From leaving book reviews on Amazon and Goodreads to pre-ordering new releases and recommending books, there are so many simple ways readers can support authors and improve book discoverability. If you’re a reader who wants to support authors, independent publishers, and improve book discoverability, these simple actions can make a real difference.
Why Supporting Authors Matters
Reader recommendations, social media engagement, and reviews can significantly impact a book’s success by increasing visibility and helping new readers find it. While a single review may have little effect on a bestselling title, it can make a meaningful difference for an independent author.
Many successful indie books gain traction through reader enthusiasm and word-of-mouth marketing. If you’d like to support independent authors and smaller publishers, here are some of the most effective ways to do so.
How to Support Your Favourite Authors
1. Buy Their Books
The most direct way to support an author is to purchase their work. Every sale contributes to the author’s success. Sales figures can influence retailer recommendations, future publishing opportunities, advertising budgets, and overall visibility.
2. Follow Authors on Social Media
Following an author on social media is a simple but powerful way to show support.
Social media platforms use engagement signals to determine which content gets shown to larger audiences. When readers like, comment on, save, or share an author’s posts, it increases the likelihood of those posts reaching potential new readers.
3. Subscribe to Author Newsletters
Email newsletters remain one of the most effective marketing tools available to authors.
Unlike social media platforms, where visibility depends on constantly changing algorithms, newsletters allow authors to communicate directly with readers who are genuinely interested in their work. For authors, every subscriber represents a reader who wants to stay connected and support their journey. Plus, it can be a fantastic way to stay up to date and see more behind the scenes.
4. Recommend Books to Friends and Book Clubs
Word-of-mouth marketing remains one of the most powerful forms of book promotion. When readers recommend books to friends, family members, book clubs, online communities, or fellow readers, those recommendations often carry more weight than traditional advertising. A genuine recommendation from a passionate reader can introduce an author to an entirely new audience.
5. Share Book Posts and Announcements
Sharing a cover reveal, release announcement, review, or author update can help introduce a book to new readers. Even a single share may reach someone who becomes a lifelong fan!
6. Attend Author Events and Signings
Book launches, signings, conventions, and literary festivals provide valuable opportunities for authors to connect with readers. Attendance and engagement help make these events successful and encourage organisers to host similar events in the future.
7. Request Books at Your Local Library
Library requests can have a surprisingly large impact on an author’s success. Many libraries purchase books based on reader demand, meaning a single request can result in a book being added to a collection. This not only supports the author financially, but also introduces their work to new readers who may later purchase other books in the series.
8. Pre-Order
Buying a book before release day can make a big difference. Penguin Random House in their article ‘All About Pre-Orders’ says:
‘For an author, pre-orders can alert retailers and consumers that they should pay attention to your book. From the bookseller perspective, the pre-order quantity is a good early indicator of a book’s success, and can lead to retailers increasing their initial orders.’
Book launches are often driven by momentum. Early support can encourage retailers, reviewers, influencers, bloggers, and other readers to pay attention. The more momentum a book builds before launch day, the greater its chances of reaching a wider audience after publication.
Many retailers count pre-orders toward a book’s launch-week sales performance. As these sales are concentrated around release day, they can help improve chart rankings and visibility during a crucial period. A strong launch can create additional opportunities for discovery, recommendations, and media coverage.
9. Leave A Review
Corrin Foster, Sr. Director of Book Marketing & Promotions at Forbes Books, says on her guest post, The Benefit of Reader Reviews on NetGalley, that:
“Reader reviews are the social proof that helps to convert browsers into buyers.”
Reviews don’t just help authors; they help future readers make informed purchasing decisions. Seeing positive reviews can reassure potential buyers that a book is worth their time and money. In many cases, readers discover new books specifically because they were intrigued by another reader’s review.
Reviews also play an important role in how books are displayed on major retail and discovery platforms. While no platform publicly reveals its exact algorithm, books with higher levels of reader engagement are generally more likely to appear in recommendation feeds, search results, and “customers also bought” sections. More reviews can therefore increase a book’s visibility, helping it reach readers who may never have found it otherwise.
