Surprise! BookStack is Moving Again.
What do you mean moving again?? Wasn't BookStack just brought over to Squarespace.
Didn’t really think I’d be making another post like this again so soon. However, BookStack is packing it’s bag, loading up the good ole reliable, and getting ready to move.
For those who are already following the evolution of The BookStack Catalog, you know that we’ve just moved over to Squarespace— a painstaking process to even build that in the first place. However, there was one thing it lacked which could’ve made everything easier: Automation.
Why Does Automation Matter?
In the manner of building a database, the process of creating listings and moving them to the correct spots is tedious. Often I’d spend around 1 - 2 hours on each, depending on how many books the author is submitting.
So given my schedule being taken up by school and work, there isn’t much time for me to focus on updating the Catalog.
Automating the process means listings will automatically be organized and moved to the correct areas. This means that as soon as a book or author profile is submitted, the info will be pulled straight into the database— updating the directory without my assistance.
So, what does this allow for?
At its core, it speeds up the process of creating new listings, and allowing me to just check for mistakes. This means more time for me to do schoolwork, and work on other writing projects. It’ll also benefit authors looking to submit their books into the database:
View your books on the data base within 30 - 60 minutes.
Options to select genres not listed.
Straight-forward process to get your books listed.
There will also be other features in the new directory, allowing for readers to filter through books and authors, and better search functionality.
All that being said…
The catalog in its new form is still currently being worked on, though most of it has already been finished. And it’s actually live already, just head over to https://indiebookstack.com to check it out! Feel free to reach out to me at any time with any feedback or suggestions (to help improve it) you have.
Just don’t expect it to operate perfectly. Using Softr.io has been a learning experience— one that I wasn’t even sure about just weeks ago.
has been a great help and inspiration, too. So doing all this probably wouldn’t have been possible without her.Also, of course, I have to shout out
as he was an inspiration in the automating process of BookStack. At the time he’d suggested the idea to me, I just didn’t really know how make everything work. But here we are now, in the future, and anything is possible (if you continue trying).Anyway, this sums up the spheal I had for you all. Basically new website, new forms to use when getting books listed, yknow… the works. I hope you all like the way it’s turning out. It is definitely different from Squarespace. Please go take a look, and let me know what you think, buh-bye for now!
Thanks for all the hard work you do!