Happy Indie Bookshop Week!

From Saturday, 19 June to Saturday, 26 June, it’s Indie Bookshop Week.

This event has been running since 2006 by Books Are My Bag. They also run other bookish events to support Indie Bookshops like the BAMB Awards and Indie Bookshop Day in October.

Shoutout to my local Indie Bookshop

Stillwater Books is my local bookshop in Felixstowe.

It’s been a tough year for high street shops due to the pandemic. Many spent months closed as they weren’t deemed essential. I know, who said books aren’t essential?

Ocean Heart released on 1 Dec and the country was in lockdown. The book signing event I’d always dreamed of was looking bleak. Boris said no!

I reached out to Stillwater Books with my proposed idea, a work around solution for a book signing during lockdown. I literally happy danced when they said yes.

I promptly got to work on promoting the event. The manager was patient with me as I figured out details, how to order books, write an invoice, and all the other brand new tasks I was doing for the first time.

I signed the ordered books and brought them into the shop. I made a little video for YouTube. Customers who had preordered, then either collected from the store or arranged for local delivery.

I certainly hadn’t imagined a non-contact book signing before, but Stillwater Books worked with me to make it happen. I will always be thankful to them for helping make my dream come true.

Shop Local

It’s really important to shop at your local independent bookshop. In doing so, you are supporting your high street, local jobs, a small business, and treating yourself to a new read.

That’s why I love being an affiliate with Bookshop.org. Redfae Bookshop.org is my affiliate store giving recommendations on books you should buy. It connects you with a local independent bookshop for your purchase. In return you support them with your custom and I get a small commission.

If you enjoyed this, you will like:

My Affiliate Disclosure page

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Ocean Heart releases tomorrow

Now you can preorder Ocean Heart

[kofi]

8 Reasons it’s good for YOU to write reviews

People often talk about why writing reviews are so important to authors but what about for you the reader. Here we go:

Your Reading History

If you read a lot, you can forget what you’ve read. You don’t want to waste time reading a book you didn’t enjoy, twice.

But on the flip side, wouldn’t it be awesome to rediscover the books you did love. You don’t want to forget those gems.

Reading Goals

If you enjoy a challenge, set yourself a reading goal. Celebrate your wins doing something you love.

If you discover your not getting time to read, it could help you identify that your life is too hectic and you don’t get to relax. Or maybe your energy is focussed elsewhere, which is fine. You can reduce your goal.

Favourite author

It helps you not forget the name of that author whose voice you loved. Now, you can discover more of their books.

You can follow authors you like on sites like Goodreads, Book Bub and Amazon. This will help keep you notified of new releases.

Better Recommendations

Over time your tastes may change but seeing what you enjoyed helps identify what you love. In turn, this will help you discover more fabulous books.

If you post your review to sites like Good Reads or Amazon, then algorithms will learn what you want and recommend what to buy/read next. This can save you time in finding your next great read.

Others will read your reviews, see what you like and be able to make intelligent recommendations.

Reading Buddies

You may connect with people with similar tastes, get reading buddies, and/or develop a book club. Reading can become a social activity, and thanks to the internet, you can buddy a reader anywhere in the world.

By talking about the books you read, you become someone people trust for recommendations. Imagine being an influencer for the books you love, someone others take notice of? If you’re good at reviews, this could be you.

Self Development – Reading

There’s more to reading than getting from page 1 to the end. When you write a review you reflect on what you read.

What was it about? How did it make you feel? Did you learn from the story?

Reflecting on what you read is a skill you are taught at school to deepen your reading but is often lost when you no longer have a teacher invested in your reading.

Self Development – Writing

When you write a review, you’ll think about what was done well and how you can use those techniques in your own work. Being a reader helps you deliver more of what readers want.

You will also be exposed to new words or phrases, expanding your vocabulary. You will visit places, meet new people, and explore plots that will inspire new ideas.

Free Books For Honest Reviews

Authors look for people that read their genre. If they are giving their book away for free, they want it to be to someone that will appreciate and love their book. If you apply to be a reviewer, your history as a reviewer could be checked.

The reason is, if you love their genre, their book is off to a good start already in your hands. If you have a following that enjoy your reviews on this genre, then you’ll be helping the right eager readers discover it.

When authors can see what you like, it helps them know if their book is right for you. Someone that enjoys gritty serious crime novels is unlikely to enjoy a sweet high school romance.

We’re all beautifully unique. It’s okay if YA Contemporary Fantasy isn’t for you, but I’m hoping those that do will love and review OCEAN HEART.

Have you preordered Ocean Heart?

If you buy a copy of Ocean Heart between 1 Oct and 1 Dec, you can enter my preorder giveaway. Visit my Giveaway Page for more details.

Where can you find my reviews?

Let me know the positives you’ve experienced from writing book reviews, and check out my reviews.

[kofi]

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Books

Ocean Heart

Where To Find The Best Indie Books

There are so many amazing books out there. It’s easy to go for the main stream books because they’re easy to get hold of. And, they are awesome.

But if you only read main stream, you are missing out. Once you delve into indie books you’ll discover unique books that don’t have to fit a mould. But, where do you find these amazing Indie Books?

Don’t worry, World Indie Warriors has sorted it for you.

WIW Spring 2020 Brochure

Who are World Indie Warriors?

That’s a good question. They are a diverse group of creatives and indie businesses that have all come together to support each others growth.

The Indie Brochure

I helped WIW by creating a brochure to showcase their members’ products and services.

Did I mention, the brochure is FREE!

It’s packed full of indie books, products and services. There are details on how to connect, buy or get involved. The best way to discover what’s inside is to take a look.

Go check it out now! Click here.

Get Involved

The best way to get involved is to:

Indie Authors / Indie Services / Indie Products

To be in the next brochure, discover how by reading the Submissions Call post on the WIW blog here.

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World Indie Warriors Brochure (Dec 2019)

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