Buying books (as a consumer, not for the bookstore)
Tue, Sep. 28th, 2004 08:43 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
oyceterSort of a companion post to the previous one on being a reader, sort of a response to ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-syndicated.gif)
rilina's post.
My book buying process is probably unduly complicated -- I borrow things from the bookstore, I borrow books from the public libraries I live around, I borrow books from assorted friends, I buy books from library sales, from assorted used bookstores, from independent bookstores, from Big Chain bookstores, from Amazon, and from assorted online used bookstores. I also have, at any given time, about ten scraps of paper floating around with lists of books that looked interesting enough in bookstores to warrant further research on Amazon, lists of books that so-and-so on LJ recced, and lists of out of print books that I need to keep an eye out for.
I'm also going to have to adjust a little now since I won't be able to borrow things from the bookstore anymore, or have my employee's discount as an incentive.
The bookstore probably has the biggest impact on new book buys for me, since my discount added with the lower price for used books means I can usually buy books for about 70% of the cover price. In the past year I've probably bought more books from them than I would like, given my own budget. Most of these are books in a certain edition that I want (Harry Potter British editions, out of print hardcovers). I also buy a ton of mass markets there. And I would be lying if I didn't say that if given an option to buy a like new book used at the store or to buy it new, I would probably buy it used, because then I have more money to spend on more books. Also, a lot of the books I buy there are out of print. Or they're books that I would have never thought to pick up in a library or another bookstore; they're books I see on buying days with interesting titles, or books in sections I don't normally browse in (aka anything non-genre).
I also borrow a ton of books from the bookstore, because it's very spur of the moment, and because I'm in there, surrounded by books 8 hours a day, and I inevitably find something interesting that I might want to read but not necessarily own.
I've been borrowing less from assorted public libraries because the bookstore has no due date, and I am very good at racking up giant fines at libraries. I feel perfectly fine paying them, because I love libraries (even more than bookstores) -- I used to spend hours in them as a kid, and probably would not have grown up into such a reader and compulsive buyer of books today without them. Also, I like the community aspect. Plus, they're libraries and are dedicated toward knowledge and learning and reading, and all sorts of good stuff like that. And they have out of print stuff!
I have a very low threshhold for book borrowing -- if it's interesting, I pick it up. The only things restraining me from borrowing everything is that I have to try to finish in three to six weeks (for library books) and I can only borrow ten books at a time from the bookstore.
I also buy a lot of books. I spend about $20-60 a month on new books, and about $30 on used books. Hrm. I didn't actually realize I spent that much until I dug up my credit card statements. I usually have a rule (more a suggestion, really) that I only buy books that I've read, but I don't keep it very well... I buy books that have been recced often on the FL, I buy the newest releases of authors I like, I buy books with good covers, I buy books that mention Asian fantasy, etc. etc. Almost always, if I've borrowed a book and like it, it goes on my To Buy list. If I simply must have it this very second, I buy it new. Also, having worked around and on the buying team for the store for the past year or so, I generally have a pretty good idea of what comes in the store, how often we see it, and how fast it sells, if it's something I'm interested in. Obviously, I do not keep very close dibs on business books, or something, but I know that pretty much everything I enjoy reading doesn't show up very often. I personally like to think that this means I have lots of taste and everyone who owns those books never wants to sell them, or when they do, they get snatched up quickly, but that's just me ;).
Basically, anything that's a little older, I end up getting used or on the internet, often because I can never find it in new bookstores (why do the Big Chains only stock around two to three McKillip titles when I want Winter Rose in hardcover even though I already have the trade paper? Why? Also, why do the romance novels I want to read go out of print so fast?). Also, going to new bookstores gets a little boring after a while (read, every two weeks or so) because there are only so many new releases, and the stock stays pretty much the same from store to store. I like browsing used bookstores more because I like hunting for my long list of out of print books I want to read.
The really sad (or good) thing is that book purchases (new and used) this year have only gone up, probably due to being around tons of books all day and due to the multitude of recs on LJ. Also, now that I am fairly settled and am not moving from dorm to dorm every year, I feel like I can finally start building my library. Another bad thing is that I've pretty much filled up the two new bookshelves I got in May and have already started double-stacking the older bookshelves. Hrm. Need more wallspace for shelves.
