Upcoming Publications: July/August 2008
- Thread starter Rosalind
- Start date
Easily? Maybe.
Cost-effective? Profitable? Maybe not.
I'm sure S & S UK has costed this out. Titan UK used to do UK editions once upon a time, but there was still a time lag. These days, most UK paperbacks are probably printed in Asia, so the shipping problems would still be there.
Well, as I said, there ARE ways to do it.
During the 80s, I tried out several strategies to make sure I got my ST books on time. From US penpals posting them to me (in exchange for me sending them something they needed), various shops doing special orders via airfreight (some were more pedantic about making sure they never missed a title), shopping online at Amazon US, etc. - till I settled on what worked best.
I now always have my ST books within hours of the US. It's only my reading that's fallen behind. Too much time on the 'Net, and no need to commute to work any more (I'm now walking distance from work, and lost my three to four hours of precious daily reading time).
None of the bookshops I've asked, from chains to independents, (and that includes Forbidden Planet) have agreed to do a special shipping because it isn't justifiable in terms of cost. Where I live in London, there just aren't enough ST readers to make it worth their while.
Go to a comics specialist store (not a book chain) that imports their weekly comics from Diamond. Get friendly with the manager. Pocket ST novels can be included in the orderpak and can be ordered in advance just like any comic. I don't mean special shipping via S&S, I mean order as if it's a comic thru Diamond. They can even order one copy.
Sometimes a shop can be reluctant to add things like action figures to their monthly Diamond comics orders because it can slow down their passage through customs, but MMPBs are usually no problem.
I'm surprised that Forbidden Planet aren't getting a small amount of airfreighted ST novels for their pre-orders. Maybe sales slipped and they only get the slow shipping from S&S now? People used to say they got their ST from there in a timely manner.
Baerbel usually seems to have her books close to release date. What's her current strategy?
Forbidden Planet's ST section has gone down in late. Last time i checked the manchester one the latest novel i found was Death In Winter. You in the UK then Therin?
nope, he's not.
Nope, Sydney. But Forbidden Planet UK always sounded like they used to be on top of things. Are you sure there aren't fans who have standing orders? Those books never go on the open shelves. Does UK still do those big annual fan-run SF media conventions? UK used to have a very large ST contingent.
I'm sure FB would use the Diamond Orderpak to get at least some science fiction media stuff, to beat out the chains waiting for sea-freight batches to arrive. I'd definitely try chatting to the manager again. Does he, perhaps, require a group of UK fans to order together from Diamond to make it worth his while? (Rally some fellow UKers via PM here.)
Where's your closest comics specialist? Somewhere that gets US releases the week of their US release? They are the ones who use Diamond distribution.
Do you have Borders? When Borders opened here in Sydney a few years ago, the management were hopeful of beating Sydney fixtures for SF media tie-ins, such as Galaxy Bookshop and Kings Comics, and were offering to "special order" for me - from Amazon US - and claimed their bulk order would beat my own solo online purchase.
I'm aware of that thanks. I'm saying I usually get tpbs earlier than I did this time.
Forbidden Planet in Manchester may have gone downhill, but unless you were in shortly after Death in Winter was out - you're talking hogwash. The last time I was in, about three weeks ago, they had several of the Terok Nor novels, Forged in Fire, the SCE omnibuses and the TNG Relaunch novels. And I go in that shop on a regular basis, just to waste time whilst waiting for my bus - and they've never been particularly behind on the Trek novels, they get them as soon as they're out in the UK (admittedly, they did used to get them closer to the US release dates, but like Amazon they seem to have stopped that approach).
And, I believe that Baerbell either orders via Amazon or orders through her local comic shop. I know I've checked with her in the past whether she's recieved a novel when I've ordered it too.
I don't check it that often (im at Uni in manc so only there 3/4 of the year, most of the time i live in yarmouth where WHSmiths is the only bookshop). The last time i was in there was about 3 months ago i think, generally i goto Waterstones or when i'm home online.
There is a few comic shops nearby the forbidden planet, not sure what their standing on books are as they don't sell them. The one i usually puruse round is Travelling Man (if you know it Tenmei?)
FP UK is the closest comic specialist. Next time I'm down there, I'll ask again, but they now tend to get their stuff as and when it comes.
Travelling Man is the comic shop I generally use and where I have my standing order for my comics. I'm pretty friendly with the main guy and girl who work there, but I'm not sure about their standing on book orders either - and Waterstones (Arndale) generally get books in pretty quickly, sometimes sooner than FP at the moment.
I live near Manchester so I go through Picadilly Gardens on my way to University every day - it's easy to pop into FP or TM if I've just missed one bus and I've got 20 minutes to wait for the next one.
I do something similar. I put everything on my wish list. And I check that every few says. Once the button changes from "Pre-order this item" to "Add to cart" I know I can start checking out the book stores to find it on the shelf. When I get it I take it off my wish list.
Okay, so it's still worth chatting to the manager, or the comic shops. But you'd be pre-ordering US airfreighted books through the monthly Diamond catalogs and you wouldn't be able to change your mind after it arrives. I'm thinking that shops getting left with higher-priced stock when the regular, official sea-freight stock is only a month away, is the main problem.
Here, in Oz, Galaxy has two months leeway to sell all the airfreighted copies before the official, cheaper S&S Australia stock arrives by boat.
