Black Friday

I really hate Black Friday sales. Mostly because they force me to leave my house and interact with strange people.

So, in honor of that, I'd like to present the perfect solution! My book will be free Black Friday and the following Caturday in order to promote sales that don't make you leave your house.

But if you do have to go out, at least this will give you something to read while you're waiting in lines!

Go grab a free copy today on Amazon and don't forget to leave a review if it helps kill some time.

You should also pass this book along as a gift to anyone in your life who has an addiction to Pinterest or Instagram or any sort of visual discovery website. Or if they have a love one who is afflicted. Laughter is the best solution to stress, and the holidays can always use a few more giggles.

❤ - Hope

Non-Steading by Hope Woods

http://amzn.com/B014OKNOZE

Free Today and Tomorrow!

11/27/15-11/28/15

The perfect stocking-stuffer for your Kindle.

Or your friends' Kindles.

Anyone really!

Grab your copy today!

It's my birthday and I'll sigh if I want to...

It gets harder and harder every year to think of something fun to do on this date in history.

It's my birthday and I will sigh and eye roll if I want to.
Also, my book is free today to celebrate, grab your copy here.

Almost everyone hits an age where birthdays turn on them.

For some, it happens early, right after 21, when they realize there's not much point in counting any more milestones.

For others, it happens after 29 or 39, when they don't want to tell anyone about depressing milestones.

But whenever it happens, there is usually a distinct lack of  presents.

Buying gifts for an adult is hard. I understand that, and I sympathize. Gift giving for children is a piece of cake. It requires very little effort. That is part of what makes it fun.

That also doesn't mean we should stop trying. Sure, there's always the reliable gift card/cash/voucher type of present, where the recipient is appreciative, Hardly overwhelmed with delight and wonder, but appreciative. I don't suggest you stop giving those gifts, for some of us, that may be our food budget for a month or three, or our heating bill, or our overdue student loan payment.

What if I told you we could make gift buying/giving/receiving fun again for those old enough to rent a car? Because gifts like cash and cards almost always end up being spent on something mundane. No less vital to our survival, but decimating to our sense of fun.

With that in mind, a few simple suggestions, fresh from:

~Non-Steader Philosophy~

1: If you have to/want to/need to give a monetary equivalent* gift-
(*Note: this includes all forms of cash, card or paper voucher type of presents, things which come in envelopes, things you can hand the person and usually require no ribbon or festive paper)

These gifts are always appreciated. In most cases, the recipient feels joy and gratitude. Often the recipient is broke, desperate or has a payment of some kind due, and this gift saves their bacon.

These gifts are important, please keep them coming! Consider some alternatives. Wouldn't taking them to dinner be more personal? If you are giving them cash and you know they will use it on a bill, you probably know the person pretty well. Why not offer to just pay a specific bill for them and then give them something small to actually open?

Any of these would make you stand head and shoulders above anyone else who remembers their birthday.

2: If you have no idea what to get the person or they are hard to buy for-

This can be tough, I know. The first thing: what do they enjoy; second thing: what they do with their time. Do not think this means you can buy your mistress/significant other/spouse a toaster or other appliances, that* always ends badly.
(*Unless they asked for it specifically. That's a whole separate blog post.)

What if they are addicted to Netflix and never leave the house unless it's on fire? Maybe they could use a fluffy place to put their feet up and a place for their drink. If they have to walk to work maybe they need a really perfect umbrella. In England, they call those "brollies". As it should be. These gifts are useful, classic, well-made and on the pricey side.

Try to focus on what they might need, not just what they don't want. You will often hear this adult saying things like "I don't need anything" or "I just don't want another golf glove" or "I have enough polo shirts!"

For these people I always suggest a movie night. You pay a month of their favorite streaming service, bring whatever snacks/drinks/alcohol they might desire and make a fun sleepover-type thing out of it. Alternatively, you can buy a month of their service, maybe offer to babysit their kids for a night (if they have any), and then just give them all the stuff, gift-wrapped and hand-picked. Maybe they would rather be alone, or would like to spend it with someone special. Either way, they have something to open and something to be excited about. It's a win.

3: If they are into a specific hobby, game, TV show, movie, anything with merchandising-

Do. NOT. Buy. Merchandise. Ever. Unless you have specifically heard from this person that they want nothing more than a Bob's Burgers t-shirt, or a Game of Thrones replica tiny sword. That is the only exception. If there is something they really want, and it is affordable, sure, get that. Do not let your relatives just leap on the "Get anything from American Dad" bandwagon.

There are only so many pieces of memorabilia! Even a super-fan has limits. I would love a vintage Emma Peel Lotus Elan model car, but you can't say to people "The Avengers" and expect to get the right stuff. I buy those kind of collectible/specialized/specific objets d'art myself, because I know exactly what I'm looking for; because I'm the fan.

Don't do this to your loved ones, unless they ask. If they ask, pay attention. Listen for specific instructions. There is a huge difference between Sherlock and Elementary. Not all Sherlocks are equal!

4: If they don't even know what they want or you are broke, destitute, poor-

You want to do something amazing but it would require funds. Funds you do not have. Well, you can't spell funds without fun! There is a surprising amount of stuff that is fun and cheap/free.

Hit these websites, sign your friend up a week or two in advance (some require it at least 7 days before the big day), make sure to use their name (a lot of them check ID to prevent fraud). But use your address or a dummy email (you don't want them to get spammed for their birthday/ruin the surprise!). Then let the fun/travel begin! Plan out your day of free things, based on what's in your town, what's available, what's open, etc.

