About & FAQ
50 Watts is a bookstore with a focus on visually-striking and unusual books from around the world -- incredible art books and artists’ books, surreal picture books, graphic design icons, underground comics, risograph zines, Writers No One Reads, deep backlist finds, odd vintage arcana, and funky gift books, prints, and ephemera. Expect to find lots of publications from Japan and Europe.
50 Watts also publishes books and zines (which you might stumble upon in other shops) and imports a handful of books to distribute to the trade.
From March 2021 through September 2024 50 Watts was online-only. On 10/10/24 I opened my first retail space at 15 W Highland Ave in Chestnut Hill Philadelphia. It is a 700 square foot rectangle (formerly a bridal shop) packed with eye-popping books (the same books I will continue to sell online). There are more books in the store than online, a situation I hope to fix eventually.
Thank you to my customers from around the world who support this strange beast!
--Will @ 50 Watts (aka Will Schofield)
(If you are not familiar with Philly neighborhoods, Chestnut Hill is far-flung from downtown and requires a regional train ride or bus or 30-40 minute drive if starting from Center City. It is super leafy and walkable, has three other bookstores -- Booked, Multiverse, and Hilltop Books -- and you can wander into Wissahickon Valley Park or drive a few minutes to the Morris Arboretum.)
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About taxes: If you order directly from 50wattsbooks.com, state and local taxes are added to orders within Pennsylvania. If you checkout directly on Facebook or Instagram or Shop, those platforms collect and remit taxes for most states (acting as "marketplace facilitators").
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Disorganized FAQ
“How do I reach you?”: Contact 50wattsbooks [at] gmail.com
“Where, when, how do you ship books?” Here is an overload of information about shipping.
“Can I buy online and pick up my books in person?” I had to disable the "local pickup" coupon because people around the world were trying to use it. You can email us if you want us to hold a book for 24 hours, though 99.9% of the time a book will not disappear in a day or two. Email 50wattsbooks [at] gmail.com
“Can I stock 50 Watts publications at my own shop?” Yes! You can find most 50 Watts publications on Faire, and/or you can email will AT 50wattsbooks.com.
“Can you include a gift message in this order?” Yes, during checkout, if you don't see the little box to add a message (it might disappear depending on your payment method), email me.
“Isn't 50 Watts a blog?” 50 Watts is also the name of my weird image blog (born 2007), which still exists though I now mostly post to social media rather than to 50watts.com.
“Why is it called 50 Watts?”: In 2011 a friend begged me to change the original name of my blog, A Journey Round My Skull (a name I borrowed from this book). They gave a random list of suggestions and I picked one and here we are.
“Will you publish my book?” Probably not because I only have the time & resources to work on dream projects.
“Will you stock my book?” Maybe, though I have limited space & resources. When contacting, let me know the retail/wholesale price & shipping options, dimensions, etc.
“Who designed your little book creature logo?” Jacob Covey of Unflown.
“When did you open?” The bookstore went live in March 2021 and the first 50 Watts titles were released in summer 2022. The brick-and-mortar shop opened in October 2024. I had been planning for 21 years.
