5 Creative Ways to Share Your Work While on Vacation

by Cathy Baker @CathySBaker

The month of June offers summer vacations, time by the pool, and family road trips but who says we can’t also share our work while we’re away? If we put in a little time prior to packing, three of the following ideas will take care of themselves while you’re busy soaking up the sun. 

5 Ways to Share Your Work While on Vacation

1. Marry your book cover to the phone case.For the past two years at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christians Writers Conference, I’ve displayed my work on the back of my phone case. Last year, it was the book cover of my first book. This year, it was an image of my soon-to-be Tiny House, in hopes of stirring interest for a new book I’m writing. 

Say cheese! Any time you take a picture or let’s say, conveniently lay your phone face down on a restaurant table, your work is displayed for all to see. VistaPrint Promotional Products offers the opportunity to upload your own design onto practically any size phone at a very reasonable price. My iPhone 6 Plus cover was under 10.00, not including shipping. They offer custom prints for other sizes but you’ll want to start with this link (LINK: http://bit.ly/2KruW80) as a jumping-off point as this product isn’t easy to find on their site. For this price point they’re obviously not built to protect your phone but they’re perfect to use for vacations, conferences, social outings, etc.  

Don’t have a book in the works? No problem! Use your blog header or an image of your lead magnet with the focus on growing your email list. Or, if you want to up your Instagram game, display an image that represents your brand along with a one-line invite to follow you. 

Tip: The image is key. Text rarely catches the eye but a bright image with sufficient white space will. 

2. Display your book cover, blog header or branding image on the back of business cards or bookmarks. If you’re staying in a hotel, ask if you could leave a small stack of bookmarks in their lobby or at their front desk for the duration of your stay. Also, be sure to leave your business card and/or bookmark (face-down) when leaving your dining or room tips. 

Tip: When creating your bookmark, include your QR code and web address. Also, if you choose Vistaprint, be sure to check for online coupons priorto visiting their site, as some coupon codes require you to go through their site. This one step will save you both time and money. Trust me, I learned the hard way. 

3. Vacationing in an area that’s mentioned in your work?Do a little research before packing the suntan lotion to see if there’s a local bookstore or library where you could ask about holding a book signing. 

4. Pack extra copies of your book. And always carry a copy with you—to the local café, on the beach towel, and at the amusement park (you never know when you’ll need to wait for others on a busy bench.) Leave a copy in your rental along with a nice note to the owner thanking them for the stay, offering your book as a gift to those who rent their place. Jot a handwritten note to future readers and don’t forget to sing the praises of the rental as an extra incentive for the owner to keep it on hand. Lastly, be sure to leave the readers with a call-to-action. Invite them to connect with you through your Web site, or to leave a review if they enjoyed your book, or to sign up for your newsletter, etc. 

5. Pray for holy introductions.I heard this term for the first time during a keynote speech by Torry Martin and it’s been my prayer ever since. Whether we’re on vacation, at a writer’s conference, or simply moving through our day, it’s a prayer worth repeating. What we mistake for a detour, God may see as a direct route. What we see as a missed opportunity, God may see as divine one. He introduces us to people we would never meet otherwise. True rest—wherever we are—comes when we entrust our success into God’s hands. 

Tip: Define what success looks like for you. Write it down, pray over it, do the work, and then release it. 

Will you consider giving one of these ideas a try or do you have another one to add the list? Do tell! 

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Cathy Baker is an award-winning writer and author of Pauses for the Vacationing Soul: A Sensory-Based Devotional Guide for the Beach as well as Pauses for the Vacationing Soul: A Sensory-Based Devotional Guide for the Mountains. As a twenty-five year veteran Bible instructor, she's led hundreds of studies and workshops. She's also contributed to numerous anthologies and publications, including Chicken Soup for the Soul, The Upper Room, and Focus on the Family’s Thriving Family. In addition, her poetry can be found in several popular anthologies.

She and her husband, Brian, live in the foothills of the Carolinas.
Subscribe to Cathy’s blog at http://www.cathybaker.org and receive a free e-book, “Praying In Every Room of Your Home.”