This works for those "difficult to buy for" people as well, since those are the type of people who usually adhere to the "Events and Experiences are always better than things" part of the Non-Steading Philosophy. If they want actual gifts but really don't know what they want, you can always turn it into a scavenger hunt. Pick the best free things you think they will enjoy, make small boxes with the clues inside, wrap them and dole them out over the day. They get to open stuff and get free things!

Non-Steader ProTip: Keep an eye out for "purchase necessary" scams. You only want the freebies!

5: If they gave you anything in a mason jar*, ever, at any point in history, for any birthday-
(*Note: this includes jams, jellies, mixes, pancake batter, homemade glitter, anything but does not cover if you said "I'd love your homemade apple butter for my birthday" that's on you.)

This person is dead to you now. Just walk away.

Websites from #4:
http://thefrugalgirls.com/birthday-freebies
http://www.buzzfeed.com/alannaokun/free-things-you-can-get-on-your-birthday#.beoLDo8r
http://www.thepennyhoarder.com/100-places-will-give-free-stuff-birthday/

Grab a free book today: http://amzn.com/B014OKNOZE

http://bit.do/brtPT
http://ow.ly/U6SSx

Non-Steading Holiday Sampler! #FreebieFriday

Do you dislike mason jars?

Do you dread being dragged from bed at dawn on weekends to help garden?

Do you love your friends but hate hearing about their hobbies?

Do you prefer distractions that are streaming?

You may be a Non-Steader...

To help you find out, here's an excerpt from my book, Non-Steading! It's free right now, today only! #FreebieFriday

Sample of Chapter 8 - Non-Steading at the Holidays

Limited time sale price of Free!
Get yours today!

Halloween/All Souls' Day

Beyond even Christmas and Easter, this is probably the largest homesteader holiday, if only because it allows them to showcase all of their tips and tricks in a practical setting where it is hard to criticize. If the old November holiday was created for homesteaders, then this was one is almost certainly created by them every year.

Do you want to bob for apples? There is a homesteader in your community that has been restoring old oak barrels for the last eleven months for just that purpose and he cannot wait to tell you about it. Did you want to dress up as something? There is a contingent of PinThings people who have done nothing for the last 90 days but look up costume ideas and how-to infographics.

If you were hoping for a quick jaunt out to trick or treat with your kids, abandon all hope ye who exit your houses. This is the one holiday that isn’t tied to meeting up with some part of your family, so I would suggest Non-Steaders dress up, make one trip to the grocery store, together, in costume, purchase candy you actually want now that it’s on clearance and then go home and watch horror movies. These scary images will help distract you from the homesteaders as they celebrate their favorite holiday. On All Souls' Day, and even into Day of the Dead, depending on where you live, they may persist. If possible, just hibernate until it’s all over.

http://ow.ly/TAO7U

#FreebieFriday here at the Non-Steader!

Go here TODAY October 16th, 2015

- http://amzn.com/B014OKNOZE

and get a free copy of

In honor of #FreebieFriday!

Today, I'm giving away free copies of my book over at Amazon. Please give it a read! If you like it, maybe pretty please post a review. That would be super.

Thanks!

http://ow.ly/ThkB6

FREE eBook Wednesday!

If you just want to skip to the free stuff:

Go here TODAY Wednesday 10.14.15

- http://amzn.com/B014OKNOZE

and get a free copy of 

This is my book. It's a little pink, I know.

I have gone up in the Amazon Rankings!

I have also launched my new website!

www.thathopewoods.com
Please come by and check it out. All of places you can find me, updates, everything!

I never expected to become rich or famous just from writing a book about Pinterest widows and Instagremlins why you should avoid anything with the word "project" involved. I just thought there might be a few people who felt like I did. People who couldn't understand the need to DIY or bedazzle or 'upcycle'.

At least one other person feels the same way! That, honestly, made my whole life. I wrote something, and someone read it. That's really all writers can ask for.

In honor of this momentous occasion, I would like to offer my book free for today. I've never done any sort of free day so if it's a disaster, please be gentle!

http://ow.ly/ThkXt

Tentative Book Promotion Ideas

Kindle eBook

Everyone has told me that one of the best ways to get your writing out there is promotion. Whether it's giving your book away for free or newsletters or buying advertising, you really have to promote the hell out of your book.

There's only one problem with that. I'm terrible at asking people to buy things. I would much rather you decide on your own, independently, that you would like to purchase something I wrote, or read something I posted or what have you. I don't think I've mentioned the fact that I wrote a book since like the second day of this blog. I started this blog to tell people about my writing. And I did. I told them once, politely, at the beginning. Is it wrong that I feel like that should be enough?

Given that type of mentality, I've asked for suggestions and assistance. A few of my good friends on Twitter, Tumblr, etc. have agreed to help out. I think I'm going to try one of those newfangled promotional deals that KDP offers: the free book.

From what I understand it's essentially you giving away a copy of your book for roughly 24 hours. You make no money from it, but it's supposed to generate word of mouth buzz interest readership penetration. So, we're going to give that a shot. Probably some day this week, I'll make my book free for a day and we'll see how that goes. I will try to find a reason to be excited about it. Really, what I'm hoping will happen is reviews.

I still don't have any reviews as far as I know on my Amazon ebook. I don't know if that's because no one has purchased it... or because no one has read it... or what's going on there. But I'm pretty sure I said I wanted an email if I had a review posted and there have been no emails. So, I'll have to check that out. What about you, my blog reading friends... if I gave away my book for free would you rate it on Amazon and perhaps post a few kind words? Am I even allowed to ask that?


http://ow.ly/ThkbR