As far as sources of entertainment go, books are really excellent value for money. For less than the cost of a movie ticket, even for a new release from an independent bookstore, you can expect hours and hours of entertainment. However, I do understand that sometimes there just isn’t enough money left over at the end of the day to justify purchasing another book.
Authors work hard on their stories and rarely see out the cost of their investment. ‘Earning out’, a term used to describe the amount of money in sales that covers the cost of producing the book, can take years, if it ever happens at all. Because of this, I find pirate book sites particularly galling, especially for authors who charge five or six dollars a book. Not only that, but there are also so many ways to read books for free, without stealing.
Here, I’ve put together a list of how you can find free books, legitimately, and support authors as you are reading.
Join a newsletter and get a book
Sometimes it’s a book, sometimes a short story or a novella, but many authors will throw out the lure of a free read if you join their mailing list. You will be able to unsubscribe at any time. Reading this way is an easy, low-risk way to try a new author, and if you enjoy their writing, you may even be happy to hear from them! You can sign up for my free novella, A Song and a Snowflake, which is only available to newsletter subscribers, HERE.
First in Series Free
Sometimes, once an author is a few books into a series, they will make the first book free. This encourages readers to try the author and see if they would like to keep reading. It’s a strategy often used by authors who sell their books wide, or in all stores (instead of being in Kindle Unlimited).
Free books are hard to find on Amazon because there isn’t a price filter, but you can do a genre search and use the ‘first in series’ filter. While not all these books will be free, many of them will be, and you will be able to search from there.
Other stores, like Kobo, have price-based filters that make searching for free books easier. Apple has a free books list for promoting free books.
Book One in the Tales from Honeysuckle Street series, A Beginner's Guide to Scandal, is free in all stores as a first in sereis free book.
Advanced Reader Copies, or ARCs
Prior to publication, many authors, both traditionally published and indie, will distribute a number of advanced reader copies. The agreement is that in exchange for a free book, the reader will leave an honest review. Some readers, if they love the book, will also post to social media to help the hype.
You won’t always get to pick what books you read. High-profile authors with anticipated books may have a selection process for readers with large social media followings or reach. But there are many, many authors who are just starting out, who have great books and would dearly love your support.
There are a few ways to sign up for ARCs. You can join an arc distribution service. The main ones are:
But there are other promotional companies that also distribute arcs. I have recently been using The Berry Agency. They send out all the books, check readers follow through on reading, and then send me an overview report at the end. Some authors like to read and check off every read, but I am not one of those! This approach is perfect for me.
Some authors will also have their own ARC team. These are often readers from the newsletter who sign up, or long-time readers and reviewers. If you like an author and would like to support them (and get free books), reaching out to them to ask if they have spots on their review team may be a way to join their ARC team. Most authors will be flattered, so don’t be shy.
But if you do join an ARC team or sign up for a book, please, please, try to follow through on reading and reviewing. And if you can’t, either reach out to the author or the distribution company handling arcs and let them know. It can be very demoralising for authors when readers don’t leave a review and we don’t know why.
Free Book Blasts
A free book blast is usually lasts for one day, but sometimes might be spread across two or three days. These are MASSIVE events where hundreds, if not thousands, of authors make a book free and readers are invited to download as many as they think they might like to read.
There are a couple of big ones of these, and many other smaller events. They are often heavily promoted on social media, so if you are following authors you like to read, you can probably track them down. The two big romance-themed promotions are:
But just a few weeks ago, BookBub put together a little rundown of some other events in different genres.
You can find their post here https://www.bookbub.com/blog/stuff-your-kindle-day
Which brings me to my next great place to find free (or at least heavily discounted) reads…
BookBub!
BookBub is a newsletter service that advertises free and discounted reads. You can sign up for their newsletter, pick your preferred genres, and each day you can expect an email of free and discounted books that align with what you like to read delivered to your inbox. They have a newsletter just for free reads. AND, if you like an author, consider following them on BookBub to keep up to date on new releases and sales. It’s easy to sign up and follow. You can find them HERE.
And the last great place to find great reads is far, far from least… and that is the wonderful places we know and love called...
Libraries
I feel like libraries need no introduction, but sometimes people don’t realise just what they might be able to borrow from the library. Not just a place to find paperback and hardcover books, libraries will often loan out eBooks and audiobooks, have a large-print collection, and books in a range of languages. Many libraries also allow readers to request a book, so if there is something you’d like to read that your library doesn’t have on the shelf, it may pay to ask one of the librarians if they can put it on their shopping list for you.
After reading a free book, consider the following:
Leaving a nice review on your book review site of choice. Goodreads is the most well-known, but don’t forget BookBub, StoryGraph or PageBound. The place where you feel most comfortable is the right place for you to share a review.
Purchase the next book in the series or something else by the author.
Nabbing a paperback for the bookshelf or for sharing will make an indie author's day!
Subscribe (or stay subscribed) to the author's newsletter.
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