Fiction Club Proposal for Royston Vasey Library - Essay Example

Fiction Club Proposal for Royston Vasey Library RVL's Fiction Club would consist of regular library members who choose to pay a small annual fee on their library membership. This fee would allow them access to the new releases and bestsellers in the library's catalog before the regular library patrons. All titles would be available to all members, minimizing the impact of the program on lower-income patrons, but Fiction Club members receive priority on holds for the first six months after release of a title, or on any titles considered to be high demand (any title for which all copies are checked out more than 75% of the time).

Additionally, possession of a Fiction Club membership allows the member to place pre-release holds on any new title RVL plans to purchase. A final benefit of membership could be allowing checkout of non-fiction reference materials, given that a Club member is likely invested in the library and will return such materials. Using this type of optional membership increases revenue for the library while minimizing the effect on library members who choose not to participate. It allows greater participation by the community by not excluding those who cannot pay, unlike a full paid membership or RBB system.

Restrictions are only placed on popular, new, or expensive items, leaving the bulk of the catalog available for general usage. Patrons expect library materials to be freely available; implementation of a Fiction Club system avoids resentment that may be caused by other pay-for-usage systems.