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324 books | 12 friends

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Andrew Shanahan

Goodreads Author

Born

in Stafford, The United Kingdom

Website

http://www.helloshan.co.uk

Genre

Science Fiction, Thriller, Humor and Comedy

Member Since

March 2012

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/andrewshanahan

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About me:

Best-selling author of sci-fi and post-apocalyptic fiction. Books tend to have elements of horror in them too, mostly because I'm pretty degenerate and I like books where there's a smattering of gore.

If you would like to die in one of my books then you can add your name to the HAT OF DEATH by filling in the form here:

http://www.iwillliterarilykillyou.com/

For legal reasons I have to point out that this is a literary, rather than a literal death. You're quite safe. ...more

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Popular Answered Questions

Are you planning to write a continuation of Before and After?

Andrew Shanahan Hey Natalie - thanks for the question and the simple answer is that I've stopped writing it to answer this :) It should be out by June. I'll post upda…moreHey Natalie - thanks for the question and the simple answer is that I've stopped writing it to answer this :) It should be out by June. I'll post updates on Goodreads but mainly on my blog as I'm writing it - if you head to www.helloshan.co.uk then you can sign up for updates there. Thanks again. (less)

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Andrew, I am intrigued at your success in marketing a single book as an Indie author (or any other kind of author for that matter). Usually it's considered a waste of time to promote a single book. Not expecting you to reveal any deep trade secrets or anything, but if you could share any gems of wisdom it would be valued. The system tells me I have to include a question mark, so here it is: ?

Andrew Shanahan Hi Malcolm, thanks for the question and I'm happy to share whatever I can in terms of marketing suggestions. I do so with the strong caveat that I wou…moreHi Malcolm, thanks for the question and I'm happy to share whatever I can in terms of marketing suggestions. I do so with the strong caveat that I wouldn't say that I've "cracked it" in terms of feeling confident in what I'm doing. If I don't cover anything that you're particularly looking for in this answer then feel free to message me and I'll do what I can to answer more directly.

Before and After has sold far better than I could have hoped for, and for the most part the reviews have been very kind. That said, I still have plenty of days when I'm entirely convinced I'll never sell a book again, that what I'm currently writing is laughable and that my arse looks too damn big in the trousers that I'm wearing. In short, I think the last person I'd trust is someone who said they've made it. Also, if you have those days, don't kid yourself that other writers don't also have them. They all do.

My main approach with marketing has been to put the book (politely) in front of as many human eyes as possible. I then rely on the premise and the cover to inveigle their way into a potential reader's brain and jump up and down until they check it out. To achieve that I've mobilised my social media feeds and readers who have signed up for my newsletter at www.helloshan.co.uk. I pitch myself for podcasts and radio. I advertise through Facebook and Amazon. I also do real world things - for instance the book is available through local shops. Readers can sign up for me to do a twenty minute reading with them over the phone. I looked at doing competitions, but my ego can't take it when I don't win and it reveals an ugly side of me, so I'm taking a pass on those.

My firm belief when it comes to marketing is that I have to put in the work (even for a single book), but to be realistic about what I can achieve. I'm guided in that by Hugh Howey and what he's achieved. I think the lesson I pulled from him (and you should follow him as he's good at sharing ideas for indies) is that it's all about building a readership who you treat with respect and building momentum through your writing. As the old cliche goes - the best marketing is writing the next book. My personal plan is that it's absolutely fine if I don't find my readership, or my voice until my fifth book. The important thing is that I keep writing things that I feel are important and that I enjoy. If I do that I believe that over time a readership coalesces around you.

I definitely don't agree with the idea that you need those five books out there before you start marketing. I absolutely see that it's more profitable to hook a reader into the first book of a trilogy/quadrilogy/pentalogy but I'm possibly too naive to exploit that. It also feels ever-so slightly like that route is a bums-on-seats exercise. I'm sure it drives up profits but it would drive down my interest in my own writing because I'd feel like I was shovelling coal into a boiler, rather than thinking about what I actually truly wanted to burn.

Hope that helps.

