The best (and most appreciated) way you can get a book

A gift for future you.

TO THE GORGE comes out in less than a month!

I don’t know how or when that happened. But all of a sudden, here we are. It’s terrifying. It’s overwhelming. It’s thrilling. I can’t wait until the pre-pub chaos is over and you can start reading it.

I’ve had a lot of people ask me about the best way to get To the Gorge, whether there are certain retailers that are better than others, or ideal times to order it.

And the answer, is that the ABSOLUTE BEST (and most appreciated!) WAY to get a book, is to preorder it.

Preorders are an incredibly helpful way to show excitement for a book. And they MATTER.

Before I embarked on my own publishing journey, I would occasionally preorder a book but I didn’t really understand the significance of doing it. I liked that it would just show up on my doorstep on pub day. It always felt like a gift from Past Emily to Future Emily. And it meant I got the book as soon as it came out, which was a fun treat.

But now that I’m an author myself (still sounds weird to say!), I know that preorders are vital. Let me tell you why.

• Preorders generate buzz and demonstrate demand. They help spread the word and get more copies of To the Gorge out in the world.

• Preorders tell booksellers that people want to read a book and help get it into more bookstores (which is tougher than you might think. There are a lot of books competing for a small amount of shelf space!). Preorders can also get the book a better placement in a bookshop so more people see it. Preorders might even encourage a bookseller or librarian to read it themselves – and recommend it to readers.

• Preorders fuel the silly algorithm that rules our internet (and Amazon). And since something like 60-80% of books are sold through Amazon, that matters.

• Preorders tell the publisher that there’s excitement for the book, so the publisher puts more effort into getting the word out. They also tell the industry that this is the kind of book that people want to read (which, let me tell you, the industry needs to hear. More than one publisher turned down my book because “why would readers want another book about a woman on a trail?” Tell publishers that readers want to read about women doing rad things on trails!)

• Preorders are also the best chance a book has at cracking any of the big lists (the bestsellers and such) since all of the preorders count toward the first week of sales, which also, wait for it…helps more readers find it.

Preorders can generate a ton of momentum and excitement for the book and show critical support for an author’s work. They’re especially valuable for debut authors like myself. It’s wild how much they matter, but they really, really do.

It’s also wild that anyone might want me to scrawl across their copy, but I will excitedly sign all preorders placed through Powell’s before May 6th.

I would be so grateful if you would consider preordering To the Gorge. And if you already have preordered it, THANK YOU thank you thank you thank you (a million times over). I appreciate you so much. Getting messages from people about To the Gorge is the highlight of my rather stressful days right now.

And if you’re already on the preorder train and excited to help To the Gorge reach more readers, there are a few easy ways to do this:

• Ask your favorite local independent bookstore to carry it (and order it from them!). Even one or two orders/requests can make a bookstore decide to carry a book. If you hear that your favorite local bookstore is going to carry To the Gorge, please let me know. I can’t wait to find out where this book goes.

• Request it from your library! Most libraries have an online form to make a purchase suggestion or request a new title. Help make To the Gorge accessible to more readers by asking your local library to carry it.

• Tell a friend about To the Gorge. Forget TikTok and fancy algorithms, this will always be one of the best ways to spread the word about books.

Truly, thank you for your preorders. Thank you for your excitement. Thank you for considering reading To the Gorge. I can’t wait to share it with you next month.