Anyway. Processes my brain may go through while deciding to buy a book: Everyone's talking about a certain book on LJ. Or, only one person is, but I trust their taste, and they are highly recommending it. If I haven't heard of the author before, I will probably try to hunt it down in the library. If I have heard of the author and have heard the author recommended before (on LJ, in Amazon, on random print reviews), sometimes I just cave and buy it. If enough people are reading and talking about it on LJ or in real life whose taste I trust, I might just cave and buy it because I hate waiting. If I can stand the wait, I wait for a used copy to come in so I can borrow it, or, as mentioned, the library. If I like it then, I will probably end up buying the used copy. Or if I found it in the library and really like it and must have it this very second (read: Dorothy Dunnett), I hie myself to a new bookstore.
Or, author that I really like has a new book out. I debate, should I wait for it to come out in mass market? I used to not buy anything in hardcover, but now I am slowly succumbing to my own impatience. If it's, say, Neil Gaiman's new comic collection (1602 out in only a few days!), I pre-order from Amazon, or, in this case, decide that waiting for the mail to come in is just too long and that I must remember to get myself to a bookstore as soon as possible. Also, I think I might have to start buying McKilliip in hardcover now because the covers are too pretty. And if there is a sequel to Grand Tour, I also must get that in hardcover because then I will have a matching set! I am a total sucker for matching sets. If the author is not quite so dependable or liked, I wait a little more.
If a new book in a series I am reading comes out, I have to debate again whether I should get mass market or not. Right now, it's about fifty-fifty because, again, I am horribly impatient. Also, one of the factors is if the other books I have of the series are in hardcover or trade paper or mass market, because I am anal and I like to have things match. I will go out and buy a new set of a series I already have if it is nice and boxed, or if I like the new covers better, or if my old copies are too worn.
If I'm replacing worn out copies of books I already own, I am more tempted to buy them used and cheap, as long as they're in good condition. I also tend to buy more non-fiction used because academic books are really expensive, and because I usually don't think to browse for non-fiction in bookstores or on Amazon. Basically, if you can get me to stand in front of a section, I will probably manage to find at least five things that I want to buy that aren't on the To Buy list because I don't usually look for books in that section.
Books that don't get on the To Buy list and stay firmly on the To Borrow list usually are books recommended to me by people whose taste I don't quite trust yet (Amazon, various Amazon listmania lists) or are books whose back covers managed to make me go "Ooo, that could be interesting" or books that have somehow sunk into my subconscious merely by my working in a bookstore. Those are usually the books that I snag up at library sales or try to find in a library or a used bookstore. I don't want to spend too much money on a book that I'm not even sure I will like -- I need some combination of trust in the author, trust in the reccer, and interest in the blurb or the subject to get me to buy something I haven't read before.
But then, I also like supporting used bookstores. I obviously feel store loyalty to the place I work at. Plus, supporting used bookstores means that hopefully they won't go out of business, so I can go in and hunt for my out of print books. I try not to buy out of print books online unless I have been searching for what feels like forever and I really just want to read it... I like the process of hunting for the book and the little thrill you get when you find it finally, hidden in some stack miles from home.
I am not even going to start on the fact that I know that the Los Altos public library has more romances while the Mtn. View one has a better sci-fi selection, or that I save up lists of books to buy new when I know I am going to Borderlands up in SF, or that if Borders issues a discount, I will find something to buy even if I shouldn't.
In conclusion, everyone should give me gift certificates for assorted bookstores and Amazon ;).
rilina's post.My book buying process is probably unduly complicated -- I borrow things from the bookstore, I borrow books from the public libraries I live around, I borrow books from assorted friends, I buy books from library sales, from assorted used bookstores, from independent bookstores, from Big Chain bookstores, from Amazon, and from assorted online used bookstores. I also have, at any given time, about ten scraps of paper floating around with lists of books that looked interesting enough in bookstores to warrant further research on Amazon, lists of books that so-and-so on LJ recced, and lists of out of print books that I need to keep an eye out for.
I'm also going to have to adjust a little now since I won't be able to borrow things from the bookstore anymore, or have my employee's discount as an incentive.
The bookstore probably has the biggest impact on new book buys for me, since my discount added with the lower price for used books means I can usually buy books for about 70% of the cover price. In the past year I've probably bought more books from them than I would like, given my own budget. Most of these are books in a certain edition that I want (Harry Potter British editions, out of print hardcovers). I also buy a ton of mass markets there. And I would be lying if I didn't say that if given an option to buy a like new book used at the store or to buy it new, I would probably buy it used, because then I have more money to spend on more books. Also, a lot of the books I buy there are out of print. Or they're books that I would have never thought to pick up in a library or another bookstore; they're books I see on buying days with interesting titles, or books in sections I don't normally browse in (aka anything non-genre).
