Not to harp on the shelf-talker thing, but I sometimes get the feeling my impassioned pleas, condensed to fit inside the space afforded by a notecard, actually hinder sales. Is my enthusiasm too much, I wonder? Like a date who won't shut up about what they do? Perhaps I would be better off writing the equivalent of ripping off a bandaid, without the fear and pain involved in ripping off a bandaid, obviously. But I don't know. I mean where do you go from "I loved it!" or "Great!"? A single exclamation point?
But that was my impression after heaping as much verbal praise as possible on Ben Marcus' third novel about the potential of language to literally and figuratively destroy us all, when it first showed up in January and stayed put on our shelves until about a week and a half ago, when it was returned in exchange for its paperback equivalent.
I tried everything I could: I moved it to a table, I displayed it near the cash registers (as if to remind customers it was, in fact, for sale), I took away my shelf-talker and exchanged it with a 25% off one hardcover coupon, I asked the gentlemen who complimented my shelf-talker if he'd shopped with us before, and I explained to the gentlemen who complimented my coupon it was not, in truth, indicative of my writing style or enthusiasm for The Flame Alphabet, which is without a doubt one of the most important novels published in 2012. How do I know? I wrote a damn good shelf-talker about it. Stop into the shop and read it for yourself. Just don't forget to keep the line moving. As for this blog entry, I'll keep it short and sweet: !
No comments:
Post a Comment