Tag: publishing

The Rise of Horror

Jenny July 26, 2024

As humans we like to be scared. Whether that is with fairy-tale’s as a child (the big bad wolf blowing down the little pigs house? Terrifying) to reading chilling books as we get older, or watching scary movies, there is something innately human in experiencing something horrifying in a safe environment. Science tells us that the rush of adrenaline we experience while experiencing a scary story can actually also release dopamine in our brains: we know that we are safe, and the fright is staged. So do we read and watch horror to feel good? Do we use it as a method of escapism?

Horror as a genre has gained in popularity in recent years, and while there are lots of discussions on the why of this; I want to discuss the future of the genre and where it might go next.

Why is horror so popular these days?

According to Nielsen data (these are the people that track all book sales), horror sales increased a huge 54% in 2023. This is a huge growth, and it is interesting to note that the books being published today are quite different to traditional books in this genre.

There are a lot of reasons behind this increase. One reason could be the global turmoil of the heightened state of anxiety we live in since the Covid pandemic. As well as wars, political uncertainty and global warming, we may want to read something about a world that is worse than ours! An example is He’s The Devil by Tobi Coventry. This debut is a visceral horror novel about demonic possession, but is also a powerful allegory on the housing crisis where young people can often have so little choice in who they share their homes with. “What could more powerfully express the precarity of being a young renter in London than your flatmate turning out to be possessed by the devil?” [John Ash, literary agent]

When we think of horror as a genre, we probably think of Stephen King, slashers, gore and ghosts. This isn’t completely accurately for the modern genre anymore. There is a lot of cross genre inspiration happening in the horror sphere, with Literary Fiction and Thrillers using common tropes. For example, Lucy Foley’s The Midnight Feast has touches of The Wicker Man and Midsommar- both horror’s that we wouldn’t necessarily expect to find in a thriller. Emily St John Mandel is another author firmly in the Literary sphere, yet her recent release Midnight Road can also be classified as a horror.

We’re also seeing horror creeping into fantasy, dark academia and even darker romance stories. This provides an intro to the genre for people who don’t want to read a scary story but do want to dabble their toes in.

As usual with reading habits, we can attribute a certain amount of this to Booktok and Bookstagram. Influencers on these platforms introduce their followers to books such as The Year of the Witching and Ninth House which allows readers to realise that the genre is not just the old style slasher that they may have assumed.

Where is horror going to go next?

I think we will see a lot more genre cross overs. We already have seen some cozy-horror come out from authors such as T Kingfisher and titles such as Someone You Can Build a Nest In. Romance is such a popular genre, that I expect to see more horror-romances too. We see inklings of this with books like The Book of Azrael, or even some paranormal romance. Both have their roots in the horror genre with serial killers and paranormal creatures being typical horror characters.

Books to look out for

Finally I’m going to leave you with some recommendations, split out by genre depending what you’re in the mood for!

Classic Horror

  • Carrie by Stephen King
  • The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
  • Dracula by Bram Stoker

Fantasy Horror

  • Slewfoot by Brom
  • Starling House by Alix E. Harrow
  • One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

Dark Academia Horror

  • Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas
  • Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth
  • Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw

Literary Horror

  • The Eyes Are the Best Part by Monika Kim
  • Boy Parts by Eliza Clarke
  • Butter by Asako Yuzuki

Thriller Horror

  • Verity by Colleen Hoover
  • The Chalk Man by C J Tudor
  • Bunny by Mona Awad

Romance Horror

  • Her Soul to Take, Harley La Roux
  • A Dowry of Blood, S T Gibson
  • The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling

Non fiction

  • Feeding the Monster by Anna Bogutskaya
  • Women Make Horror: Filmmaking, Feminism, Genre, edited by Alison Peirse
  • It Came from the Closet: Queer Reflections on Horror by Joe Vallese

The rise of Asian Literature online

Paula June 28, 2024

How did Asian Literature get so popular on booktok? In this blog we will take a dive into this genre, take a look at what Asian Literature actually is and look at the current rise of literature from Asian countries.

What is Asian Literature?

When you think about Asian Literature, most people think about novels by authors from China, Japan and – more upcoming at the moment – South-Korea. But Asia is of course much bigger than just those three countries. Spanning from China and Japan in the East, to Mongolia and parts of Russia in the North, to Iran and the Arabian Peninsula to the West as well as India, Thailand and Singapore in the South. Just like other continents, it’s way too oversimplified to put all those countries under one monolithic name.

However, the most popular Asian titles you see in the book store are by authors from China and Japan. These type of books became popular as the Western world became fascinated by the Asian world. Often those books are pretty stereotypical, but thinking about another life in another country simply fascinates.

Even in the 20th Century, Asian books were already very popular. Think about literary fiction by authors like Haruki Murakami (Japan) and Kazuo Ishiguro (Japan). Or classics like the 11th Century book The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu (Japan), or the 18th Century story Dream of the Red Chamber by Cao Xueqin (China). It’s not just a trend we saw during COVID, it’s a trend that’s here to stay.

The rise of Asian books during COVID

During COVID booktok came into its own, which came hand in hand with the rise of people who started reading again or people who found time to read more. And with that, Asian Literature was on the rise again. Most popular on booktok are the cozy Japanese books, like Before The Coffee Gets Cold (Japan), but also literary fiction like the books by Mieko Kawakami (Japan). A whole other niche is manga and graphic novels, which also rose in popularity during the pandemic.

Why Asian books are so popular

That makes us wonder why Asian books are so popular. I personally think there are three reasons. The first one is that people want to diversify their reads, especially with the real world situations going on in Ukraine, Russia, Palestine and Israel. We want to educate ourselves. We want to read more diversely to learn more, to discover new books from new authors from countries we don’t usually read from. That includes Asian Literature. Reading around the world is a trend on booktok and I think it will become even more popular.

The second reason is that we are looking for comfortable and cozy reads. Japanese books flourish with cats or cups of coffee on the cover. They also often have covers with plants or blossoms, which fits with our desire for a life with less social media.There is also the trend of books that are set in a book store or library like Days at the Morisaki Bookshop or What You Are Looking For Is in the Library.

The third reason is that a lot of the most popular Asian books – especially Japanese – are about everyday life, written in a dreamy or magical-realistic way. The plot is often not the most important thing in these books: it’s the characters. Books about working hard in a big Japanese city like Convenience Store Woman or Crying in H-Mart are popular. I think a lot of readers can relate to these stories, because they are about universal themes like capitalism, mental health and finding yourself in a chaotic world.

