James Patterson is making a personal donation of $500,000 to help save independent bookstores across the country, as part of a new fund to be administered by BINC (Book Industry Charitable Foundation) that is raising money to support stores rather than individual booksellers in need. Patterson is joining with Reese Witherspoon, as well as the ABA, in a new awareness and fundraising campaign, #SaveIndieBookstores, running through April 30. BINC will distribute the pool of funds raised to eligible independent bookstores “by May 15.”
Apparently those grants will be available to ABA member stores only. The site indicates, “Funds received are based off of an anticipated loss of 50 percent of sales during any 30-day period of March 15 through May 15, based on the same period of sales during 2019, due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.” They also say, “Your gift will go toward helping hundreds of indie bookstores across the country replace lost sales, keep employees on the payroll, cover employees’ insurance premiums, and pay rent, utilities, and monthly bills.”
Patterson says in the announcement, “The White House is concerned about saving the airline industry and big businesses – I get that. But I’m concerned about the survival of independent bookstores, which are at the heart of main streets across the country. I believe that books are essential. They make us kinder, more empathetic human beings. And they have the power to take us away—even momentarily—from feeling overwhelmed, anxious, and scared. I hope that the funds we raise keep bookstores alive at a time when we need them the most.”
Separately, for professional writers, PEN America is expanding its Writers’ Emergency Fund, to help writers “meet an acute financial need, especially one resulting from the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak.” They will distribute grants of $500 to $1,000, and “have developed a new streamlined process for the duration of this crisis, and expect to be able to review and respond to applications within 10 days.”