On Thursday, January 3, the January Indie Next List e-newsletter, powered by Shelf Awareness, will be delivered to more than 519,000 customers at over 130 ABA member stores. Booksellers are invited to sign up now [5] to send the free monthly adult or quarterly Kids’ Indie Next List e-newsletters to their customers.

The store-branded e-newsletter for adults, delivered on the first Thursday of each month, features:

• The month’s Indie Next List titles, with bookseller quotes
• “Buy Now” buttons that lead to the purchase page for the title on the sending store’s website
• An interview with the author of the month’s number-one title

An example of December’s Indie Next List e-newsletter can be seen here. [6]

The quarterly Kids’ Indie Next List is divided into two e-newsletters that are sent about six weeks apart. Each newsletter includes:

• Half of the titles featured on the Kids’ Indie Next list (based on publication dates)
• Five of the top 10 titles
• An author Q&A with the number-one pick for that list

The first Winter Kids’ Indie Next List e-newsletter was sent on November 15 to 419,597 customers at 128 ABA member stores; see an example of the newsletter here [7]. The second volume of the Winter Kids’ Indie Next List e-newsletter will be sent on Thursday, January 10.

The American Booksellers Association and Shelf Awareness teamed up in 2016 to launch this free e-newsletter program for independent bookstores. To sign up, stores should complete this form on BookWeb. [5] A username and password are required to access the form; booksellers who need login information can e-mail [email protected] [8].

During the sign-up process, booksellers will be required to upload their store logo and a CSV file of their e-mail list (instructions are on the form). Stores will retain ownership of their mailing lists, and customers will not be added to any other lists. New sign-ups will get to see a sample of their e-newsletter about a week before it is sent to customers.

Questions about the Indie Next List e-newsletter program should be sent to ABA Senior Program Officer Joy Dallanegra-Sanger [9].