The Rise of popularity of South Korean and Indian authors

Books like The Things You Can See Only When You Slow Down: How to be Calm in a Busy World (South Korea) and the poetry of Rupi Kaur (India) were already very popular, but during COVID the real rise of South Korean and Indian books happened. Age of Vice by Deepti Kapoor (India) was a massive worldwide hit. We also saw the cozy book trend from Japan in South Korean books such as Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-Reum. We also had the influence of magical realism in DallerGut Dream Department Store by Miye Lee. There were books to not only escape the pandemic, but also books to talk about your mental health, like I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki by Baek Sehee.

The future of Asian literature

Reading more diverse is a trend that is here to stay. Asian books have already proven that they have long been popular among readers around the world. During the rise of booktok in the pandemic, this only became more apparent. In the future, I think we will see many more books by Asian authors translated into English. Mainly countries like South Korea and India at the moment, but I think there will be more translations from Thailand, Vietnam, Nepal and other Asian countries in the future.

A Day in the Life of Bookinfluencers.com’s CEO

Antina June 21, 2024

I don’t like being in the spotlight. I never did. If you look at old class photos of me, I’m always on the side. Ready to run away, so to speak. Whenever I had to give a speech, I would have a stomach ache for days from the tension. Fortunately, this has changed over time. I am no longer afraid to stand in front of a group and at parties you are guaranteed to find me on the dance floor. But in my work I still enjoy being mainly behind the scenes. I have gathered a nice group of people around me and they are predominently the face of Bookinfluencers.com. You will only see me if there really is no other option.
In this blog I want to give you a look behind the scenes at a day in the life, and show you a little more of my role as the CEO of Bookinfluencers.com.

7:30 a.m.


The alarm goes off. I’m not a very early riser and I snooze a few more times before heading to the bathroom. I only really wake up in the shower. There are always chores to do, I unload the dishwasher, put on some laundry, give the animals a hug and make a sandwich that I take with me to my office at home. I work from home and share an office with my husband. Today he works on location so I have the office to myself.

9:00 a.m.


I start the working day by checking my tasks: I check my new emails, study the Bookinfluencers.com dashboard, look at my tasks in Trello (where would I be without this tool?) and make a plan for the day.

9:30 a.m.


It’s high time I sent out a client newsletter. We do this once a month, but last month we missed it due to a massive workload. I open Mailchimp and create an email based on the blogs the team has written over the past few weeks. My draft goes to our editor Jenny, who puts the finishing touches and prepares the email for sending.

11:00 a.m.


Team meeting! Every week we put our heads together for an hour and discuss our campaigns in a video call. We are located all over the world, so we see each other on screen. The campaign managers present issues about their campaigns to other team members or seek coordination on outstanding tasks. This way we will not be faced with any surprises, and we ensure that every campaign receives the attention it deserves. There is also room for a chat, of course. One of the team members has just completed university and is of course congratulated by the others.

11:55 a.m.


I have a number of small tasks on my list following the team meeting. I do that first so that others can continue with their work.

12:15 p.m.


My dog ​​Bijke wants attention. I take her for a walk and eat my lunch.

12:45 p.m.


I’m going to work on a TikTok campaign for one of our largest clients, VIZ Media. They produce manga comics. Eight creators have made a video about this manga and with two of those videos I set up a SparkAds campaign in the TikTok ad manager. Simply put, it means that I will give these videos a big boost so that they have a much greater reach. For the creator in question, it means a huge number of views for her videos, which means her channel grows. For our customer, this means that many more people in the target group of their choice will come into contact with the book. We can even ensure that the TikTok videos contain a link so that the viewer can immediately click through to the webshop.

1:45 p.m


I pay the creators involved in the VIZ Media campaign. They have created beautiful, distinctive content and receive financial appreciation for it.

2:15 p.m


Last weekend we helped a Dutch publisher with an event in Amsterdam. They released romantic classics in a new look and celebrated this with a booktok event. We arranged ten booktokers and created content about these beautiful books. Today I’m taking stock and collecting all the links in a spreadsheet. I record the metrics (views, likes, comments, saves) and email the customer about the results.

3:00 p.m


Meeting with Naomi. Naomi is the owner of The Tandem Collective in the UK. But for a few months we also have a company together: ChallyPop. Naomi is in Canada at the moment, so obviously we meet on camera. We discuss the progress of the three Challenges we carry out for Simon & Schuster. In addition, we review applications for the coming months. Fortunately, the publishing world is eager to work with us!

3:30 p.m.


I carry out a number of tasks following the meeting with Naomi. I set up a number of spreadsheets in which we can track the results of the Challenges, I contact a creator who has made a video about our Challenges and I set up a Challenge for a new customer.

@booked_up

Get paid to create bookish content 📚💸 If you haven’t started making bookish content then now is the time 💕 #booktok #bookcontentcreator #bookworm #tbr #romancebooks #fantasybooks #bookgirlies #challypop @ChallyPop

♬ original sound – Kerrie | Booktok 🫀

4:45 p.m


There is a problem with the display of the Bookinfluencers.com website. I am sending a message to our developer requesting that we investigate this as quickly as possible and resolve the problem.

5:00 p.m.


Video meeting with El from Tandem, who is in the UK. We have a joint project with Workman publishers in the US. We coordinate who creates what content about the book in question. Afterwards I brief our campaign manager Maren, who will provide an item in our newsletter and a TikTok video.

5:45 p.m


I cook lasagna for my family and then get the lawn mower out of the shed. It has rained a lot but today it is finally dry enough to mow the grass.

8:00 p.m


Meeting with a potential American client. Due to the time difference, I regularly have meetings with clients in the evening. This potential client is a marketing manager at a major American publishing house, but I also regularly meet with (indie) authors who are responsible for the marketing of their book. I explain our services and discuss the options for the book she wants to work with. After the conversation I send her a brochure.

8:45 p.m


The working day is over. The TV is already on for the preview of a match of the Dutch national team in the group stage of the European Football Championship. It’s time to leave the world of books for a moment and cheer for Oranje.

PRIDE MONTH & The Book Community

Kristin June 14, 2024

Happy Pride Month! Every year during June, we celebrate LGBTQIA+ Pride, paying tribute to the 1969 Stonewall riots in Manhattan. Through this, we acknowledge the achievements of the LGBTQIA+ community and recognize the ongoing challenges faced by many worldwide in their pursuit to live authentically. Moreover, as a diverse and vibrant community, its movement for identity, acceptance, equality, and love for all is important and continues to inspire change.

The book community is no exception when it comes to celebrating and promoting inclusivity and acceptance. With carefully curated lists of books by, about, and for the LGBTQIA+ community, the literary world plays a significant role in uplifting queer voices and stories. Additionally, libraries, bookstores, and online creators all take a moment to highlight works that reflect the experiences and histories of LGBTQIA+ voices.

