> eyes. Maybe Pickard has a kickback deal with optometrists
 > or something :)
 > Anyway I find it hard to read for more than about 10 or
 > 15 minutes at a time.
 JM> Authors have no control over things like this.  They 
 JM> are entirely at the mercy of the publishers.  
 JM> Publishers in general are clueless about things like 
 JM> this, and don't realize that they are losing sales 
I think she was joking.
OTOH, the publishers are NOT clueless here.  They have lots of clues and 
plenty people besides bean counters who make such decisions.  They even, in a 
few cases, offer "Large Print Books for the vision impared."  (We have a 
couple handfulls of those at our store.  They are mostly best sellers and 
classics.)
They do, unfortunately, make lots and lots of dumb decisions.  They consider 
the following, and other factors, but what they actually do is often beyond 
belief:
1.  How many (what RANGE) of books will this series/title/category sell.
2.  How many copies will fit in a "pocket" on the newstand at the grocery 
store.
3.  Will these mainly sell at stores with "pockets" or B.Dalton type shelves? 
 (If they go on the shelves, they tend to be "spine out" rather than "face 
out" despite the efforts of the sales persons to get them "face out.")
4.  Does this book appear to people who like "big fat books" or otherwise?
5.  How many words is it anyway?  
6.  How much do we (the publisher) charge to make up the advance?  (Tom 
Clancy and John Grishim, for instance, may actually be made larger via 
smaller print if the publisher thinks they will sell more.) Does this type 
buyer think they should be getting a larger book because they're paying a 
dollar or two extra per book.
Titles by an author with a moderate but steady following, who does "average 
length," are most likely to be set in smaller type so the book will be 
smaller.
They figure, correctly, that they won't lose sales, despite the complaints 
voiced here.  
/s/Book store owner whose partner spends a lot of time talking to and 
complaining at, publishers' sales reps. 
--- Maximus 2.02
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