Bookstores are busy with shoppers buying presents for the holiday season right now. They're buying books, but they're also buying merchandise related to those books or author brands. Many indie authors have got to grips with producing ebooks, print-on-demand and audio, but we're only just starting to look into merchandise. In today's show, Melissa Addey will give you some ideas. In the introduction, I talk about the implication of veteran publishing industry consultant, Mike Shatzkin's comment: “publishers can literally reach most of the customers in the world through two intermediaries, Amazon and Ingram.” Plus digital-reader.com/2016/12/05/amazon-go-future-cafeterias-not-grocery-stores/">Amazon Go, why you should buy Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss, why I appreciate the Echo Dot (Alexa) after initial resistance, Enid Blyton as a trademark, and my limited time deal on the London Psychic trilogy. Plus, check out the next set of free webinars here. This show is sponsored by everyone who supports on Patreon. Thank you so much for your generous support of the show! I'll keep doing it if you keep loving it 🙂 If you'd like to support the podcast, you can get access to ask questions for the extra Q&A monthly audio for less than a coffee a month. Click here to support the show on Patreon. Melissa Addey writes historical fiction, nonfiction and magazine articles. She has a master's degree in innovation and has worked in product and packaging development as well as business mentoring. In 2016, she has been working as Leverhulme Trust's Writer in Residence at the British Library based in the business and intellectual property center and her latest book is Merchandise for Authors: Engage your readers while increasing your income. You can listen above or on iTunes or Stitcher or watch the video here, read the notes and links below. Here are the highlights and full transcript below. * Why merchandise matters for authors * The difference between products and merchandise * Unique ideas for merchandise that Melissa has seen * Mistakes to avoid with merchandise * Where to find designers and others to help with creating merchandise * Intellectual property issues to watch out for when creating merchandise * Recommendations for where to get merchandise and products made * Merchandising clauses in contracts to watch out for You can find Melissa at