Our team has curated a list of books promoting the LGBTQIA+ experience, representation of queer characters, and championing queer authors. From coming-out stories to historical same-sex romances and inspiring tales for young readers, there’s a book for everybody! Take a look and find your next read.

Books for Pride Month

We Are Everywhere by Matthew Riemer and Leighton Brown A detailed photographic history of the Queer Liberation Movement. Released for the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots.

Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin. James Baldwin’s groundbreaking novel explores love and the fear of love in the bohemian bars and nightclubs of 1950s Paris. Giovanni’s Room tells an impassioned, deeply moving story that reveals the unspoken complexities of the human heart.

Maurice by E.M. Forster. Maurice is a tale of unrequited love that opens the protagonist’s heart and mind to his own sexual identity, challenging society’s unspoken rules of class, wealth, and politics.

All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews. A brilliant new voice brings us an emotional novel of a young immigrant building a life for herself. A warm, dazzling saga of queer love, friendship, work, and precarity in twenty-first-century America.

But How Are You, Really by Ella Dawson. A burned-out bisexual woman confronts old demons, her estranged chosen family, and the ex she may have wrongly left behind when she attends her five-year college reunion.

Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera. Juliet Milagros Palante navigates a summer in Portland, Oregon, filled with queer dance parties, a fling with a motorcycling librarian, and intense explorations of race and identity.

Rage by Lester Fabian Brathwaite. An incredible debut with a darkly comedic exploration of Blackness, queerness, and the American Dream, highlighting creative anger as a response to inequality.

The Prospects by KT Hoffman. Minor leagues. Major chemistry. This queer sports romance is a triumphant debut that follows two minor-league baseball rivals who realise they play much better together.

Heartstopper by Alice Osman. Heartstopper is an ongoing LGBTQIA+ young adult graphic novel and webcomic series by British author Alice Oseman. Follow Nick Nelson and Charlie Spring as they meet and fall in love.

A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon. Samantha Shannon’s prequel to The Priory of the Orange Tree takes readers into the lives of four women, revealing events that shaped their world for generations.

Queer creators to follow

If you haven’t yet stumbled upon bookish creators on TikTok and/or Instagram who uplift LGBTQIA+ voices, you’re missing out! Across the gender and sexuality spectrum, many influencers passionately use their platforms to champion queer stories and authors all year long! So, if you’re looking for more book recommendations, be sure to check out:

Billy, @thereadingcowgirl, keeps you up-to-date with the latest book recommendations and reviews.
Kara, @books.and.salt, is your go-to person for a diverse array of genres and reads that celebrate inclusivity and representation.
Amivi, @amivireads, for the best sapphic romance book recommendations.
Dilayra, @gayotic_bookworm, a dedicated advocate for YA and LGBTQIA+ literature, sharing her passion in both Dutch and English languages.

As we celebrate Pride Month, let’s take the opportunity to educate ourselves and raise awareness of the diverse experiences and challenges within the queer community. Together, we can create a world where everyone is embraced for who they are. Happy Pride Month, everyone! Let’s continue to spread love, acceptance, and equality every day.

Books set in bookstores: seven of our favourites.

Paula June 7, 2024

Whether it’s a real bookstore in Paris, an idyllic shop on an island or a cozy store in the middle of New York or London – I love almost every book set in a bookstore. The niche of books set in bookstores has been around for a while, but lately it seems more popular than ever. Here are seven of my favourites, across various genres. These are all books that you should definitely put on your list.

The Bookshop –

Penelope Fitzgerald

The Bookshop by Penelope Fitzgerald is an absolute classic when it comes to books set in bookstores. This novel came out in 1978 and is set in 1959. In the book we follow Florence Green, a middle-aged widow, who decides to open a bookshop in the small coastal town of Hardborough, Suffolk.
The Bookshop is a story about starting a business, being thwarted but trying anyway. It is tragic yet hopeful. Plus, I love the vibes in the book and I think many of you will enjoy reading it too.

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry –

Gabrielle Zevin

After reading Tomorrow, Tomorrow and Tomorrow I dived into the back list of Gabrielle Zevin. And guess what I found: a book set in a bookstore! This book includes mixed media and provides little notes about the books available in the island’s store. This book is a literary romance. We follow A.J. Fikry, a grumpy book store owner on Alice Island. When his favorite publishers agent dies, they get replaced by a clumsy blonde named Amelia Loman. A beautiful and adventurous story about love, hope, courage and grief.

Words in Deep Blue –

Cath Crowley

I love a good YA book and one of my favorites is Words in Deep Blue by Cath Crowley. However, there are too many people who don’t know this book exists! A shame, if you ask me, because this book has everything.

Years ago, Rachel had a crush on Henry Jones. The day before she moved away, she tucked a love letter into his favorite book. She waited, but Henry never came. Now, Rachel is working at the bookshop, grieving her brother and trying to avoid the boy she used to love. Then Henry and Rachel get closer again. They are surrounded by books and exchange letters by hiding them in between pages. This is the absolute cutest book ever with second chances – a book that gives you a laugh and a tear, like we say in The Netherlands.

84, Charing Cross Road –

Helene Hanf

We can’t do this list without the classic: 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff. This is a charming memoir, following Helene, a freelance writer living in New York City, and a used-book dealer in London. Over 20 years they write to each other, and though they never meet, they share a winsome, sentimental friendship based on their common love for books. Their relationship, captured so acutely in these letters, is one that will grab your heart and not let go.

Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop –

Hwang Bo-Reum

Many books set in bookstores (and libraries!) are based in Japan or South Korea. In the last few years we’ve seen Days at the Morisaki Bookshop and What You Are Looking For Is in the Library. A South Korean favorite of mine is Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop.
This slice-of-life novel is set in a South Korean neighborhood in Seoul and focuses on acceptance and finding comfort in life, including the healing power of books. FMC Yeong-ju is burned out, divorced from her husband and decides to follow her dream. She opens a book shop where Yeong-ju and her customers take refuge. From the lonely barista to the unhappily married housewife, and the writer who sees something special in Yeong-ju – they all have disappointments in their past. The Hyunam-Dong Bookshop becomes the place where they all learn how to truly live. A lovely read.

