Welcome to our list of April observances and content ideas for your monthly book marketing plan!

If you haven’t downloaded our Monthly Book Marketing Planner yet you can grab that here!

Remember, without regular connections to readers, you’re just another book on the shelf. Gain their interest and make yourself stand out. People love authors they can get to know and who provide content they love. So take the time to make yourself stand out by using our monthly observances and tips to create timely, interesting content with your own twist.

Here’s a list of causes and interests associated with April:

• National Humor Month
• International Guitar Month
• Lawn and Garden Month
• National Kite Month
• National Poetry Month
• Keep America Beautiful Month
• National Pecan Month
• National Welding Month
• Stress Awareness Month
• Sexual Assault Awareness Month

April 8-14 is National Library Week. So check with your local library and see if there’s anything you can do to get involved. Donate a couple copies of your book and considering volunteering some time if they have events planned. Just getting your face and name out there is smart book marketing and can open doors to local opportunities and boost sales!

How to Use the Content Ideas

Below are holidays and just plain wacky and fun April Observances in 2018.

Plus, we are including a list of a few content ideas and angles to help spark your creativity!

Remember, not all these are worth an entire blog post or article. But nearly all of them can be turned into a fun or thought-provoking social media post or blurb in your newsletter. So it’s like getting triple the ideas!

Getting Started With April Observances

2 Children’s Book Day

3 Don’t Go to Work Unless it’s Fun Day – We love this one. And so will your fans!

3 Tweed Day – Originating in Scotland, tweed is a thick woolen, twill-styled material. Tweed jackets, suits and slacks are popular.  Tweed and authors go hand in hand, right?

3 World Party Day – World Party Day was created with the premise that humans have the right to joy and peace through social positivity and fun. So spread the word!

4 School Librarian Day

4 Tell a Lie Day – Have some fun with this one. Maybe you share the one lie you tell yourself, or you can reveal the one lie you wish you could tell…and ask fans to share theirs!

5 Go for Broke Day – As an author you’ve already taken a lot of risks, authorship is not easy. So get the conversation started with your fans about your ambitions and “go for broke” motivators.

6 National Walk to Work Day – Do you walk to work? Encourage your fans to share photos of their daily walking commute.

6 Plan Your Epitaph Day – As a writer you should be great at this! It could be serious, but I think a humorous one is more fun. Share yours and encourage your fans to share too.

7 National Beer Day – Encourage fans to share a selfie enjoying their fave brew!

7 No Housework Day – Remind your fans and they’ll thank you.

Time to Get Creative

7 World Health Day – What have you done lately dedicated to your health? Share with fans and encourage them to share theirs.

8 Draw a Picture of a Bird Day – This is a fun one for engagement, get everyone involved and sharing!

9 Name Yourself Day – I think we all fantasized about our alter ego when we were children, or maybe some of us still do…what would you have named yourself and why? Share! Discuss!

10 National Siblings Day – Being an author in today’s market means sharing a piece of yourself, so find an old photo of you and a sibling or siblings and give people a charming glimpse into your past.

11 Eight Track Tape Day – Name the first 8 Track you bought – go!

12 Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day – What’s your fave grilled cheese concoction? With bacon and tomato? Maybe pesto and mozzarella? Classic? Everyone loves cheese, should be easy to get this conversation going!

12 National Licorice Day – Red or black or both? Strong feelings abound!

13 International Plant Appreciation Day – Are you a green thumb? Share a pic of your favorite houseplant and encourage fans to do the same. May sound weird but these fun, quirky, get-to-know-you posts really create lasting impressions.

13 Scrabble Day – What’s your biggest word score?

14 Ex Spouse Day – Maybe some of you romance authors can have fun with this one…or maybe thriller authors?

14 International Moment of Laughter Day – Describe the last time you laughed until you cried and encourage others to do the same. Or perhaps you want to share your favorite joke and ask for others to make you laugh in return. Laughter is good, don’t skip this one.

Just Keep Writing

15 Rubber Eraser Day – This elicit throwback memories for a lot of us, so instead of getting too literal, share a story from your primary school years that still sticks with you. Or challenge fans to name their first grade teacher!

15 World Art Day – This is a beautiful thing to celebrate, if you’re an artist share some of your work, or just share your favorite piece or your favorite period. Encourage fans to share their artwork as well.

16 National Librarian Day – Remind everyone to get out and support their local libraries! Go to events, check out a book with your kids. Libraries get funding through use so make them feel needed!

17 Blah, Blah, Blah Day – The idea is to get moving on the boring and lame projects you’ve been putting off. Share yours with fans and wait for the funny and commiserating comments.

19 National Garlic Day

19 National High Five Day – Spread the love and remind everyone to hand out high fives today! Or even better, use your platform to send some love and virtual high fives to the people who support you. Like your readers, your website manager, your editor…

20 Volunteer Recognition Day

April Isn’t Over Yet

21 Husband Appreciation Day – Another good opportunity to give fans a little glimpse into your personal life.

22 Earth Day (U.S.)

22 National Jelly Bean Day – Favorite flavor?

23 Take a Chance Day

25 World Penguin Day

26 Take Your Daughter to Work

27 Arbor Day – Remind fans to get out there and plant a tree! Encourage them to share pictures of their good deeds!

27 Tell a Story Day – This is a great time to release bonus content. Whip up a fun side-story for one of your leading characters and watch fans go crazy!

28 Great Poetry Reading Day

30 Hairstyle Appreciation Day – Have a great hairstyle from decades past? Share a photo and encourage others to do the same.

30 National Honesty Day – There are lots of ways to go with this, be creative, be funny, just don’t miss this great opportunity.

The Takeaway

Being an author demands creativity, and it also demands authenticity.

Coming up with unique content ideas as part of your author marketing plan is a great way to take your success seriously, without taking yourself too seriously!