Month: April 2022

five ways you can support indie authors

Liesl Young3 Comments

Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Quote, Unquote!

Many authors, especially young authors, begin their career with indie publishing. Some later move on to traditional publishing, while others remain independent for the rest of their career. It’s up to the author whether they want to sign over their book to a publishing house or pursue independence with their writing.

In this post, I’ll be showing you five ways you can give back to the indie authors who worked so hard to get their book out into the world. Let’s go!

1. buy their book

This one is pretty obvious. Most indie authors make their living entirely off of their books, and it can take a lot of sales before they even break even on the investments they made on a cover designer or editor, much less make a profit. Buying their book helps them along in a monetary sense. Plus, they get the opportunity to touch your heart and soul with their book’s message, and hey, you get a new book! Who doesn’t love new books?

2. gift their book

If you read an indie author’s book and know someone else who would enjoy it, why not gift it as a birthday or Christmas gift? It doesn’t even have to be for an occasion! I would love it if someone randomly bought me a book they thought I would enjoy. This helps because not only are you buying their book and putting a few dollars in their pocket, you’re spreading the word to people who might then recommend it to others.

Alternatively, if no occasion is coming up, you could…

3. recommend their book

Even if you don’t have the budget for it (books are expensive!), recommending a book to someone you think will enjoy it will help the author reach new readers. One of the bigger downsides of indie publishing is that there’s no publishing house to supply marketing. Promotion can be an obstacle that indie authors face, due to not having a well-known corporation to back them up. It’s just them trying to put their book into the world. Recommending their book will help them overcome this and put their books in new hands.

4. follow their blog and/or social media and interact with it

Again, because indie authors don’t have a publishing house to back them up, their social media presence might be very small. And the real kicker here is “interact with it.” One thing I’ve recently learned about social media–YouTube in particular–is that it doesn’t matter how many subscribers you have if you’re not getting any views. If you’re following an indie author’s Instagram or Twitter or Facebook page, interact with what they post! Like their posts, leave thoughtful comments. Interaction is one of the best parts of being an author.

5. leave a review

I’ve saved the most important for last. Leaving a review on Amazon or Goodreads (or, frankly, anywhere it’s possible to leave a review) is possibly the most important thing you can do for an author. Let them know what you think of their book, even if you hated it. The more reviews a book gets, the more exposure it gets, the more readers it gets, and the more validation for the time and energy the author put into it it gets. That was a little confusing, but you catch my drift, right?

Indie authors work hard. They invest a lot into their books, and I’m not just talking about money. A lot of times, it’s just them against the cruel marketing world. (Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a little bit.) But you, as a reader, can help them out in the smallest of ways, and I hope I’ve helped you see that.

Thank you so much for reading, and I’ll see you next Wednesday!

Until next time,

the “I’ll get around to it later” blog tag: my own answers

Liesl Young5 Comments

Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Quote, Unquote!

Two weeks ago I created my own blog tag, the I’ll Get Around to It Later tag. Because of Holy Week, I didn’t answer it immediately, but this week I’m giving you my own answers!

Sit back, grab a cup of tea, and enjoy.

the rules

  1. Link back to the original post at Quote, Unquote so the creator–that’s me!–can read your answers.
  2. Link back to the post of the person who tagged you and thank them. (Thank you, Me.)
  3. You may use the included graphic anywhere in your post, but you don’t have to.
  4. Fill all seven categories.
  5. You can either leave this tag open so anyone can do it or tag up to seven people.

the categories

a classic book that you have been meaning to read forever but haven’t yet

Emma by Jane Austen. I read Pride and Prejudice for school this year and loved it, so I’ve been meaning to read Jane Austen’s other books, but I want to buy them before I read them. Because I am broke, this hasn’t happened yet, so I haven’t read them yet. Emma is the first one on my list.

a book on your shelf that you haven’t read yet

This isn’t the best picture ever, but I found The Classic Illustrated Sherlock Holmes in my grandmother’s basement (risking life and limb in the process–I could tell you about some crazy stuff I’ve found in that basement). I’ve been wanting to read through these for a while but haven’t gotten around to it yet. I think it’s something I’m going to have to read little bit by little bit.

a book that you got recently that you haven’t read

I just bought The Summer of Broken Things from the thrift store! (Pro tip: If you’re looking for cheap books, thrift stores are your jam. Sometimes they can be a little marked up, but I also brought home a bunch of really cheap autographed copies last time I went.) That cover is so gorgeous (might I say…aesthetic?) and since I’ve enjoyed Margaret Peterson Haddix’s other books, I’m so excited to read this.

