I am a certified lead bookseller at an independent bookstore. Here’s what I do:

  • Blurb books, like this one for Hannah Pittard’s forthcoming novel, If You Love It, Let It Kill You:

A screenshot of the one sentence blurb Shelby wrote for the book If You Love It, Let It Kill You

  • Review and nominate books for the Indie Next List through Edelweiss.

  • Host a monthly virtual book club, New & Notable, which focuses on new literary fiction and has welcomed authors such as Jessica Anthony, Marissa Higgins, Wendy Chin-Tanner, Karin Lin-Greenberg, and Andie Burke to meetings, with author appearances from Ella Baxter, Sophie Kemp, Isabel Banta, Charlee Dyroff, and John Vercher scheduled for the 2025 line-up.

  • Write and submit event pitches through Edelweiss, securing the following authors for events: Rachel Harrison, Nicole Cuffy, Kay Chronister, Riley Sager, Ruth Ware, Lisa See, Elizabeth Acevedo, Christine Grillo, and Nicole Chung, among many others.

  • Use bookselling specific programs like Anthology, Ingram, and Edelweiss to search titles and complete transactions.

  • Recommend books to customers and foster joyful browsing experiences, garnering reviews like this one:

A screenshot of a customer message sharing how friendly and helpful Shelby was during her browsing experience.