Business or Pleasure –

Rachel Lynn Solomon

Although this book is not entirely set in a bookstore, the first scene opens at a book event. It’s a spicy romance all about writing books. Chandler is a ghostwriter and she has never felt more like a ghost when she attends a signing for a book she wrote and the author doesn’t even recognize her. The evening turns more promising when she meets a man at the bar and immediately connects with him. But when all their sexual tension culminates in a spectacularly awkward hookup, she decides this is one night better off forgotten.
Unfortunately, her next project is ghostwriting a memoir for Finn Walsh, a C-list actor best known for playing a lovable nerd on a cult classic werewolf show who now makes a living appearing at fan conventions across the country. And Finn turns out to be that hookup guy from last night. Chandler is determined to keep their partnership as professional as possible, but when she admits to Finn their night together wasn’t as mind-blowing as he thought, he’s distraught. He intrigues her enough that they strike a deal: when they’re not working on his book, Chandler will school Finn in the art of satisfaction. As they grow closer both in and out of the bedroom, they must figure out which is more important, business or pleasure or if there’s a way for them to have both.

The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted –

Robert Hillman

If you want to dive into a historical bookstore book, try The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted, set in 1968. This book is about Tom Hope, who doesn’t think he’s much of a farmer, but he’s doing his best. He can’t have been much of a husband to Trudy, either, judging by her sudden departure. It’s only when she returns, pregnant by someone else, that he discovers his surprising talent as a father. But when Trudy leaves and takes her child with her, Tom’s heart breaks.
But then he meets Hannah Babel, a smalltown bookseller. Hannah is the second Jew—and the most vivid person—Tom has ever met. He dares to believe they could make each other happy. But it is 1968: twenty-four years since Hannah and her own little boy arrived at Auschwitz. Tom Hope is taking on a battle with heartbreak he can barely even begin to imagine.

What are your favorite books set in bookstores? Let us know on Instagram @bookinfluencerscom!

Not Like Other Girls: How Spark Ads can help your campaign.

Helena Kulikowska May 31, 2024

In April 2024, we were super excited to collaborate with Bloomsbury USA, on their YA release of Not Like Other Girls, by Meredith Adamo!

Not Like Other Girls is a stunning debut that takes a hard look at how we treat young women and their trauma, through the lens of a missing girl and a girl trying to find herself again.

Our Brief for Not Like Other Girls

The publisher wanted to make some noise about this exciting new author and title, targeting younger generations of readers on Instagram and TikTok, by running a Book Tour with us.  This involves launching a campaign on our community-facing platform, made up of thousands of members from the international bookish community.  

They also wanted to try out our SparkAds modules on TikTok.

What are TikTok SparkAds?

TikTok has become the go-to channel for Gen-Z readers, especially across the YA, romance and fantasy genres. Therefore, it is no surprise that authors and publishers are increasingly looking to collaborate with bookish content creators on this platform.  But….in comparison to Instagram, a high number of followers on TikTok does not guarantee success in terms of reach and visibility, so posting promotional content on TikTok can be a bit of a gamble!  

The good news is that, with SparkAds, we can target a certain audience, by location, age-group, interest and behaviour, to make sure the videos get a good number of views and engagement.  We can also add links to videos to generate traffic to a website or landing page of a publisher’s choice. All while still working with original content from BookTokers, which maintains authenticity, with recommendations coming from familiar faces from within the bookish community.

Not Like Other Girls campaign Activation

We launched a 50 person campaign on our platform. Additionally, we had a call-out in our newsletter and social channels, which have a collective reach of almost 20,000.  There was an overwhelming response from the community, with over 100 applicants, who were very enthusiastic about this new release. Not Like Other Girls is exactly the type of book our readers can’t wait to dive into!

We also ran two SparkAds traffic campaigns, whereby we selected two of the best creator videos for boosting, adding a card to the video with a click-through trackable link to buy the book at Barnes and Noble.

@_alyssaslibrary_

thank you to @Bloomsbury Books and @bookinfluencerscom for the copy of this book! this releases april 30th and i highly recommend! (check tw’s before you start!! i have some listed on the screen) #booktok #bookreview #notlikeothergirlsbook #yamystery #mysterybooks #thrillerbooks #bookrecommendations

♬ original sound – alyssa📚🍉
@promisevideo

Not Like Other Girls by Meredith Adamo comes out April 30th – I didn’t have ‘deeply personal trip back to raw teenage experience’ on my 2024 bingo card, but damn… I loved it! definitely check TW’s before diving into this one. thank you so much to Bloomsbury and Meredith for this ARC! #notlikeothergirlsbook #mysterybooks #teenfiction #booktok #bookrecs @Bloomsbury Books

♬ original sound – lauren’s books

Results

This campaign generated 50 pieces of organic content across Instagram and TikTok. Notably, this included 15,000 organic engagements (Likes, Comments, Saves) and 7,000 views (just on TikTok, excluding Instagram impressions). Furthermore, our creators produced a range of engaging and quality content in various formats, including static images, Instagram Reels, and TikTok videos. We’ve included examples of the types of content created in this article.

After including the results from the SparkAds campaigns, the campaign produced 40,000 views (an increase of 468% and on TikTok alone, excluding organic Instagram impressions), generating 441 Clicks through to the chosen webshop. 

Our community really got behind Not Like Other Girls and the themes it tackles, many giving it 5 Star Reviews.  Here are some snippets from their reviews:

Honestly a great read for fans of Mindy McGinnis and Tiffany D. Jackson – Not Like Other Girls is a stunning debut.

@Azeebooks

This book is on the top of my favorites for 2024!  @adventurenlit

Not Like Other Girls’ is a piercing debut that deftly navigates the labyrinth of the quest for identity and young adult trauma while rightfully scrutinizing the harsh treatment of it, all wrapped in a mystery that holds you captive till the last page. 

@thejinxedlibrary

I am so devastated by this book, and yet I’m also left feeling hopeful at the same time. I think I’ll be thinking about this book for a long time. I’m still shocked this is a debut novel because of how good it is.  @2_girls_bookin_it

We are pleased with these results for a debut title, and the client has given really positive feedback. This resulted in a collaboration with Bloomsbury UK on the same book release.

“Working with BookInfluencers.com for our debut novel Not Like Other Girls campaign was an absolute pleasure; their professionalism and creativity helped us elevate our book’s visibility and engagement.”

Lily Yengle, Associate Director of Marketing, Children’s Bloomsbury Publishing.

We look forward to further campaigns with our friends at Bloomsbury!

If you’re interested in learning more about SparkAds and running a Book Tour with us, email us at contact@bookinfluencers.com.

Four ways to Collaborate with Readers

Antina May 22, 2024

Whether you work at the marketing department of a publishing house or running your own show as an indie-author; there comes a moment in which you need to collaborate with readers to help you get your book out there. Maybe it’s different when your name is Colleen Hoover, Stephen King or Taylor Jenkins Reid, but they didn’t get to be auto-buy authors overnight either.

