Happy almost summer/winter depending on where in the world you are reading this from!

The Way of the River celebrated its first birthday a few months ago (hard to believe!), and yet this little indie book continues to take me on wild and exciting adventures fifteen months on.

So much has been happening in the past month I thought I would share some of the exciting stuff that have been going on since the last communication and put it all in once place…

The Way of the River makes Kirkus Reviews “28 Great Indie Books Worth Discovering” list

Not a bad way to start off the month of June!

Follow the link to Kirkus Reviews’ 28 Great Indie Books Worth Discovering (June 2022 list) to see all the exciting books on the list (including one that might look familiar).

You can also read the full review for The Way of the River, and have an opportunity to leave comments and honest feedback about the book there if you so wish!

Benjamin Franklin IBPA Award results

The Way of the River was entered into this event, and while it did not earn an award, it was an honor just to be able to take part in this prestigious annual contest alongside so many amazing writers. Check out the list of the 2022 Ben Franklin Award winners! All entrants received feedback, and here are a few of the end remarks that were noted for the book:

“Wonderful world-building here and the characters pop off the page. The descriptions of nature scenes are especially strong. I feel like I am walking in the forest along with the characters.”

“The fantasy of animals communicating nonverbally is intriguing. The children’s' relationships come across as real, especially the featured friendship of Tillie and Lina.”

The Way of the River at the American Library Association Annual Conference in Washington, DC

The Way of the River will be included in a group display at the ALA Conference June 23-28 alongside other fellow Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) member books! This is very exciting as the book will have a chance to reach children’s librarians all over the country.

Speaking of libraries…



Now on the shelves at several libraries thanks to efforts of some very interested and helpful readers!

As of this writing it is in stock in my hometown at the Ashtabula County Public Library in NE Ohio, where the book is not only on the shelves in both Ashtabula and Geneva, but also a copy was entered into the Genealogy Room because of my family roots in the city of Ashtabula.

Both paperback and ebook editions are available in all branches of the Columbus Metropolitan Library in Columbus, Ohio.

Paperback and ebook editions are also in the Pima County Library system in the Tuscon, Arizona area.

It was a thrill to learn that The Mitchell Library, one of Europe’s largest libraries, located in Glasgow, Scotland will soon be carrying the book as well!

A special THANK YOU goes to Lori, Noona, and Anita for getting the book into these library systems!

If you wish to help out and get the book into your library system, making the book more accessible to readers in your area, please reach out or head to the Street Team page for details how to do this.

Record sales for the week of May 16th—many thanks to Lori for this!

Lori was very kind (and super busy, after contacting libraries for the book) and put the word out about The Way of the River in a Facebook group for members of our shared hometown of Ashtabula, Ohio. To my amazement, everyone stepped up in a big way! Thank you to the kind folks of Ashtabula for having my back with enthusiastic and gracious support, and for achieving the highest number of sales in one week for the book (and also the hugest number of sales in one day) on Amazon!

No matter where you live, if you wish to learn more about being a street team member and helping spread the word, check out information on joining the Street Team for the book!

Upcoming Author Events

As mentioned, this is big for me! Though a bit nerve-wracking, I found I’m also simultaneously excited to be taking part in a few Author events that are coming up! As of right now that includes:

North Coast Indie Author Book Expo Elyria, Ohio June 25. If you’re in the area, come say hi! I’ll be signing books and slinging The Way of the River merch including t-shirts, character cards, enamel pins and more at a discounted rate (prices are already reduced on the website for the event so if you can’t make it and want to take advantage of the temporarily lowered price head to the Shop now!)                             

Book Signing with Shan L. Spyker at The Learned Owl in Hudson, Ohio September 10, 2022

And another NE Ohio author event is currently in the works, so stand by for details!

Efforts to increase the number of Amazon ratings/reviews

As you may know, the total number of, or lack of reviews (no matter if they are good or even not so good) can contribute to making or breaking an indie book. I’ve recently read that only books that show 50 or more reviews on Amazon will receive any boost (bar spending large sums of money on ads) from Amazon to help make the book visible to potential readers.

Reception for The Way of the River has been very positive overall, and I am always thrilled to hear when the book’s message connects with readers. However, despite this good news, as of this writing, the book only just recently broke over 10 reviews total after a year of sales, so there is a long way to go.

Reviews and ratings, and the number of them, helps not just with sales and exposure, but when librarians and booksellers look over the book to decide if they will stock it, many of them look to Amazon for cues. One library that did decide to order copies indicated that while the book only had a handfuls of reviews and ratings on Amazon, they were intrigued enough to stock it. And happily, they did. But others may not be so convinced. If you wish to help with this read on!

If you purchased from Amazon (and have read the book) you can simply give a star rating. Quick and easy! If you purchased elsewhere, you can still rate the book on Amazon, provided you write a review, but that can be as quick as one quick sentence!

Reviews on other bookseller sites are also incredibly helpful and appreciated as well. And as always, honest feedback is the most important factor of all. If you’re ready to leave feedback, you can follow this link to the Amazon listing for The Way of the River and leave a rating and/or review now!

Progress update on [Title Redacted] Kellandale Wood Book Two

Last but not least comes news of the major inroads I made working on the next book, thanks to a burst of inspiration that hit while visiting out of town family a few weeks ago!

I was able to outline 15 chapters fully, and since then various versions of opening paragraphs for chapter one have been written and rewritten, and though it is still rough and will change as time goes on, the rest of the story’s main plot points have been worked out! Now for the big work…getting the rest of what’s in my head, outlined on paper, and eventually into a polished, exciting continuation of The Way of the River. Updates will come as time goes by. No release date has been set yet but as that changes, you’ll be the first to know!

If you stuck with me this far THANK YOU! And read on!

Giveaway Just for Subscribers!

Now for the real fun! In appreciation of subscribers to the shanspykerauthor.com e-newsletter, I will be pulling two names from the subscriber list at random at the end of the month. One winner will receive a code for a signed copy of The Way of the River, and the other a free Kindle version of the book!

If you happen to be among selected but already own a copy and wish to allow someone else to win, you can either message to opt out and I will choose someone else, or you can accept the code and simply gift it to someone you know who you think may enjoy the story.

If you’re not a subscriber, simply head to the Shan Spyker Author homepage , scroll to the bottom and add yourself and you’ll be included in the drawing!

More news as it happens, until next time…and all those other fancy newsy phrases…be good to each other!