Picks Pointers and Deadlines

Though it smacks of nothing less than chutzpah -- given that retail's Black Friday is only days away -- Book Sense Picks Editor-in-Chief Dan Cullen (very respectfully!) reminds booksellers of two key Book Sense Picks deadlines:

December 3 - February Picks
December 10 - Valentine's Day Top Ten

It's a major favor to ask of you, but, please, do send in your nominations for these two lists, even in this busy time. Without broad participation, the richness and diversity of the list will suffer, and there are a number of very interesting titles publishing early in 2005.

Simply e-mail your nominations to [email protected], or you can use the nomination form at www.bookweb.org/read/6305.

A few thoughts/suggestions on submitting nominations for Book Sense Picks:

• Don't be intimidated by the "writing." All the nominating quotes that you read in the Picks fliers have been edited. We can always iron out any kinks in language, but only you can contribute the insight, judgment, and passion. Just share in your own words why you think the title is special and it will be a perfect nomination.
  

• Encourage staff to nominate titles. It's wonderful to hear from new voices at stores.
  

• There are many potential nominations close at hand in stores -- picks from newsletters, store Web sites, and Staff Recommends tables, for instance. These are all great potential Book Sense Picks nominations.
  

• Remember the SWIH rule -- Strike While the Iron Is Hot! Don't worry about trying to time sending in your nomination with a book's pub date. Bookseller nominations go into our Picks database when we receive them, where they are stored until needed. If possible, simply send in your nomination as soon as you have finished a title and that enthusiasm can be immediately tapped.
  

• If you can, include some key information: the title's bibliographic info, your full name, and the store's name and location.
  

And, most importantly, thank you so much for all you do for Book Sense!