It was a random post that came across my feeds about how the science fiction and fantasy author Fonda Lee was complaining that she was competing against dead authors. I will grant you that it was an old post, dating back to 2019, but it was one that struck up a bit of negative emotions in me.

In her local Barnes & Noble bookstore, she had discovered that J. R. R. Tolkien and Robert Jordan were taking up roughly four shelves of space. She went on to complain about how there was only one copy of one of her own book on the shelves.

While I understand what it is she's complaining about, what she's trying to highlight to the world at large, my initial reaction was: "Get over it!" As I read through the article, my reaction started to include a level of irritation aimed at Fonda Lee and other writers like her who are complaining about not seeing their books in brick-and-mortar bookstores.

Who is the competition?

What Fonda Lee was complaining about was discoverability—or lack thereof. Because approximately four shelves in her local bookstore were dedicated to those older books, newer writers were missing out on the chance to get in front of a casual buyer. However, in this scenario, there are a few things to consider.

1) Between J. R. R. Tolkien and Robert Jordan, they have in the order of 25 books, which would likely take up two shelves on their own.

This would increase if multiple copies of the same book were in stock, which is common for these older books that have become classics.

2) A published writer is not just competing against the classics written by the dead, but they are also competing against well-established writers who are still alive.

Within the fantasy market, you also have George Martin—and because of the TV series Game of Thrones, that series took off in a big way. And what about the Sookie Stackhouse Diaries by Charlaine Harris, or the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer? You have Brandon Sanderson, Neil Gaiman, Robin Hobb, Terry Brooks, Joe Abercrombie, Jim Butcher, Cassandra Clare, Orson Scott Card, and that's just in the fantasy realm. Do I really need to go on?

Seriously, complaining about all the books on the shelf that you're competing against seems like a complete waste of energy.

But let's look at her complaint about how there was only one copy of her book on the shelf.

OMG, you have no idea how much my eyes rolled at this statement.

3) A bookstore is running a business. Their goal is to make money!

If you think their goal is to put your unknown title in front of every potential buyer, then it's time for a reality check.

The only reason why a bookstore has any copies of a book at all is because some distributor convinced the store buyer that the book would sell. Either the store buyer noticed the sales rankings in the catalogs, noticing that it was a popular title, OR some marketing person convinced someone to give the title a go (hoping that other exposure will help to drive interest in sales). But because they elected to stock a copy of your book means that they had to pass on another book.

Yes, this is the root of the complaint, limited space for books, but remember that a bookstore is in it for the money.

If the bookstore is unable to sell a book, then they have to decide if they are going to "return" the book to the distributor, which is a nasty mess of its own, or if they will continue to allow that book to take up space, hoping that they will eventually be able to sell it. And some books sit on those shelves for years, doing nothing but collecting dust.

A bookstore needs to take a calculated risk when electing to stock books by unknown writers. Sure, there is a chance that the book will be picked up by a random browser, but there is a high probability that it won't.

4) But when was the last time you actually set foot in a brick-and-mortar bookstore? Be honest.

Most of us who buy books tend to buy them online in today's market. There will be the odd person who actually does go into a physical store, but most don't.

To add on top of it, there is such a huge push to support the independent bookstores (a dying breed) that many readers are now going out of their way to avoid large chain stores like Barnes & Noble.

Yet, here is a writer complaining that her local Barnes & Noble only had one copy of her book.

I'm just going to take a moment to breathe as I try to contain my irritation.

Getting books into Barnes & Noble

For the moment, I want to focus on the fact that the complaint also chose to highlight that there was only one copy of her book in a big chain bookstore. This means that the writer was likely traditionally published.

I'm not saying that it's impossible for a self-published writer to get their books into bookstores, certainly not. But that path is more attainable for someone who is published through a traditional publishing house. The majority of self-published authors will never see their books on the shelves of Barnes & Noble. They will need to rely on other avenues.

Are you starting to see why complaining about only one copy of the author's book in Barnes & Noble is actually stupid?

Seriously, folks, if you are going to complain on public channels that there is only one copy of your book in a big chain bookstore, then you need to check your privilege and get over yourself.

Rant over.