For most marketers, PR managers and authors the reality is that it is hard to sell books. How do you get your book into the hands of readers? There are different ways to achieve that goal. In this blog I will share different ways to collaborate with readers to reach even more people.

Meet the Online Book Community

The online book community is huge. People from all over the world use the world wide web to express their opinions about the books they read. They leave reviews on Goodreads or Amazon, write blogs on their personal websites, post pretty photos on Instagram, talk about their favorite authors on YouTube or create entertaining videos for TikTok. To give you an idea about the size of the community; the hashtag #bookstagram on Instagram has been used 104 million times to date. The hashtag #booktok on TikTok was used 32.6 million times already.

We, as consumers, get influenced by what we see online. We’re growing more and more sceptical about commercials where we believe recommendations by our peers to be more trustworthy. Readers are influenced by what other readers read. They go on Goodreads to read reviews before ordering a book. They go on Instagram to read about the latest releases and they scroll through TikTok to hear all about the latest BookTok hit. So, the next question is: how do you get collaborations with these readers off the ground in order to promote your book? These are some of your options.

Running your own promotional campaign

A lot of spare time, an established backlist, a large mailing list and a strong social media presence are the perfect ingredients if you’re looking to run your own promotional campaign. You have already connected with lots of readers and they can’t wait to read the next book you’re wanting to publish. You got this! The reality is that besides the big publishers and a handful of well-known indie authors, most of us don’t have these ingredients at our disposal. And spare time is an issue for everyone. So even the large publishers often lean on others to help them market their books. Let’s take a look at the routes they choose.

A Readalong with The Tandem Collective

Tandem is well known in the book community because of their unique concept: the Readalong. They send out free copies of the book to a select group of micro influencers. Led by a coordinator, the groups read the book simultaneously and use prompt cards to discuss the books topics in a private chat. In the meantime, participants share their thoughts on their social media channels, involving other readers in their journey through the book. Lately they have been working on books by Gabrielle Zevin, John Marrs, Claire McGowan and many many more. Reach out to naomi@thetandemcollective.com to learn more.

A virtual book tour with Bookinfluencers.com

Bookinfluencers.com runs virtual book tours, like many other book tour companies. However, they bring something more to the table than your average book tour company. Their in-depth knowledge of TikTok ads manager ensures that publishers and authors can make the most of their book tours. Any BookTok video can be promoted resulting in increased views, engagement metrics and even clicks to webshops. Bookinfluencers.com also relies heavily on their strong community management skills that lead to high upload percentages. We all know nothing is more frustrating than distributing books and getting nothing in return. Lately Bookinfluencers.com have been working on books by Kalynn Bayron, Junji Ito, Ali Hazelwood, Samantha Shannon and R.F. Kuang. Email me at antina@bookinfluencers.com to learn more.

A bookish challenge with ChallyPop

The new kid on the block is ChallyPop. ChallyPop is a competition-based platform that enables everyone to potentially be a paid creator based on the quality of their content rather than the size of their following. The platform challenges creators of all sizes to enter by making content based on a brief. The top 20 submissions receive a money prize. ChallyPop just launched and is running 3 challenges set by one of the largest publishers in the world, Simon & Schuster. Creators are challenged to create content about the thriller Redemption by Jack Jordan, the romantasy The North Wind by Alexandria Warwick and the romance Under Your Spell by Laura Wood. ChallyPop is a great method to get early attention for a new release and to encourage preorders. Email the team at hello@challypop.com to learn more.

As you can see, there are various ways to collaborate with readers. It’s up to you to decide the best course for your book.

Meet our Featured Book Influencers for Summer!

Maren May 17, 2024

We love our community at Bookinfluencers.com. Because of this, on our website, you will always have access to a selection of our featured book influencers and a couple of times a year, we like to shine the spotlight on them. With summer just around the corner, we wanted to share our newly featured book influencers with you. All the influencers are dedicated and passionate and have created engaging content that resonates with audiences worldwide.

Maja Madsen Kleive @majaicalreads

I started with my TikTok because I didn’t have anyone to talk about books with – and I also loved the Booktok community so I was really intrigued to start making content myself and share my own thoughts. I’ve met so many new and fantastic people through this platform, and I’m so happy for the change TikTok/Booktok has made on my life. My favorite genres are most definitely Fantasy, Romance and preferably them together as a Romantasy! I love a silly romcom, but can also deep dive into a 8 book long fantasy series with world building and action. I LOVE Sarah J. Maas, Elsie Silver and Stephanie Garber! This year my goal has been to read more authors and I recently started The Secret History by Donna Tartt – and I must say that I might have a heart for classics as well! 

@majaicalreads

You’re a wizard Ig!🧙‍♂️Thank you @LukeChmilenko , @gdpenman & @bookinfluencerscom for the opportunity to read The Drop of a Hat 🤍 #funnyfantasy #dropofahat #majaicalreads #funnybooks #booktok

♬ original sound – Maja | MajaicalReads📖🧝🏼‍♀️

For favorite books you’re asking a really hard question, because there are so many! If I must pick a few I would HAVE to include Kingdom of Ash and A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas, and Heartless by Elsie Silver. But a series that’s really captured my heart is The Empyrean series by Rebecca Yarros (Fourth Wing and Iron Flame). 

Lily Magnfält @lilythebibliophile

I started my Booktok account during a tumultuous time in my life. I stopped being afraid to show my love of books because people had sneered at it before and decided to go for it. Booktok already existed and it quite frankly gave me the guts to post videos and become a part of the community. It has given me a great many friends to share my love of books with which I will forever be grateful for.

@lilythebibliophile

In collaboration with @The Black Rose Bookshop 🫶🏻 this is the perfect spring/summer read🤍 #booktok #losingmybreath #romcom #grumpysunshinetrope #steamyromance #bookrecs

♬ original sound – LILYTHEBIBLIOPHILE

Some of those favourite books are fantasy and romance titles such as Addicted to You by Krista & Becca Ritchi, House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas, An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir and Binding 13 by Chloe Walsh.

Stephanie Fletes @steph.lafayette

I started my Tiktok account back in 2021 as I was getting back into manga and reading a few novels in my friends book club. I suddenly felt the need to collect every physical volume available of my favorite manga series Skip Beat!

@steph.lafayette

We have a new release from @VIZ This is Stitches by Hirokatsu Kihara, it tells of nine unresolved mysteries as short stories and illustrated by Junji Ito. [ Sponsored Post w/ @bookinfluencerscom ] #vizmedia #manga #mangatok #stitchesmanga #hirokatsukihara #junjiito #sponsored

♬ Coast – Hotel Pools

From there I ended up recommending and reviewing some of my favorite series and I also got back into novels and have grown my library quite a bit. I enjoy horror, romance, and science fiction. Some of my favorite authors are Clive Barker, Grady Hendrix, Ali Hazelwood, and many talented mangaka.

