Today, Diamond Book Distributors informed publishers that, as of last week, they had stopped supplying graphic novels/collections to the Borders bookstore chain.

They confirmed that this was as result of Borders suspending payments to suppliers, and this included Diamond.

I cannot emphasise the seriousness of this situation enough. Most comics publishers use Diamond Book Distribution, at least in part, to distribute collections or original graphic novels into bookstores. Borders are a very large national chain and right now, hold, or have sold, millions upon millions of dollars of just comic book publisher's stock, unpaid for, sale or return.

Diamond are in talks with Borders looking to resolve this. It is likely that unsold stock in the stores will be returned en masse, and publishers will be billed for any advances on expected sales they may have received. Either way, this will impact immensely on cashflow across the industry, and some publishers simply will not survive.

And while the likes of DC and Marvel do not deal with Diamond Book Distributors for bookstore distribution, it is likely that they will have their own issues with Borders…