book reviews | Cathy C. Hall Writes

We have a Georgia Center for the Book in my home state and it happens to make its home base down the road from me, in the Decatur library.

I love the Georgia Center for the Book because…well, it’s a center. FOR THE BOOK.

Anyway, last week, they announced their 2015 books for adults and children, books that all Georgians should read. (And I’m not gonna lie. Folks outside of Georgia will probably love these books, too.) Many of the authors were there to receive awards and I was there because many of those authors are friends of mine and members of SCBWI. After the ceremony, they had a book-signing (they had a book sale, too) but I refrained from buying books. I have a wee bit of a problem, buying books, but still, I wanted to support these wonderful authors. What to do, what to do?

I have a couple strategies to support authors I love (besides buying the book), and I thought I’d pass ’em along to you:

Go to your local library and check to see if the book is on the shelf. If it’s not, request the book. When enough people request a book, a library takes notice (and maybe orders the book!).
If you do find the book at the library, check it out and read it. If you use social media, talk about the book. (And make sure you include the author’s name along with the book title so the author can see your support.) Authors often are uncomfortable with self-promotion, but when you do it, it’s golden!
Leave a book review on Goodreads or Amazon. It doesn’t have to be a 5-star review (in fact, too many five-star reviews is not a good thing) and it doesn’t have to be a mini-book. Short and sweet is just fine. You will make an author’s day, leaving a nice review.

How about you? What do you do when you love a book but can’t afford to buy it?

And you know what else? I’ll bet you have a Center for the Book in your home state. Why not take a little road trip and check out what they’re doing for the authors you know and love? (And if you’re an author in your state’s Center for the Book, let me know. I’d love to support ALL my author friends!)

The other day, I received a card from Lynn Obermoeller, the Queen of Letter-Writing.

I’m not sure if she calls herself the Queen, exactly, but that’s how I think of her. She sends lovely notes all the time, and she makes her holiday cards. The notes are a work of art, and her words are always heartfelt and cheery–and I feel pretty special when I receive a card from Queen Lynn. And who wouldn’t feel special, knowing that someone took the time to do something special?

Which brings me to Fifty Shades of Santa, an anthology of holiday stories (wherein Lynn has a story, and Donna Volkenannt, too. She often stops by here with a lovely comment. And Marcia Gaye, another Missouri writer friend, is in there as well!). And though I have this Kindle book, and have read both of their stories, I haven’t left a lovely review of the book.

And now I’m fifty shades of red! Writing a review is such a simple thing to do and yet, it’s often forgotten in the rush of writer deadlines and rewrites and challenges.

So. There are several books in my Kindle library that I’ve read and not reviewed yet–and a few that I haven’t quite got ’round to reading. I’m challenging myself–and you–to write a review or two before 2014 comes to a close. Because I know how special a person feels when someone takes the time to do something special.