I also borrow a ton of books from the bookstore, because it's very spur of the moment, and because I'm in there, surrounded by books 8 hours a day, and I inevitably find something interesting that I might want to read but not necessarily own.
I've been borrowing less from assorted public libraries because the bookstore has no due date, and I am very good at racking up giant fines at libraries. I feel perfectly fine paying them, because I love libraries (even more than bookstores) -- I used to spend hours in them as a kid, and probably would not have grown up into such a reader and compulsive buyer of books today without them. Also, I like the community aspect. Plus, they're libraries and are dedicated toward knowledge and learning and reading, and all sorts of good stuff like that. And they have out of print stuff!
I have a very low threshhold for book borrowing -- if it's interesting, I pick it up. The only things restraining me from borrowing everything is that I have to try to finish in three to six weeks (for library books) and I can only borrow ten books at a time from the bookstore.
I also buy a lot of books. I spend about $20-60 a month on new books, and about $30 on used books. Hrm. I didn't actually realize I spent that much until I dug up my credit card statements. I usually have a rule (more a suggestion, really) that I only buy books that I've read, but I don't keep it very well... I buy books that have been recced often on the FL, I buy the newest releases of authors I like, I buy books with good covers, I buy books that mention Asian fantasy, etc. etc. Almost always, if I've borrowed a book and like it, it goes on my To Buy list. If I simply must have it this very second, I buy it new. Also, having worked around and on the buying team for the store for the past year or so, I generally have a pretty good idea of what comes in the store, how often we see it, and how fast it sells, if it's something I'm interested in. Obviously, I do not keep very close dibs on business books, or something, but I know that pretty much everything I enjoy reading doesn't show up very often. I personally like to think that this means I have lots of taste and everyone who owns those books never wants to sell them, or when they do, they get snatched up quickly, but that's just me ;).
Basically, anything that's a little older, I end up getting used or on the internet, often because I can never find it in new bookstores (why do the Big Chains only stock around two to three McKillip titles when I want Winter Rose in hardcover even though I already have the trade paper? Why? Also, why do the romance novels I want to read go out of print so fast?). Also, going to new bookstores gets a little boring after a while (read, every two weeks or so) because there are only so many new releases, and the stock stays pretty much the same from store to store. I like browsing used bookstores more because I like hunting for my long list of out of print books I want to read.
The really sad (or good) thing is that book purchases (new and used) this year have only gone up, probably due to being around tons of books all day and due to the multitude of recs on LJ. Also, now that I am fairly settled and am not moving from dorm to dorm every year, I feel like I can finally start building my library. Another bad thing is that I've pretty much filled up the two new bookshelves I got in May and have already started double-stacking the older bookshelves. Hrm. Need more wallspace for shelves.
Anyway. Processes my brain may go through while deciding to buy a book: Everyone's talking about a certain book on LJ. Or, only one person is, but I trust their taste, and they are highly recommending it. If I haven't heard of the author before, I will probably try to hunt it down in the library. If I have heard of the author and have heard the author recommended before (on LJ, in Amazon, on random print reviews), sometimes I just cave and buy it. If enough people are reading and talking about it on LJ or in real life whose taste I trust, I might just cave and buy it because I hate waiting. If I can stand the wait, I wait for a used copy to come in so I can borrow it, or, as mentioned, the library. If I like it then, I will probably end up buying the used copy. Or if I found it in the library and really like it and must have it this very second (read: Dorothy Dunnett), I hie myself to a new bookstore.
Or, author that I really like has a new book out. I debate, should I wait for it to come out in mass market? I used to not buy anything in hardcover, but now I am slowly succumbing to my own impatience. If it's, say, Neil Gaiman's new comic collection (1602 out in only a few days!), I pre-order from Amazon, or, in this case, decide that waiting for the mail to come in is just too long and that I must remember to get myself to a bookstore as soon as possible. Also, I think I might have to start buying McKilliip in hardcover now because the covers are too pretty. And if there is a sequel to Grand Tour, I also must get that in hardcover because then I will have a matching set! I am a total sucker for matching sets. If the author is not quite so dependable or liked, I wait a little more.
