Word that Barnes & Noble is planning to move its Discover New Writers display off the front racks of many stores at the end of May is setting off alarms across the industry. If the plan goes forward, many publishers believe it could be a blow for first-time writers, since the well-regarded program, which features 20—25 fiction and nonfiction titles each quarter, may be harder for readers to find in superstores.
The outcry against the possible change comes in part because prominent merchandising has become increasingly important in B&N superstores since 1990, when CEO Len Riggio launched the Discover program at the front of the store as a sign of the chain's commitment to promoting unknown writers. "It's so much about placement now," said Scribner editor-in-chief Nan Graham. "I walk into stores and there are so many books, I wonder how I can sell a single book that's not on a table at the front of the store."
Having published the last three winners of the program's annual fiction award, Graham credits the program with helping to boost sales for well-reviewed debut literary novels like the 2004 fiction winner Heaven Lake by John Dalton and Brick Lane by Monica Ali. "Jill Lamar has done a fantastic job of getting writers one might not have heard of into that space," she added, referring to the program's manager and editor.
Though B&N publicity director Mary Ellen Keating declined to confirm the move or to comment on "changes that have not yet occurred in our stores," sources said it comes as part of a reorganization of front-of-store merchandising at B&N. Beginning in May, they said, displays near the entrances will feature high-margin books, including B&N's proprietary titles, bestsellers, books supported by publishers' co-op contributions, more board games and a new "theme" table.
For independent publishers like Johnny Temple of Akashic Books, the move could diminish the impact of one of the industry's best national marketing opportunities for small press titles and paperback originals, which are regularly featured in the program. "Of any award or merchandising program available to us for fiction, it's had the most tangible effect on sales," said Temple, who's published three books chosen for the program. "A Discover selection can bump a first printing from 3,000 to 8,000, which is big for us. No one but a major publisher can buy that kind of space for three months."
Like Temple, marketing manager Paula Oates of North Texas University Press has found that a B&N Discover selection opens other doors around the industry, helping to bulk up orders by wholesalers and other retailers and prompting consideration for other honors. After Rebecca Meacham's Let's Do, a story collection about Midwesterners facing calamity, became the press's first Discover selection last winter, North Texas went back to press three times for a total of 5,200 copies and helped the author set up a tour to B&N stores in eight states. "How will their attitude toward booking events with those authors change?" wondered Oates, upon hearing of the possibility of a less prominent display position for the program.
Other small publishers raised the concern that Discover's reduced visibility could leave small houses with crippling returns, since the program requires a print run of 4,000 copies to cover distribution across all B&N stores, but doesn't guarantee that the books will sell.
In recent years, the Discover program has gradually slipped away from its original position near store entrances. In 2003, when the chain began a push to bring more discounted books, including its proprietary titles, to the front of store, Discover moved to the second gondola off the "power aisle," facing toward the back wall in many stores.
