Ain't That a Pip?

I might be a writer these days, but I was a reader first and that's something that will never change. I have my favorite authors just like everyone else, and when I know that one of them has a new book coming out, I make it a point to dash out to the nearest bookstore to pick up my copy ASAP. Frankly, that's something I make more of a point of now, since I know what it's like to wait anxiously for my editor to call or email with the first week's sales numbers. I'm telling you, if I bit my nails, I'd have nothing left by now but bloody stumps to type with.

Anyway, that intro was a long-winded lead up to the fact that as soon as I saw that one of my favorite regency authors, Julia Quinn, had a new book releasing today, I wrote myself a big ol' note to remind me to run out to the Borders just down the street to get a copy. (And one for Hannah, since she'd likely break my fingers to get at my copy if I didn't provide her with one of her own.) I knew today was the shelf date from checking Amazon several times in the last week or so, and it wasn't likely I'd forget the date since it also happens to be the date of my latest release, the anthology Huntress, completed with three other St. Martin's authors.

Eagerly, I left Gretchen (my faithful car) in the parking lot and strode briskly through the front door to the new releases table. No Quinn. No Warren, either, for that matter. Puzzled, I frowned a bit but made my way back to the Romance section just in case the display staff simply had their priorities on upside down. What did I find? Nadda. No copies of What Happens in London, and coincidentally, no copies of Huntress either. WTF?

I understand when shipments get delayed. Believe me, I worked in retail for a lot of years, but I also know that publishers generally don't ship late. After all, the sooner the books hit the shelves, the more time they have to earn money and generate profits, so please tell me why a major retail store can't manage to shelve new releases from two major publishing houses on the day they're authorized to start selling? I admit to pure bafflement.



P.S. - I did manage to get my Quinn fix. At another store. Which also had several shiny new copies of Huntress gracing their shelves. But that doesn't let Borders off the hook. Trust me, I know how to carry a grudge.