Many of us struggle with what to give our friends and family members for Hanukkah, Christmas, or Kwanzaa—essentially any winter holiday. But my suggestion—for the benefit of you and my fellow authors is to give books for the holidays.
Why Books?
Even with the rise of ebooks, there is something special about physical books. Our son started a shopping spree recently for manga books. I would have expected him to read something else at age twenty-five, but he hasn’t spent this much time reading since high school. There are several reasons to give books for the holidays, as this article from bustle.com mentions. I’m particularly fond of the idea that books take us places. Anyone who has read a book they just couldn’t put down understands this. Books give us the chance to escape, explore other worlds, and see ourselves in a whole new way. And given all that books can give us, even hardback books aren’t expensive.
What You Can Do
Few things make authors more excited than selling their books. But that isn’t what we want the most. What we really want is for people to read and like what we’ve read. We hope they’ll appreciate the effort and creativity we used to give them the chance to escape, enjoy or reinvent themselves. Sales are great, but they are the icing on the cake for many of us. Here’s what you can do. Head to any search engine and search for a book or an author you like. Sure, you can choose to buy another book by that author, or you can look at the “related items” lower on the page and find books that might be similar but by less well-known authors. Buying one of their books may have a greater impact than buying one more book by an established author. Also, look for promotions. Many authors run promotions during the holidays, where you can buy bundles or individual books at special lower prices. Books may be the ultimate sale item on anyone’s holiday list.
When you give books for the holidays, you create win-win opportunities for everyone. The authors win, and your gift recipients win. You win as well by giving a gift that is far more valuable than the paper it’s printed on. But to make this even more special, buy a book for yourself. Now that’s the ultimate holiday gift!
