I saw this great meme on Instagram the other day. It said, “Other authors are not my competition! I stand with them, not against them!” Among the independent authors I have engaged with regularly on social media, that is absolutely true.

Believe it or not, we are a rather enlightened community. We give advice, like posts, share ideas and creative criticism to make us better writers. We might not be the most social bunch in public, which makes sense since most of us rarely see the light of day except for the soft glow of our laptop. But we are stronger together.

We all have the same problems… Writer’s block, manuscript editing (take 11), finding a publisher, getting reviews, book sales, etc. We share that common bond through our love of writing, and being a storyteller. And its through that bond that we reach out to one another for help, advice, and support.

I’ve edited manuscripts, swapped books for a review, promoted other authors books, all for free. Why? Because I know that someone will see what I’m doing and will maybe do the same for me. That’s what we do.

We all have the same goals and same aspirations. We want to achieve the same thing… Recognition for the thousands of hours of work, sleepless nights, and spending vacation money on marketing, publishing, and artwork.

Working together helps our community of independent authors grow, learn, and become a force to be reckoned with. We may not be signed up with a publisher, agent, or publicist, but we have each other. That’s what makes us unstoppable.

So let’s help each other out. If you need a book review, message me and we’ll do an exchange for reviews. I am here for my fellow authors.

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse publishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.