Book Buying Season by Allison Symes

Image Credit:  Images created in Book Brush using Pixabay photos. One photo taken by me, Allison Symes, at the Hiltingbury Book Fair.

It may be the season of mellow fruitfulness (which is a wonderful expression and for me conjures up autumn beautifully), but it is also the signal Book Buying Season is here again. 

Now for me, every part of the year is book buying season but with a certain event only being two months away, and books are excellent gifts as everyone knows, you can’t blame the publishers for focusing so much on sales in the next few weeks or so. 

Equally naturally when I put certain lists together, the first thing on mine will be the books I’d like to see under the tree this year. There would  be something seriously wrong with me not to request any!

Of course with book buying season well underway by the time this blog goes out, it will be accompanied by Author Event season too.

I think the biggest challenge to all writers is encouraging those who don’t read for pleasure (or who stopped doing so after school, say) to develop the habit and discover books are for all. I hope the book buying season helps in that almost everyone I know will buy at least one book for someone. 

That has to involve looking at the cover and blurb (and I do this anyway even if someone tells me the book they want). Sometimes that leads to me buying a second copy and getting another family member to give me that. The author wins there.

I like to mix up where I buy books from. I get some directly from my publisher (including my own books for stock). I do use a certain online retailer (and have found them useful for out of print items). I use Hive and Bookshop.org as well as Waterstones. 

I was delighted a new Waterstones is now open in a small town only a few miles from me. The only other bookshop there is a lovely Christian one so there is no direct competition and I’m glad it gives people more book buying options here.

I don’t like shopping much. It’s something that has to be done but books are different. It is a joy to browse amongst the book shelves. I don’t do as much of this as I’d like to but maybe my bank balance would thank me for that. 

I also love browsing the book tables at writing events and will get to do this at the end of October at the Association of Christian Writers in person event. I’ll also get to do so again in December when my publisher, Bridge House Publishing, holds their annual celebration event, which is always fun.

It is a joy to buy books at events like this and ask the authors to sign them. I know how thrilled I always am when someone asks me to sign my books for them.

Books give so much joy to the writers and their readers. Let’s hope for a wonderful Book Buying Season once again then.