How are bookstores and video stores similar?
I am probably asked that question more than anyone else in the known universe, because I work in a bookstore, and I also recently published a novel set in a struggling video store.
I have pat answers prepared. But it's the subtext of the question I find most interesting. What people are really asking is, Isn't it sad how bookstores are going the way of video stores, that is, off this mortal coil?
"Yes, it's very sad," I want to say. "Except it isn't true."
