Indie Bookstores are Magic
I recently attended the 2026 Washington Writers Conference, which I highly recommend to all writers in the DMV. Not only did the price of admission include three pitch sessions with Book Agents (more on that in a future blog post), but it also allowed me to attend all kinds of workshops about writers and writing.
This is the part of my blog where I out myself as a hermit slacker. When the pandemic provided the perfect excuse to avoid people, my introvert self jumped on it. I mean, I embraced social distancing with a fervor I did not know I possessed and have since avoided people like I’m being graded on it. I stayed home for science and public health and apple pie and baby ducks and you, gentle reader.
But mostly I stayed home because I wanted to.
I still like staying home and was happy to continue ordering my books from the internet. UNTIL a workshop at the Writers Conference called “What Booksellers Know” shamed me. This panel emphasized the importance of supporting independent bookstores instead of big box chains or Amazon. I sat there in my seat (for the record: outside my house, in public, like a big girl) and realized that I have not been doing my part.
Welp, that changed after the conference. I set a goal of visiting a least one independent bookstore a week until I’ve hit all the ones in my area. Here’s where I’ve gone so far.
Bards Alley Book Shop (Vienna, VA): This is, for real, the cutest bookstore I’ve ever seen. Imagine a hobbit hole that sells books — that’s Bards Alley. The inventory was small but I picked up a copy of The Wedding People, by Allison Espach (incidentally, spellchecker keeps suggesting I change “Espach” to “spaceship”, which is kind of amazing). The Wedding People shows up on all kinds of agents’ wish lists so I’ve been meaning to read it. I also ordered all three books in the Mercenary Librarians series by Kit Rocha because superhero librarians. They’re going to call me when the books come in so I’ll get to go back. Not that I need a reason but I think I’ve established how much I hate leaving my house.
Scrawl Books (Reston, VA): I go the the RTC all the time (points for leaving the house) and never knew there was a bookstore on the other side of Chipotle. Did you know there’s a bookstore on the other side of Chipotle? Well, there is and it’s like an oasis of cool. There’s even a cute little outside sitting area that’s private-ish and in the shade. They didn’t have two of the books I specifically wanted (Ten Tomatoes that Changed the World by William Alexander and A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow) but were able to order them for me. I’ve been wanting to read A Song Below Water after listening to Bethany talk about the care she puts into writing for young adults. I also picked up copies of The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley, and This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone.
Fonts Books & Gifts (McLean, VA): Fonts Books had the easiest parking situation of all the bookstores I’ve visited so far. If you live in the DMV, you know how nice this is. They had all kinds of great stuff for sale and an inventory that included Six of Crows, by Leigh Bardugo, which I didn’t find in any of the other bookstores. I snatched it up and it only cost ~$12. Total score.
Also, I signed up for the frequent buyer program at each shop. Def recommended everyone do that because you never know what kind of book bonus you’ll get.
Here’s the other thing I’ve been thinking about… I’m a fledgling writer battling the Four Horseman of My Query Apocalypse. 2026 has seen a marked drop in US book sales as people tighten their belts in this hostile economy where the price of gluten-free bread (the only kind I can eat) has risen to $9 a loaf. Industry professionals all warn that writers are expected to do most of the heavy lifting to promote and sell their books as publishing houses just try to stay above water. This means we’ll all need as much of a community as we can build, and relationships with our local bookstores (who can stock our books) will be key.
So…I’m going to keep visiting my local bookstores and talking to people who work there and ordering books from them instead of Amazon. These visits remind me that bookstores are magic. Visiting them is worth it, even though it means I have to leave my house.
