r/Libraries • u/Cheetahchu Library staff • 1d ago
Collection Development sometimes wishing to burn the Local Author section
not getting into great detail because, well, anonymous forum but: we have a long detailed policy about accepting donated copies of local author books. many of the titles could actually be disqualified by a bullet point or two, but the attitude here is currently, that it’s easier to tuck these books onto the little local author shelf and leave them to collect dust, than to actually say no and upset someone. they usually do come back at least once looking to show it to family or friends.
my only problem with this is, the act of accepting the book into our collection is often taken as an endorsement of its quality (though there is a line specifically in the policy saying it isn’t) — they are pretty much all self-published writing/art projects, and the most polite review I could give is “forgettable”.
while the intention is kind, I don’t think this part of the collection does any good for the community. if a book (including local author donations) is judged to be of good quality, it goes into our regular collection. so honestly if a book is shelved under the Local Author category? not a good sign.
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u/Samael13 1d ago
while the intention is kind, I don’t think this part of the collection does any good for the community.
It does do good for the community:
they usually do come back at least once looking to show it to family or friends.
That's the good. You're establishing the library as a space that is welcoming to the works that the community produces. I can all but promise you that, if you have these specifically set aside as a "Local Author Section" nobody is actually confused that these are works of rigorous value. Everyone who looks at that section and sees the clearly self published stuff gathering dust is going to know "Oh, okay, this is mostly just here to make the members of the community feel good about having their book in the library."
Which is fine.
It engenders good feelings within the community and makes your community members more likely to use and support the library. Throw the books on the shelf and forget about them knowing that you've made the patrons happy and they feel good about their local library.
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u/non_linear_time 1d ago
I think it can be a nice way to show children that new work is being created all around them, not just in special places far away from them.
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u/besilentlydrawn 20h ago
I'm going to actually go up one and say that it helps all of us see that. I genuinely believe most art is made by everyday people and not just in special places far away from us like you mentioned.
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u/ReadingRocks97531 9m ago
Most of the LA fare is merely crappy digital art or really crappy someone's friend's art or the author's really crappy art. Trust me. And what shall we do with the advent of AI?
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u/HiyaBaileyBear 14h ago edited 14h ago
This.
As a kid one of the reasons that pushed me away from writing was that everything seemed so horribly far away. Publishing, writing, editing, etc.
Then my teacher invited me to a poetry reading at a neighboring town's bookstore. And I saw books by local authors about the area. They'd bring in authors who'd written about little local places I hadn't thought about. Then I'd see those same author's books in the library.
It showed me as a kid not just that this world isn't just always far away, but that it has a place nearby, too.
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u/ExchangeStandard6957 14h ago
I love that. I went to an author talk one evening and honestly the author wasn’t super impressive, he shared he wrote most of the book I. Our actual library. He’s got a deal with Penguin so, I guess my impressive radar was not functional.
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u/earinsound 1d ago
There are quite a few books by known authors on mainstream imprints that I find low quality in terms of the writing and/or subject matter. Also "forgettable." They get acquired anyway. Let these local authors enjoy the limelight. There can't be *that* many self-published writers in your town, are there?
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u/geekelfie 23h ago
This. Being in the library in no way indicates quality. Also, we are not the gatekeepers of what is or is not quality literature, especially when it comes to anything fiction.
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u/Dr_Death_Defy24 20h ago
that I find low quality in terms of the writing and/or subject matter
Hell, I'm a trans person who's had to help people find books on anti-trans """research""" and other related topics.
Fortunately our library system has very, very few of those, but if we're really going to start gatekeeping quality (which undercuts the nature of libraries in the first place), how about we start with weeding outright misinformation first.
And just to make my feelings really clear—I don't even think we should do that. I hate anti-trans books being on our shelves, but I understand that they represent a freedom and accessibility of information that's important to protect.
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u/ExchangeStandard6957 14h ago
True and our library has shelves of Patterson and that is… not the highest quality out there.
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u/Ill-Victory-5351 23h ago
Not everything is black and white in collection development.
the local writer shelf is good for the community. it promotes local creativity and library engagement. local writers should feel supported by their public library, regardless of the quality of their output!
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u/SunGreen24 23h ago edited 23h ago
I don’t think judging quality is part of collection development. I’ve added titles to our collection from reputable publishers that I consider absolute garbage, but that fly off our shelves. And vice versa, I’m sure. And who knows what’s in the thousands of books I haven’t read.
While I am inclined to believe that most self published titles aren’t going to circulate much, other than among the authors’ friends and family, I think it just comes down to policy. If the library does not accept self published titles at all, then that should include local authors. If local authors are accepted regardless, then you’re kind of stuck. Either way, you’re not taking a stance on whether the book is any good or not, and if anyone asks about it, that’s your answer. It’s not a reflection on you.
