Christmas is on Friday and some of you will likely be giving gifts. I know some of you bought all the presents you’re giving last July. This post isn’t for you. This post is for all of you, who like me, just realized that, “Christmas is Friday.” I know a few will now be opening a new browser window to see if there is enough time left to have a gift basket sent to Mother.
Then there will be that mad rush to find gift cards for the grand kids, nieces, nephews, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and a few extra for those hyperactive dinner guests who brought a present for you even after you said, “Let’s not exchange gifts this year.”
Now some of you might be thoughtful types and think, “My friend is a writer. What should I give a writer?” Well, I have the nearly complete list for you right here.
Writers are simple, yet complex creatures. Ask a writer what they want for Christmas and you’re likely to get answers like:
- A great metaphor
- A decent story idea
- An editor I can trust
- An agent who will return my calls
- 1,000 more blog followers
All great things, but likely nothing within your power to give.
I’ll group my list into two parts: Presents you likely shouldn’t give, but likely will anyway, and gifts that your friend will treasure. Did you know there is a difference between a present and a gift? There is and no, I am not going to explain it.
Presents you could give and likely would get a polite thank you for:
- Paper, pens, pencils, desk sets, notebooks, blank journal books, and such. Everyone likes nice fancy note paper, but I write on a computer. Likely the only time I’ll use the fancy note paper and deluxe pen is to write your thank you note.
- Books. Yes, we writers read lots of books. I’ve got two library cards, a Kindle and a small library in my house. Chances are that I already have, or have already read, the book you just thought of. Unless it’s a brand new book you just wrote. In that case, I’d love a signed copy of your book.
- Barns and Noble gift card. Okay, you really want to give a book, so how about a gift card. I can deal with that. It will get used. Unless your friend still resents B&N for being the reason that their favorite local quirky independent book store failed and had to close in 2002 and is now boycotting B&N.
- Amazon gift card. Not bad and seeing that Amazon is about to force B&N into bankruptcy that puts them in more friendly light. Except when we start to think about how Amazon has changed publishing and driven so many bad changes to the publishing world that have likely driven writer’s royalties down. Now we’re confused if we should support it, or keep using it to self-publish our E-books on Kindle. Well, you can buy other stuff on Amazon so if you gave me one, don’t be suppressed if I buy a box of sandpaper, or that nice tea I like.
- Coffee mugs, fancy coffee machines, gourmet tea, etc. Seriously, this crossed your mind?
- Starbucks gift card. Yes, some writing is fueled by caffeine. Warning: some folks rank Starbucks up there with the evil corporate giants that are destroying the wonderfully quirky beloved little mom-and-pop coffee bar on the corner.
- Wine, beer, scotch, or other “adult beverage.” Won’t help the writing, but next time they have serious writer’s block it might be useful in forgetting problems. Also useful to encourage your friend to get drunk and call you at 3:00 am.
Gifts you should give to your writer friends. If you truly want to help your writing friends, please think about giving some of these.
- Encouragement. Writing is a lonely pursuit and often filled with rejection and self-doubt. A word of encouragement and a little cheer-leading is a gift.
- Conversation about writing. While writers tend to sit hunched over their computers or writing pads, they can be a talkative lot when you get them going. Many would find your interest uplifting and possibly helpful.
- Honest feedback. Can I be honest with you? Please, if the writing I asked you to read is crap, please tell me. Be gentle and understanding, but be honest. I appreciate feedback when it comes in this general format: What I liked about your piece was and here is what I think you could have done better. Even better would be to take your writer friend to Starbucks for caffeine and a conversation about how you could help provide them with quality honest feedback without totally screwing up your relationship. It’s tricky and a wonderful gift if done right.
- Do you know what a writer really needs? Time. Time to think,write, edit and stress over why the editor hasn’t emailed back. Time is limited and your friend likely has a family, job, etc, limiting their time even more. Maybe you could baby sit for them, or mow their lawn, or provide a meal, or rent a cabin in the woods for weekend. A beach house for the summer would be a nice touch…
- Experiences. I’ve written before about the concept of “breathing in” or exposing yourself to creative things to keep your mind filled with creative energy. You could do that for your friend. Tickets to a play, a concert or a good movie. A day trip to a museum. An invitation to a hike in the woods or a walk on the beach.
- Buy their books, follow their blog and go to their book signings.
So there you go, your complete gift guide for the writer in your life.
On Wednesday, I’ll post the complete guide to gift giving for woodworkers. It won’t be a long post since every woodworker knows the answer, “Clamps.”
Till next week,
Andrew
Andrew's View of the Week 
A great post Andrew and I do so like your gift for writer friends list – how true! Time, encouragement, experiences, feedback and of course people to buy the book(s)!!
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Encouragement and cash, what else does a writer need. 🙂
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*Merry Christmas (sorry about the typo)
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And a Merry Christmas to you and yours. Spelling isn’t important for thoughts like this…
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Beautiful post Andrew. Meery Christmas to you.
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This year, as every other year, I’ve asked my kids not to give me anything. The greatest gift they can give me is to come to the house with a rental truck and take away some of the stuff that’s cluttering my house. I’ve given bags full to charity, but there are family heirlooms they really do need to take away. :-).
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I told my wife that our gift the kids this year should be to ship them all the boxes they’ve left in our storage shed. The kids haven’t seen the value in that yet. 🙂
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I feel your frustration. I’m concerned that when I’m no longer here, they’ll just toss all of that history away. But, that will be their choice and their regret to live through. One of the hardest things about being a parent is watching your kids make the same mistakes and the same bad choices with the same excuses for why they’re doing it as we gave our parents.
Karma isn’t a bitch. It’s a vampire. 🙂
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A grand list and I hope you receive any and all of the perfect writer’s gifts you wish for. Merry Christmas Andrew (don’t forget – it’s Friday!). 🙂
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Friday, oh my, I am feeling the pressure now. 😉 and have a Merry Christmas.
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I did buy all my gifts last July (I’m one of those 😉 ), but I still enjoyed your post! Especially appreciate the “breathing in” together suggestion — nice idea!
Merry Christmas.
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I thought about buying my gifts last July, but at the time I wasn’t sure if it would very late for last year or very early for this year. I was so confused that I just got an iced latte and went into my workshop.
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I thought you were going to say it was too early to know if you’d still like the recipient enough come December to bestow a gift on him/her.
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When you said Friday is Christmas, I looked at the calendar to confirm. And I was surprised! That’s how bad I am about the Holidays. But better get out there and get a few gifts while I can. Thanks for the advice!
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When I sat down to write I thought I should do something seasonal. Imagine my shock when I learned it was Christmas and no longer Thanksgiving. Guess that whole, “Grateful” post will be ready for next year.
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🙂
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Buy their books–what a great suggestion. You hit everything, Andrew, pitch perfect.
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I’ve been surprised not to see that on other gift lists I’ve read. I mean if all my friends buy a copy of my book, that will push sales up by, oh, at least 4… 😉
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Good post, Andrew. Your second list is chock full of no-cost/low-cost things that can be shared year ’round. Thanks for the suggestions and Merry Christmas.
Ω
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and a Merry Christmas to you. Looking forward to seeing more of your writing.
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And yours as well.
Ω
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All I would say is “All praise to the Amazon Wish List” People try hard to be nice, but they hardly ever succeed with surprise presents.
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Yes, that is a great thing. Last family gift exchange, we shared our wish lists. Made the present shopping so ease.
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Great post Andrew. Have a Merry Christmas
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Thanks and have a great Christmas season as well.
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Perfect gift for writers: cash.
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Especially for those writers who earn a living writing.
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Oh, good, you got the joke.
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🙂
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