Running Naked

I’m delighted to see The Search Party published today in the UK. The book came out two weeks ago in Australia and New Zealand, and two days ago in the US and Canada. In my earlier career, I worked in publishing houses in London and Sydney, so I am aware just how many people it takes to get a book into a bookstore or library.

What’s changed in recent years, is the role book bloggers and reviewers now play in the piece. There’s a whole army of book lovers out there, generously spending their time reading and reviewing advance copies for publishers, posting on their social media and sharing the love for the books they’ve enjoyed. I’ve felt the full force of this in recent days, having been tagged in posts sharing thoughts about The Search Party. The posts have been funny, creative, aesthetically beautifully. The reviews have been careful and thoughtful. I’ve not seen a single plot spoiler. There have been soundtracks, selfies and gifs, props and pets. The pets! (I’m looking at you, Oliver the cat @planswithtea). Such an extraordinary amount of time and energy goes into these. It’s amazing.

I wanted to say a proper thank you to this immense book blogging community. Writing a book is a solitary, nerve-racking experience. Releasing it into the world feels a little like running down the street naked shouting, “Look at me!” Funnily enough, this isn’t something I feel particularly inclined to do. The book blogging community over these past few weeks has felt like being enveloped by a warm blanket, wrapping me up as they shove an energy bar into my hand and tell me to ‘keep going’. It’s an amplification of anything I can achieve on my own, or through my publisher, and it’s so, so appreciated. So this is just a short post, in appreciation of all the book bloggers out there reading and reviewing for authors of all genres. I know I’m not alone in my big, fat ‘THANK YOU’ to you all. You guys rock.