An Illawarra author says with more people staying at home instead of going out due to the coronavirus pandemic, now was an appropriate time to support authors experiencing the financial effects of the crisis.
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"Buying books is the best thing people can do for us at this stage, because we can't get out and about," Jamberoo horror/fantasy writer Alan Baxter told the Mercury.
"The best thing people can do at this stage, especially if they're stuck at home and need things to do, is read books, and buy more books."
He also encouraged the public to not only buy books to support their favourite writers, but also talk about and share their enthusiasm for those whose work they enjoy.
"With home delivery from places like Amazon and Booktopia, you don't have to out and buy them either, you can have them posted to you."
The award-winning writer had booked a family holiday around attending the premier horror writers' convention StokerCon in the UK in April, which has now been "indefinitely postponed".
Baxter said aside from that potential financial hit, he'd also had other appearances and signings - some of which attract an appearance fee - either cancelled or postponed.
"They're a great way to hand-sell books, and I get more money hand-selling than when they go through the publisher," he said.
Baxter said he also had additional concerns, as the pandemic may threaten the short-term future of his other source of income, running the Illawarra Kung Fu Academy.
"If the government decides to close schools, then we close too," he said.
"I don't really know... We could potentially be looking at an incredibly lean few months.
"We've made changes to how we run classes - there's no partner work, for example.
"We're making sure we keep a social distance from one another while we train."
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Brendan Crabb
I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
