Profile on Michelle Berry’s Hunter Street Books, with a few questions

This month, Peterborough author Michelle Berry has opened up her new bookstore, Hunter Street Books (164 Hunter Street West, Peterborough), becoming (according to Kawartha Now) “the first return of an independent bookstore to downtown Peterborough since Titles closed in 2012.” Berry is the author of nine books, including three collections of short fiction—How to Get There from Here, Margaret Lives in the Basement, and I Still Don’t Even Know You—and five novels—What We All Want, Blur, Blind Crescent, This Book Will Not Save Your Life (winner of the 2010 Colophon Award and longlisted for the 2011 ReLit Award) and Interference—as well as editor (with Natalee Caple) of The Notebooks: Interviews and New Fiction from Contemporary Writers. Her latest book, a novel called The Prisoner and the Chaplain, is due to appear in September 2017.

Given the death of a variety of independent bookstores across Canada over the past decade and a half, the founding of a new bookstore is a thing worth celebrating, and Berry promises a literary space not only for contemporary titles, but readings, signings and lectures.

mclennan:

What made you decide to open up a bookstore?

Berry:

A bunch of things worked together — right time, right place. I’ve always wanted to run or work in a bookstore — what writer doesn’t? Surrounded by books all day? Getting to order all the books I want? It’s the dream (of course then there’s the reality of incorporation/tax stuff/accounting/bookkeeping/inventory/ordering, etc). But I knew I needed just the right place and this place was it. It’s in a great location with a lot of foot traffic. It’s in the restaurant district of Peterborough so lots of patios and tourists in the summer, etc. Timing wise I’d just handed in another novel, my kids were going off to third year university and grade 12, even my dog sleeps all day and doesn’t need me. I figured I could teach online while running the store and writing. A perfect storm. What’s that saying: do thing that scares you? Well… done!

mclennan:

What is the bookstore culture like in Peterborough? What other stores, if any, are you competing with?

Berry:

I’m competing with Chapters. That’s it. There are quite a few really great second hand bookstores that you can get lost in, but no other new book Indie. We did have an amazing store called Titles but the owners retired when the landlord needed the space back. So I’m not really competing with anyone. Because you can’t compete with Chapters. We’re two different beasts.

mclennan:

How do you plan to engage with the local literary community? Will you be selling consignment items, or aiming to host readings and workshops?

Berry:

I’m going to have launches, readings, signings, lecture series, maybe a kids' story hour,  etc. I’m not sure of exactly what yet but I definitely want to be involved in the amazing community in Peterborough. Whatever works for the store (and for my hours, as I’m the only staff right now!).

mclennan:

Over the years, what have your favourite bookstores been? What are your models?

Berry:

I love Notting Hill, Munro’s in Victoria. The Strand in New York is great. I love Furby’s in Port Hope. And my daughter tells me the Kingston bookstore, Novel Idea, is amazing. I was also treated wonderfully at McNally’s in Winnipeg the last time I read there. I want to visit Lexicon in Nova Scotia and I must get down and see Martha Sharpe’s pop-up Flying Books in Toronto.

mclennan:

There are examples of literary writers who have run bookstores (in various capacities) still able to produce work, but how do you see this affecting your own writing?

Berry:

I don’t think it will affect my writing anymore than the online teaching I have been doing for almost 7 years has affected it —  in fact, I think the teaching actually affects it more because I’m always trying to edit before I’m finished the first draft nowadays! I tend to be an editor first and have to turn my editing brain off to write. But I think that being out in the world instead of shut up in my home office teaching online can only be good for my books. Talking to people, seeing the world around me — that will hopefully translate into something bigger and better in my writing. We shall see! I’m going to see about writing some sort of memoir or something similar about starting this store — I’ve already met enough characters in the 2 months since this has started to write 100 books!