Local Author Stocking Policies

We’re excited to consider books by local and regional authors for Bonfire Bookshop, Goldfinch Mercantile, and our online store. Because shelf space and inventory budgets are limited, we review each book individually. Local authorship is a strong reason for us to take a look, but does not guarantee that we can stock a title.

Before asking whether we will stock your book, please review the following information.

Online sales

We may carry local-author books on BonfireBookshop.com even if they are not regularly stocked in one of our physical shops. If your book is available through a trade distributor, we will usually order it through that distributor.

If we purchase books directly from an author or publisher, we generally require at least a 50% wholesale discount, with 55-60% preferred for nonreturnable books.

We may also accept some books on consignment; see details below.

Goldfinch Mercantile

Goldfinch is our shop for new and frontlist books. We generally consider local-author books for Goldfinch when they:

  • Were published within the last three years
  • Are still available new from the publisher or distributor
  • Have standard bookstore pricing, packaging, and metadata
  • Fit the interests of our customers

The three-year guideline is, naturally, flexible. An older book may remain in Goldfinch if it continues to sell, has strong regional relevant, or is connected to an event or ongoing local readership.

Bonfire Bookshop

Bonfire, a used bookshop, may carry older local books that no longer fit into the new-book market. As a general guideline, these are books published more than three years ago that are no longer available new through normal retail or publishing channels. (A used copy appearing on Amazon or another marketplace does not necessarily make a book commercially available as a new title.)

Older local books may be purchased outright, accepted on consignment, or declined depending on condition, demand, scarcity, and local relevance.

Wholesale and consignment

If your book is available through a publisher or distributor, we prefer to order it through that channel. If it is not, we may purchase copies directly from you.

Our usual wholesale terms are 50% discount from the retail price, with 55-60% preferred for nonreturnable books. For consignment, our standard split is 60% to the author / 40% to the shop.

We usually begin with a small number of copies and reorder depending on sales.

Helping us introduce your book

Local books sell best when the author and the bookstore help introduce readers to one another. When we take on a local author's book, we ask the author to help spread the word by sharing three pieces of social-media or other promotional content during the first few months.

These do not all need to be advertisements for the book. In fact, we prefer genuine, neighborly content: a visit to the shop, a photograph, an event mention, a favorite local book, or a post about one of the other cultural projects in our community.

Authors might highlight Bonfire Bookshop, Goldfinch Mercantile, Jade Vine Rare Books, Pen & Anvil Press, Rollstone Quarterly, the Fitchburg Arts & Crafts Market, or other related local literary or cultural projects

Tag us when possible so that we can share and amplify your posts. If social media is not your thing, a newsletter mention, website post, event appearance, mailing-list announcement, or other meaningful outreach works just as well. The goal is simple: we help introduce your book to our readers, and you help introduce your readers to the shop and the wider local literary community.

If you aren’t sure how you can use your existing tools to connect your book to a readership, we are always happy to provide guidance to local authors.

Events

Stocking a book does not automatically include an author event. Readings, launches, signings, and workshops are considered separately based on audience and scheduling. Authors proposing an event should expect to participate actively in promoting it.

How long we keep a book

We review local-author titles periodically. Books that sell will usually be reordered. Books that do not may be returned, taken off the website, moved between Goldfinch and Bonfire, or discontinued. Our goal is to build long-term relationships with local authors whose books find readers in our shops.

How to get started

If you think your book is a good fit for one of our shops, and you're ready to take part in connecting to readers, here is the information we will ask for when considering your book:

  • Title and author
  • ISBN
  • Publication date
  • Retail price
  • Publisher
  • Distributor or wholesale ordering information
  • Whether the book is returnable
  • A short note about your connection to Fitchburg or North Central Massachusetts
  • A link to your website or social media
  • Sales numbers to date, if available

If you have questions, please contact us via email.