Shan(less)

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Andrew Shanahan’s books

Average rating: 3.97 · 12,217 ratings · 1,503 reviews · 14 distinct works • Similar authors

	Before and After (Before and After, #1) 3.94 avg rating — 8,310 ratings — published 2020 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Flesh & Blood (Before and After #2) 4.16 avg rating — 2,822 ratings — published 2021 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	B of the Bang 3.91 avg rating — 336 ratings — published 2024 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	I Want You To Write A Letter 3.91 avg rating — 319 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	In the Room 3.41 avg rating — 340 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Man v Fat 3.50 avg rating — 60 ratings — published 2014 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Number Nine Downing Street by Andrew Shanahan (Goodreads Author), Karen Donnelly (Illustrator) 4.55 avg rating — 11 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Flesh And Blood really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 10 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Guide to Not Going to University 3.50 avg rating — 4 ratings — published 2012 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Staggered Groom Guide really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 2 ratings — published 2012	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Andrew Shanahan's Blog

Would you like to win everything I've ever written?

I’m running a competition, just for the sheer heck of it. Although I guess it could be counted as a lazy kind of viral marketing, if you squint at it. Mostly it’s just for the heck of it though.

If you would like to be in with a chance of winning all of my books, signed and smeared with whatever I’ve been eating at my desk for lunch and then hastily wiped off, then simply colour this picture in, p

Series by Andrew Shanahan

Before and After (2 books)
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Andrew Shanahan (Goodreads Author)

4.00 avg rating — 11,127 ratings

Andrew is Currently Reading

Andrew Shanahan is currently reading

Hype Yourself: A no-nonsense PR toolkit for small businesses

by Lucy Werner

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Mar 03, 2020 06:23AM

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Precious and Grace (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency #17)

by Alexander McCall Smith (Goodreads Author)

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Jan 03, 2020 08:11AM

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Andrew’s Recent Updates

Andrew Shanahan is now friends with Βίκυ Χ.
Apr 12, 2026 02:05PM · 1 like · like
Andrew Shanahan rated a book really liked it Carl's Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl, #2) by Matt Dinniman (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 11, 2026 11:55AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Andrew Shanahan rated a book really liked it On Target (Gray Man, #2) by Mark Greaney (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Apr 06, 2026 08:32AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of On Target by Mark Greaney. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — On Target by Mark Greaney <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Andrew Shanahan rated a book liked it Dungeon Crawler Carl (Dungeon Crawler Carl, #1) by Matt Dinniman (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 19, 2026 12:26AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Andrew Shanahan rated a book liked it Hulk: World War Hulk by Greg Pak (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 22, 2026 01:42PM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Hulk by Greg Pak. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Hulk by Greg Pak <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Andrew Shanahan answered Jennifer Lubell's question: This question contains spoilers… (view spoiler) Hi Jennifer, thank you for your question and for following Ben, Natalie and Brown's stories. Ok, so I'm lucky in that one of the world's foremost experts on Manchester Terriers lives relatively close to me, so a lot of this comes directly from her (bu See Full Answer
Jan 20, 2026 07:04AM · like
Andrew Shanahan rated a book it was amazing The Hallmarked Man (Cormoran Strike, #8) by Robert Galbraith	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 17, 2026 12:49PM · 3 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Hallmarked Man by Robert Galbraith. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Hallmarked Man by Robert Galbraith <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Andrew Shanahan rated a book it was amazing The Running Grave (Cormoran Strike, #7) by Robert Galbraith	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Dec 31, 2025 12:31AM · 3 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Running Grave by Robert Galbraith. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Running Grave by Robert Galbraith <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Andrew Shanahan rated a book liked it The Gray Man (Gray Man, #1) by Mark Greaney (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 23, 2025 09:10AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Gray Man by Mark Greaney. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Gray Man by Mark Greaney <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Andrew Shanahan and 4 other people liked Caitlin Paton's review of I Want You To Write A Letter: "This is a fantastic concept for a Netflix show, you hear that Netflix? Get on it."
Mar 24, 2025 03:01AM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of I Want You To Write A Letter by Andrew Shanahan. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — I Want You To Write A Letter by Andrew Shanahan <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

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Quotes by Andrew Shanahan (?)

“I knew you would make it.”
― Andrew Shanahan, Before and After

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“No, not Australia. I’m going to America. I’ve researched it thoroughly and the only dangers are guns and ignorance.”
― Andrew Shanahan, Before and After

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“This world is broken, but it doesn’t mean that I must be broken too. I have a chance to be better.”
― Andrew Shanahan, Before and After

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Reading with Style: SU 22 Planning	15	35	Jun 09, 2022 06:39AM
Reading with Style: SU 22 Completed Tasks	1071	75	Aug 31, 2022 09:02PM

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