write « Robin Writes

Why is our store different from others? Why is every indie bookstore different?

Well, there’s the “indie” part, of course; you know what that means. But a lot of other things factor in to the differences between indie bookstores.

Some stores offer new books only; some primarily stock used books, and some do a mixture of both. Some refuse self-published books, some require than an author have a major publisher, and some will only order stock from a distributor.

A few bookstores are located in free-standing buildings, but many are found in retail strip centers or even malls. Urban or suburban, but not often rural. City or small town. The possible combination is endless.

Most have events or clubs or special activities. Many offer reading areas, or carry other things such as toys or gift items.

Let me tell you what we offer at All on the Same Page:

A lot of used books. A lot.

90+ books by local authors.

A couple of comfy wingback chairs.

Coffee, and FREE cookies.

An extensive children’s section – $1 books!

A local author (or artist) in the store almost every Saturday afternoon.

A children’s storytime once a month.

A NEW BOOK CLUB starting next month!

Referral program – if someone tells us your name when he makes a purchase, YOU get a free book!

Online ordering for shipment or pick-up of our local authors’ books.

Special orders – we can find almost any book, new or used.

Monthly writers’ group and marketing seminars.

Kids’ summer writing contest!

Monthly hosting of the St. Louis Writers Guild Author Series

I might have missed something… But if there IS something I didn’t mention, and you think we should have, please tell me in the comments! And do stop by soon, if you’re in the St. Louis area – even just for a cup of coffee and a chat.

So, you’re a writer. Or an author. That means you do the putting words into sentences thingy and stringing those sentences into some sort of cohesive product. Yes, I read that previous sentence somewhere, once upon a time, and I borrowed it – with a little editing.

All of that means you should have basic writing skills. You should know how to spell nearly all words, or be able to look them up in a dictionary; you should know, at least approximately, where to put commas. You know, simple things.

Failing that, pick another line of work.

Too harsh? Let me show you some examples I’ve received via email or read in some self-published books or just online in general:

“I didn’t know that !” [um, a space before punctuation?]

“I’m anxious to here what you have to say about my book.” [watch your word usage]

“I’ll be interviewing author, John Smith.” [no, you’ll be interviewing author John Smith]

“Here’s an excerpt from an Author, and his Publisher says this is a great book.” [capitalize much?]

C’mon folks, these are basic sentences, nothing complicated at all. These things are taught in grade school. If you haven’t mastered spacing, homophones, commas, and capitalization, what makes you think you’re a writer? Or have a book worth reading?

Take a class, pick up a book, or for heaven’s sake, Google it! The sad thing is this – these are not “typos,” these things tell me that you have no clue what you’re doing.

So why would anyone want to read your work?

Sure, people make mistakes – you might even find some here. But not hear. And yes, there are such things as typos, wherein one accidentally types the wrong word or misspells something. If you’re prone to making errors such as those highlighted above, please, please at least pretend that you DON’T know what you’re doing and double-check everything. Please. You’re making people’s eyes hurt.