Care and Feeding of Authors

 

So you know an author and you would like to help them be the amazing success you know they want to be. (too much? Yeah. I thought so.)

Seriously, though. If you want to support an author, there are several very real things you can do to help.

1. Buy their book
   This seems obvious, right? Here's the thing, though. Amazon has a set of super-secret magic rites algorithms that determine how many people will actually see the book. Sales are a part of that magic whatsit. If a new author's friends and family don't buy the book, nobody else is likely to even know it exists.

2. Read the book
   I know. We're asking a lot. But you can't do the next, super-important steps if you don't read it.

3. Leave a review
   Leaving honest reviews on Amazon and Goodreads not only appease the magic algorithm gods so more people will see the book, it also lets people who DO see it decide if this is the kind of book they would like. It does NOT have to be five stars. Just give it the number of stars you truly think it deserves and leave a few words about why you gave it that rating. A detailed review about what the book is about is even better, but any review at all helps.

4. Recommend
   If you like the book, tell your friends, family, or co-workers who you know read, and would like, that kind of book. Post it to your social media. Suggest it to your book club and local library.

5. Organize
   Book signings help get more readers. So does getting the book into independent bookstores. Unfortunately, being good at writing books, does not necessarily make one good at organizing events. Some authors may be. This one is not.

6. Tell me I'm pretty
   Not me, personally, but our books. Authors are made almost entirely of anxiety, self-doubt, and impostor syndrome. Telling them you like their book, especially if you mention something specific you like, helps. A lot.

7. Snacks

   Okay, this isn't specifically for authors. This may be just a me thing. People giving me snacks always makes me feel loved and appreciated.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk.
Author friends, please comment with anything I may have missed.