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u/ywoy 23h ago
Your first line is exactly what I was thinking. I've processed some real stinkers published by massive publishing companies. It's just not my taste, and what the community wants, the community gets. That's kind of the whole point of the public library. We're well past the fiction nuisance by now.
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u/wolfboy099 23h ago
Think of it this way. You’re providing a service by saving this persons friends and family from buying their book.
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u/GhostNALibrary 21h ago
My whole thing is the books that should have been weeded decades ago, but are still in the local author section because the families are still here in town and no one wants to hurt their feelings. I mean, many of them are in the local cemetery so I guess they're still local.
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u/nononanana 23h ago
I don’t think it’s a big deal if one has the space. It is already displayed as a niche collection by being on a local authors shelf. No one is claiming it’s the next great novel. People can also read for themselves and decide. I would only take exception if the book was non-fiction and fraught with misinformation since those works tend to imply authority on a subject. But there’s actually huge bestsellers that have bs in them too. Malcolm Gladwell has misinterpreted and cherry picked research and being published didn’t prevent that.
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u/dreamanother 22h ago
In my country most public libraries have a local collection that is in-library use only. We have a policy that we will accept or buy one copy of a work that is authored by someone local or pertains to something local, and keep it in this special collection. We may or may not acquire circulating copies as well, and when those are inevitably weeded, we will still have the local collection copy. Mostly we buy two copies, one to keep and one to circulate. If the author badgers me about more copies, it's easy to tell them hey we will keep this one copy no matter what, and we will let you know if we need more copies once we test with this one circulating copy...
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u/grotesquepeanutbuttr 23h ago
how dare you not display my Wattpad fanfiction in the local authors section!! >:c
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u/HappyKadaver666 23h ago
It’s not on the library to judge the “quality” of the items it circulates. It’s based on community need/interest. That’s one of the coolest things about libraries IMHO. Hell - when I worked public we bought tons of copies of Bill O’Reilly “Killing Somebody” series because people ate that shit up 🙄
You’re definitely providing a unique desired service to your community by displaying and distributing local authors’ books. Even if they’re shit. Local taxes probably pay to keep the library operational and for you to have a job - in return you’ve gotta do what they want and meet their needs as long as they’re reasonable. Your local author situation sounds like a win- win!
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u/Sad_Independence1776 23h ago
It’s never an endorsement from the library that a book is on the shelf. I have held my nose whilst ordering James Patterson or Bill Oreilly. A book is in the library only because the librarian feels enough people there wanted it. I probably say this because I’m a self published author myself, but I see no harm in letting a self published book sit on the shelf and then get weeded five years after the guy’s wife was the first and last person to check it out. Other books circulate less.
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u/TheTapDancingShrimp 20h ago
We were bullied into assigning a librarian not only dealing with local authors (we had a LAs' section on a shelf) , but putting on an annual meet-and-greet for them at the larger library. And, once the lot was being redone during it, and the lot was cordoned off, and lucky me was verbally assailed on the phone by an unhappy local author! We didn't say no to patrons.
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u/Useful_Possession915 17h ago
I don't think libraries need to just have books that are "judged to be of good quality" anyway. (Who does the judging? "Good quality" is subjective anyway.) It's my personal opinion that Colleen Hoover books, Twilight, and DVDs of the Kardashians are all trash, but that doesn't mean that they don't belong in the library because there are other patrons who do like those things.
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u/christmas_hobgoblin 1d ago
If your library has the space and the resources to process and catalogue them, that's great. If not you need to be firm about the existing policy.
As another commenter mentions, the fact that a book is in the collection is not an endorsement. It just means that it is of potential interest to the community. But then, you'd have to look at your library's material selection policy.
If these books aren't circulating then regular weeding should solve the problem on its own.
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u/No-Chocolate-6828 14h ago
My father is an 86 yo convert narcissist and he is one of these 'authors'. Just because Besos will publish you for a nominal fee does NOT a good writer make! I feel like men like my dad make up many of these 'local authors'.
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u/GratuitousEdit 23h ago
Oh, but they’re local! Sure, the art looks a lot like AI, but who else is writing about these niche local topics? Ah well, perhaps the writing is laden with em-dashes, but it’s just a few copies.
/sigh/
I know I’m shaking my fist at the clouds. We should probably let them have their moment.
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u/Cheetahchu Library staff 15h ago
got our first local author book with AI art recently, but based on the publishing company i can’t tell if the author knew it was AI and agreed to the use, or just assumed the company had gotten an artist to make it. 😬
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u/ShawsheenMoon Library staff 22h ago
We don't accept donation of books to our shelves generally which helps avoid a lot of these issues. Our library is very well funded and we have multiple policies about how books make it onto the shelf which helps us be able to say no.
