Book Products by Allison Symes

Image Credits:- 

Most images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. One photo taken by me at the Bridge House Publishing celebration event on 4th December 2021.

One lovely thing about being a writer is we are easy to buy for. I don’t think it’s possible to convince non-writers new notebooks etc are vital. We know there is no such thing as too many. Just try telling them that…

We will want books, stationery, pens etc. Then there are book related presents such as mugs with your book cover on or that of a favourite author’s as most have merchandise. I like that as long as the product is good. Pens, mugs, postcards, and book marks work for me. Things like clothing with books on do not work for me though I liked examples of writers creating face masks with their covers on.

So, other than books, what would you have as writing related presents?

To Have

Pens advertising my books (have these. They look good. They go down well at events. Pens are always handy).

Postcards (likewise and can double up as a bookmark).

 

A fold-up banner (I saw some impressive ones at the recent Brechin/Angus Book Festival. Not sure these are for me. My problem is height. I’m a midget. Some of these banners were tall. I know I wouldn’t have the arm reach to put them up and I sometimes do solo events!

Mugs though some cover photos work better than others. I did look into this for my second flash collection, Tripping the Flash Fantastic. The image seemed blurry on the mug so I stuck to pens. If you’re going for a product, it should be of reasonable quality.

Notebooks with your cover on. I often use these as part of any prizes I offer for online launches. These go down well.

 To Avoid

Tat. I make this a general principle and not just for books! Any book product must reflect well on the book it is promoting, otherwise why bother? I’ve never got the clothing aspect as mentioned. I want people looking (and buying) my books rather than study the words on my chest! I suppose T-shirts and the like make sense if you are at events but I still want people looking at what is on my stall rather than what is on me.

 

What I Would Like to See Produced

Some gizmo which ensures you never lose a pen or notebook again. Think there would be a good market.

Something to stop software updates cropping up at the most inconvenient times. Yes, I reschedule but my concentration has been broken while I do that and this irks. I never know an update is due until my laptop informs me. (I check for updates regularly - whenever I look there aren’t any. When I don’t…  you can guess the rest).

 

Book shelving that magically expands to take all of my books without taking up extra room in my house. I know - not a chance but it’s a nice thought. 

 

What book related products have you found most useful? Which have been a waste of time?