Black Friday - 2024
Black Friday
noun
- The day following Thanksgiving in the United States, typically regarded as the beginning of the holiday shopping season. Characterized by significant promotional sales, discounts, and extended retail hours, it attracts large crowds seeking deals.
- In broader use, refers to any day or period marked by intense consumer purchasing activity driven by major sales events.
- The day we buy things we didn’t even know we wanted.
Black Friday is ON, and as always, at this time of year, I wanted to share some ideas for holiday gifts for the writers and readers in your life (and let’s be real here, discounted ideas for yourself).
Some of the links below are affiliate links, which means if you buy something, I might earn a small commission. I promise, it’s not as shady as it sounds—and it helps me keep writing these letters.
Gift Ideas
Obviously, books.
I like to think of myself as the queen of book recommendations. I love to find the perfect pick for everyone. Always feel welcome to reach out for suggestions for just your vibe - but here are a few of the books I tend to recommend the most often:
The Good Luck of Right Now (if you can get it on audiobook, that is best) – A road trip story about family lost and found.
No Baggage – She meets a man on OKCupid, and, like, three weeks later they embark on a trip across Europe with only what she can fit in a small purse.
Station Eleven – The end of the world and the beginning of the rest of their lives.
The Lonely Hearts Hotel – This book destroyed me. That’s all you need to know.
The Ocean at the End of the Lane – A fairy tale of sorts.
Kit For newsletter hosting: Kit is offering 30% off their newsletter hosting services right now. This is a great time to sign up if you’ve been thinking about it since they never have sales. I have been using Kit (ConvertKit) for a few years now and can’t imagine ever leaving it for another host. You can scale your newsletter quickly with their recommendation feature. I found the website relatively easy to learn how to use, and their customer service is dope. Like the best I have ever seen.
Kindle: My mom notoriously has to buy a new kindle every year. She drops it at the gym, she drops it off the couch, she drops it from her bag. She should probably keep one in reserve. Are you or someone you know like my mom? Now is a good time to buy this cute green Kindle (mom, if you have snuck back on here, just buy this one).
Audible subscription: I only advocate for this if you don’t have access to a library with free audiobook streaming access. Always support libraries first!! I am able to get through so many more books a year because I pop on an audiobook while cooking, cleaning, and getting ready in the morning. Now is a good time to snag their subscription service at a big discount.
Don’t want to support big greed monsters like Amazon? How about some books from Bookshop.org that supports your local bookstores? Here are my themed book recommendations. Free shipping right now!
Udemy – My courses and all the other courses on the site are on sale this week. This is usually the lowest price you can get during the year. How about committing to learning something new in 2025?
Here are a few of my courses:
Introduction to Art Activism
The Rebel Memoir
The Rebel Writing Life
And here are a few courses I took, fully completed, and enjoyed:
Online Course Creation
Instagram Marketing
Dividend Growth Investing
Fiverr Services: Lots of freelancers are having sales on their services today. If you need some help to grow your creative business, now is the time to place your orders.
Personalized Ex Libris Book Embosser: A beautiful way to say this book is mine.
The Divorce Discount on my editing services is still going on. Not just on sale today, but until the end of the year, I am offering 20% off all developmental editing.
So, what are you gonna to get?
Happy shopping!
Did I just save you a bunch of money? Ways to say an extra thank you = send my newsletter to a friend who might like it, send a gift from my Amazon or Bookshop.org wish lists, buy me a hot chocolate by leaving a tip here or on venmo @LibbyCJames.
