Here at Old Town Books, it’s no secret that we love books: reading them, sharing them, talking about them with our amazing customers. We also love sharing a behind the scenes look into the world of booksellers and indie bookstores. Today we’re excited to check in with Angie, our Social Media Manager, to learn more about what goes into adding new books to the OTB shelves.

Tuesdays are very exciting days in the publishing world! Most new book titles are always released on Tuesdays - a day of the week that works best for shipping distribution, promotion, and a good shot at getting on the weekly bestseller lists. Our new release process begins months in advance with our Book Buyer, Jen, who works closely with publishers to see which upcoming books are expected to be the buzziest, as well as which would be most appealing to our customers. This is also why pre-ordering titles is so valuable if you want to support your favorite authors. We love knowing which titles customers are excited for so we can make sure to have them in stock.

After our orders with the publishers are in, we start the receiving process to get them added to our inventory. New books usually arrive at the shop a couple of days before their release date, so we always have a pile of books ready to go out onto the floor come Tuesday. Each book gets a mini-photoshoot to post onto our Insta and Facebook stories, along with a short description to give our followers an opportunity to discover something new!

Finally, we shift around our front tables in the shop to make sure new releases are the first thing customers see when they walk in. Next time you're in Old Town on a Tuesday, make sure to stop in and check out what's new at your favorite local bookshop!

Blog contribution and photos by Angie Sanchez. Edited by Shannon McCarthy.