Book Stock Request

If you are an independent author interested in having your book stocked at Black Pearl Books, please read the FAQ and guidelines BEFORE submitting your book stock request.

How can I get my book on the shelves at Black Pearl Books?

Working with independently published authors allows us to carry titles we may not otherwise be able to offer and strengthens our ties with the community. To be eligible for consideration, the author MUST live in Texas. Priority will be given to authors within the greater Austin vicinity. Before contacting us, please consider whether your book meets these technical standards. If you are satisfied that it does, please fill out the form below.

Here are some excellent tips about working with independent bookstores.

How can I be considered for a book signing at Black Pearl Books?

Just as we curate the selection of books in our store, we curate events to connect readers and authors. Because of the pace of publishing and the volume of requests we receive, we are unable to accommodate every request.

If you are an independent author interested in hosting an event, we require first that your title be accepted into our purchasing program and that we see a sustained interest and level of sales before scheduling an event.

Guidelines

Due to limited space, our acceptance program is limited to local authors within the greater Austin area with second priority given to Texas authors.

Because we strive to support independent authors, if we feel that an item is a good fit, we will purchase copies directly from the author at 50% of the retail price.

This is not a consignment program! We purchase all copies upfront, thus, if approved, the initial order will be for just a few copies. If those copies sell, we may contact you to provide more copies and if your book continues to sell well, we may agree to additional terms.

We ask that if we carry your book, you promote your book using Blackpearlbookstore.com. It's discouraging when we agree to support an independent author only to see them directing their readers to Amazon.

Our Intake Process

If you agree with the terms on this page, please submit the below form and deliver a review copy of your book to Black Pearl Books. This will give us the opportunity to review your submission for professional publishing standards and sales potential.

We cannot guarantee return of the review copy.

Our buyers review submissions regularly, but due to the high volume of requests, we cannot reply individually to every request. If we determine your book is a good fit for our inventory you will receive a response from our buyers. If you have not heard from us within 60 days, we are unable to stock your book.

If you would like your review copy returned, please include a self-addressed stamped envelope or plan to pick up from our store location. If copies are not picked up within 60 days from submission, they will be added to our free community book exchange.

What if I'm not local or my book doesn't meet the requirements?

As an independent bookstore we try to support independent authors as we can. If your title is not accepted by our buyers, and you are still interested in utilizing our space for a book signing or launch event, you may inquire about our space rental fees.

Visit our gallery page to access the event rental form.

Book Stock Request Form

Thank you for your interest in stocking your book at Black Pearl Books. As a local independent bookstore, we are proud to support new and local authors.

To be considered, you must submit a completed book stock request form and a paper copy of your book for evaluation.

We will evaluate your book for: fit in the store, literary quality, shelf appeal, readiness to market, and ability to promote

The most common reasons we don’t carry books are:

Not available at a standard discount
Design and/or production standards don’t match our expectations for stock
Book doesn’t match curatorial needs

Please do not expect our buyers to provide feedback on their decision.

Our buyers review submissions regularly, but due to the high volume of requests we cannot reply individually to every author. If we determine your book is a good fit for our inventory, you will receive a response from our buyers.