Jessica De Lellis @oddandbookish 

I started my Bookstagram in April 2017, when I fell back into love with reading. Since then, I have expanded into other platforms such as TikTok, Storygraph, Litsy, and blogging. My favorite genres include romance, historical fiction, and contemporary. Some of my favorite books are Jane Eyre, Little Women, and Conversations with Friends. 

Velishia Govender @bookishrebel01 

Hi, I’m Velishia, a South African Bookstagrammer. I live for bookstore visits and large amounts of iced coffee. I’ve loved reading for as long as I can remember and started my Bookstagram in 2019. I wanted a place to rant about all my favourite books, meet new bookish friends, and add to my never-ending TBR. I read a bit of every genre, but my favourite genres are fantasy, historical fiction, and romance. My favourite books include anything written by Emily Henry, Danielle L Jensen, and Cassandra Clare.

Zoe Nira @zoenira

My name is Zoë, but on TikTok I’m known as Zoë Nira (Nira is my middle name, not my surname 😉 ). I’m 22 years old and besides reading, I also love spending time with my friends and of course my boyfriend.

@zoenira

We like a bit of both worlds 🤭. #booktok #bookworm #booktoker #romancebooks #romancebooktok #romancebooktoker IB: @Cathy Lammers

♬ HXC Deli BornDead Abare Mix – borndeadclothing

I started reading the Twisted series in March 2023 and was sold after this. I came across this series on TikTok and never left BookTok. To this day, I don’t know how this came to me. I started my BookTok account in August 2023. What started with one video a day quickly grew to 3-4 videos a day and I now have almost 15K followers!

I mainly share videos about spicy romance books, but most importantly, I find it important for me and other people to laugh at my videos. Oh yes, my fave authors are Elsie Silver, Ana Huang, Liz Tomforde and Becka Mack.

Nebula @nebula.jp

@nebula.jp

@VIZ Sent me volume 1 of their new Original series “Status Royale” and it looks like It’s going to be a great VR Esports manga! #statusroyale #vizmedia #vizoriginals #mangarecommendation #mangareview

♬ Time – Goslow & VOLKHIN

Hi, my name is Nebula, I make anime and manga content on TikTok! I started my page on TikTok to talk about shows and manga series that I enjoy and felt like they needed some time in the spotlight. These shows and series weren’t being covered by anyone at the time so I wanted to change that and introduce them to a wide variety of people on the app. Some of my favorite genres for anime and manga are psychological, drama, slice of life, romance, and fantasy. Some of my favorite authors are Shuzo Oshimi, Inio Asano, and Kanehito Yamada. I also really enjoy a handful of series like Blood on the Tracks, My Happy Marriage, Frieren Beyond Journey’s End, Kowloon Generic Romance, and The Tunnel to Summer The Exit of Goodbyes!

Sarah Imler @sarahs.bookspace

I’m Sarah, 24 years old and I come from Austria. I discovered my love of books in 2020 and haven’t been able to stop since. My favourite genres are romance and dark romance. Or combined as dark romance! I can’t decide on favourite authors because there are just too many! But when Stella Tack brings out a new book, I order it immediately!

Sarina Bouwmeester @livethebooklife 

I’m Sarina and I’m a Dutch Booktoker and Bookstagrammer. I’ve always enjoyed reading, and a few years ago I decided I wanted to share my love for books on social media so I started my Bookstagram. Connecting with other readers and to share and receive book recommendations is one of my favourite things about Bookstagram. I love all kinds of books, from fantasy to romance, but contemporary books have a special place in my heart. I focus on reading inclusive and diverse books! 

@livethebooklife

Spannend!! Zin in 📚#livethebooklife #boektok #booktok #noexit #marenstoffels #uitgeverijleopold

♬ Amsterdam – Gregory Alan Isakov

If you want to see more about our featured Book Influencers, or become a Book Influencer yourself, check out Bookinfluencers.com

ChallyPop Challenges: The Results

Kristin May 3, 2024

In the era of digital space, social media floods our screens daily. The sheer amount of content we engage with can be inspiring, yet it can also overwhelm those aspiring to follow in the footsteps of influencer creators. Enter: ChallyPop Challenges.

My journey as a bookish creator on Instagram started over 4 years ago. With less than 10 followers, I was eager to share my passion for books with fellow readers on social media. Although I put lots of energy into creating posts, writing reviews, and engaging with others and I met many wonderful people through that account, growing in following was almost impossible in the beginning.

This left me wondering what I was doing wrong and how I can leave my mark on the bookish creator space. How can I stand out from the crowd if all the work so far wasn’t enough? Especially as it was much harder to even be considered for ARCs or PR boxes from publishers if you didn’t have the numbers to support your requests. Needless to say, financial compensation for all the time and effort you’ve put into creating content was out of the question! I wished for a change in the social media game which will give me an equal chance as someone with big follower accounts. I wished for a space like ChallyPop.

Now, I am proud to be part of a team that realizes the potential in everyone. Just like the sister companies Bookinfluencers and Tandem Collective, ChallyPop is here to disrupt the influencer market space in a fun and innovative way. Think of the platform as the new ‘cool kid’ on the block, celebrating creativity in the creator space over any follower metrics. Or, as I’d like to describe it, a ‘breath of fresh air’ for micro influencers.

Introducing ChallyPop Challenges

In April, we launched our first ChallyPop challenges. We encouraged influencers from all social media platforms and sizes to take part and share with us their most anticipated books, films and TV shows and compete for many rewards. The different tiers offered financial incentives starting from $10 USD to the grand prize of $100 USD.

1st Place: $100 USD

2nd Place: $75 USD

3rd Place: $50 USD

4th – 10th Place: $25 USD

11th – 20th Place: $10 USD

Needless to say, we were beyond happy with the wave of positive responses! As our Book ChallyPop Challenge came to an end, over 100 creators submitted their entries for a chance to win one of the many prizes. From intricate stop-motion animations to hilarious faux Facetime conversations, the submissions were as diverse as they were impressive. We’re blown away by the level of talent on display and thrilled to award prizes to our top contenders. 

Meet the winners of our first ChallyPop Challenge

Congratulations to our top three ChallyPop challengers: @Booksandcoffeemx, @stars.and.embers, and @probablybusyreading. Your creativity and dedication have set the bar high for future ChallyPop Challenges, and we can’t wait to see what you’ll create next. Take a look at their entries:

1) First place: @ Booksandcoffeemx

Our judging panel were so impressed by your stop motion video which we know must’ve taken ages!