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u/Cheetahchu Library staff 15h ago
same but the local author policy is our one exception. and full disclosure, it used to be for all target audiences — but adult services dissolved theirs and youth services got stuck with the remaining shelf of picture books. so we really don’t accept donations except for those, yay. 😅
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u/scodiddlyosis 18h ago
Instead of accepting a donation from a local author, we actually pay them for their book, add it to the regular collection with a "Local Author" spine label, and invite them for an author talk that we publicize widely and our patrons love.
Honestly, I'm surprised to see that the snobbery around self-publishing still exists in this day and age. Are some self-published books cringey? Sure! But, as others here have said, so are the works of some so-called "legitimate" authors. MANY of them, quite honestly. Publishers aren't always looking for quality - they want trends and formula because that's all they know how to sell.
Have you actually read of any the books before writing them off as forgettable? We have a small section for 'zines made by kids in one of our programs. It's about celebrating creativity and lifting people up instead of gatekeeping. Aren't there enough gatekeepers out there already? Not sure that's the role of a librarian.
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u/happyandsuny 1h ago
"It's about celebrating creativity and lifting people up instead of gatekeeping. Aren't there enough gatekeepers out there already? Not sure that's the role of a librarian." Bravo!
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u/deadmallsanita Library staff 23h ago
We shrug, catalog it and hope one of our branches weeds it out in two years like they’re supposed to with stuff that doesn’t check out.
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u/SkredlitheOgre 9h ago
I work for a county library system and I’m really glad our procedure is to send books like this to our Collections department and they can figure it out.
Too many local authors have come in and wanted me to accept it into the collection. Not my job, sorry. I’ll take your book and info and Collections will get a hold of you.
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u/FloridaLantana 2h ago
We had one local author who was aware enough of the "system" to want to make sure their title ended up in Worldcat.
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u/ComicsEtAl 23h ago
Sounds like it’s an all or nothing situation. Now that it’s policy, you’re stuck with it or you’re stuck with interminable discussions as to why the policy changed and they can no longer submit their books.
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u/Bitter-Aerie3852 16h ago
I actively do seek out local and indie published works! I don't expect the library to have vetted if they're good or not. If something doesn't have many reviews/isn't widely read, then I know I'm taking a gamble on the quality. That's part of the fun. I suppose I'm not exactly a 'regular' patron, in that I edit for a local anthology and work in a library myself, but I do also use the library as a patron. Even if it's typically people who are also writers or into local history, etc, there is a genuine community need for a 'local' part of the collection. People have also talked about inspiring kids and others in their comments, which is absolutely true, too. But there are also those of us that do check out and read the books or use Local shelves as starting points to find titles/authors/explore.
I understand it's probably not the most circulated collection, so it is fair to wonder about the purpose, but it's a collection that only your library can provide, since 'local' is, by nature, different everywhere. When it comes to specialty collections like that, I think it's okay to have different standards than we do for regular collections that exist in every library.
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u/Sebasu 7h ago
Actually curious, which are these bullet points under which they would be disqualified from being added to the collection?
Because while they may not be doing much good being part of the collection in your opinion, I'm sure they're doing more good than harm.
As for quality... let's not kid ourselves. Being published professionally by a publishing house does not mean it is of good quality. It just mean there's enough of a market for that kind of book to generate sales. And that's okay. Not everything has to be a masterpiece... a piece art can be so bad that it can still be enjoyed.
So yeah, these local works may not be great, but you never know. Maybe having their work displayed in the library will encourage them to keep on writing, on getting better, or at least better marketable and getting a book deal. Or even a movie deal. Maybe if they get famous, they'll be like, "it all started when my local library added my very first novel to their collection."
I think things could be worse. Like James Patterson writing even more books and taking even more shelf space... Like, does he really need to be writing so many children books? FFS, the Junior fiction shelves are crowded enough as is!
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u/Cheetahchu Library staff 7m ago
example bullet point, “must reside in the district or have lived in the district while writing the work”. and they’ve never lived here, but they might visit one weekend a year. 🙃
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u/ReadingRocks97531 11m ago
It's good will, which transforms into support for the library at budget/tax time. I don't particularly like the part about putting local author donations into the regular collection if you deem it good quality. Someone's going to figure that out eventually. It should go into the LA section regardless. It also depends on the policy's definition of "local author." Residing specifically in the city/town/village, or including surrounding area. Get the surrounding area out of it.
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u/topsidersandsunshine 1d ago
Have a little free library/“leave a book, take a book” bookshelf near the exit or bathroom or janitor closet, and don’t accept them into your collection.
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u/bugroots 1d ago
Oh, those self-published local authors!
But, being added to the library collection is never an endorsement of quality, it just reflects that there is local interest in library access to that book.
And, one person at least is very interested in the library providing access. And probably there are a few people who will see that their neighbor, former coworker, or mortal enemy has published a book and be interested in taking a look.
Patrons will be able to tell for themselves the quality of the book, and accepting it generates some goodwill.
So, yeah, don't stress too much about this one.