I understand! You are a student/creative type/zombie (delete
whichever is inappropriate), and as such you have no money. But you love books,
and you long to collect them all. How can you support your favourite authors
when you lack cash to buy books?
1. Go to the library. If you are not already convinced
of the utter magic of libraries, we need to have a chat.
My local library network is the most amazing thing ever,
because if they don't have a book I want at the nearest library they can order
it in from another library. It mysteriously appears on the holds shelf a few
days later. Marvellous stuff. Saves me a lot of bus travel. Plus, plus,
I can place holds online (they limit it to ten which is sad because I get so
excited about placing holds, I want to place fifty at once) and they
have this whole e-book lending thing. Being that I don't have an ebook reader,
I don't borrow many of these, but it is also awesome. Instant access to as many
books as your heart desires! (Or that the system will let you have out at once.
Also capped, probably due to people like me.)
There is a quite wonderful thing we have in Australia called
Educational Lending Rights and Public Lending Rights, wherein authors are
reimbursed some of the income they've lost from their books being available in
libraries. You know downloading books illegally is super dodgy, so don't do
that. Borrow from the library instead.
Also, libraries have air-conditioning and computers and nice
places to sit (the children's fiction area is the best but frequently has
children in it who are renowned as the noisest of humans, followed by drunk
people. Maybe you local library has a good YA spot too). I am not even
mentioning school libraries here. I am insanely jealous every time I visit a
school with an awesome library. If your school library doesn't have a book you
want to read, ask them to order it in!
My next book is just a 500-page ode to the library. It's my
Narnia, with significantly less evil witches.
2. Talk about the books you love. This was why I
started my blog! Of course, you don't have to be talking about books on the
internet - you can just recommend books to friends and family. I was trying to
avoid driving everyone I knew insane by talking incessantly about fictional
characters. Other people with the same reading tastes as you might read your
review and decide to pick up that book. So, you know, your favourite writer
finds another reader, another reader finds a new favourite writer, everybody
wins.
3. Buy books as gifts. I mean, if you're going to be
buying someone a present anyway, why not make a book? Give the gift of reading,
you guys. It's the best gift ever. Along with baked goods. If you give a book
as a gift to someone you live with, then you can just borrow it from them and
forget to return it at a later point. Personally signed books are also a really
special gift that aren't necessarily any more expensive. Save up your Christmas
fund, go to a writers festival and stock up. Be super nice AND save time by
buying books by the authors that don't have enormous queues at the signing
tables.
4. Write to your favourite authors. Fan mail is the
greatest thing ever and is really encouraging (this is what I think, at least).
If you want your favourite writer to keep on writing, let 'em know!
