I know sometimes I share the little things and big things that can drive me crazy about owning a bookstore. Today, I’m trying something different: a list of things I’m grateful for about my job.
– I get to be surrounded by books and people who love them, all day. This is a unique place to work. People come in happy (usually) to a bookstore. No one really dreads a visit to the bookstore like they might to other places, and that makes me feel good.
– My sales reps are gold. They are on top of their books and will do many things to help me sell books more efficiently and effectively. They also are astoundingly good at making me look good if I’ve forgotten something.
– I still marvel at the speed of delivery of books. I send in an electronic order and the next day a distributor has sent my books. This process still amazes me. I create an order based on bookstore needs, customers desires, and my own curiosity about titles. I send that order from my computer screen to either the publisher or a distributor. Those exact books that I want get picked and put in a box and then get sent on their way to me. The fact that 98% of the time my order arrives exactly as ordered and undamaged is still a mystery to me, and one that delights me every day.
– Children often just smile when entering the store. Knowing that my store is creating memories for kids and families either by the actual visit to the store or by the books purchased with me, is a pretty heady experience.
– Every book is a revelation to someone.
– The real friendships created within the bookselling community has forged some truly wonderful relationships that I have come to absolutely adore.
– Access to galleys makes the job a little sexier.
– Sharing the joy of reading with customers is a great way to spend the day. One of my favorite parts of the day is the lively debate about authors, genres or speculation about what will happen next in a series, etc. Talking about books is fun!
– Meeting authors and illustrators is just the icing on the cake. The best part of that is sharing these people with our customers who fill the store and rented halls to meet their literary idols.
All in all, it’s a pretty sweet job.