There are several places where readers can leave book reviews, including:
You can also share reviews through:
- Personal blogs
- Instagram posts
- Facebook recommendations
- Threads and Bluesky posts
If you post reviews on social media, tag the author. Not only does this allow them to see your review, but it can help introduce their work to your followers!
How Can You Support Sapere Books Authors?
Whether you enjoy historical fiction, crime fiction, thrillers, mysteries, romance, or non-fiction, every action you take can make a meaningful difference to an author’s success.
You can help Sapere Books authors by:
- Leaving a review
- Pre-ordering upcoming book releases
- Recommending books to friends, family, and book clubs
- Sharing your favourite titles on social media
- Following authors on social media
- Following Sapere Books on Facebook, Instagram, and Bluesky
- Subscribing to author newsletters
- Subscribing to the Sapere Books mailing list
What may seem like a small gesture can have a lasting impact on an author’s career and help ensure more great books are published in the future. Browse our latest releases, discover new authors, and join our growing community of readers who help support independent publishing every day.
On July 4, 2026, the United States marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, a milestone known as America250. Across the United States, commemorative events, exhibitions and educational programmes are exploring the people, ideas and conflicts that shaped the birth of the nation.
David Armitage says in The Declaration of Independence in Global Perspective that:
‘No American document has had a greater global impact than the Declaration of Independence. It has been fundamental to American history longer than any other text because it was the first to use the name “the United States of America”: in this sense, the Declaration was the birth certificate of the American nation.’
The Declaration of Independence can be found and read online via The National Archives’ collection of America’s Founding Documents. As the first successful declaration of independence in history, the Declaration of Independence continues to influence nations around the world. Over 192 countries represented at the United Nations now have a similar declaration, many of which were inspired by or directly influenced by the American example.
While the Declaration of Independence was signed on 4 July 1776, it was the culmination of years of political debate, military conflict and revolutionary activism. For readers looking to learn more about the American Revolution, the Founding Fathers and the struggle for American independence, non-fiction history books offer an ideal starting point.
To commemorate America250 and Independence Day, here are five fascinating books that explore the creation of the United States.
Why These Books?
This reading list explores the military leaders, political thinkers, international allies, opposing forces, and eyewitnesses who experienced the birth of the United States firsthand. The figures featured in the novels below, George Washington, Samuel Adams, and Lafayette, helped shape the ideas and events that transformed thirteen British colonies into the United States of America. Together, these books provide a broader understanding of the American Revolution and the remaining legacy of the Declaration of Independence 250 years later.
Essential Books for the 250th Anniversary of Independence
1. George Washington: First in War, First in Peace by James A. Crutchfield
For five years George Washington led the fledging thirteen colonies against the overwhelming might of Great Britain, he helped shaped the foundations of the country at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia and served as the first president of the United States for two terms.
George Washington: First in War, First in Peace reveals a leader whose outward simplicity concealed a quick, analytic mind, capable of learning from mistakes, and who made decisions with the forethought of how they would impact the young nation he was helping to build.
While Washington became the public face of the Revolution, Samuel Adams helped create the political movement that made independence possible.
2. The Grand Incendiary by Noel B. Gerson
John Adams, the second President of the United States and a second cousin of Samuel Adams, claimed, “The Revolution was Sam’s personal creation.” Yet, how did this man, who had failed at business and mishandled his inheritance, emerge in middle age as one of the most important of America’s Founding Fathers?
While other figures like George Washington or Thomas Jefferson may be more well-known today, during the years of the American Revolution and for many years afterward, Samuel Adams was regarded as the first citizen and a leading statesman of the new nation. Such was his influence that on the eve of the Revolution, General Thomas Gage put a price on Adams’ head and declared him “the most dangerous man in the New World.”
No account of American independence is complete without the Marquis de Lafayette, the French officer whose military support proved crucial to the Revolutionary cause.
