While writers will never turn down a good pen, pretty notebook, their work becoming a bestseller, or a streaming adaption deal for their latest tome, we don’t actually need to be lavished with gifts and our biggest fantasy goals coming true in order to write.

Most of the time, we just want to be left alone to do our ink-slaying, and that is a gift that will cost you nothing and be much appreciated by any writer in your life.

If you’d like to know what else you can gift writers for the holidays that won’t cost a thing, read on…

Free Holiday Gifts For The Writer In Your Life

Shout About Them From The Rooftops

Don’t worry, you don’t need to get on a rooftop for this free gift. All you have to do is tell anyone and everyone about your writer’s book or work. You can do that in real life sans roof, or on your social media feeds where you won’t even need to leave the house, let alone get on top of it.

Did a writer you know release their debut in the last year? Did their 6th book come out? Did they start a blog/Twitter/Instagram/Facebook/TikTok account? If they sent out their first submission to an agent or publisher or had their first short story or poem accepted and/or published, tell others about it.

Your writer may not. Some of us are shy when it comes to tooting our own horns, or often feel like we’re the only ones shouting about our achievements into the void that is social media. If you’re willing to help and add posts to your own feed, please do it for us. It’s super easy to share, re-tweet, post to stories, and remix reels.

If your writer released a book this year, they would have posted cover reveals, book snippets, reviews, and graphics. Give those posts some love and a boost by sharing them on your own social media.

If your writer blogs too, bump up their latest piece of content. If they have a writing-related side hustle, like editing, beta reading, proofreading, graphic or book cover-making services, share that around too.

Help get the word out and boost a post that others might see, share too, or purchase for gifts.

Another social media gift your writer will appreciate is you posting about their book yourself. If you have a copy, take a shelfie/selfie with it. If you’ve read it and loved it, rave about it in your Facebook status.

Share links, not just for places their books can be bought, but their own social media feeds, blogs, websites, and newsletters, and give the gift of awareness to a writer who may be feeling invisible.

Leave A Review

One of the best gifts you can give a writer, besides buying and enjoying their work, is leaving a book review.

It doesn’t have to be long or thought-provoking (unless you want it to be, and in that case, go at it!). Just something as simple as “I loved this story!” is enough. Even only star ratings help if you can’t think of anything to say.

Reviews help make a writer’s work visible to others, encourages readers to pick their book, appease the Amazon.com gods, and gives your writer content to publish. It’s a very helpful and usable gift, and won’t cost you anything more than a few choice words and the clicking of some digital stars.

Share The Spotlight

If you’re someone who has their own blog, podcast, or newsletter, and the writer you want to gift is a good fit for your platform and audience, consider sharing the spotlight.

Ask if you can interview them, re-publish one of their blog posts, or review their work on your blog.

It’s a good way to fill each other’s cups, and a gift a fellow writer will know the value of.

Give Them Stealth Support

If it’s not appropriate to saturate your social media feeds by sharing writing posts, or you just aren’t that kind of social media user, you can still be supportive in your own stealthy way.

If you’re happy to engage with your writer online, leave a comment, an emoji, or start a discussion with them on their Instagram, blog, or on Twitter. It still helps their engagement, which pushes their content into feeds so others see their posts.

If you can’t be chatty online, just follow your writer. Sign up for their newsletters, read their blog posts, or get their books added to your local library. Most libraries have a section on their sites where you can request a book. As long as your writer’s book has an ISBN and can be bought for distribution, a library can purchase it if they wish, which includes books that are indie/self-published.

Support doesn’t have to be super public if you can’t do that. You can still help on the down-low with just a simple follow or newsletter sign-up. These easy options are free for you and the perfect way to support the writer in your life.

Gift Them Their Own Writer’s Retreat

While a writer’s retreat at a nice hotel or Airbnb would make an ideal gift, and you are welcome to gift that to your writer if you can, you can also give them a writer’s retreat in their own home for free.

If you live with your writer, all you need to do is give them the space to write undisturbed for a set amount of time, leaving them with nothing but nourishment and words of encouragement.

As apt as writers become at creating in the noise of a household, nothing gets them more productive than the serenity of a quiet, empty space. If it’s possible to give them that gift, even if it’s only for an afternoon, any writer will appreciate it.

Craft A Sign

Our last free gift idea goes back to that basic concept of writers just needing time alone to write. It really is the one thing that will help us make progress on our WIPs, and it can be achieved with one simple thing: a sign that lets anyone else in our physical space know that we’re working.

While this simple gift will require some materials if you don’t already have them at home, it certainly doesn’t have to cost a lot to make. A tangible item that can be stuck to your writer’s room door, desk, or laptop cover to let others know they’re in the productive zone and shouldn’t be disturbed (other than for emergencies, of course) is all that’s required.

The sign doesn’t need to say too much. Just a simple phrase, such as:

• Writer At Work
• Busy Creating
• Back From My Fictional World In 1 Hour/10 Minutes/Insert A Time Here

You can even make the sign out of whatever material you like, taking it to the simplest or fanciest level that your creativity allows.

As you can see, these gifts won’t cost you anything but your time. If you’d still like your writer to have something under the tree to open, however, there are some ideas in these blog posts: A Holiday Gift Guide For The Writer In Your Life and More Holiday Gifts For The Writer In Your Life.

So, please enjoy the holiday season knowing you’ve found a gift that the writer in your life can appreciate, even if it’s not the status of a bestseller or a streaming adaption deal. That’s something they can aim for on their own, and who knows, it just might be one of these free gifts from you that plays a part in helping them do that.

Happy gift-giving!

— K.M. Allan

Find me on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.