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Favorite Scenes Anthology, Lots of Amazon Gifts Cards, Authors Getting Rec’d, Anna Stone Guest Post, and More!

Dear Authors, we have so much exciting news this week. Go get yourself a coffee or tea and settle in for all the awesome stuff coming your way!

Okay, do you have your drink? (And maybe grab a snack. TB likes chocolate pretzels, just in case anyone has some to share).

Ready now? Great!

Let’s get to this week’s news!


Authors’ Favorite Scenes Anthology

As we mentioned last week, we’re putting together an anthology where authors can share the favorite scene they’ve ever written. This is a cross-promotion opportunity that is open to all published authors. Anthologies of this type have been very popular and successful in the past. (In fact, we’ve had lots of behind the scenes input from Jae, who is the Queen of Sapphic Anthologies.)

Find out how to join here!


Reading Challenge GraphicReading Challenge Giveaway Winners

Did you know that we gave out $925 in Amazon Gift Cards to help promote the reading challenge and to get readers involved last year? And, this year, we’re doing it again!

Every month, there’s a $25 gift card winner and the end of the year prizes range from $50 to $250 dollars. It’s a lot of fun to send an email to one of the winners because they are so excited. Just think how many books were probably bought with all those gift cards!

It would be extremely helpful if you would remind your readers about the challenge several times during the year, and especially about the prizes up for grabs. Help us spread the word and encourage even more readers to participate in the challenge in 2023!


I Heart Sapphfic's 2023 Reading Challenge graphicMore Reading Challenge News

In case you missed the news, we’ve kicked off the challenge this year, which is bigger and better than before! Instead of one category each week, there’ll be two, 100 in total. Also, we’ve expanded the way authors can get involved. In addition to putting your book on sale, you can post a trivia question and giveaway in the IHS reader Facebook group, and/or join the IHS weekly ebook giveaways that correspond to the challenges of the week.

To find out more about how you can get involved this year, click here.

Also, the format for the reading challenge posts will change this Monday, January 23. Our website developers had to build a new post for us so we can share both categories in an easy to read format. This will make sharing the weekly challenge so much easier.


Find a BookBookFinder Milestone

We’re thrilled to report that the BookFinder database now has more than 2,500 books and has been searched more than 19,000 times!

It’s hard to believe that we only launched the database last October with 1000 entries. Our goal is to have 5,000 books by the end of this year. Are we missing any of yours?

We’re happy to announce there’s a new feature for book browsing. Check out the All Categories page. It has links to every single category in the BookFinder. Also, we’ve made the categories on each book page super easy to read, and hyperlinked for even more browsing options.

We know there are many sapphic authors who haven’t submitted their books yet. You only need to submit a book once for it to have its own dedicated page on the website forever. We expect BookFinder searches to grow dramatically during the coming year. If your book isn’t in the database, it won’t be found!

Submit your book(s) here. The form only takes about 5 minutes to fill out, and the benefits are huge!


All About the Books GraphicAll About the Books 

We’re always looking for more ways to help authors promote their new releases. Late last year we introduced All About the Books and we’ve heard from readers that they’re really enjoying them. Some of the most popular ones are getting more than 200 views! How much would it cost to get 200 clicks on a paid ad for your new release? A lot more than free, for sure! There is no cost for this feature, and we promote each one on the website, social media, and in our IHS newsletter.

If you have a new release that’s less than 60 days old and you haven’t filled out the form yet, you can do that right here. It’s a fun and engaging way to win over readers and a chance to show off your sparkling wit!


Author Rec'd Newsletter Square GraphicAuthors Getting Rec’d

We don’t know about you, but we’re naturally inquisitive peeps. We’re dying to know what’s on your nightstand (in a thoroughly non-creepy kind of way). Our newest feature, Authors Getting Rec’d, will allow authors to recommend a favorite “5-star” book by any other SapphFic author (yes, you can use this opportunity to boost a friend or to fangirl shamelessly over someone famous). We’ll also give you an opportunity to mention one of your own books when we share it with readers, and will include your short bio, website link, and newsletter signup.

Now that our website developers have built this post template for us, we’ll start sharing the first submissions next week, but there’s always room for more.

Join the fun and do a good deed by raising up another sapphic author  today!


Submit a sale or freebie book graphicFree & Sale Books

In the Friday & Saturday editions of the newsletter, we like to offer a freebie to readers. (Whether permafree or using Amazon free days, the offer needs to be available on Amazon). It’s a great way to hook readers into a series, your backlist, or if you’re launching a new book. Put an older book up for free and have the buy link for your new release in the back matter.

On Saturday, we have a section for book deals. If you have a book on sale and it’ll be running over a Saturday, let us know so we can help promote it for you for free. There is one simple form that applies to both sale or free books, and we’re always open for new submissions. Remember, there’s no cost for this listing!


Writing Wisdom

Adrian's Easy Grammar GraphicAdrian J. Smith is a writer and editor who has a not-so-secret love of grammar.

Today’s grammar tip covers COMMA SPLICE–Semicolon. In college, TB had a professor who railed against the use of the semicolon calling it the most pretentious punctuation, but Adrian explains how it can be useful for authors. Even TB has to admit it makes sense. Check it out here.

Guest PostIn today’s expert guest post, sapphic author Anna Stone chats about Author Branding, a topic that’s a must for all authors to become comfortable with.

Check out Anna’s guest post: Author Branding Basics


Have an idea for a guest post? If you have experience in something that is relevant to SapphFic authors and would like to submit an article about it, drop us a line!

Check back next Wednesday for more great advice and SapphFic publishing news.

Happy writing!

Miranda & TB

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