We welcome back Sharpening the Sword, a weekly column by retailer John Riley of Grasshopper's Comics, a 1,300 square foot comic and games store in Williston Park, New York.  This week. Riley begins a discussion of the rapid change roiling the book industry.

Welcome back to Sharpening the Sword.  I've had the column on hiatus for a while now, primarily due to some pressing family obligations over the past two years.  During that lapse we continued to press on, upgrading our business and looking outside our own doors for ideas to compete in a world changing even more rapidly than we thought it would.  I'm very happy with where our store is at the moment, especially considering the global economic issues we all face.

Over the last year I also wrote my first novel (second is in the works now).  As we prepare to bring it to print I've been studying the larger publishing and entertainment world to really learn what's going on there.  Like everyone else who reads ICv2, I knew that Borders wasn't doing well, or Blockbuster, or almost any large chain responsible for the retailing of entertainment media.  But I really didn't have a good grasp on the larger picture or any of the details.  So a good portion of this column is going to be me sharing some of the interesting things I'm discovering, and what implications or opportunities they present for us.

At the moment though, I feel like a traitor.  The reason?  We're planning on publishing my novels digitally.  That's right, we're focusing on e-readers like the Kindle, Nook, iPad, etc.  We'll still have print copies available, but our focus is digital.

And that's a decision that makes me feel like I'm betraying my own livelihood.  How can I believe that in one sense my future as a novelist is clearly in the exploding digital market, without that somehow equating to a death knell for our comic book store?  Well, believe it or not, I think that the changes we're seeing may actually end up strengthening the comic shop's position in the overall entertainment industry.

That is, if we're all willing and capable of positioning ourselves properly in this new environment.  Losing Borders means a whole lot less competition. (I know they are still operating but they've closed every store in my county.)  And that in theory should help all independent booksellers, although let’s face it, there's not many left.  In comics, we have the advantage of going down this digital path last.  So we have the opportunity to learn from the successes and mistakes of others going through it first.

Let's start with a very interesting article (see "Downsized, local bookstores writing final chapter") about the Emerson and Cook Book Co., a very well known and respected independent bookstore in Connecticut that recently had to shut its doors after 38 years:

When Emerson announced they were closing, Roxanne Coady, the owner of R.J. Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT held a gathering in her own store. (By the way, R.J. Julia is one of the most amazing bookstores you will ever go into and you should visit if you live within driving distance to get some great ideas.) In her own words:

“Since we are determined to be the independent bookstore that remains standing in this brave new world, we are working hard to respond (to digital and online pressure)” she added.  She invited her customers in for conversations on “how we can remain vital to you.” Coady concluded, “I remain guardedly optimistic that by being innovative, responsive and hard working, that our passion for putting the right book in the right hand, introducing writer to reader and providing a place for conversation and learning has value and meaning and the ability to keep us alive.”

RJ Julia is one of the best bookstores in the country, no joke, so I have a lot of respect for her opinions.  I thought this was a great idea, so we held a Discussion Group a few weeks back on the state of comics, what digital meant, what fandom was going through, etc., the common thread playing through the conversation for me though was where our store fit into it all.  We brought in a few complimentary pizzas and sodas, had a great crowd and a great time.  And importantly we learned what it is about our store that customers actually value so we can focus on it for the future.

I hope you enjoy the article and get some ideas from it as well.  Next time we'll look at the changes Barnes & Noble are making in their stores and why we're not going to follow their lead.  

The opinions expressed in this column are solely  those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.