BIG CHANGES COMING TO THE BOOKS YOU BUY

by Korina Moss

The way some of us read books will be different in the coming year. Two days ago, I read an article in The New York Times about the demise of the mass market paperback. Mass market paperbacks are the smaller paperbacks that sell between $7.99 and $9.99. If you’re a cozy mystery or romance reader, you’re especially familiar with these. But now, publishers have decided to do away with mass market paperbacks, and bookstores will no longer carry them. Anything that would’ve been sold as mass market will soon be in trade paperback size, which will cost between $15.99 and $21.99, which means you’ll have to increase your book budget.

Mass markets of my Cheese Shop Mystery 
(and trade paperback of the Spanish translation of 
Cheddar Off Dead)

Almost all cozy mysteries, like my Cheese Shop Mystery series, are published in mass market, because our books are almost always part of a series and our readers are loyal. Like readers of romance novels, our readers are known to devour several books a month (sometimes more), and the mass market price point allows for it. Along with cozy mysteries and romance, other genres, like thrillers, mysteries, and science fiction, will also feel the effects of doing away with the smaller, less expensive printed copy in favor of trade paperback.

There are several reasons for this decision, one being the introduction of the e-book. According to the NY Times article, “… In the United States, about 103 million mass markets were sold in 2006, the year before the Kindle was introduced. Last year, readers bought fewer than 18 million of them.” Although “physical books still account for about 75 percent of book sales,” mass market paperbacks took a hit. Over the past decade, 10,000 fewer mass market books were published. 

My 5th book, Fondue or Die, on the shelf at
Barnes & Noble with the other mass market cozy mysteries

As a writer and reader of cozy mysteries, this makes me wonder how they will fare. If it’s true, as The NY Times states, that “It wasn’t publishers leading away from mass markets. It was readers,” then it’s up to us. Will cozy mystery readers shell out an extra $6 or more for the pricier trade paperback cozy mystery? Will they accept the new format and higher prices and continue to purchase as many of their beloved books? Or will the cozy mystery genre ultimately pay the price?

If you’d like to read the full New York Times article, click here: So Long to Cheap Books You Could Fit in Your Pocket. 

Readers: How will this affect your book buying? 

KORINA MOSS is the author of the Cheese Shop Mystery series, which includes the winner of the Agatha Award for Best First Novel, as well as two novels short-listed for Best Contemporary Novel. Listed as one of USA Today’s “Best Cozy Mystery Series,” her books have also been featured in PARADE Magazine, Woman’s World, and Writer’s Digest. Korina is also a freelance developmental editor specializing in cozy mysteries. To learn more or subscribe to her free monthly newsletter, visit her website korinamossauthor.com.

Korina is also a freelance developmental editor specializing in cozy and traditional mysteries. Using her experience writing her award-winning series for a Big 5 publisher, she has the inside track on what editors, agents, and readers are looking for in a cozy mystery.  Whether you're a new writer hoping to be traditionally or independently published, or you're an established writer wanting some guidance with a manuscript, she can help you strengthen your book. You can find more information on her website and contact her at korinamossauthor@gmail.com

CONNECTING THROUGH BOOK CLUBS by Korina Moss

Sonia with an i & Laura Reads sharing books

Isn't it funny that the solitary act of reading can offer so much connection? If you see someone on the subway reading a book you couldn’t put down, or someone at a party who's raving about a novel you loved, don’t you feel almost compelled to say something to them? When you’ve finished a great book, don’t you want to find someone to talk about it with? Or at least post about it on Facebook or Instagram? 

If you think about it, we're just continuing what our parents started when we bonded over a shared emotional connection to stories they read to us as babies and toddlers. So it’s no wonder book clubs have stood the test of time. You can join Reese Witherspoon's Book Club or connect closer to home through your library, bookstore, or with friends or family. You can even find virtual reading sprints, readalongs, and buddy reads on booktube, which are the bookish channels on Youtube. Some of my favorites booktube channels are: The Beachbum Bookworm, Books with Amy Marie, Sonia with an i, and Laura Reads. 

Christie Capers co-founders,
Janet Lomba & Eileen Pearce

Some book clubs are genre-specific, others aren’t. In the early 2000s, I was in a fun book club with friends with varied reading interests. I read many great books through that book club that I wouldn’t have picked up on my own. In later years when I was focused on reading and writing cozy mysteries, I joined a well-established library book club focused on cozies called The Christie Capers (named after Agatha Christie). I not only read a lot of good books, some of the friends I made there have managed to outlast the long-running book club.   

Now that I'm a published mystery writer, books from my Cheese Shop Mystery series have been chosen for several monthly book clubs, where I participated virtually. It's a wonderful experience from the author's side too! I've been the featured author at Katy Budget Books in Houston, Texas; the Gatesville, TX Public Library book club run by Luci Hannson Zahray (also known as the Poison Lady); and  The Killer Coffee Club, led by Nikki Bonanni at the Barnes & Noble in Rochester, New York. 

My Cheese Shop mysteries were also chosen for many online book clubs, such as Facebook's The Cozy Mystery Once a Month Book Club, Instagram's Little Bites Book Club, and YouTube's Cozy Escape. It's always fun to feel their enthusiasm about my books, hear their opinions, and answer their insightful questions. 

Adrienne, B&N Enfield staff member

I'm looking forward to my next book club event in just two weeks. My first Cheese Shop Mystery, Cheddar Off Dead, has been chosen by the Barnes & Noble in Enfield, Connecticut as their June book club pick. Since I live in CT, I’ll be joining them in person for a casual get together snacking on cheese, sipping special beverages, and chatting about the book. I’ll also be signing all four books in my series afterward. If you’re near Enfield, I hope you’ll join us on Thursday June 27th at 7:00 PM in the B&N café. 

Have you ever belonged to a book club? 

KORINA MOSS is the author of the Cheese Shop Mystery series set in the Sonoma Valley, including the Agatha Award winner for Best First Novel, Cheddar Off Dead and the Agatha Award finalist for Best Contemporary Novel, Case of the Bleus. Her books have been featured in USA Today, PARADE Magazine, Woman’s World, AARP, and Fresh Fiction. To learn more, visit her website korinamossauthor.com.