Frances McNamara continues her series asking New England's bookstores the questions that concern writers. This month she's in East Sandwich, MA at Titcombs Bookshop.

We’d love to hear a little more about the history of your bookstore.

The bookstore was started by my parents after my dad, an engineer, was transferred to Connecticut in 1966. We were a family of 6 children (soon to be 8), so finding a place to live was hard. They found an old house that had been empty for about 10 years before we moved in and the prior owners were two 90 year old sisters. As my parents worked on the house, we children explored the barns and discovered piles of old papers, some of which went back to the 1600s. We sold some of the papers and bought a St. Bernard puppy and a pregnant pony. It was a great way to start a bookshop! When my father was transferred again in 1969, we moved to Cape Cod where they opened the bookshop as a part-time business selling antiquarian books in a carport attached to the house. In 1986-87, my brothers Ted and Paul tore down the carport and built the shop we have now. We've greatly expanded since then and sell a mix of new and antiquarian books, as well as toys, gifts and cards. It's been very fun!

Do you have a mystery section, a local or New England section?

We try to have strong mystery and New England sections in our store. Our mystery section has grown a lot since we started due to customer demand.   We've had the pleasure of hosting some wonderful mystery writers, such as Hank Phillipi Ryan, Louise Penny, Carl Hiaasen, Francine Mathews, and more.

How would you describe your customers? What do they like to read?

We're so grateful to be in an area of passionate readers and people who want to support local businesses.   Since we are on Cape Cod, we see lots of tourists, many of whom come year after year. I'm constantly amazed at our customers' wide range of reading interests and we love finding just the right book for everyone who visits us! In the mystery section, some bestselling authors have been Louise Penny, Tana French, Cara Black, Michael Connelly, Donna Leon and Lisa Gardner.

How has the book selling business changed for you in the past few years? How are you operating during the pandemic?

We've had our busiest years ever in the past few years, even during 2020, and we are so grateful to our customers for supporting us during this past really difficult year. We were closed to the public from March 23 - June 15, but people went out of their way to shop online and by phone. We either shipped books to people or offered curbside pickup when it was allowed. We hired a wonderful new manager, Ellen Speers, who prepared our shop for reopening. We limit the number of people allowed in the bookshop at any one time and we take the temperature of everyone who enters the building.   Everyone is asked to wear a mask and use hand sanitizer when entering.

What are the greatest challenges or areas of growth you see in the future?

We learned so much during the past year and we see so many opportunities for growth as we build on what we learned. For example, our online sales continue to grow and we are reaching authors and customers from around the country and around the world for our Zoom presentations. We hope to stay true to our mission of serving our community as we adapt to all the changes that have occurred recently.

I believe that Amazon.com is one of our greatest challenges as a country. The American Booksellers Association has recently filed a white paper detailing the scale and scope of Amazon’s anti-competitive behavior and its effect on our economy. This paper was shared with the attorneys general in all 50 states and D.C. This is an important issue for our entire country.

Many of our members are NE mystery authors. What advice do you have for them to reach readers?

I just have the same old advice you're already hearing - but it's all true! Stay true to yourself, learn all you can about writing and publishing, and network with other passionate mystery writers and readers through groups like this. (I'm speaking to the choir now!)   Have an attractive, up to date website and be active on social media. Develop a good program about your book and hone it as well as you hone your writing. Reach out to local libraries, bookstores and other groups.

New England has a wealth of good bookstores. If you have your book in a bookstore, make sure to let people know that they can get it there.   If you are self-published, please understand that stores like ours may carry hundreds of self-published books at any given time and we simply don't have the time to focus our attention on every book. We feel it is part of our mission to support local authors by carrying their books. However, it's up to the author to promote the book. I've heard so many authors say that promoting their books is harder than writing them, and it is a lot of work!!   There's no easy answer, but keep at it. I wish you all well!

Support independent bookstores. Purchase your next book at Titcombs.

Visit the bookshop on 6A in East Sandwich or visit the website at https://www.titcombsbookshop.com/ or their page at Bookshop.org https://www.titcombsbookshop.com/bookshoporg

Titcomb's Bookshop | 432 Route 6A., East Sandwich, MA 02537 | 508-888-5679
https://www.facebook.com/Titcombsbookshop/
https://www.instagram.com/titcombsbookshop/?hl=en

By Frances McNamara, Author of the Emily Cabot Mysteries,
https://francesmcnamara.com/

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