The first Thanksgiving feast in America dates back to
when the settlers at Plymouth and their allies from the Wampanoag tribe
got together in 1621 for a three-day gobblefest to celebrate the settlers'
first harvest.
More than four centuries later, we still gather with friends and
family to stuff our asses — and buy shit that we don’t need and watch football
games that are possibly fixed to serve the gambling machine. But it is also a
time where we identify who and what we are thankful for.
So, what are you thankful for — health, wealth, peace? Family or
friends? Pets and vacations? A place to call home, food in the belly, and a
sense of security?
How about when it comes to books?
I am thankful for:
·
The millions of
writers who buck the costs and fears in order to get their books
self-published.
·
Those in America who
still choose to buy and read books.
·
The countless books
that got turned into amazing movies.
·
The writers who
persevered to survive the literary agent and publisher acquisition gauntlet to
get published.
·
The myriad options for
consuming a book’s content, from inexpensive ebooks to keepsake hardcover
books, and from less expensive trade paperbacks to audiobooks for those who
prefer listening while walking, driving, or exercising.
·
The underpaid people
who slave away at book publishing houses in order to produce the books that we
take for granted.
·
Authors who created
books that make us think, feel, or act beyond our self-limiting potential.
·
Librarians who guard
truth, promote the joy of reading, and work hard to fight censorship.
·
Independent bookstores
who create an environment for books to thrive.
·
Barnes and Noble, for
expanding its number of stores and increasing its footprint into book deserts.
·
Literacy tutors and
advocates who ensure America will remain empowered by knowledge and inspired by
the written word.
·
The fact that over one
billion books of all formats were purchased in America this past year.
·
Books like 1984,
Invisible Man, Gulliver’s Travels, Crime and Punishment,
and Lord of the Flies remain classics read by Gen Z.
·
Pads and pens — and
smart phones, computers, and the Internet. They make books possible, to create,
sell, and read.
·
The Library of
Congress, Reading Is Fundamental, and The First Amendment.
·
Anyone who donates
books, time, or money to nonprofits, libraries, schools, and any organization
involved in promoting the reading of books.
·
Anyone fighting book
bans or censorship.
· Having read Dr. Seuss and Curious George books — and then to have read them to my kids when they were young.
· Improving my life with inspirational and
instructional books like As A Man Thinketh, Man’s Search For Meaning, How To
Win Friends and Influence People, Awaken The Giant Within, and Plato:
The Republic.
·
The many ways one can
get published: Big 5; independent publishers, university presses, hybrid
publishers, self-publishers, and Amazon-IngramSpark.
·
Meeting my future wife
at a book convention.
May you enjoy Thanksgiving Day with your country, faith, family,
friends, pets — and books!
Do You Need Book Marketing Help?
Brian
Feinblum can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com He is available to help authors like you to promote
your story, sell your book, and grow your brand. He has over 30 years of
experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him
be your advocate, teacher, and motivator!
About Brian Feinblum
This award-winning blog has generated over
5,250,000 page views. With 5,400+ posts over the past 14 years, it was named
one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs and recognized by Feedspot in 2021
and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” Copyright 2025.
For
the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He
formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the
head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the
director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many
first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with
best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen,
Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard,
Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C.
Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.
His
writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s
The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully). He was recently interviewed by the IBPA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0BhO9m8jbs
He
hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and
has spoken at ASJA, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah
Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association,
Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and
Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the
2024 IBPA Book Awards.
His
letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal,
USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester)
and The Washington Post. His first published book was The
Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook. It
was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.
Born
and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids,
and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.
You
can connect with him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum/ or https://www.facebook.com/brian.feinblum
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