October Is National Book Month

I love October but then I love autumn and chocolate and books. Since 2003, October has been National Book Month. It is sponsored by the National Book Foundation which exists to celebrate the best literature in the US, attract new readers, and assure that books have a place in American culture. There are so many things that we can do to celebrate. 

Visit Your Library 

I adore my library. I’m not exaggerating. If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook or read my blog, you are going to see that I post at least once a week about the library. I go there every week and I have a shelf in my office for library books. But I’m always shocked by the number of people who don’t visit their library. 

Don’t drive? Don’t sweat it. Most libraries have an amazing number of online offerings including e-books and e-audio books. 

Your mission, and I’m not asking, is to connect with your library somehow, someway during the month of October. Check out a book. Do it. You’ll thank me. 

Visit an Independent Bookstore 

Now, I’m not panning Amazon. I bought socks there just last week. But an independent bookstore is people by those who love books. LOVE them. Enter and you are going to find display tables about autumn and Halloween. You’ll find local interest. You’ll find staff recommendations. 

The best thing about independent bookstores is that they aren’t carbon copies of each other. Each one is different. Plop me down in Front Street Books in Alpine, Texas or Subterranean Books in University City, Missouri and I will know exactly where I am. 

You have a second mission now. Visit a bookstore, preferably an independent. Come on. You know you want to do it. 

Post About Books 

Don’t forget that part of the mission of the National Book Foundation is to expand readership. One way to do this is to post about the books that you love. Take a selfie of yourself reading an amazing book and share it on Twitter. Capture the cover of a book you loved reading and post it on Facebook. And when you do, link to the author. Media savvy authors will respond, like it, and share it. 

When you are on social media, look for posts about books. If one looks interesting, like the post, comment on it, and share it. This will help spread the word about a book even better than if you created your own post. 

Yes, I’m giving you yet another mission. Talk books up however you can. You can do it online and, for extra points, in person. Engage with people and you may discover your next favorite book. 

--SueBE

Sue Bradford Edwards' is the author of over 35 books for young readers.  To find out more about her writing, visit her site and blog, One Writer's Journey.

The next session of her new course, Pitching, Querying and Submitting Your Work will begin on November 6, 2022).  Coping with rejection is one of the topics she will cover in this course.

Sue is also the instructor for  Research: Prepping to Write Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults (next session begins November 6, 2022) and Writing Nonfiction for Children and Young Adults (next session begins November 6
, 2022).