at a situation that a pilgrim would be suscpious of. It's also a synonom of "double vision." What this means to me is tired eyes that are pushing the envelope to a headache.

FQ: What do you think Jaybird would be doing today?

I think Jaybird would be still saving money so he could take Chloe to Ireland.

FQ: What project are you working on now? Do you have another book coming out?

A novel about overrated family members. Yes I do have another book coming out. The title of it is The Haunting of Andrew Sharpai. It is a book about human beings trying to be spiritual beings when after much conflict they realize they are simply spiritual beings trying to be human.

To learn more about Thumb Flagging, please read the review at: Feathered Quill Book Reviews.

Becoming a Successful Blogger

For this week's marketing column, we're happy to welcome Oliver Darraugh. Oliver is an experienced commentator and investor in the UK property market. He is the founder of Sell House Fast, the online leader for quick property sales in the UK. Oliver has some fantastic advice for "Becoming a Successful Blogger." Read on!

Prerequisites

To become a blogger, two specific things must be in place or the site would go nowhere. These include:

· Working a niche market, one the blogger has experience, education, or knowledge in

· Being responsive to readers by showing respect to build a connection and following

Making More Money

· The website needs an opt-in box but one designed properly. The blogger should consider a system that allows split testing campaigns to test results.

· A pop-up advertisement should be added to improve rates of opt-ins

· Bloggers working with affiliate ads or CPC should experiment with ad placement and make small changes to increase CTR percentage

· When selling eBooks or giving something away free, an image added only costs around $75 and can dramatically improve customer conversation rates

· Bloggers should give a premium for the opt-in list

· The opt-in box needs to be visible

· Instead of using blog “categories”, the blogger should list “topics” that are easy to navigate, making it easier for people to follow

· A free newsletter consisting of a single page should be given out free to encourage readers to sign up, improving conversions through opt-in forms

Bloggers need to understand these changes are uncomplicated but simple tweaks can have substantial results that take little time.

Stealing from Others

Bloggers can steal ideas from other bloggers. This means identifying working systems and then implementing them. This cuts back on wasted time trying to determine what works. “Stealing” does not mean illegal actions but using methods and ideas from others. Bloggers should look at other websites, finding established procedures that are successful, using existing concepts.

Importance of Color

Top online companies, such as Microsoft, use the color blue, as in the motif, a strategic move. Certain colors are noticed, speaking to readers. For instance, the color blue shows confidence, trust, and expertise, actually making a psychological impression. Choosing the right colors is imperative to success.

Important Note

While successful bloggers do not share all their secrets, they do help people with whom they work. Prospective employees understand the value of wearing the right type and color clothing, cologne or perfume, and attitude for a job interview. A blogger site is no different - deliberate decisions are needed to make a lasting impression.

Details Matter

Details matter, even small ones but unfortunately, people overlook them. Actions taken determine outcome so paying attention to details leads to appropriate decisions, getting a blogger’s site more visibility and the blogger more money.

Details Make Money

Small changes can lead to big money. Every small change adds up. All websites need to be tweaked and while not fun, the process is necessary for creating a business or promoting a product. A simple 1% increase in conversion rate is worth change. A site with 5,000 monthly visitors, equating to 600 subscribers annually matters. Selling a $24 eBook with a 2% conversion would increase income by $288 a year. One man with an online forum repositioned his AdSense ad from the sidebar to just beneath the header and for two minutes of work, his income increased $200 a month, a small but vital detail.