Dear listeners and readers,

I hope you are all doing well in this bizarre and scary time, and that books and podcasts are bringing you comfort.

If you’re struggling to read, you might be interested to check out a post on how to read when you are anxious — as well as suggestions for books to read when your attention span is short.

It’s my desire and intention to keep bringing you the Brit Lit Podcast for the foreseeable future, and possibly to revive the Brit Lit Blog — reports from the world of UK books and publishing — in some form. But I need your help in order to do that! If you are able, I would love it if you would consider doing one of the following:

Spread the word

  • Tell your friends about the podcast and share information about it on social media - even retweets are very valuable!
  • Buy some merch to support the podcast and proclaim your love of the show! We’ve got mugs, pencil cases, hoodies, and much more for you to choose from.

Send me a tip

Buy some books

  • If you’re in the US, please buy your books from Bookshop.org. You’ll be supporting independent bookshops as well as me when you do that. I’m making you some fun, themed lists to browse there, but as long as you click on bookshop.org/shop/britlitpodcast, a small percentage of anything you buy after having clicked will go towards keeping the podcast going.
  • If you’re not in the US, or if you’re looking for books that are published in the UK and not available elsewhere, please use this link to buy from Blackwells — they ship worldwide, essentially for free.
  • If you’ve been meaning to try audiobooks, use the code BRITLIT to try out Libro FM — who also support independent bookshops. You’ll get three books for the price of one with the code.

Read more from me

  • Follow me on Medium — it’s a blogging platform where what I write is mostly book-related, and sometimes about language learning, podcasts, The West Wing, and life in general. You can read a few articles a month for free, or for $5 a month you have unlimited access to all kinds of articles by all kinds of people on all kinds of topics — and a proportion of that goes to me. I’m considering reviving some form of the Brit Lit Blog there, too, so you’ll be the first to know when I do.
  • Buy my books!
    • Unscripted is the story of a young woman with a celebrity crush and a determined plan. Karin Tanabe has said that it “deftly turns the classic tale of a celebrity crush into a modern transatlantic story that’s original, emotionally honest, and a whole lot of fun”. It’s currently just $1.99 on Kindle and available most readily as a paperback from Blackwells.
    • Girl, Unstrung is available to pre-order as an ebook. It will be out this summer and is a sequel of sorts to Unscripted, about a fourteen-year-old aspiring violist who’s determined not to let a hot boy from her school distract her from getting into arts school. Spoiler: it does not go smoothly.
    • Walk With Us: How The West Wing Changed Our Lives is a short anthology of quotes and essays by fans of my favourite show.
    • Conquering Babel: a Practical Guide to Learning a Language is a short introduction to how to go about picking up this fun new skill, from my many years’ experience of teaching French and Spanish to adults.

Thank you for reading and considering! I’m really grateful for your support and for sharing in my love of British books.

Lots of love

Claire xx