I’m sad that Borders has filed for bankruptcy, though I am also relieved that my royalties will be unaffected (neither Borders nor B&N carried Corruptor) by the turmoil.

But yeah, I shouldn’t be directly affected by the bankruptcy, if anybody was wondering. Those whose books were in their stores before the bankruptcy filing, however, could be royally screwed. Royalties and payments to publishers could be tied up in the courts forever, and that is a bad thing for small press publishers who have sunk a lot into promoting and pushing their books. So far as I can see, only Ingram distributors is still shipping books to Borders. This is a risky shot for Ingram, because if Borders continues to sink as quickly as it has been, then it stands to lose a lot of money. However, if Borders rights its ship, then Ingrams has a nice in with the second largest bookstore in the U.S.

I’m wondering how this is affecting other writers though. John Scalzi mentioned he should be fine as well, as he’s had a bit of a financial pillow to fall onto due to his real job. I’m not certain about John Ringo, Jim Butcher, et al. I hope that they’re okay.

The hardest hit, I believe, will be the “bigger fish” in the publishing sea. Writers who rely on older books to generate sales (since they don’t write at break-neck pace). Whose royalties aren’t astronomically high.

Yeah, those guys I worry about.