Campaigns and Battle Studies Win Out

I had hoped for a higher vote total, but the result is about what I suspected it might be, if book sales and reviews are any indication (and they are).

Our recent poll asked Civil War readers what genres they most enjoy reading about. Here was the breakdown:

Campaign / battles 9 (56%)

Regimental histories 4 (25%)

Biographies 2 (12%)

Fiction 0 (0%)

Other (send an email and tell us) 1 (6%)

(The other was specialty aspects of the war--medicine, railroads, and so forth.)

By more than 2 to 1, Campaigns and Battles carried the day. It should come as little surprise that these also sell substantially better than most other Civil War titles. And I am not talking about a little better, but by a factor of three to six times more than, say, the average biography or regimental history.

We have always done well with battle studies, beginning with the Atlanta Campaign series (2 vols.), edited by Savas and David Woodbury in 1993, The Battle for Bentonville, by Mark Bradley, and all those that followed. People cannot get enough of this aspect of the Civil War. By and large, campaign/battle studies today are more deeply researched, better sourced, and include better maps than similar books produced just a decade or two ago.

I am pleased to say we have several more campaign/battle manuscripts in-house under contract, awaiting contract, or already signed and being prepared for publication. These include Lance Herdegen's new "Those Damn Blackhats!" The Iron Brigade at Gettysburg, slated for the Spring of 2009 (though to be fair, this is so much more than a battle study), and a stellar piece of work on South Mountain.

I am anxious to share with you information about a two-volume campaign set--a pure "fix the bayonets" sort of battle study from the first page to the last--in the near future as soon as the signed contract comes back. I am confident it will find many interested readers.

So here's to the gunsmoke and steel crowd. Maybe we always publish books you enjoy.

-tps

Borders' New Website--Still Invisible

We live in the Internet age. If you do not have a powerful website, you don't exist.

According to reliable sources, Borders, Inc., has spent many, many millions on a website that is supposed to be cutting-edge, informative, easy to use, and drive sales directly through Borders (or some subsidiary arrangement they have crafted). As of this writing, it has still not launched.

If you want to visit a Borders website today, where do you think it would take you? In case you have never clicked www.borders.com to see where it goes and where it has been sending business--try it.

--tps

Sadly, Borders is in Real Financial Straits -- Might be Sold.

Facing a liquidity crisis--unable to borrow in today's nervous and restricted credit markets, with a plunging stock that valued the entire company at about $400 million yesterday (and far less in today's markets)--Borders has gone to the loan shark and is considering a "wide range of alternatives including the sale of the company and/or certain divisions."

If you have the stomach for it, read more here, and here.

--tps

Preparing for Book Expo 2008 In Los Angeles

Although many or even most book readers have never heard of it, Book Expo is the book world's largest North American gathering of industry professionals. While members of the public attend (tickets are expensive), it is largely a pow-wow for insiders to meet and discuss publishing issues, sell rights, promote and cross-pollinate forthcoming titles, schmooze--and drink and eat too much with friends you often see but once or twice a year.

The Book Expo experience is also utterly overwhelming the first time or two you attend because literally thousands of publishers and other professionals display their wares. Many offer free books and other premium items, author signings, and much more. For book lovers it is akin to a kid stepping into Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory with a free pass to taste, touch, smell, and eat as much candy as you like.

Many publishers do not require a booth there because the price is very expensive, and good walking shoes and some energy can put you wherever you need to be. However, we have grown substantially over the past few years and have done so with the right national-interest titles to necessitate the reservation of part of Casemate Publishing's space. Casemate is our distributor into the book trade. The table space and booth area allow us to schedule meetings with authors, media people, foreign rights professionals, and others.

In 2006 in Washington, DC, we kicked off a major signing of galleys with Gary Moore's Playing with the Enemy. He signed 250 galleys, met reviewers and media professionals, talked with sales reps, and more.

This year in Los Angeles we will feature another significant book and author. He will sign galleys, meet and greet a host of industry professionals, and kick off what we believe will be a major release, tentatively set for September 15, 2008.

More on the author, his book, and the campaign in a later post.

--tps

Outside Reading

The results are in, and they are about what I expected:

World War II: 12 (42%)
Napoleonic Wars: 2 (7%)
American Revolution: 9 (32%)
Ancient History: 4 (14%)
Other: 1 (3%)

The expansion of World War II titles in the chain stores reflects these numbers.

--tps

What are the Best Lines from Civil War Books?

American Book Review published what it believes are the 100 best last lines from novels. Click here for the list.

Do you have a favorite last line from a Civil War book? Or even a favorite single sentence from a Civil War book?

--tps

Borders Tries About-Face on Shelves

Better late than never, I suppose.

I have been telling managers of chain stores for years that they should tell corporate to reduce inventory as needed and turn as many titles as possible FACE OUT. The Wall Street Journal reports the idea (not mine, of course), has struck someone as viable. Click here for the story.

The average customer walks into a store and is faced with thousands of books spine-out. How many does he remember once he leaves? How many titles would he have picked up if he had seen the full front of the jacket and title?

Some managers thought this was a good idea. Most shook their head and told me that would never fly.

Most publishers cannot afford to pay for face-out display on front tables and end caps, and yet these same publishers often produce better books than the bigger NY-based houses.

Maybe this idea will help boost Border's revenue and its sagging stock price. Maybe not. They still have to do something about this problem, however.

--tps