Discussion // DUST JACKETS (and how to get them)

IF YOU HAVE RECENTLY PURCHASED A BOOK THAT ARRIVED WITHOUT A DUST JACKET, DO NOT PANIC. This will post help with any questions, comments, or concerns you may have during the process of getting a dust jacket.

A while back, I ordered a copy of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire from thriftbooks, a website that sells used books for really cheap. I had bought all of my copies of Harry Potter used to begin with because I wanted them in hardcover, but I also did not want pay the 30 dollar list price for a book I may or may not have liked.

In this order, I purchased books four, five, and seven from the Harry Potter series, so that I could complete my collection and have less than forty dollars invested into the series. All of the books were in almost perfect condition, except for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. This one came without a dust jacket, which is something I expected from a placed that sold used book. I took the chance on having the book coming without a dust jacket, and I almost let myself accept that was how my book was going to look on my shelves.

After a long amount of research, I finally stumbled upon some useful information. I read through a few forums to try to see if any of these people had any luck in the search for a dust jacket. I figured that even if this was not the best information, I could run with it and see where it took me. I contacted a publishing company and with luck I got an email back.

STEP BY STEP:

1. Do your research. Is this book popular? Has it sold a lot of copies? Authors usually use their dust jackets as a way to promote the book they are selling. Chances are they're a lot of extra copies of the dust jacket lying around. These extra copies are sent to libraries, bookstores, and book bloggers as possible promotion.
2. Be professional. Do not send an email that is full of misspelled words or slang like "lol" or "omg"  because this will likely be ignored. The email should come off as something that would be taken seriously.
3. Email the correct company. This does not just mean the company that published the book, but you would also like to contact the correct section of the company. Do not contact the young adult section of this company if you are looking for a series that is strictly middle grade.
4. Be patient. The publishing companies will take time to respond to you. They have a lot of things to do, so do not be too upset if they do not respond the next day.

MY EXPERIENCE:

I emailed the publishers at Scholiastic about a dust jacket for my copy of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. In the email, I stated my name, and that I had purchased a copy of this book but it had came without a dust jacket. I then asked, if there was anyway that I could purchase the dust jacket I was interested and to let me know as soon as they possibly could. I waited about a week and a half before I got an email back. I was not expecting a response so soon, but replied back to an email asking for my mailing address. I got the package roughly a week later. The dust jacket came rolled up, which wasn't a major issue because I only had to fold the jacket around my book.

THINGS TO REMEMBER:

• Publishers might charge a shipping fee. This didn't happen to me, but it could easily be something that could happen with a different company.
• Be polite. You will not receive any service for rude behavior or inappropriate comments.
• Include your mailing address in the original email. This will save you wait time, and the publishers time to get the task out of the way. Do not be afraid of providing an address.

Have you ever bought a used book and it came naked?