The Social Network for Dog Lovers

books in distress

A few days ago I mentioned my book How to Meditate with Your Dog is in a troubling situation.
My distributor says they don't want the books in their warehouse any longer. In fact, they want to "dump" them.

(In book publishing, that means send them to a landfill for a deep burial!)

This morning I meditated on how to move thousands of pounds of books to Hawaii, and the fact is, it's just too expensive, and they're not budging. They want them out.

I'm trying to figure out how to change this "lemon" into "lemonade." I thought maybe you guys would have some ideas?

How to Meditate with Your Dog came out in hardcover in late 2005, nearly four years ago. While sales were strong enough to make it a national bestseller, they eventually fell off. The extra unsold books have been sitting in a warehouse in Kansas for the last few years. Sales still come in, but they don't justify how many books there are.

I'm sure you can see how this news of the impending "death and burial" of my books seems kind of horrible. And the timing is awful, on the one year anniversary of Maui's death.

(Maui was my inspiration for and the star of "How to Meditate with Your Dog.")

Now, this is not just any book. It's a book that many people say has brought them great joy. It's taught countless people to meditate - or simply sit with and be present to - their dog(s).

It's helped people feel better physically (lower blood pressure, reduced heart rate, lower stress hormones, clearer thinking) and dogs feel better, too (less anxiety, more relaxation, more bonding).

So my question for you is - is there any way to save these books?

I don't want them to die in a landfill.

Too many dogs need the closer relationship that happens when we more fully open our hearts to them.

In honor of Maui's life and on the anniversary of her death, I'm asking for your thoughts.

I want to find a way to move three hundred (or maybe more) cartons of books out of their warehouse and into the hands of dog lovers.

What do you suggest?

Warm Aloha,
James

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Comment by Jackie on August 9, 2009 at 4:00pm: oh brother i feel dumb now, i wrote you before reading the other commments and here the one right before me had the same idea!

Comment by Jackie on August 9, 2009 at 3:59pm: James, for what my ideas are worth here are a couple ideas. First if there would be anyway to get on oprah with your dilemna and the value of your book, Your book problem would go away as it would be an overnght hit again. She is a huge dog lover you know. Ok idea #2. Email either the national humane society and donate the books to them to use for fund raisers. They have people all over the us and could go get the books and whala you would have one heck of a tax deduction for donating the books!
Or call and email shelters and rescues all over kansas and i bet someone could get those books out of there and if you donated for use in fund raising it gives them the motivation to retrieve them.
Figure out how many pallet's, etc. so you know what your dealing with. Put the word out on twitter that the first rescue that can get to kansas to get the books you will donate them. Ask each of us members to email the dog rescues we know to put the word out there. Put together a real cool email flyer about what your doing and then we would have something to send everyone. Good luck

Comment by Mary on August 9, 2009 at 3:58pm: Good idea to donate to rescue groups. But, I'm wondering if there is still a large cost to send these books to the rescue groups themselves?? How about creating a collaboration with other animal groups? For example, could ANIMAL PLANET sponsor the redistribution of these books? Could you develop a collaboration with Cesar Milan, the DOG WHISPERER??

Comment by Helen on August 9, 2009 at 3:56pm: James,
Another idea might be to donate the books to trainers of seeing eye and other therapy dogs.
Helen

Comment by Barbara J Moran on August 9, 2009 at 3:52pm: Perhaps they could be donated to dog rescues around the United States. It would be a donation for you and would certainly help the rescues who would sell them to help pay expenses for homeless dogs.
Anty Barb