Support your fellow literary citizens
What is a literary citizen? If you are a writer, reader, or a person who works with books in any capacity, you are a literary citizen. The literary community spreads far and wide, and includes both independent and traditional authors, publishers, readers, libraries, bookstores, book clubs, social media groups, and more. To be a good literary citizen, one must do what one can to support the literary community.
We all love books. We love to write them, and we love to read them. We want our community to thrive, and it will if we all respect and support it. Here are nine ways that you, as an independent author, can be a good literary citizen now.
1) Read the works in progress of fellow writers. Offer to beta read or proofread. Writers need help with both.
Everyone who takes an interest in books is a literary citizen.
2) Support other authors by buying their books. You’re an author, or you will be soon. You want people to buy your book; therefore, you should buy other people’s books. Be sure to buy some books written by indie authors. They often go on sale for 99 cents (or free)!
3) Give books as gifts. Seek out indie-published books that you can give as gifts.
4) Promote other writers even if you don’t know them personally. If you really enjoy a book, give praise via social media and your platform, whatever it may be. It’s so hard for authors to get attention, and your post, which takes a matter of minutes to put together, can go a long way. When your book comes out, other indies will be more inclined to do the same for you.
5) Write book reviews for the books you enjoy. There are so many places you can leave a review these days: not only Amazon, but Goodreads, LibraryThing, Barnes and Noble, Bookbub. The list goes on and on. Reviews are crucial to a writer’s success. Click here to leave a review for someone now.
6) If you enjoy a book, reach out via social media to tell the author. Believe me, they’ll love hearing from you.
7) Share the happy news of other writers you know. If a friend of yours has won an award, congratulate them on Facebook, or work that fact into a review you write for them on Goodreads. Again, it doesn’t take long to do something like this, but it can be a big help to a little-known writer.
8) Frequent local bookstores. Amazon is fast and convenient, but what reader doesn’t love a bookshop? Find a free event to attend at your local bookstore. Or just visit the store, spend some time browsing, and buy a book or two from them once a month (or more often). If every person in town went into their local bookstore and bought a book every month, imagine how well that store would be doing. Click here to shop at Bookshop.org now.
9) Visit your local library. Become a member, borrow books, donate books, offer to lead a free activity or event, or simply use the space to read or write. Learn more about how to support your library here.
By writing a book and publishing it, you will become an integral part of the literary world. If you’ve been a good literary citizen, it’s much more likely that the literati will return the favor. Be sure to do your part as you build your community.
Kim Catanzarite is a writer, editor, and instructor for Writer’s Digest University. Her debut novel, They Will Be Coming for Us, published June of this year to strong positive reviews. She is currently reading a book published by an indie author.
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