I was thinking about what I could have as my shop in OFB when I was thinking how a bookstore would work. I didn't really try it with normal books but I wanted to know if it would work with custom novels. Could you restock with different books each time or does it have to be the same book title and everything to be able to restock it. Or will it even work at all?

You need a mod to sell custom novels. You can find it here. It's the last one on the page :-)

I don't really want a mod though. I'm trying to keep my game mod-free with the exception of 'No Friends for Careers' and 'Mannequins Can Be Born.'

In that case it's not possible, sadly. If you really want to sell custom novels you'll need that mod.

Well, it's impossible to set custom novels for sale without that mod... It really works well. I downloaded an empty stockable bookcase from SimWardrobe, and designated the sim who owns my bookstore as a publisher. Basically, when my Sims get their book back after they publish their novel, I have them gift it to the Publisher sim, who then stocks the bookstore with them...
The only issue with the mod, is that after restocking for the first time, it puts the book in the imposible-to-real-world-physics position of standing upright on it's spine.

I imagine an angle changing OMSP would fix that issue though...

Well you can't sell custom novels then.

You have two options; you either mod the game to play in ways you would like or you except Maxis game play and it's limitations. If those are your only mods and you don't use the critical mod fixes your hoods/game are in danger of blowing up as well.

If you really don't want a mod, then forget about selling custom novels.

However, if you want to have a bookstore and don't really care what types of books Sims purchase, then just use the regular bookcases (a row of the tall slender bookcase without the deco is a good choice...but any bookcase will do).

Sims will not only purchase books, but will browse as well.

I play a rotational game - so it's kind of nice to eventually get to see what types of books are in my Sims inventory, when I know they've been shopping at their neighbor's bookshop.

I'm a little confused about how this would work

So if your business sells written novels which may not be available all the time
Would if be wise to turn the bookstore into a ticket business with other activites so sims wont just walk in and have like 3 novels to buy?

Or when you stock one novel, when you are then able to restock it how many times before you have to write it again? If that makes any sense

Don't know but you can make a library as an owned business and you can bring the custom novels and then you have the option to Discuss [Book title] with sim so-and-so (visiting sims), the sims will then sit on the floor and hang out, and the plot symbols from the book will appear in their speech bubbles. Very nice option. It's also possible to bring magazines from subscriptions and place on side tables. You can then Influence sims to read the magazines.

@PenelopeT To sell books from a regular bookshelf you simply click on the bookshelf, you can't highlight just the books. While it looks like the whole bookshelf will sell it doesn't as Maxis bookshelves don't come with that feature. So wherever you click on it, only single books will be sold at a time.

There is this method of making more novels from the one you have. I have tried it and sometimes I find it works and other times I have to try numerous times to get another novel. http://www.modthesims.info/showthread.php?t=449341 This would be very tedious way of making more stock I should think. It could also be that I forgot a step in all my clicking, but I know it was annoying to do for more than a couple of books to give as gifts.

And...here I always thought if you clicked directly on the bookshelf it would mark the entire thing for sell (like items in a furniture store).

I have been playing the Sims since the release of the Sims 1, and am always surprised by how many random little things you can learn about the game(s) (any version of the series).

I remember someone posting in WCIF precisely because they couldn't sell the bookcases as a whole and they wanted to run a furniture store.

I was kinda hoping you could have your novels on a bookcase and they'd buy the novels, not the normal books you have on here. :-1

You can; but you do need the mod. Sorry.

Why are you so against mods? Perhaps we can allay your fears

Sorry I haven't read the whole thread, but I tried these things and wanted to let you know that custom novels are worth around 15 simoleons. Or 25, I'm not completely sure, that was long ago. The difference on such a scale hardly matters.