Entreprenuer - Interview with Scott Pack, book publishing insider

My article “The Writer as Entreprenuer” is published this month by Mslexia, the UK literary journal for women writers. Researching the article, I interviewed three self-published authors, Preethi Nair, Mark Blayney and Julie Noble as well as former Managing Buyer at Waterstone’s, the UK book chain, now Commercial Director of The Friday Project, the UK publisher of books derived from blogs. They shared with me masses of invaluable information about the process of self-publishing as well generously telling me their personal stories.

With the agreement of Mslexia and my interviewees, I am posting onto Fusion View my research for the article.

Today, I am posting below my email interview with Scott Pack - see below.

The other resources relating to my article for Mslexia are posted as follows:

Yesterday, Tue 10 July - Interview with Julie Noble, author of Talli’s Secret.
Thurs 12 July - Interview with Mark Blayney, author of Two Kinds of Silence
Fri 13 July - Podcast of my telephone interview with Preethi Nair, author of Gypsy Masala

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# What are bookshops looking for when they buy a book?

I can only really speak from the perspective of a big high street retailer. I spent 6 years as Buying Manager at Waterstone’s so know quite a bit about that but suspect you may get a different answer if you asked someone from a smaller chain, or even an individual bookseller in a store.

For me, the rule of thumb when selecting a book to buy was simply this: will our customers like it? The best buyers are able to spot the books that will appeal to their customers more often than not. Sometimes this is easy - an author with a proven track record in your stores is highly likely to sell well again. Where it becomes harder, and where the real skill comes in, is identifying a book from a new or unknown writer which your customers will love and thank you for recommending to them. This is nearly always a question of judgement.

Personally, I used two criteria when making a call on a new writer. Do they tell a good story and do they excite me with their writing? This doesn’t mean the book has to be all plot and exciting twists; the best storytellers are often more subtle than that and excite with the way they use language. The same criteria can be used for non-fiction but with an understanding regarding the contraints of the subject matter.

On a more practical note, and bearing in mind self-published authors, it is important the the production values of the book are high. It needs to look the part with an attractive jacket, in keeping with the genre, proper typesetting etc. Customers respond to books that look and feel nice, so why offer them anything else?

# How should an author approach a bookshop with their stock? (eg phone first? Just turn up? Who should they speak to?)

This seems so basic but is a very good question, and one that many authors are desperate to have answered. When we set up a consultancy service at The Friday Project a few months back, part of the thinking behind it was that small publishers and self-published authors might want to pick the brains of someone who had spent time in a key position at a major retailer. Fortunately this has proved to be the case and we are advising a number of clients on just this sort of thing. We even produced an information pack with top tips and I would be happy to pick out some of the key points that may be of use.

The most sensible approach to a major retailer is to email the relevant buyer upfront and ask them if you could send them a copy of your book. They would have to be extremely rude to say no, and that then gives you an opening. You send in your book with a covering letter that can say ‘As requested, here is a copy of ….’. That gets you in the door and, if the buyer does their job properly, and your book is any good, you can progress things from there.

When it comes to individual bookshops it is usually best to send in a copy of your book with a short covering letter. If you phone or turn up out of the blue you are almost guaranteed to do so at the worst possible time. Always send work for the attention of the manager.

# What should they emphasise in their sales pitch?

The book, the book, the book. What is it that makes your book worth reading? Highlight any passages you feel are particularly good. Chances are the person you give it to will not read the whole thing so make sure they read the best bits.

# Do you have any advice about how authors should present themselves in the sales pitch?

It is the book they need to worry about, the best sales pitches work long after any meeting or phone call as they rely on the buyer or bookseller actually reading the book itself. Don’t be too pushy, just ask the person to read a chunk of the book. That is all you can expect really.

# Are bookstores seeing an increase in self-published authors pitching direct?

They certainly are, although not as much as you would think. When I was at Waterstone’s I created a role called (rather boringly) Independent Publisher Coordinator. Their job was to deal with small publishers and self-published authors with a view to advising them on the best way to sell their books but also to spot any significant talent that we could promote and sell.

# Are bookstores generally open to authors selling their own books or do they prefer to deal with publisher’s sales reps?

Most major chains really can’t be bothered to deal with self-published authors directly and, as I write, the Independent Publisher Coordinator role at Waterstone’s is vacant. I hope they fill it as it was a great benefit to the business. Individual stores often feel likewise but most independent shops are happy to sell self-published books if they like them, and especially if the authors are local.

# What qualities and skills do you think an author needs to succeed in selling their own books?

Well, number one is to have written a bloody good book. Booksellers and head office buyers know a good book when they read one, regardless of who published it. I have read countless ‘huge’ new books from major publishers which cost a fortune that were simply not very good. Likewise, I have read lots of self-published work that should have been in the bestseller charts with a major publisher behind them. If you can win someone over with your writing then the job is almost done.

That aside, it helps to be confident and be prepared to self-publicise. Local press and media are great avenues to promote your work and if you have the right presentation skills they will be happy to accomodate you. It also helps to be friendly and accessible to your readers.

But do avoid being overly pushy. Don’t tell me your book is the best thing since Life Of Pi as it almost certainly isn’t. Do be polite and ask the buyer or shop for advice on how best to sell your book, they will usually be forthcoming even if they don’t select it to sell themselves.

# Are you seeing a trend towards self-publishing?

God yes, it is all over the place. Most of it is rubbish, let’s be honest, but more and more titles are proving to be genuinely good.

# You are now Commercial Director at The Friday Project. How does The Friday Project fit into the current publishing market? How might it help authors who may have a book that doesn’t quite fit into the traditional book publishing market?

In some ways we are highly cutting edge and innovative. In others we are remarkably traditional. So, rather than follow the usual author/agent submission route for sourcing our books we explore the internet for talent, and the internet increasingly comes to us. This gives us an almost infinite pool of writing and ideas to dip into. However, once we have found that talent, that great writer or great book, we then publish it in a very traditional way.

We pride ourselves on risk-taking and have already published many books that no one else would have dared to do. I would like to think that anyone outside of the mainstream could find a home with us. As previously mentioned, we also have a consultancy service which is mainly used by small publishers and self-published authors. We advise then on many areas but the most popular is how to get retailers to consider their books and hopefully to sell lots of them. So, we hope we are able to help authors both as publishers and advisors.

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Further resources:

The Friday Project

Scott Pack’s Blog

Mslexia

Pictures: thanks to waterstones.com and thefridayproject.co.uk