3 easy ways to help an author

Many peo­ple have asked me what they can do to help pro­mote my book. Many oth­ers have already helped in ways both big and small, and I’m grate­ful for each and every one. If you’ve ever won­dered how to help an author friend, here are some quick, easy things you can do that will have a big impact.
1. If you can, buy the book… for your­self and for others!

• Books make great gifts, so con­sid­er hol­i­days, birth­days, and oth­er cel­e­bra­tions as well as grad­u­a­tions, retire­ments, new babies, and oth­er mile­stones com­ing up in the lives of your friends, fam­i­ly, teach­ers and coach­es, and co-workers.
• Many places are thrilled to receive dona­tions of new books, too. Think about buy­ing extra copies for your local food bank, hos­pi­tal, shel­ters, schools, and libraries.

2. Help get the word out. 

• Ask your local book­store if they car­ry the book. If you’re bold, you can even tell them why they might want to con­sid­er stock­ing it!
• Request the book from your local library, and then check it out when it arrives.
• Ask for help find­ing it on the shelf in book­stores and libraries, even if you already know where it is, so the book­sellers and librar­i­ans will know where it is, too!
• Ask the author for some book­marks or oth­er swag, which you can hand out to book­store employ­ees, librar­i­ans, and teach­ers or leave behind in cof­fee shops, doctor’s offices, wait­ing rooms, etc. as appropriate.
• Share pho­tos of “in the wild” sight­ings of the book to increase aware­ness of the cov­er and title.

3. If you like the book, share your thoughts with others!

• Write a nice review on Ama­zon, BN.com, Goodreads, and/or else­where. It doesn’t have to be long or pro­found: Five stars and a sim­ple “Loved it!” can go a long way!
• Mark well-writ­ten good reviews you see on those sites as help­ful (and, con­verse­ly, if you see reviews that are just mean or unfair, mark them as not helpful).
• Share your thoughts on the book with your friends and fol­low­ers on your social media out­lets like your blog, Tum­blr, Face­book, Twit­ter, Insta­gram, etc.
• Tell the author! Not all reviews are pos­i­tive, and hear­ing from some­one who liked the book might be just what the author needs.