Common Questions

Employment; can I get a job, Mister?

No. It’s a small business and there are no vacancies. Ever.

Your cv will probably look at me guiltily for a few weeks and then find it’s way to the recycling. If you include an e-mail addrsss, you might get an answer, but it’ll still be ‘no’.

Signings, etc.

I can arrange for certain authors’ books to be peraonally signed, but I don’t put on signings for touring authors.
The shop is too small for readings or q&a sessions, which is the accepted format now.
In any case, very few authors would be a big enough draw, except possibly on a Saturday, when it would be more disruptive than useful, I’m afraid. I have a lot of previous experience with signings, etc. and have no wish to put on events that are almost guaranteed to be disappointing to the author and to myself.

Please note: I am more than happy for authors to drop in and sign their stock and have a chat; I just don’t feel it’s worth doing formally.

Small Press Publishers I’m happy to be sent info about your books, but please remember that I sell mainly sf & f and titles outwith these genres are unlikely to be given much consideration.
Also, I mainly order via Gardners Books for my UK titles – if you’re not on their database, I’m unlikely to want to open a separate account for a couple of titles. I do deal with some specialist publishers, etc., so this isn’t a hard and fast rule, but the vast majority of my stock is from established wholesalers.

Shopping Basket? Can I buy from you online?

Not yet, but e-mail enquiries, etc. are usually answered fairly quickly, and Invoices issued, or cc numbers taken and goods sent out. In that most of my mail-order business is related to ‘bespoke’ signed books, e-mail works better for them, anyway, to ensure all the details are correct.

Do I buy books?

No. Transreal Fiction sells new books and is not a second-hand bookshop. Nor do I buy comics, or know who does these days.

Do you open on Sundays?

Only on some Sundays – mainly the Sundays in August and those before Christmas each December. The Grassmarket has been experimenting with a monthly summer fair (first Sunday of each month) and I shall be open on at least some of these fair days, if the scheme continues in 2010.