By Christine Munroe
If you’re like me, you read in both print
and digital formats. You love your local bookstore, but you also love your
eReader. Luckily, through Kobo’s partnership with booksellers across the world,
you aren’t faced with a dilemma of choosing one over the other. You can
continue to support your favorite bookstore with every eBook you buy.
In the US, Kobo partners with the American
Booksellers Association. Creating a Kobo account affiliated with a bookstore is
easy – just head over to www.kobo.com/indieapp Once your account is affiliated, a portion of
every Kobo purchase you make will go directly to the store you’ve chosen. You
don’t need a Kobo eReader to participate – you can download the free Kobo app
on any tablet, mobile device, or PC. Outside
the US, Kobo supports partnerships with Chapters Indigo in Canada, WHSmith in
the UK, and FNAC in France, to name a few.
Our relationship with bookstores is also an
important component of our self-publishing platform, Kobo Writing Life. When an indie author clicks “Publish” on KWL, their eBook isn’t just
launched on kobo.com. It also lands on the virtual shelves of our bookstore
partners worldwide. This is an exciting way to reach new readers and an
opportunity for collaboration with your local bookstore.
Over the last two years, I have created
unique, fun events across the US bringing together local bookstores, indie
authors, and Kobo Writing Life. From digital-only book launches, to panels
bringing together digital publishing experts, the possibilities are endless!
A panel of self-publishing experts speaks to over 100 attendees at
Housing Works Bookstore Café in NYC.
Launch party for author Barry Lyga’s digital-only title, UNSOUL’D, at WORD Bookstore in Brooklyn, NY.
How can indie authors take advantage of this
program?
1)
Publish on every platform. By
publishing directly on every platform available, including Kobo, you’re able to
utilize the unique features of each one and reach fans using the various
digital reading ecosystems.
2) Spread the word. Encourage your
fans to buy their eBooks through their local bookstore, via Kobo.
3)
Become part of your bookstore’s community. Support your local bookseller
by attending events, participating in writing groups, shopping there.
Hopefully, you can establish a relationship and find a way for them to support
you in return.
4)
Keep KWL in the loop. If you are an indie author collaborating with your
local bookstore in a unique way, we’d love to hear about it at writinglife@kobo.com
In other exciting news, Kobo’s parent
company, Rakuten Inc., recently acquired OverDrive Inc., a market leader in
serving libraries and schools with eBooks, audiobooks, and video. I’m very
excited about the new possibilities this partnership will create for Kobo readers
and indie authors. Stay tuned for more details as our partnership grows in the
coming months.
Additional Links
Twitter: @kobowritinglife
6 comments:
I like the idea of an e-book launch party! I think that's a wonderful idea. Very informative blog post.
Hi Christine! We met a couple years ago at a Kobo event through Jan's Paperback Books. I agree, helping the local bookstores anyway we can is the best way to keep them around.
Christine, thank you for joining us at Romancing The Genres today. Sarah and I attended the Kobo event through Jan's Paperback Books. We were so impressed with Kobo's commitment to indie writers and local bookstores when we were brainstorming book sellers to invite to our 4th Blog-O-Versary month we obviously thought of Kobo.
I've a couple of indie bookstores I'd like to support the next time I purchase e-books on my Kobo (my TBR stack on my Kobo is finally at a point to load up again).
Thanks again for joining us and an informative post!
Hi Christine,
Thank you so much, what an informative post.
Regards
Margaret
A very informative post. We have three great independent bookstores in our neck of the woods. Will be sure to talk with each of them about the KOBO opportunity. Am delighted to hear about the new relationship between KOBO and Overdrive. Thanks for joining us today.
Thanks so much for having me! I love seeing indie authors and their bookstores support one another.
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