Membership Information

Independent bookstores and gift shops which carry books in North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan are encouraged to join our association. If you own or manage a store outside of these states and are interested in membership, please consider joining as an Associate Bookstore Member.​

MIBA membership runs on a calendar year with renewal on January 1. Starting in July, new member dues are prorated through the end of the year. All members joining prior to July will be charged the full membership rate. For example, if today is June 27th, feel free to wait a few days to join MIBA. You'll get a discount. All new members joining after October 23 will receive the next calendar year included with the full membership payment.

​Dues are $200 annually. We will refund you $50 if you opt into Auto-Pay for membership renewal when paying your first year's membership dues, if you sign up before July 1, 2026.

Member Benefits:

• Access to our in-person and virtual programming throughout the year, where you can meet publishers, authors, and booksellers; market your store to the industry; and learn indispensable skills--including Spring Road Trip and free admission to Heartland 
• Receive the many benefits of our annual print Winter Catalog, which many booksellers call their biggest marketing piece of the year, including 1000 free copies shipped to you and reduced customization and distribution costs
• Free custom store art drawn by Kevin Cannon and the opportunity to upgrade to a deluxe art package with custom features
• Your store's art, name and location printed in the 100,000+ Midwest Indie Bookstore Roadmaps MIBA creates and sends to member stores each Independent Bookstore Day
• 250 Roadmaps sent for free to your store for Independent Bookstore Day
• Listing in our bookstore directory
• New stores announced in our weekly industry newsletter
• Receive the Midwest Indie Bestseller List, including the Midwest Title Alert and current publisher promotions to save you money
• Weekly newsletter about member stores, book selling ideas, new developments in the industry, and our programming  
• Join our members-only private Facebook group
• Camaraderie, collaboration, and community in the Midwest region​

Anyone in the book industry who does business with independent booksellers: publishers, wholesalers, distributors, rep groups, point-of-sale systems, media, and other book-related organizations

Dues are on a sliding scale based on number of employees, with refunds given for opting in to Auto-Pay for membership renewal:

• Organizations with 10 or fewer employees pay $250 for 2026. If Auto-Pay is selected we will refund you $50.
• Organizations with 11-50 employees will pay $300 for 2026. If Auto-Pay is selected we will refund you $50.
• Organizations with 51 or more employees will pay $450 for 2026. If Auto-Pay is selected we will refund you $100.

Benefits of Membership:

• Discounted Member Pricing on promotions shared with our 370+ bookstores and 600 booksellers
• Bookseller ARC info, including contact info and preferred genres, via access to our members-only directories
• Free listings in our job board and calendar
• Listing in our public-facing industry member directory
• Company profile in our members-only directory
• Each employee gets their own customized Member Compass and Profile on our website for networking and communication with booksellers and other industry members
• Free admission to Heartland Fall Forum
• Access to our members-only Spring Road Trip, including opportunities for author placement, sales rep participation, education programming
• Invitations to year-round events and programs
• Opportunities to submit your titles to our annual Heartland Bookseller Awards
• Bi-Weekly industry newsletter and Midwest Indie Bestseller List, and program-specific actionable updates sent to you via email
• Monthly digest of new bookstores in your inbox, including contact info
• Direct insight into how to best work with the independent bookstore sales channel -- just reach out!

MIBA welcomes authors and illustrators whose work is available through the independent* bookstore channel. Join us! 

Author/Illustrator Membership is $150/year and includes:

• Free bookseller ARC info, including contact info and preferred genres, via access to our members-only membership directories
• Free listings in our calendar
• Listing in our public-facing industry member gallery
• Profile in our trade-facing membership directory
• Access to our members-only events and programs in the form of author placement, education partnerships, and submission of your titles to our annual book awards
• Weekly newsletter and Midwest Indie Bestseller List; program-specific actionable email updates 
• Monthly digest of new bookstores in your inbox, including contact info
• Direct insight into how to best work with the independent bookstore sales channel -- just reach out!

*no am@zon-only authors or those self-published via am@zon

Independent bookstores and gift shops which carry books outside of MIBA's region (North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan) are encouraged to join their regional associations and welcome to join MIBA as an Associate Bookstore Member. 

​Dues are $150 annually and include:

• Access to our free in-person and virtual programming throughout the year, where you can meet publishers, authors, and booksellers; market your store to the industry; and learn indispensable skills--including Spring Road Trip and Heartland
• Listing in our bookstore directory
• Access to Members-only pricing
• New stores announced in our weekly industry newsletter
• Receive the Midwest Indie Bestseller List, including the Midwest Title Alert and current publisher promotions to save you money
• Weekly newsletter about member stores, book selling ideas, new developments in the industry, and our programming  
• Join our members-only private Facebook group
• Camaraderie and influence within the entire Midwest region​