Audio download of SPOC 2009 seminar called Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Distributor with Jacqueline Church Simonds. Most self-publishers have dreams of seeing their book stocked in bookstores. But that's not as easy as it first appears. One of the most efficient ways of getting into bookstores is having a national distributor. But is having a distributor always a good thing? And since most don't accept self-publishers, how can little ol' you attract their attention? What are the plusses and minuses of having a distributor? And once you have one... well, where are the care and feeding instructions? We'll cover all these topics and more.

• If you are serious about marketing to the book trade (book stores and libraries), getting a distributor improves your odds.
• Many distributors don't want to deal with self-publishers.
• The Pros and Cons of dealing with Distributors
• How you can improve your chances of signing with one.
• Working with a distributor is like having a team: how you can improve your team's communications and success level.