Beth: Ahhhh I am so excited for you! You’re living so many book lover’s dreams right now by opening up your very own independent bookshop on the Wirral. Is this something you’ve wanted to do for a while? What was the initial inspiration behind this goal? 

Abby: I can’t believe it either! Absolutely wild! Unsurprisingly it’s always been a dream of mine, and when I realised P+W was turning into an actual business years ago, I put it straight on the vision board. There was a bit of time around covid/having a baby where I wasn’t sure if it would work for us as a family anymore, but in 2024 we decided it was perfect timing, so we got planning! 

Beth: Most important questions first, what is the bookshop’s vibe going to be? Do you have any colour ideas? Will there be a genre theme?

Abby: I HAVE SO MANY IDEAS. Honestly Pinterest is my bestie right now. So firstly, we will be a fantasy bookshop! We’ll have every sub-genre of fantasy you can imagine, and will likely be stocking from young adult upwards. We’re still figuring out if we have enough space to stock middle grade and a very small kids section. 

As for vibes and colours - we are actually having our brand designer create a sub-brand just for the shop! We decided that to fit with the cosy fantasy vibes we want it to have, we should have a slightly different colour palette. We’ve been secretly calling this project “Paper and Word at midnight”! I want it to feel like you’re stepping into a Fae’s personal library, you know? Somewhere you’d want to run inside to warm up on a rainy day.

Beth: What are you most excited about when it comes to starting this new journey?

Abby: There is a collaboration we are working on that is going to be absolutely INSANE. It’s a total bucket list collaboration so I am continuously pinching myself! Aside from that, it has to be the decor. I can’t wait to decide the layout of the shop, choose the light fixtures, and have the outside painted! We have really fun plans for this.

Beth: I’d be so buzzed to pick the books to stock, how are you approaching this? How do you go about picking which books will make it into your shop?

Abby: It is so hard but so fun! I have my own list of essentials and we’re working closely with publishers and suppliers to expand this and fill the shop. We’re doing one thing a little differently too, which I’ll be sharing really soon!

Beth: Is the plan for you to work in the shop full time or will you have a team of booksellers?

Abby: To start with I will be working full time in the shop, whilst also keeping the current version of P+W running. However I’m increasing our current (non bookshop) team at the moment, and in a couple of months I’ll be looking for a bookseller or two for the shop as well. Long term, I'll be splitting my time between the shop floor and working ‘on’ the business. 

Beth: How do you think the addition of an indie bookshop will benefit your local community?

Abby: I’m really excited for it! The honest answer is that any brick and mortar store is a bit of a risk, but I’ve been putting some really awesome plans into place to make it a community space. This includes everything from what we stock to events we’ll hold and other local businesses we’ll be collaborating with. I know there are a lot of people locally who will love what we’re doing, but I expect we may even get people travelling in from afar…

Beth: I’m sure this goes without asking, but which author are you most excited to stock books from?

Abby: I mean it’s got to be Robin Hobb! I will also say Sarah J. Maas, as they are my two favourite authors, but everyone knows about SJM these days! Hobb will be incredibly fun as I’ll likely be able to share her writing with people who didn’t know about it beforehand. You bet I’ll be making sure everyone buys Throne of Glass and not just ACOTAR, too!!  

Beth: Will we be seeing any author events? 👀

Abby: Absolutely. I can’t give any information yet, but we have lots of plans afoot! 

Beth: What does this bookshop mean for the future of Paper and Word’s online shop? Will you be stocking the indie seller items in your store? Can we buy book sleeves in the shop?

Abby: We will be mostly merging the two. So everything we’re currently known and loved for will be present in store, including an epic book sleeve display! We will then be including books on our website as well. However there will be some books and merch exclusively in store only, so you need to get your butts to the Wirral! 

Beth: And finally, on a scale of 1-10, how excited are you to use the little till scanny thingy?

Abby: I am 11/10 excited to use the little scanner, but also 100/10 terrified of setting it all up correctly! Pray for me. 

It’s safe to say we can’t wait to see a physical shop with the Paper and Word name on it, here’s to 2025! 

• The Paper and Word Team •