How do you buy a book?

If you’re a reader, you’ve probably bought a book recently. (Sure, there are libraries, but sometimes the wait for your favorite author’s latest book is fifteen months long.)

There are lots of reasons to buy books. Nonfiction books can be useful for research. Bestsellers are usually a guaranteed good read, and people want guarantees. People choose books by genres. People choose books by their covers - especially in grocery stores. I just saw a segment on the news about how people choose wine. Men actually ask directions if they don’t know the difference between a riesling and a pinot noir. Women, on the other hand, largely go by impulse. Yellowtail has become huge because of the cute kangaroo on the label. Animals, in general, sell a lot of wine. Also, titles work well with women—like the label Little Black Dress.

I am strategic in my buying. I buy from my local mystery book store, even though I have to pay more, because I want to keep her in business and she’s done a lot for me. (Her husband is a fabulous cook, too.)

But I also buy at Borders, because I have a 20% off card. Depends on the book. Lately, though, I have been buying the best authors in my genre, hardcover, at Costco. I need to own these books because I write in them. If Michael Connelly does something really cool, I want to jot down in the margin that I caught what he did. Sometimes, I diagram these books, marking in the plot points, etc. I buy the newest books because they most closely reflect changes in the market, although it’s probably a year-and-the-half at the very least between the time the book was bought and when it was published.

Authors often buy the books of other authors, to be nice. And then they get pissed off when the other author doesn’t return the favor. Then the first author doesn’t buy the author’s second book, and thus begins a quiet little war of attrition—which has absolutely nothing to do with either author’s bottom line.

Sometimes, I just want a book I see in the grocery store because the cover is so damn gorgeous. I bought a book called IMPULSE for that very reason. On impulse. It was vaguely my type of book but not really, but at the time it was $5.99 and had a shiny foil cover and I wanted it.

What is the main reason you buy a book?

What makes you buy a hardcover book? (I’m assuming that’s a higher bar).

Do you only buy bestselling authors or authors you’ve come to count on?

Have you ever bought a book on impulse?

How much time do you take in choosing to buy a book by an unknown author? What do you do?

I have tons more questions, but this should do it for now.