2) Second place: @ stars.and.embers

You cracked us up with your faux Facetime video!

3) Third place: @ probablybusyreading

Your content was so unique and beautifully crafted.

To everyone who participated, whether you were selected or not, we extend our warmest gratitude. Your contributions have made our first ChallyPop challenges a great success, and we’re committed to continuing to provide a platform where creativity thrives.

If you didn’t get selected this time around, please don’t be disheartened. Keep on having fun with the content you’re creating and you never know, next time around, it might be you collecting the crown.

Make sure you check out the full list at challypop.com, under Past Challenges.

Now, here is our wrap up video dedicated to YOU:

Stay tuned for more exciting ChallyPop Challenges and opportunities coming your way. Follow us on Instagram & TikTok @challypop_official and visit the website, challypop.com, to stay updated on all the latest news.

With ChallyPop, the spotlight is yours for the taking – so let your creativity shine!

ChallyPop: A new way to engage creators

Jenny April 24, 2024

Have you heard of creator burnout? This is something that is becoming more prevalent in the book influencer community. People are creating more and more content and don’t always get paid for it. This can make influencers feel like they are unpaid labour; reading and posting about a book as part of a marketing campaign, with sometimes no remuneration other than the book itself. This then leads to more burnout for creators who feel like they have to be constantly creating for no financial gain. Antina, along with Naomi- founder of Tandem Collective, decided that there is a gap in the market for creators. Enter, ChallyPop! A new platform that gives every creator the chance to be paid. ChallyPop doesn’t take follower count or engagement into account when judging entries to their challenges, instead looking at just the content, creativity and effort taken. I sat down with co-founder Antina to find out more about Chally Pop.

Where did the idea of ChallyPop come from?

Over the years I have heard bookish creators voicing their frustrations about why influencers in other sectors get paid for their reviews and posts. In the book community, however, there can be a feeling that a book is all the payment needed. This is in part why I founded Bookinfluencers.com, and for me, ChallyPop is a progression from this.

We wanted to be able to empower all readers to be creators and influencers. Whether you have 100 followers or 100,000 followers, we believe that you are able to reach other readers and inspire with your content. And we believe that you should be remunerated for this. ChallyPop is here to encourage a new generation of creators who don’t need to worry about their follower count.

We’ve seen the power of micro creators compared to macro creators and paid ads. Some studies show that 61% of consumers place their faith in influencer recommendations, while only 38% show similar trust in branded posts.

The music industry has similar platforms for sounds from track releases, but we haven’t seen this in publishing yet. There is so little communication across industries, and there is so much to learn from each other.

What is your and Naomi’s background and history?

Naomi and I met working on a campaign a few years ago. Last year I became ill and Naomi stepped in to look after Bookinfluencers.com, while I was undergoing treatment. During that time we would bounce ideas around and talk about new ways to breathe life into the book marketing industry. This was not only a way to help distract me from my illness, but to get ideas from another like-minded business owner. Naomi came to me discussing creator burnout and what we could do, this triggered the same thoughts I had when I launched Bookinfluencers.com about why influencers in other sectors can expect payment for promotions as the norm, whereas in the book world, it is the exception. Together, we formed ChallyPop!

Naomi founded Tandem 8 years ago. Over the last few years Tandem has grown a lot and the team there is really strong. I know Naomi really enjoyed the more hands on work at Bookinfluencers.com when she covered for me. We both love the challenge of a new idea, so although it is scary to launch a new business, it is also so exhilarating.

Where does ChallyPop fit in the bookish community?

I love our bookish community, and the community is everything to Bookinfluencers.com. There can be a cynicism around creator marketing, particularly with the big macro creators running multiple ads and sponsorships. There are a lot of studies that have shown that micro creators have the best engagement rates. Micro creators are automatically closer to their audience and able to interact and engage in a way that feels genuine. We want to show that every reader can influence others’ book buying habits. Word of Mouth marketing is a human behaviour- we are much more likely to buy something if our friend or someone we know has bought it. In the digital age, this stretches to social media too. We are inspired by creators who feel like our friends more than celebrities. We want to empower the consumer to be the creator. This allows the reader to shape the narrative of the marketing.

How does ChallyPop fit in with existing companies?

ChallyPop fits in between what Tandem and BookInfluencers.com do. We think that ChallyPop could be instrumental on multiple campaign types, from cover reveals to big budget titles where we know people are going to buy the book anyway.

We know that ChallyPop is likely to change and adapt over time, we might end up using it in a way that is completely different to the current plan, but this is something that we love about all our businesses: we are able to change and adapt as we learn and get feedback.

Essentially, at ChallyPop we don’t want to label people as nano-creators, or micro-creators, or macro-creators. We just look for quality content, which anyone can make.

Visit ChallyPop’s website to learn more about their current challenges.

Book Festivals: Volunteering at the Tucson Festival of Books

Guest Blogger April 5, 2024

What Is a Book Festival?

A Book festival, also called a literary festival, is a gathering of readers and writers that usually feature talks, panels, workshops, and opportunities to meet authors and purchase books and bookish merchandise. There are festivals of all shapes and sizes around the world, and even some that focus on specific genres. 

Meet the Tucson Festival of Books

The Tucson Festival of Books began in 2009. Now held annually on the University of Arizona campus, the festival boasts over 100,000 attendees and a new southwestern animal mascot every year. It’s a free event to attend and features authors of all genres in a variety of scheduled talks and panels. In addition to this, there are booths from different publishers, authors, and literacy organizations.

A Day Volunteering at the Book Festival

The festival relies heavily on its volunteer force for the festival to run smoothly. Volunteers are needed to fill more than 2000 shifts in the weeks leading up to, and during the festival weekend. Volunteers help with everything from author transportation to line management at popular presentations. I have volunteered with the festival for the last two years.

A day as a volunteer starts with check-in. You’re given a t-shirt, a bookmark, a button, and a name tag before you head off to your chosen location. For me, that’s heading to the Indie Author tent. The Tucson Festival of Books has three indie author tents as part of their Reimagined Indie Author program: Children’s, Teen/Young Adult, and Adult Fiction and Nonfiction. 

After going over the itinerary for the day and any reminders, I’m off to the Teen tent. There, I help check in authors and answer questions as attendees try to find different locations throughout the festival. As the authors promote their books, I get to watch, helping out when needed and running back to the Adult tent if we need more supplies. During downtime, I talk with the authors about their work, where they’re from, and learn more about why they decided to write. At the end of my shift, I help with the paperwork as we clean up for the next group.

