Where there's a Will, there's a way

Once in a while I think about trying to make a little money from this blog since I'm getting pretty high regular traffic for a local site like this but so far I've resisted cluttering things up with ads. I finally decided that the Powell's Books partnership program will help me get a little extra money for books and movies while also helping me to create more interesting content for my blog.

To explain things I'm going to engage in a Rumsfeld style Q&A with myself.

What u talkin 'bout Willis?
I'll have links on my blog to books and DVD's at Powell's Books. I'll get a portion of the sales from anyone who follows the link and then buys anything at the store. You don't have to buy the specific item I link to, but you do have to buy something during that session in order for me to get credit for the purchase.

What are you going to do with all that moolah?
I signed up to receive store credit instead of cash. I'll use all the money I get from sales to buy books and DVD's that I will then review on my blog. That means you'll be helping me generate new content for you to read.

Why not do the same thing with Amazon?
There are two reasons I decided to go with Powell's instead of Amazon. First, Powell's supposedly pays a little more money per purchase. I won't be getting a lot but anything extra is nice.

Second, Powell's in Portland is the most fantastic bookstore I've ever seen in my life. Not only did they have multiple floors and sections of used and new books, but they had good books. They have all of those interesting books you never see at chain stores and ones I couldn't believe I didn't know about. I must have spent over an hour in their sections on history and politics. They even have technical and rare titles.

Their gift shop has some interesting items that progressive minded people will like. Besides picking up at least 20 books when I was there I also got my t-shirt with a Gandhi quote, and a Rosie the Riveter action figure doll as a gift for a lesbian feminist activist friend.

On top of all that the workers are unionized, including the online orders department. How cool is that? So, for those reasons and more I thought Powell's was the best match for me and many of the people who regularly read this blog.

Why should I buy through your link again?
If you enjoy what I'm doing with this blog then making your next book or DVD purchase through my Powell's link is a good way to show your appreciation. Also, you'll be supporting my purchase of more books that I'll review here. I'll be taking suggestions for books or movies you'd like me to purchase and review on the blog.

Will, are you selling out?
Yes. If I start to complain about how much rich people pay in taxes or an imaginary friend of a friend who supposedly lost his job to an illegal immigrant according to this email someone forwarded me, please slap some sense into me.

During the next week I'll add Powell's links to posts about the books and DVDs I've already written about. You can find them by clicking on Reviews in the subjects sidebar. I'm also going to start posting lists and reviews of my favorite biographies, political books, movies and so on. Hopefully people will enjoy reading those posts even if you're not interested in buying anything.

In the future you can look for links to specific titles, click on the Powell's logo on the right sidebar, or click on the picture below.

Thank you in advance to everyone who participates!