I get a lot of questions from my social circle about how to support my work. (Thank you, friends!) As a primary measuring stick of authorial success, book sales get a lot of attention. However, I consider them only a small piece of the puzzle. There are so many things you can do beyond purchasing a single book. You can even support your favorite authors without spending any money at all!
I’m going to round up my favorites here. Feel free to leave your suggestions or questions in the comments!
Totally free ways to support your favorite author
Some of these do require a copy of the book, but will work just fine with a library copy or a book you already happen to own.
- Add their book(s) on Goodreads and recommend it to your friends
- Leave a review on Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, and Audible
Reviews, especially early in a book’s life, are super helpful. If you really enjoyed the book, leave a star rating. Caveat: ratings ⭐️⭐️⭐️ and below can do more harm than good. - Request the book from the library
If your library doesn’t have it, most have a simple process for submitting purchase requests. - Recommend one of their books for your next book club pick
Even if you already read a free review copy, your book club pals will buy the book or request it from the library, and they’re likely to recommend it to other friends if they like it. Some authors also do book club visits! - Tell your friends and family about the book
Know someone who might love this book? Don’t keep it to yourself! Ask them if they’ve read it. When they say no, tell them they should — and maybe, if you really trust them, offer to loan them your copy. - Offer to write a “shelf talker” card for your local bookstore
This might even make them more likely to stock it if they don’t already ???? - Post about the book on your social media
Take a photo of yourself holding the book, share your Goodreads review, whatever strikes your fancy. Then tag the author! If you’re looking for ideas, check out my “in the wild” story highlights on my @jaclynpaulwriter and @lenageorgeauthor Instagram accounts. My fiction publisher, Harborview Press, also has a highlight for love they get from reviewer gift packages. - Attend in-person events and invite your friends
Authors often promote our books through live events: launch parties, book signings, readings, etc. These can be really terrifying and we rely on our wider networks to help bring people out. Your presence means a lot. - Bring the book with you out in public
On the train, in a bar, the lunchroom at work, family gatherings, anywhere people might catch a glimpse of it (bonus points if they ask what you’re reading!) - Use your connections
You might know someone who hosts a book review podcast, or who schedules monthly readings at a local cafe. Also consider your niece who has a #bookstagram or #booktok account, a journalist friend, or a former colleague who works with an organization whose mission somehow relates to themes in the book. Many of these folks, especially influencers who get flooded with random requests every single day, won’t engage with an author they don’t know — but they will appreciate you making a personal connection. - Subscribe to the author’s email list and follow them on social media
Then, engage with their content! Like, comment, share, and recommend to like-minded friends.
Ways to support your favorite author by buying books
- Pre-order their next book
Pre-orders make a huge difference because they all get counted toward the first week’s sales. A sales ranking boost from strong pre-orders establishes credibility and increases chances the Amazon algorithm will start suggesting the book to potential buyers. The snowball effect from this is basically free advertising. - Ask your local bookseller to help you find the book in the store
Yes, even if you feel capable of finding it yourself. This puts the book on booksellers’ radar. Customer interest drives ordering decisions and might even inspire them to read the book and feature it on the “staff picks” shelf. - Gift the book to friends and family
This is especially useful if you know the author socially and want to support them, but don’t generally read the type of books they write. Give it as a birthday or holiday gift to someone who does. - Leave a copy (new or well-loved) behind somewhere
Think Little Free Library, Airbnb, coffee shop, or even a friend’s house. - Buy/read the book, but don’t worry too much about how
Yes, profit margins differ across book formats, and you should always try to support your local indie bookshop, and I spend too much time hoping the Amazon algorithm is learning the right things from the purchases that inevitably happen there. But in reality, any way you lay hands on a new copy of an author’s book is better than none. If Kindle Unlimited is your jam, that’s fine! I’d much rather hear someone read my book on there, or checked it out of the library for free, than hear some variation of, “I want to get your book from the bookstore but I haven’t gotten there yet.”
Sensing a theme here?
The bottom line is, anything you do to help an author’s book get seen will help. The more places people remember seeing a book, even if it’s just some random person reading it on the train, the more likely they’ll be to pick it up themselves. This is why I tell people I’d much rather them do any of the free options on this list than silently purchase a single copy of my book for themselves.
One sale is one sale (which, to be clear, every author does appreciate!). Publicly expressed love for a book, even if you never spend your own money on a copy, can lead to many sales. Thousands of sales.
I know this because I’ve seen it happen with my own work. Word of mouth is still a huge deal for authors and their books. So are personal connections: someone who knows a producer at the local radio station, or went to high school with the person who owns the bookstore, or is a freelance writer and can submit a review to the newspaper.
So go forth and give your favorite books some love! It matters, and we authors appreciate it more than you can imagine.
Leave a Reply