<div>Dear readers, friends, family, indie book lovers I really need your help.

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<div>This past November Death by TBR Books celebrated seven years of business. When I first opened in the brick and mortar I had one small loan and my own money put into it then COVID a little after one year of being open. I got COVID and my health conditions got a lot worse and due to a number of factors including my own immune system being compromised I went fully online. Even then I delivered books to customers' homes, masked up, and waved from the car or they'd pick them up and we'd talk with a glass door between us.

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<div>Death by TBR Books added a press side this past year. We hosted and continue to host book clubs and social nights to help connect readers from all over the country. As I said, running a small business is hard and it's even more challenging since I'm virtual. It's a lot easier to just buy everything through other cheaper online alternatives, costs go up every year, and the economy is hurting badly and is so unpredictable. Usually our anniversary in early November kicks off the holiday season where we make 1/3 of our sales. This year and since then sales have been down over 50%. All of our books have prices fixed by the publishers so we can't raise the cost when we need more money. To save money I add books after researching them to our website manually which takes a lot of time and energy but I know it also gives a very diverse and unique online buying experience for the reader. Delays and disruptions in distribution and shipping have brought stress every week hoping books arrive in a timely manner. We don't promote or sell the bestsellers that everyone knows. We really try to find the books that people might not find on their own. Diverse and debut authors and small presses.

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<div>I've also had a number of personal struggles as well. I've had to move the shop and my family due to finances changing with COVID and the economy now 10 times in eight years, medical procedures to learn more about my chronic illnesses, losing parents, losing friends, and navigating the pandemic. So many things I never thought I'd have to face in a lifetime let alone in seven years. To keep the bookshop open we had to take out a small business loan that I’ll be paying off for the rest of my life and that was my decision and I don’t regret it.

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<div>Financially, the bookshop has never done much better than breaking even, and our cash-flow situation has become exceptionally challenging at the moment. We’ve been making ends meet with loans from our card processors, and other temporary infusions of cash, just to get bills paid on time. For a long time, I put personal money into the business but I’m out of that now too. Sales are down more than ever and I still have expenses. We should be stocking up and celebrating the holiday season but we’re not. 

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<div>The most devastating thing is that we have a lot to look forward to in 2026 including anthologies, a book club for all on social media, and more reading challenges and of course book lists galore. Now though we’re in crisis mode. 

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<div>I’ve started a GoFundMe for the immediate problem. I’ve set a goal of $16,600, which is the amount that would get the shop current on all of our accounts, get us out of our crisis mode, and allow us to look forward to the future of Death by TBR Books for years to come.

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<div>So, if you’ve made it this far thank you.  That’s the pitch. Running a small business is hard, running an online bookshop and indie press and trying to be an author too has been the hardest yet most rewarding thing I've ever done in my entire life. It saved my life. I am disabled and struggle with suicidal thoughts, severe depression, agoraphobia, and CPTSD but having the connections with all of you has made this all worth it. I recognize that Death by TBR Books is a for-profit business, at least in theory, and I’m saddened that it hasn’t been that for a long time. If you know me, I don't care about money. I care about the messages I receive, the emails for book recommendations, publishing some indie authors for the first time, and building an online horror community. I don’t want to shut all of that down, if the cost of keeping all of what I’ve built is swallowing my pride and asking for help I’m here. I’m doing that.

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<div>Thank you for reading. Thank you for giving what you can. It means so much.

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Dana Gricken

Madeline Winters

Anonymous

David Hay

Rikki Goodwin

Christine Preston

Erin Mayer

Lauren Komer

Kelly Andrews

Cherry Parker

Candice Vandenburg

Katie OFarrell

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mark roseberry

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Ed Crocker

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Anne Kuffel

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