Why I Volunteer

I spent my middle and high school years walking around the book festival with my family, seeing all the booths but not really knowing what was happening. It was a family outing, a way to get outside and enjoy what is typically nice weather before the harsh Tucson summer. However, I never bought books or looked further into it. Sometimes I knew the authors attending, but I never tried to meet them or attend one of their panels.

In college, I watched as the festival spent several weeks setting up tents, only to come back from spring break and watch any evidence of the event disappear. Later, walking around the festival with my sister and nephews, I still never saw what the festival truly was. 

As an adult finding my love for reading again, I decided to focus my time and energy on causes that make me happy and make a difference in my community. Reading has become a fun activity for me again, and volunteering at a festival that encourages literacy felt like the perfect way to spend my time.  

Volunteering with the Indie Author pavilions lets me discover new authors and stories while helping spread the word about them. It’s an amazing experience to watch as other readers find them, too. Aside from enjoying new stories and meeting new people, it reminds me of why I love to read. There’s a story for everyone, and it wasn’t until I dived back into the community as an adult that I realized that. The festival makes a difference, and I’m glad to be a part of the magic.

Liz Young is a reader and writer from the southwest USA. She enjoys discovering new authors and stories, in addition to eating tacos and spending time with her cat. She has an active Bookstagram account. (https://www.instagram.com/lizanneyoung97)

The Freelancer Hub: Business Books & Creating A Collective

Guest Blogger March 15, 2024

When we set out to launch The Freelancer Hub, our aims were clear; we wanted to create a bright, vibrant, welcoming space for creatives of all walks of life and industries. All we wanted to be able to do was support freelancers (and wannabe freelancers) with the insight, inspiration, and gentle cajoling into the self-employed seas.

Now, we’re on a growth mission. 

You can find us steadily creating content on our Instagram account, and we have a monthly newsletter which you can sign up here to receive. This is for you if you’re a content creator, someone getting paid to make online content outside of a PAYE remit, a full-time freelancer, a self-employed savant, or someone thinking of dipping their toes into a 5-9 side-hustle. We’ve got you covered. 

That being said, a huge part of what we do at The Freelancer Hub, is learning about shaping our own businesses and (ad)ventures, by reading some brilliant business books. Between the team at Tandem Collective UK, we’ve read our fair share and we’ve begun the process of siphoning the wheat from the chaff when it comes to celebrating our tried and tested favourites.

Here, you’ll find a Top 5 recommendations list of books The Freelancer Hub team think you should read in your freelance journey.

Born For This by Chris Guillebeau

This is the No.1 book that Tandem Collective founder, Naomi Bacon, recommends everyone (freelance or otherwise) reads throughout their careers. This book talks about how ‘greater career success’ is actually deeply rooted in whether we find fulfilment in the work we do. In the book, Chris encourages readers to ‘strike out’ on their own and find the work you were BORN to do, with a self-styled career – the ability to do work that ‘feels so perfect it doesn’t even feel like work’.

This is the perfect recommendation for fresh-to-freelance’rs, for those with a side-hustle that has potential, or for those stuck in the ‘what now’ rut of a humdrum job.

Start With Why by Simon Sinek

This is the March ‘Business Book Club’ pick for The Freelancer Hub, so keep your eyes peeled for more Start With Why content over on our social channels, but for now, let me tell you a little bit about the content of the book.

We’ve prescribed this book for those who might worry about ‘traditional’ career paths, and those who want to develop confidence in pursuing the work they were born to do.

Inspired by author Simon Sinek’s TedTalk, which coincidentally is the most-watched TedTalk of all time. In Start With Why, Simon talks about how great leaders inspire everyone to take action, with a positive effect. And it’s not about the ‘how’, it’s about the ‘why’. Or maybe a better way of phrasing it is, that the HOW is the WHY.

Essentially, in business / work / career / side-hustle (whatever you’d like to call it), it doesn’t matter WHAT you do, it matters WHY you do it – and that can change everything.

Do Nothing: Break Away from Overworking, Overdoing and Underliving by Celeste Headlee.

I’m recommending this book because so much of the reason that people leave in-house or PAYE roles is due to corporate burnout. These people then go freelance. Then, they suffer a new type of burnout – the freelance kind, the kind they can only blame themselves for, because now they are ‘the man’.

Naomi and I have always said that every freelancer finds (and pushes) their limits during their first year of full-time freelance life. It’s a rite of passage, and you can warn them as much as you like, it’ll happen regardless. But where we can come in is finding the way back to what’s sustainable, what’s healthy and what’s productive.

Enter, Celeste Headlee, author of Do Nothing.

Celeste talks about how a four-day work week was originally trialled in the 1950’s to give workers more time off to spend on the products that they’d been working to produce. She talks about the balance of ‘living to work’ and ‘working to live’ and she encourages you, for once in your lives, just to stop. Take pause. Do nothing.

This book is ideal for those suffering from corporate or freelance burnout (read: overwhelm, panicking, dreaming about work, not being able to sleep because of work, etc.)

The Imposter Cure by Dr Jessamy Hibberd

Okay, so you’ve made the leap – you’re going to go freelance. Self-marketing is one of the hardest skills to develop. Setting your rates can be even harder. These are the kind of tasks that become impossible when you’re riddled with fresh-to-freelance Imposter Syndrome.

This book is the reminder that you are not a fraud. You do deserve success. And that yes, you can believe in yourself. This book is how to stop feeling like a fraud and escape from that meddlesome mind-trap of imposter syndrome holding you back.

It’s all about understanding that failure will happen; it’s an essential part of success. Discomfort is a trigger for self-growth. Compassion is infinitely more powerful than self-criticism.

It’s a bitter pill to swallow, but swallow it you must, and this book is just the tonic to help smooth over those syndrome-sads.

Your Goal Guide by Debra Eckerling

Okay, so you’ve got your WHY, you’re free from Imposter Syndrome, and you’re raring to go. What’s next?

I found this book so helpful to dip in-and-out when it comes to goal setting, and following through on promises to myself and my business. Debra’s guide will push you to start with a plan, even if it’s a loose one. Essentially, we’re looking for DETERMINE the mission, EXPLORE the options, and BRAINSTORM your path.

This is an ideal guide for someone with LOTS of ideas, but who needs a little support and structure behind the creativity, without too much pressure – accountability, without the panic!

Have you read any of these? Or do you have a book that you think better belongs on our list?

We’d love to hear about them. DM us at @TheFreelancer.Hub on Instagram, and don’t forget to check back at the end of March for our Business Book club content on START WITH WHY by Simon Sinek.

Lex is a communications, content and launch strategist primarily working as a freelancer within the culture & arts industries. Lex is the mastermind behind The Freelancer Hub on Instagram

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