If a new book in a series I am reading comes out, I have to debate again whether I should get mass market or not. Right now, it's about fifty-fifty because, again, I am horribly impatient. Also, one of the factors is if the other books I have of the series are in hardcover or trade paper or mass market, because I am anal and I like to have things match. I will go out and buy a new set of a series I already have if it is nice and boxed, or if I like the new covers better, or if my old copies are too worn.
If I'm replacing worn out copies of books I already own, I am more tempted to buy them used and cheap, as long as they're in good condition. I also tend to buy more non-fiction used because academic books are really expensive, and because I usually don't think to browse for non-fiction in bookstores or on Amazon. Basically, if you can get me to stand in front of a section, I will probably manage to find at least five things that I want to buy that aren't on the To Buy list because I don't usually look for books in that section.
Books that don't get on the To Buy list and stay firmly on the To Borrow list usually are books recommended to me by people whose taste I don't quite trust yet (Amazon, various Amazon listmania lists) or are books whose back covers managed to make me go "Ooo, that could be interesting" or books that have somehow sunk into my subconscious merely by my working in a bookstore. Those are usually the books that I snag up at library sales or try to find in a library or a used bookstore. I don't want to spend too much money on a book that I'm not even sure I will like -- I need some combination of trust in the author, trust in the reccer, and interest in the blurb or the subject to get me to buy something I haven't read before.
But then, I also like supporting used bookstores. I obviously feel store loyalty to the place I work at. Plus, supporting used bookstores means that hopefully they won't go out of business, so I can go in and hunt for my out of print books. I try not to buy out of print books online unless I have been searching for what feels like forever and I really just want to read it... I like the process of hunting for the book and the little thrill you get when you find it finally, hidden in some stack miles from home.
I am not even going to start on the fact that I know that the Los Altos public library has more romances while the Mtn. View one has a better sci-fi selection, or that I save up lists of books to buy new when I know I am going to Borderlands up in SF, or that if Borders issues a discount, I will find something to buy even if I shouldn't.
In conclusion, everyone should give me gift certificates for assorted bookstores and Amazon ;).
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(no subject)
Tue, Sep. 28th, 2004 10:38 pm (UTC)Speaking of paperbacks, have you noticed how many of the political and anti-Bush books have come out in paperback, after being barely six months in hardcover, while Da Vinci Code remains staunchly hardcover. It's like it's an election year or something.
(no subject)
Tue, Sep. 28th, 2004 11:54 pm (UTC)Alas, Da Vinci Code. I still think it's funny that they re-issued Angels and Demons in hardcover. We still haven't had a copy of DVC make it to the shelves -- we see about one copy a week used and they just sell right off the display.
(no subject)
Wed, Sep. 29th, 2004 05:52 am (UTC)This probably annoys various fiction-writers of my acquaintance, but I really, really, really hate buying fiction I'll only read once. When in WA, I console myself by culling books ruthlessly--of course, this probably would annoy them too, because it means someone else out there isn't buying the book new. But what am I supposed to do, toss the thing in recycling? *sardonic look*
(no subject)
Wed, Sep. 29th, 2004 01:27 pm (UTC)Hee, I have a giant stack of non-fiction I need to get through. I read it a lot slower than fiction, so it sort of languishes on the side, unfortunately.
I even started feeling a little guilty a while back about offering free books on LJ, but what am I going to do with them? Plus, I like spreading around books that I enjoy.
(no subject)
Wed, Sep. 29th, 2004 07:46 am (UTC)In Canada, where I don’t have money (much – or at all as right now), I mostly use libraries, and buy used books in stores or library sales, and buy books in store if I really really want/need them.
Considering authors’ interests… I would consider them, all other things being equal, but given the amount of books I already have at home, I don’t want to own books I am not going to read.
(no subject)
Wed, Sep. 29th, 2004 01:32 pm (UTC)I would never buy hardcovers because they were too heavy for suitcases, and I would have to pick really carefully which ten or so paperbacks I wanted to keep for the year.
I like keeping the author in mind, but given the amount of money I spend on books already and the severe lack of space in my house, it's really hard to persuade myself to buy a new, untried author.
(no subject)
Wed, Sep. 29th, 2004 01:47 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Wed, Sep. 29th, 2004 01:57 pm (UTC)I did see a book of translated Chinese sci-fi in the library a few months ago, that I've been meaning to hunt down.
I think most of the fantasy/sci-fi-ish genre work in Chinese are largely the martial arts/wuxia books, which I guess are a sort of fantasy, and manga.