Offline or Online Shopping for Books?

My name is Lexi Post and I despise shopping. I admit it. I know, strange but it’s true. I can’t stand going into stores to try on clothes, or look for just the right gift, or find a new author to read. Oh, but don’t get me wrong, I love to do all those things. I just prefer to do them online :-)

Honestly, with offline shopping, my feet get tired, I develop a terrible thirst, and I have to avoid rush hour traffic so my time is limited. In fact, I dislike it so much that it wasn’t until this Monday that I finally made myself go into a clothing store and shop after a decade of not shopping for clothes in stores. Granted, I hadn’t shopped for new clothes online either in over six years, so I didn’t even know what size I wore anymore or what styles might look good. It took me three hours! I bought 3 pairs of jeans, 2 skirts, 4 tops, and a wrap for a total of $116. Now that’s my kind of shopping, if it had been online. 

So what about book shopping? Okay, granted, there is nothing like going into an independent bookstore or Barnes & Noble and buying a hot chai as one peruses the colorful array of romance novels in every sub-genre possible. There is just something about being around books that fills the soul. They’re like old friends. And about once a year, I enjoy that little experience.

However, it is online shopping for me, in general, and for books in particular. The first reason is I live on a Caribbean island and though our one bookstore does have a romance section, (highly influenced by me), it is small. So to really get the breadth of authors I like, I need to go online anyway.  Plus, when books are shipped, they get here faster than me traveling across the island to where the bookstore is! Mainly because to save gas, I don’t go over to that side of the island unless I have multiple things to do there.

Another plus for online shopping is the option to buy electronic books which I read while on the treadmill. They are the only incentive that gets me on the @#$% thing :-} Since my debut book Masque is only in ebook right now, I’m am very pleased that people can buy my book online ;-) I don’t know about you, but I buy lots of books online. Just trying to keep up with all my friends’ books is a challenge, but with easy access online, it makes it fun to shop for their books.

Which do you prefer?  Do you like to go into a store and surround yourself with physical books before buying, or do you prefer to sit at your computer and click away?

Always,

Lexi

Bookstore Closing

I saw something very sad the other day. I was out and about, heading to the grocery store (another necessary evil like doing the laundry), when I saw a big orange and black sign on the Waldenbooks & More at the corner. 

They were closing, shutting down. 

It wasn’t a big store. Actually, small compared to the stores Waldenbooks had at the mall, but it was a good store .The staff was friendly and helpful (and knew me by name). It saddened me in ways I can’t describe. I’d spent many happy hours in that store, browsing through the shelves, picking and choosing the books I wanted to read (and dropping a pretty penny in the process—thank goodness for mad money!).

           

It made me question what happened to our brick and mortar bookstores and made me realize how the readers’ (and writers’) world is changing. Do people just not have the time to browse through the stacks and read like they used to? Or do they still read like crazy and it’s just so much easier to order from Amazon (or any of the other places one can order books)? What about e-books? So many people have a Kindle or a Nook or one of the many other e-readers available. Instant gratification! A few clicks on your computer or e-reader and the book is yours (and you don’t have to get out of your pajamas!)

           

I will miss that Waldenbooks & More at the corner, but thankfully, there’s a Barnes and Noble not too far from me and I can get a cup of coffee there too! Do you still go to a brick & mortar book store to buy your books?

Happy Reading!

Marie