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Advice for writers

Atmosphere’s Author Connect Program: Finding Encouragement and Community, a Guest Post by Barbori Garnet

Guest Post by Barbori Garnet 1

About the Author: Based in Alberta, Barbori Garnet is a writer, artist, musician, gardener, and author of Home at the Office: Working Remotely as a Way of Life. She has a BFA in Painting & Drawing and an MA Communications in Public Relations. Barbori likes to encourage, support, and connect with writers, authors, and others along the writing journey. Her interests include reading, tennis, and enjoying cups of tea with family and friends. Her website is www.BarboriGarnet.com.


A great part of being an Atmosphere author is the opportunity to be part of the Author Connect program. After the publishing of my book, Home at the Office: Working Remotely as a Way of Life, in 2021, I was connected with other recently published authors through Atmosphere’s Author Connect. Since then, I have enjoyed giving and receiving support and encouragement to the authors in my group. In this blog post, I would like to share a few of the benefits of being part of Atmosphere’s Author Connect.

Sharing Suggestions – As you take the time to encourage and support other Atmosphere authors, you will begin to share suggestions with each other in areas such as book promotion, marketing materials to make and have on hand, links to helpful resources, articles and awards, and how to approach bookstores. These can all prove valuable to you and your group of Atmosphere authors. It will assist you to consider and try new ways to reach readers, promote your book, and reach your goals for your book and journey as an author.

Encouragement – At certain times along the path of being a writer and author, we need encouragement in the forms of a kind word or simply a “You can do this!” to keep us going or to restart a project that we had put aside for a while. You and the authors you connect with can provide this support for each other throughout your writing, author, and publishing work. There can be disappointments, rejections, and discouragement along the way so instead, give as much encouragement as you can.

Community – Being in an Author Connect group means that an author will be part of a community of other authors who have published a book. If you are connected with others who live in a different geographical area from where you are located, this can provide a chance to learn about opportunities outside of your local writing community. In a group of authors, an author will find support and learn from others at different stages on the author publishing journey and know that others have been through and experienced similar situations before. There will be someone else you can reach out to for guidance on next steps to take. This can help you grow as a writer and prepare for what follows on your writing walk.

Here are some tips for creating and sustaining a successful Atmosphere Authors Connect group:

  • Check in with each other on a regular basis to find out how the writing life is going and to offer encouragement
  • As you come across helpful resources, share them with your group as a way to provide support
  • Set a regular day and time to catch up with your group such as once every two or three months

I hope you enjoy your time growing as an author and being in a community with other authors as part of Atmosphere’s Author Connect!

If you have a story or something else to share from an Author Connect group you are part of, send an email to books@atmospherepress.com.

atmosphere press

Atmosphere Press is a selective hybrid publisher founded in 2015 on the principles of Honesty, Transparency, Professionalism, Kindness, and Making Your Book Awesome. Our books have won dozens of awards and sold tens of thousands of copies. If you’re interested in learning more, or seeking publication for your own work, please explore the links below.