It’s time to take stock of your New Year’s resolutions. Is one of them getting better at money management? Not to worry, you can still reach your savings goals while keeping a healthy TBR shelf stocked. Here are a few surefire ways to save on books!
Subscribe to Newsletters
Staying on top of book deals (and new releases!) is easy if you’re subscribed to the right newsletters. Take the BookClubbish newsletter for example. We featured a hand-picked ebook deal in every email that we know our subscribers love. We also include giveaways (more on those below!) for anyone looking to try their luck and win free books.
The BookPerk newsletter is another favorite and delivers ebook deals right to your inbox a couple of times a week. We also recommend subscribing to BookBub for daily ebook deal alerts if you really want to stock up. And if you’re a fan of audiobooks on a budget, Chirp is the newsletter for you!
It’s always worth looking at some publishers you love, too, to see if they have newsletters. If they do, you can always count on them to inform you of the best deals they have to offer on their books!
Become an Influencer
If you want to tap into your passion for books, save on new releases and have a strong social media presence, look into becoming an influencer! It’s a great way to find out if you really love the book before spending money on a finished copy to add to your shelf.
That being said, it’s not as easy as one may think! Many publishers have programs where they send advance reader copies (aka ARCS) to influencers who have high social engagement and a strong passion for the books that they review. Keep in mind that you don’t necessarily need tens of thousands of followers to become an influencer, either! Oftentimes, those with smaller, more engaged audiences, work just as well as those with larger accounts! Reviewing books is an art in itself, so don’t be discouraged if you’re just starting out. Keep at it, build your platform, and one day you may be eligible for these influencer programs!
Look into some publishers that have influencer programs and apply. It never hurts to reach out! Whether you prefer speaking to your followers on Instagram or TikTok, it’s great sharing your love for books online.
HTP Books has its very own influencer program! Apply for it here and get ready to receive those ARCs!
NetGalley is another great resource for getting access to ARCs. Sign up for a free account to become a reviewer on the platform. This is where you can request digital review copies of books before they go on sale. If approved by the publisher, t’s a perfect way to discover some great debut authors and bestsellers in the making!
Enter Giveaways
Another way to getting free physicals books and ebooks is entering giveaways! Follow your favorite authors and publishers on social media and we’re sure you’ll stumble across a few in no time. Pro tip: follow BookClubbish and HTP Books on Instagram to see what giveaways we’re most excited about!
Goodreads is also a great source for finding giveaways on books. We recommend perusing the Giveaways section of the site whenever you’re updating your current reads. We’ve also taken some of the guesswork out of it, too, and put together all of our BookClubbish giveaways! And if you’re a fan of YA, look to our Inkyard Press giveaways!
Visit Your Local Library
And as Arthur and his friends would say, “having fun isn’t hard when you’ve got a library card!”. Libraries are such valuable resources and we’re huge supporters of them! Any book lover should check out their library to discover all they have to offer.
A lot of libraries have digital book borrowing services! We’re big fans of the Libby app for that. No Amazon Kindle? No problem! You can download the ebooks directly to your phone. You can also reserve audiobooks on the platform as well!
Get ready to start saving money by using these tips! And let us know: what’s your book budget hack?
Hello Katie,
I would like to ask if you have “booktok” account that I can follow? I am pretty sure that you have a good taste and it will be also nice to get some suggestions. Maybe there might be some hidden gems that I didn’t discover.
Thanks in advance.
Follow us on TikTok @BookClubbish! There are some great book recommendations there!
One thing I found extremely helpful is keeping a spreadsheet in google sheets and keep a running total of each month on how much you spent and how many books you bought then compare it with how much you read per month. At the beginning of every month I set a goal to not spend above a certain dollar amount (I even have a free checking account through my bank because of the program I am on that I have solely for book purchases of all kinds). I spent along time to come up with this habit and to get in a routine but it works for me because if I don’t monitor and I purchase from the main account I can spend easily $150+ monthly and not realize it. If anyone wants to know how I have my google sheet set up I have 1 doc for the year, inside of that year I have tabs for each of the months. In the header I have Spending Tracking Sheet, and my goal $ amount for the paticular month. Then in the next line I have currently spent and remaining. Then each day I have a day number line then I log in the information of price, title, series, how many books came in that book, and author. Then at the end of each day I total up how much I spend and update my spending amount.
Megan, you’re the real MVP! That’s a great tip!
I never overlook used book sources. Online auction sites, charity thrift stores, fundraising sales are among places I’ve bought books, and have found many of the latest titles. We share books at book club, and another friend and I will buy new books and then trace with each other. All this allows me many more books and saves money to spend on a title where I collect the author’s work, or a series where I want it from the first day of release.
That’s such a great tip, Toni!