WEBVTT - Inscribe books

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning.

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<v Speaker 1>This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's

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<v Speaker 1>tip is that when you give a book as a gift,

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<v Speaker 1>inscribe it. Gifts are about thoughtfulness and connection, and when

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<v Speaker 1>you inscribe a book, you explain the connection you see

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<v Speaker 1>between the gift recipient and the book. Through your personal note,

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<v Speaker 1>you connect yourself to the recipient too. Anne Fatiman's delightful

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<v Speaker 1>essay Marrying Libraries describes her and her husband's experience and

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<v Speaker 1>merging their books. After five years of marriage, she and

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<v Speaker 1>her husband decided that they would finally marry their libraries

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<v Speaker 1>and let their books mingle together on their bookshelves. They

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<v Speaker 1>went so far as to develop decision rules for determining

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<v Speaker 1>which copy to keep if they each had the same

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<v Speaker 1>book hardcover over paperback with marginalia over a clean copy.

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<v Speaker 1>Fataman doesn't mention inscriptions in their decision rules, but I

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<v Speaker 1>suspect you would agree that books with inscriptions are more

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<v Speaker 1>valued than those without. So if you are giving a

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<v Speaker 1>book as a gift, inscribing it will make it even

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<v Speaker 1>more special. With little kid's picture books, the person reading

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<v Speaker 1>the book to the child, is likely to read aloud

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<v Speaker 1>your inscription. Most times, when they read the book to

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<v Speaker 1>the kid, through your inscription, the child will feel your

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<v Speaker 1>love again and again. Your adult friends too will see

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<v Speaker 1>your inscription anytime they open a book you've given them

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<v Speaker 1>and enjoy thinking about this connection. Inscribing doesn't need to

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<v Speaker 1>be complicated. One good approach to inscriptions is to articulate

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<v Speaker 1>a hope for them person that's related to the book.

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<v Speaker 1>So a child's copy of If I Built a Car

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<v Speaker 1>might read wishing you bold dreams and fun creations. You

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<v Speaker 1>might also say why you like the book. So for

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<v Speaker 1>a new niece, you might inscribe Sandra Boytan's Moo Ba

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<v Speaker 1>La La La by saying this book always made Max

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<v Speaker 1>laugh when he was a baby. I hope it makes

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<v Speaker 1>you laugh too, love Aunt Maggie. A little detail is good,

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<v Speaker 1>but don't sweat this, because the truth is that even

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<v Speaker 1>simple inscriptions can warm up and personalize a book. Happy Birthday, Heidi,

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<v Speaker 1>Love Susannah, October tenth, twenty twenty three. Or for a cookbook,

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<v Speaker 1>simply bon Appetite Jean from Beth and Marcus. Just a

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<v Speaker 1>little note written in your own hand makes the copy

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<v Speaker 1>of the book you give different from every other copy

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<v Speaker 1>out there. Of course, a note from the author can

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<v Speaker 1>make a book feel special as well. And if you

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<v Speaker 1>happen to plan to give a book I've written to someone,

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<v Speaker 1>I'd be happy to inscribe a book plate for you.

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<v Speaker 1>That's a fancy little sticker that you can put in

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<v Speaker 1>the copy you are giving someone. Just email me at

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<v Speaker 1>Laura at Laura vandercam dot com and let me know

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<v Speaker 1>the name of the person the book should be inscribed

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<v Speaker 1>to and any particular thoughts you'd like me to convey.

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<v Speaker 1>I've inscribed lots of copies of I know how she

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<v Speaker 1>does it for new moms with You've got this and

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<v Speaker 1>copies of Tranquility by Tuesday, with you work hard, Here's

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<v Speaker 1>to enjoying life. Give me your mailing address and I'll

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<v Speaker 1>mail the sticker to you, or you can send me

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<v Speaker 1>the address of the person you're giving the book too,

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<v Speaker 1>and I can send it there directly. One final tip,

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<v Speaker 1>if you are shipping a book you've inscribed, be sure

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<v Speaker 1>to tell the postal worker that it's a book and

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<v Speaker 1>so hopefully you can get the media rate you might

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<v Speaker 1>pay significantly less. Inscribing a book is one of those

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<v Speaker 1>tasks that take just a minute and has an outsized impact.

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<v Speaker 1>So the next time you give a book as a gift,

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<v Speaker 1>pick up a pen. A few words from you will

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<v Speaker 1>make the gift far more meaningful. In the meantime, this

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<v Speaker 1>is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the

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<v Speaker 1>most of our times. Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast.

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<v Speaker 1>If you've got questions, ideas, or feedback, you can reach

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<v Speaker 1>me at Laura at Laura vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>is a production of iHeartMedia. For more podcasts from iHeartMedia,

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<v Speaker 1>please visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you

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<v Speaker 1>listen to your favorite shows.