Mysterious Galaxy: More Than Books

Sci-fi, mystery and fantasy fans awaiting the opening of , a mixed-genre bookstore just west of the , don’t need to hold their breath much longer—the store opens Tuesday.

The store will sell "books of Martians, murder, magic, mayhem [and] more," according to the free bookmarks.

Translated, that's "mystery, science fiction, fantasy and horror," said Terry Gilman, one of the three partners who own the store, and the only one who lives nearby. Gilman moved to Manhattan Beach from San Diego nine years ago. The other two partners are Maryelizabeth Hart and her husband, Jeff Mariotte.

Local mystery author Denise Hamilton will sign copies of her novel Damage Control on Tuesday evening as part of the opening festivities. Other authors are expected to stop by in the coming weeks, including Jeanne C. Stein, Brent Weeks and sci-fi legend Larry Niven.

For the store's official grand opening in October, celebrated authors like Orson Scott Card, Hillary Jorday and Lawrence Block are scheduled to appear for book signings.

Author Charlaine Harris is to appear in late October. "She writes the series on which True Blood is based," said Gilman. "She's an amazingly loved and wonderful person."

If Gilman has any concern about opening a bookstore in the current economic climate—with Borders having closed and other large chains struggling to survive—she doesn't show it.

"From the age of 12, I always fantasized about opening a bookstore," Gilman said. "Always loved books and reading."

The same team of owners opened their first Mysterious Galaxy store in San Diego 18 years ago, and it's still going strong. From the start, a big part of the store's success was hosting author events.

Another component was "hand selling," according to Hart. Hand selling is "putting a book we believe in into a customer's hand, and having the customer trust in our ability to know both the work and the customer to make the correct match."

The partners also see the value in reaching beyond the business' physical walls to find customers. Simply put, "you have to be out there in the community,” Gilman said.

"One of the reasons that we're still in existence is that we do a huge number of outside events," said Gilman. "We're at Comic-Con, we're at the L.A. Times Festival of Books, we are the bookseller for a conference called Men of Mystery. We support two writers' conferences. ... We're partnered already with a number of event companies that bring authors to Los Angeles."

It’s clear that bringing writers and readers together gives her a thrill. "This is what we do," she said.

Mysterious Galaxy will be putting on a romance conference next February in Long Beach called "Passion and Prose."

"We're inviting 50 romance authors to meet and greet and have conversations with 500 romance readers," Gilman explained.

For mystery fans, Gilman is planning an event for Mystery Writers of America, which would gather five or six authors at the Redondo Beach store.

"Ladies, Lunch and Literacy" is another of Gilman's projects: a monthly luncheon and book signing with a featured author.

"I pick debut authors that I can introduce," said Gilman. The luncheons raise funds for a different nonprofit literary group each year. Through 2011, it's Youth Radio.

Gilman started "Ladies, Lunch and Literacy" in 2008. Although those meetings will not be at the bookstore, there will be a display featuring the next book for the next meeting—in this case, The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh, which Gilman called "a stunning read."

The bookstore features other displays. On the right side of the shop are the science fiction, fantasy and horror novels, and new arrivals are generally placed toward the front of the store, Gilman said. Mystery and suspense are located on the left.

And in the center? "Right now it's mainstream or curated fiction—those are hand-picked fiction titles that we love. Non-genre," she said.

In back is a kiosk for paranormal romance, like Twilight. "It's the hottest thing out there, and I mean the pun," laughed Gilman.

Another section caters to young adults, the "future of [the store's] customer base," according to Gilman. "It's some of the best writing. … There's a lot of very hip, really good writers."

A high-tech community room available for groups to rent and a coffee bar in front complete the tour of the bookstore.

Gilman is talking to the owner of a local "very popular café," who is excited about moving into the space over the next few weeks, she reported. For this Tuesday's "Read and Feed" opening, though, popular gourmet food trucks will line the parking lot to sell breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Mysterious Galaxy, 2810 Artesia Blvd., North Redondo Beach, officially opens Tuesday. Follow Mysterious Galaxy on Twitter at MystGalaxyRB, or "like" it on Facebook at Mysterious Galaxy.