tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2363444567124084776.post8613470372710808356..comments2023-10-20T08:56:14.314+01:00Comments on Stroppy Author: A life in publishing: What did Borders ever do for us?Stroppy Authorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16560035800075465845noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2363444567124084776.post-53706723396036460612010-03-07T13:54:59.230+00:002010-03-07T13:54:59.230+00:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.Tomjayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09074268499415640776noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2363444567124084776.post-39302070531846938112010-01-20T15:12:19.177+00:002010-01-20T15:12:19.177+00:00I don't miss Borders as a place to go because ...I don't miss Borders as a place to go because I've never lived near a branch. I hadn't really heard of them until after I was published and went to sign books in their Cambridge branch (and after coming hundreds of miles at HarperCollins' expense, they only had one copy of my book on the shelf, so my first impressions of them were not great!) But any book store failing is bad news for the business - though maybe surviving independents who used to be near Borders branches are celebrating?<br /><br />Sympathy for your lost workspace. Could this be a good excuse to check out all the cafes in town?Katherine Robertshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17196712319655603442noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2363444567124084776.post-38730258545450319992010-01-20T14:38:44.045+00:002010-01-20T14:38:44.045+00:00Thank you all for sharing your own stories of Bord...Thank you all for sharing your own stories of Borders. I'm glad I'm not alone in liking the place in spite of its corporateness. <br /><br />Enjoy the BL, Delilah :-)Stroppy Authorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16560035800075465845noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2363444567124084776.post-69517635243048955462010-01-17T14:05:08.856+00:002010-01-17T14:05:08.856+00:00I use to go the Borders on Tottenham Court Road. I...I use to go the Borders on Tottenham Court Road. I loved the cafe - it had a nice atmosphere, conducive to writing. The best thing, though, was the fact that you could take unpaid books into the cafe and browse, before you bought, while sipping your coffee! This has been very useful in my 'marketing research' for my unpublished novel; finding out where my book sits in the market and matching up agents with authors. Other bookshops, such as Foyles across the road, do not allow this.<br /><br />I always left Borders with several books under my arm - so they always did well out of me!<br /><br />By the way, in response to your comment on my British Library blog post - I do like the reading rooms, but haven't been in them for a while. But might try them next time, to add even more variety, intrigue and interest to the writing environment.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2363444567124084776.post-22681441682428730832010-01-13T22:47:01.554+00:002010-01-13T22:47:01.554+00:00Out of the three main high street book chains in t...Out of the three main high street book chains in the London area, Borders was the only one that never screwed over any of my close relatives' employment rights... which isn't what I'd been led to expect when my bookseller uncle held them out as the Big Corporate Bad when they showed up. <br /><br />They also did a lot for local readers' and writers' groups round where I live... and there's one town along the South Coast where at Sunday teatime their Starbucks would have been the only cafe <i>open</i> (my sister and I must have spent hours in there for want of anywhere else to go). <br /><br />Definitely to be missed!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2363444567124084776.post-91594560711710455492010-01-09T09:55:50.841+00:002010-01-09T09:55:50.841+00:00Like you I am grieving for Borders - the London ma...Like you I am grieving for Borders - the London main branch had promised me a promotion for the book I've got coming out in August, and I won't get that anywhere else. Also, my daughter lost her job there, three days after she went on maternity leave. No redundancy - she will have to sue them for what she is owed, and no prospect of another job until she's had the baby. Lots of others lost their jobs there just before Christmas too. I know lots of them and they were all really great people who loved books. Bad day for all writers.<br />KJKathleen Joneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07645566938871914385noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2363444567124084776.post-89798633295931887822010-01-09T09:44:15.004+00:002010-01-09T09:44:15.004+00:00I left Cambridge a couple of years ago, but I too ...I left Cambridge a couple of years ago, but I too used to spend hours writing in that Starbucks. If friends were looking for me, that's where they'd head! <br /><br />And before that, it was Borders in Speke, Liverpool where I wrote most of my PhD thesis and, more importantly(!!!) discovered YA literature. I actually remember the very moment I picked up Lucas by Kevin Brooks. That book made me shift from writing for adults to YA. <br /><br />Borders literally changed my life! <br /><br />Sounds like staff are on a retainer atm... here's hoping someone swoops in and salvages something... for the staff's sake and for our sake!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com