a book that you’ve had forever but haven’t read

I’ve owned this one since I was, like, twelve, but I haven’t read it. I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s just because I’m not a big fantasy person? Whatever the reason, I do plan on reading it. Eventually. (I’m never reading it, am I?)

a book a friend recommended that you haven’t read

My friend Sarah loves the Ilyon Chronicles. I’ve wanted to read them for a while, but she’s warned me against starting them until the whole series comes out. They look pretty epic and I’m excited to read them, but for the sake of my sanity, I won’t. I will not have another Keeper of the Lost Cities situation on my hands.

a book you’re procrastinating on

I’d been procrastinating on The Hobbit before I was forced to read it for school this year. It wasn’t that bad, and I still kind of want to read the rest of the series, but honestly, it kind of scares me. At some point I will definitely read them. I’m just not sure when that point will be.

the next book on your TBR

This is the next (and final–woohoo!) book that we have to read for sophomore year! It’s about Mother Teresa, as you can probably see, and it looks like it’s going to be a good, thought-provoking book. I’m excited to read it and discuss it in class.

tags

Mia at Windows
Maya at Maya Joelle
The Grim Writer at The Grim Writer
Sarah at Sarah Jayne Photography
Merie at Imperial Scribis

That’s all for now! Thank you for reading, and feel free to steal this tag to do on your own.

Until next time,

hymns for Holy Week

Liesl Young4 Comments

Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Quote, Unquote!

This Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, the week of Jesus’s final moments and resurrection. It begins with Palm Sunday, with Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey; Thursday is Maundy Thursday (or, if you’re my dad, Monday Thursday), the day of the Last Supper; Good Friday, obviously, commemorates Jesus’s death; and we rejoice in his resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Holy Week is my favorite season of the church year, mainly because of the music. Every year, my church celebrates the four days with beautiful music. Our brass ensemble, choir, organist and music director, and handbell choir work tirelessly to rehearse and perform for God’s glory. So this week, as preparation, I’ll be sharing some of my favorite hymns.

Maundy Thursday

“When You Woke That Thursday Morning” LSB 445

John 13:1-9

1Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!”

Mark 11:1-11

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!”

And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.

Maundy Thursday

“When You Woke That Thursday Morning” LSB 445

John 13:1-9

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!”

Good Friday

“O Sacred Head, Now Wounded” LSB 449

John 19:1-11

Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged him. And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head and arrayed him in a purple robe. They came up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and struck him with their hands. Pilate went out again and said to them, “See, I am bringing him out to you that you may know that I find no guilt in him.” So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Behold the man!” When the chief priests and the officers saw him, they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no guilt in him.” The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.” When Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid. He entered his headquarters again and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. So Pilate said to him, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have authority to release you and authority to crucify you?” Jesus answered him, “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above. Therefore he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”

Easter Sunday

“I Know That My Redeemer Lives” LSB 461

John 20:11-18

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her.

I hope you all have a blessed Holy Week!

Until next time,

the “I’ll get around to it later” blog tag

Liesl Young47 Comments

Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Quote, Unquote!

It’s been a while since I’ve done a blog tag, and I’ve missed them. I’ve decided to do one this week, except there’s a surprise: it’s totally original!

That’s right. This week I’ll be presenting to you a new and completely original blog tag created by yours truly: The “I’ll Get Around to It Later” Blog Tag. Let’s jump right in!

the rules

  1. Link back to the original post–this one right here!–so I can read your answers and support you. (Alt text for your own post: Link back to the original post at Quote, Unquote so the creator can read your answers.)
  2. Link back to the post of the person who tagged you and thank them.
  3. You may use the included graphic anywhere in your post, but you don’t have to.
  4. Fill all seven categories.
  5. You can either leave this tag open so anyone can do it or tag up to seven people.

the categories

  1. A classic book that you have been meaning to read forever but haven’t yet
  2. A book on your shelf that you haven’t read yet
  3. A book that you got recently that you haven’t read
  4. A book that you’ve had forever but haven’t read
  5. A book a friend recommended that you haven’t read
  6. A book you’re procrastinating on
  7. The next book on your TBR

That’s all for now! I’m not doing this tag myself just yet. I am planning to after Easter–I already have a post planned for next week–but you can go ahead! I’m not tagging anyone, so just feel free to use it on your own blog.

I hope you have fun!

Until next time,