Industry & Advocacy News
October 13, 2016
It’s almost that time of the year again—Indies First Day. On November 26, the Saturday after Thanksgiving, you can celebrate the start of the holiday book buying–season, support your local independent bookstore, and meet new readers and other authors, all at the same time.
Indies First, a nationwide celebration of independent bookstores held each year on Small Business Saturday, lets authors team with their local indies to step behind the counter and hand-sell their favorite titles, participate in book signings, host readings, and more. Independent bookstores have always been at the heart of literary culture. Let’s do all we can to support their resurgence.
Promotion for the annual event, sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, is being spearheaded by Lena Dunham, best-selling author and actress best known for her role in HBO’s Girls. She explains her support for and why we should all support Indies First in this open letter.
The community you find in these stores is unique because it’s about feeling seen in the most surprising of places. It’s the same moment of recognition which makes a good book great. It’s when you suddenly catch in somebody else—a bookseller, a shopper, or visiting author—some lovely, secret thought, or dream, or feeling that you were sure was yours alone. Independent bookstores let us find one another. That’s something worth celebrating. —Lena Dunham
Readers: Find a local independent bookstore here.
Authors: Choose a local independent bookstore and offer your services for Indies First Day as a guest bookseller in one of hundreds of independent bookstores across the country holding events. Add your name to the list of interested authors here.
To show your support year-round. Here’s how to link to indie bookstores on your website.
