Bestselling thriller writer James Patterson is once again supporting independent booksellers in the US with a revival of his Holiday Bookstore Bonus Program. This is a scheme that Patterson has run, with a few pauses, for more than ten years. It is a scheme that has endeared him to independent bookstores across the US.
This year Patterson has pledged a total of $300,000, to be distributed in amounts of $500, to 600 booksellers from American Booksellers Association member bookstores.
Booksellers can self-nominate to be considered for a bonus, or they can be nominated by bookstore customers, owners, employees, managers, fellow booksellers, publishing professionals, or authors. Past recipients of James Patterson bonuses and grants are eligible for another bonus.
ABA’s CEO, Allison Hill said, “We are all so grateful for Mr. Patterson’s ongoing support of independent booksellers. His generosity is incredible, and his recognition of booksellers and the valuable role they play in the industry is especially meaningful to us.”
The announcement comes as novelist Lily King issued a paean of praise to indie bookstores on the ABA’s Bookselling this Week page. She said: “I owe my entire career to indie booksellers. Word of mouth has just been what has helped me to keep publishing, so they are just so crucial to my life. I also worked in three independent bookstores when I was younger, and loved each one of them.
“The bookstores in my town–and in every city I go to–are so important to me. I am just so indebted and so grateful. And now more than ever, independent bookstores are so crucial to our future, to our population, to facts and information, and to education. They’re a pillar that is holding up our country.”
