Getting Your Book in Independent Bookstores

As a published author, you likely desire to get your books on the shelves of bookstores. There are two different types of bookstores where you can place your books: franchise and independently owned. Your best option as a newly or independently published author is to place your books in independently owned stores. Let’s walk through key steps to help you get your books on shelves.

Book Design

Independent bookstores adhere to the professional standards of the book industry when selecting titles to stock. That being said, there are a few must-haves in your book design to ensure placement on their shelves.

Proper Spine Formatting

Bookstores often store most (not all) of their titles spine-out on the shelves. You need a properly formatted book spine. The spine should include:

   •   The book’s title (centered),

   •   The author’s last name (top or bottom is fine),

   •   The logo of your publishing company.

Now, the logo is where most people miss the mark. Professionally printed books always include the logo of the company or imprint that produced the book. Don’t believe me? Go browse the shelves of your local bookstore. Having a professional publishing company’s logo sets you apart as a serious author. Will the bookstore deny your book if there’s no logo? No—but this is an important detail if you plan to take your writing career seriously.

A Barcode with an ISBN

The barcode is incredibly important. Your book will be logged into the bookstore’s system using the ISBN and barcode. This barcode is what will be scanned when customers check out your title. If you want to learn more about how to obtain a barcode and ISBN, head over to Secure Your Book’s Identifier. We recommend including the price in the barcode to ensure your book’s list price is visible and consistent.

Contact Lead

Getting your books placed in a bookstore means that you won’t see or know your customer. You may be used to this if you’re only selling your books through BookBaby, Lulu, Amazon, or IngramSpark. This actually hurts your long-term sales. You need a way to collect your customer’s information—but more on that another time.

You want to have a contact lead in your book design. Here are two ways to do that:

1. Public Contact Info on the Book Itself

Include public contact details on the back cover or jacket flap. These might include your author website, professional email, or a business mailing address. Be sure to use contact information you’re comfortable making public (e.g., authorfirstnamelastnamewrites@hostingplatform.com). These details should match what’s on your copyright page.

Note: Your average customer won’t read your copyright page, so yes—include 2–4 lines of properly formatted contact information on your book’s back cover.

We do not recommend using your home address. Check out the article Shipping for Authors for business mailing solutions for your author business.

2. Book Ad or Lead Magnet in the Back Matter

The back matter is everything that comes after your story is done—usually following the epilogue and a blank page. Your author’s note and acknowledgments are typically found here.

This is where you can include a lead magnet or book ad. No matter which you choose, you’ll need a QR code that leads the customer to a page where they can give you their information. We explain how to set this up in Collecting Clients 101. Make sure the link behind the QR code remains consistent.

For a book ad, include:

   •   A picture of another book in your catalog,

   •   A blurb (no more than 150 words),

   •   A release date (if applicable),

   •   A call to action,

   •   A QR code.

For a lead magnet, consider offering a short story featuring characters from your book. Include:

   •   A graphic,

   •   A 2–4 sentence blurb,

   •   Details on how to access it,

   •   A QR code.

With a consistent QR code, you can build a long-term sales funnel. Customers should be able to access the freebie for as long as books with the ad are in circulation.

P.O.D. Selection

Most independent bookstores only use IngramSpark to purchase titles for their shelves. That means you need to list your book for distribution through IngramSpark.

This will also allow your book to be listed on franchise store websites (though not necessarily in their physical stores). Getting stocked in franchise bookstores involves a different process.

There are many benefits to using IngramSpark as your P.O.D. service—one of them being their broader range of print options compared to other services.

Pro Tip:

Independent bookstores consider two key factors on your IngramSpark listing before purchasing your book:

1. Wholesale Discount: Set your discount to 55%. Some stores won’t even consider your title without it. If you don’t set this percentage, you may still get shelf space—but you’ll have to purchase and supply the books yourself.

2. Return Policy: Bookstores want to return unsold books. Set your book to be returnable to your business mailing address so you can resell the books instead of having them destroyed.

Be careful: if you turn off the return option, you may receive a flood of returns overnight. IngramSpark has a waiting period before the policy change takes effect, but once stores are notified, they’ll likely return all remaining stock—potentially costing you hundreds of dollars. Read the IngramSpark return policy carefully before making changes.

Business Connections

This stage requires research! What are 1–5 local stores where you’d like to see your book? Create a list or spreadsheet to track your progress.

Start by calling each store and asking to speak with the person who handles book acquisitions. Be professional and upbeat. Here’s a sample script:

“Hi, my name is ____. I’m a [genre] author. I’m interested in learning how to get my book placed in your store. Could you refer me to the person who handles book acquisitions?”

You may or may not get transferred to someone. Either way, get the name and email of that contact. Follow up in 1–2 days to ask about their process.

Most small bookstores are interested in how you can help drive traffic to their store. Consider proposing a book event—this can build a strong relationship. Your goal shouldn’t just be shelf space; it should be long-term professional partnerships.

You should also create a marketing plan to drive traffic to the store for purchasing your book. This helps avoid returns and increases your chances of having future titles stocked.

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