If you’ve written a book, the first thing we want to say is a really big congratulations. We know how much work it is, and so many people start and don’t finish. You deserve every high five going.
We also know that writing is good for you – you learn so much about yourself and your subject, and your family can benefit from knowing more about you and what you have to share. So we actively encourage people to write, and we look forward to offering our own writing groups.
However we need to be clear: We encourage people to write for their own benefit. We have very strict criteria for accepting local authors’ books for sale in the bookshop. In fact, only two local authors have been successful.
You should read leaflet ‘Local Authors‘ which explains more, but here is a summary:
- We consider ‘local author’ to mean someone who is a regular customer and engaged with Kett’s Books and Wymondham. As you are a book lover and part of the community we would expect that you already spend time in Kett’s Books, and we already know you. Your postcode is not enough. Being part of the Wymondham community is the single biggest criteria for getting your book into Kett’s Books.
- Your book needs to be of clear interest to our customers. This could be for instance on the history of The Lizard, or a collection of newly found photographs of Wymondham. Fiction and general non-fiction are of less clear interest, and such books will have to compete against all the other books on offer. Again, by being part of our community you’ll have a good grasp on what we sell, and what is a poor fit for our customers.
- You need to be actively promoting the book and sending customers to Kett’s Books for them to buy it. What talks have you organised? What followers do you have on social media? Who have you already got on board? We simply can’t create your fan base for you.
Ways we can help
- We will be offering writing groups, and more reading groups are in progress. Joining a group, even if you’ve already written your book, is a great way to start building a group of supporters. Keep an eye on our emails to find out when they are starting.
- We will soon be offering our bookshop for private evening events at £30/hour. If you want to hold a book launch yourself, which you promote yourself, we will be happy to consider letting you hire the space. The book still needs to be a good fit with our brand and what our customers would expect us to offer. Separate terms and conditions will soon be available.
- Other ways of helping you to introduce your work are in progress. Sign up to our mailing list so you know when an opportunity is coming.
You may also find it interesting to read our buying policy.