3. Statue in Search of a Pedestal by Noel B. Gerson
“Liberty for all is worth any sacrifice.” So said Gilbert Motier de Lafayette, the French visionary who championed freedom and equality, but whose devotion to the cause of democratic government came at a great personal sacrifice.
Born into one of the oldest aristocratic families in France, as a teenager the idealistic Lafayette volunteered to fight under George Washington for America’s independence in the Battle of Yorktown in 1781, a decisive victory which brought him lasting military renown and made him one of the true heroes of the American Revolution.
Elected to the Chamber of Deputies in 1818 following two decades in political exile, Lafayette continued to fight for freedom of speech, press, assemblage, and worship, arguing that these were rights that belonged to all people and could not rightly be taken from them by any government.
Drawing on contemporary material, including private letters and Lafayette’s own memoirs, Noel B. Gerson paints a vivid picture of a man of physical and moral courage, whose fight for the cause of liberty earned him the title the “Hero of Two Worlds”.
To fully understand the American War of Independence, it is important to examine the wider international conflict that surrounded it. Admiral Rodney offers a British perspective on the struggle that reshaped the Atlantic world.
4. Admiral Rodney: The Man Who Broke the Line by Donald Macintyre
George Brydges Rodney, better known as Admiral Rodney, was one of the Royal Navy’s greatest commanders during the Age of Sail. Remembered most for his decisive victory over the French at the Battle of the Saintes in 1782 during the American War of Independence, he was also involved in numerous raids against the French during the Seven Years’ War and saw his first action in the War of the Austrian Succession. Rodney is credited with reimposing discipline in a mismanaged, neglected Navy and initiating important tactical reforms in battle.
Captain Donald Macintyre presents a thoroughly researched and absorbing account of the life, career, and character of one of the most compelling figures in the history of the British Navy. Drawing on a wide range of historical sources — including contemporary accounts and personal letters — Macintyre balances official records with vivid testimony from those who served alongside Rodney. The result is a fascinating insight into a system of rank and command in which factions ruled and disloyalty and back-biting were rife.
To fully comprehend the context into which the Declaration of Independence was signed, the years after, and its impact to this day, a wider look at American History is a must.
5. Eyewitness to American History by James A. Crutchfield
Eyewitness to American History brings the past to life through the voices of those who were there.
Ranging from the 1750s to the 1850s, these thirty-five accounts are set in a wide variety of locales throughout the United States and include incredible first-hand tales of adventure and bravery, hardship and danger. Read about Roanoke Island’s lost colony, the fur trade era, the joys of early steamboat travel, Chief Blackbird of the Omahas, the Oregon Trail, and the tribulations of the early frontier military troops. Along the way are some surprising and humorous episodes from American history, such as the court-martial of a Revolutionary War veteran for refusing to cut his hair, as well as more dramatic events, including the massacre at Frenchtown and the first presidential assassination attempt.
James A. Crutchfield has drawn together a range of narratives from people from all walks of life — explorers, trappers, diplomats, soldiers, and politicians, among others — whose eyewitness accounts of everyday American life shed a valuable light on a legendary era.
America250 Reading List: Why Revolutionary-Era History Still Matters
Two hundred and fifty years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the lives of figures such as George Washington and Samuel Adams continue to shape discussions about democracy, liberty and national identity. Debates that shaped the American Revolution remain surprisingly relevant. Questions about liberty, representative government, national identity and civic responsibility continue to influence public life in the United States and beyond.
By exploring biographies of those involved readers can gain a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by the Revolutionary generation and the decisions that helped create a new nation.
Whether you are celebrating the Fourth of July, participating in America250 events or simply looking to expand your knowledge of American history, these books provide valuable insight into one of the most important turning points in world history.
Celebrate the Fourth of July with These Must-Read Revolutionary War Histories
As America250 commemorates the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, these books offer an opportunity to look beyond the famous date of 4 July 1776 and explore the people, battles, ideas and international alliances that made American independence possible. Whether you are a lifelong student of history or simply looking for a meaningful Fourth of July read, these titles provide an excellent introduction to the revolutionary generation.
Discover these titles and more in our History & Biography books.
