Dear friends,
A few of you have mentioned that you want to give Windfall as a holiday gift. Wonderful news! Thank you for your support! Windfall is intended for a general audience and would make a great gift!
But the book doesn’t come out until January 17, what to do?
I have a solution, available only to subscribers of this newsletter and a few select friends and family. Free signed bookplates!
All you have to do is fill out this form and I will sign a Windfall bookplate. It’s something tangible you’ll be able to give as a gift this December before the book is released—or keep for yourself, of course. I’m happy to customize the message. (You can see the bookplate design at the link.)
Please fill out the form by Nov. 25, so I can tell my publisher how many bookplates to print, and so they can send them to you in time for the holidays.
For those of you who’ve pre-ordered Windfall, thank you! Many factors go into making a book a success. Pre-orders definitely help build excitement, but word-of-mouth, good reviews and a supportive publisher help, too.
That said, here are a few other things you can do to help Windfall get into the hands of as many readers as possible. All are free!
Ask your local library to stock it. Librarians buy a lot of books, too! You can tell them that Booklist, the review guide for American librarians, gave Windfall a starred review and called it “shockingly personal and brilliantly researched” and a “perceptive and timely memoir.”
If you’re in media or have good contacts at news outlets, perhaps suggest that someone review Windfall? Or that they interview me about the book?
Suggest me as a speaker at events in your town or at your organization or workplace or book club. Bookstores, libraries, universities, civic groups…I will probably show up to the opening of an envelope. (But I do also have a speaking agent.)
Mark the book as “want to read” on Goodreads.
Thank you again for your support. I’m beyond grateful.
Love,
Erika
P.S. If the bookplate request form causes you any trouble, email me directly at erika@erikabolstad.com and we’ll figure it out.
THE NEWS
All the links…
On widowhood. Erica Werner, a longtime friend of this newsletter, wrote this beautiful piece for the Washington Post about the aftermath of her husband’s death. Just like Erica, it’s funny, wry and perceptive.
BagGate. A cheating scandal in professional cornhole. (Yeah, you read that right. Two words you never thought you’d see next to each other in the Wall Street Journal: Professional cornhole.) “It’s never just fun and games when money is tossed in the mix.”
Almond bottomed. The yoga pant links have been sparse lately, sorry about that! But this one is a gem: Turning almond husks into leggings. (For newcomers: Links about yoga pants are a time-honored tradition here at the Windfall Dispatch.)
Events! Hey, look at that, I made an events page on my website!