Our Linking Policy
Starting yesterday, I've begun making my book-links to the New Member side of the SFBC site. And I also thought I might as well make something clear that I don't think I've ever specifically said.
I try to list as many interesting reviews, interviews, blog entries, and other electronic writings as I can -- whether or not they're connected with a book or author who's available in the SFBC at the moment. But when you do see a link in a book title, that always means that the book is available from the SFBC. Clicking that link will take you to the book's description, and allow you to join the club right there. (Which you can do simply by choosing the five books you want to get for a dollar.)
Inevitable Caveat #1: This only applies to people in the USA or with a US address; Canadians should go to the SFBC.ca site. People in other parts of the world cannot join; we don't have the rights to sell our books to you, I'm afraid.
Inevitable Caveat #2: If you are already a member of the club, I'm not sure what the links will do for you. In a perfect world, they would bring you to the right book on the SFBC site, signed on to your account. Since this isn't a perfect world, I suspect it's not that simple. Try it and comment!
Comments
I ordered a book that I though should have come by now. How to I get a time-table on when it would come?
Posted by: Mitch McNurlin | December 18, 2006 06:50 PM
Mitch: If you have Customer Service questions, your best bet is to contact Customer Service (they're two states away from me, and I usually don't know when my books will ship to me).
You can e-mail them at customerservice@sfbc.com, or call (717) 918-BOOK (2665) Monday through Friday, 8 A.M. to 8 P.M., EST.
There's also an "order history" button at the top of the website home page that can give you some information on your orders -- though, since that's part of the website, it only can track orders made on the site.
Posted by: Andrew Wheeler | December 18, 2006 09:34 PM
I read a book I think y'all would like. It is different from anything I have read before (and that is alot of books). The author is Liz Williams and this is the first in a series. SNAKE AGENT is an asian detective fantasy (think Simon Green) with a real, very political, Hell and demons. The second is out in Hardcover (I have it but haven't read it yet) and a third is due out soon. I really enjoyed it and recommend it to your attention.
Posted by: Joyce Ronquillo | December 28, 2006 05:14 PM
Hello
I have been trying to order a book.I get on your web site and cann't find any place to order!
How about making it easer
to do this!!
Posted by: Russell D. Brown Jr. | February 6, 2007 03:15 PM
Russell: If you're a member, you just need to click the "add to cart" button next to the book, and then go to your cart to pay for it -- just like any other on-line bookseller.
If you're not yet a member, you'll have to choose the six books you want, and then check out.
If you want to buy a single book without joining, then I'm afraid I can't help you -- our contracts with publishers don't allow us to do that.
Posted by: Andrew Wheeler | February 6, 2007 03:39 PM
I joined your club almost a week ago (last Thursday) and have seen no progress on my application. Nothing has shipped, I haven't been charged. I e-mailed your customer service and they said they can't find my application, and that it might not have fully processed yet. How long can I expect to wait? You also might want to consider adding some information to your FAQ about enrollment, namely how the process works, how long it takes, when a person can expect to be charged, and when they can expect to recieve their enrollment package. I was honestly surprised to discover that none of this information was available on your site.
Posted by: Robert | February 14, 2007 06:49 PM
Robert: Well, this is the editorial blog of the SFBC, run by me (Andrew Wheeler, Senior Editor). What I know about our Customer Service policies and procedures could comfortably fit into a standard thimble. So I generally don't talk about that; anything I'd say would probably be wrong.
The focus here is on the books and the world of SFF literature in general; it's not meant to be a detailed resource to the intricacies of book shipments. Customer Service questions, I'm afraid, have to be addressed to Customer Service. And their answer might be the equivalent of "it's in that giant pile over there, which we're processing as we go" -- the SFBC is a medium-sized club in a company of several dozen clubs, so there are a lot of members, book shipments, and so on to keep track of.
(I also wonder if people aren't getting a bit spoiled, these days; when I joined the club, back in high shcool, I sent in a coupon from OMNI magazine and the next communication I got was a box of books six to eight weeks later.)
But, again, it's not my area of expertise at all. This is a big company, and Customer Service is two states away from me.
Posted by: Andrew Wheeler | February 14, 2007 11:01 PM