Many regions in the Northern Hemisphere begin seeing signs of spring in March, so people who live there smile when flipping their calendar to the third month of the year.

Not where I live.

We often get our worst snowstorms during the first week of March. And signs of spring? Bwahahahaha!

March bright spots

Even so, no matter what your climate, there’s still plenty to look forward to in March.

There’s March Madness, the annual U.S. multi-week college basketball tournament (go Xavier Musketeers!).

And even people with zero Irish ancestry embrace all things green – including beer – and enjoy corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick’s Day.

There are also so many unconventional, unique, and often downright irreverent holidays and special occasions to celebrate. And you can use them to bring attention to your book.

How to leverage March book promotion opportunities

What’s the best way to take advantage of so many fun March book promotion opportunities? Once you identify those occasions that are a good fit for your book or promotion goals, how can you use them?

Here are a few examples to get you started.

March 2, Old Stuff Day

This occasion reminds me that I’ve been practicing Swedish death cleaning since before that term entered our current lexicon. Been there, done that, still doing it. There are opportunities here for authors of books about:

• Antiques
• Selling on eBay
• Home organizing
• Garage, tag, and estate sales
• Restoring and repurposing flea market and other finds
• Downsizing
• Decluttering

If you can give advice for making the most of “old stuff” or getting rid of it, use this occasion as a news hook for tip sheets, social media images, podcast interviews, and other promotion opportunities.

March 3-9, Celebrate Your Name Week

So many authors can find ways to use this special week. Fiction writers can celebrate their characters’ names by explaining to newsletter subscribers of social media followers how they decide on character names.

Is there a story behind your given name? Share it on social media. Write a blog post about when and how to use pen names as an author. There’s lots of potential here.

March 19, Poultry Day

Farm animals are common in children’s books. If you’ve written one that includes chickens, you’ll love having fun with this occasion.

Create and share on social media and in your newsletter a list of your favorite children’s books featuring poultry (including yours, of course). Record yourself reading your book and post it as an Instagram Reel and TikTok video. Collaborate with your local children’s librarian to schedule a poultry-book-themed children’s reading hour.

Your March book promotion opportunities

Here’s a partial list of the March madness marketing opportunities you can add to next month’s book promotion calendar. Get the full list on the Holiday Insights site. (And while you’re there, look ahead to other months.)

• Celery Month
• Craft Month
• March 3-9 Celebrate Your Name Week
• March 10-16 National Bubble Month
• March 1 National Pig Day
• March 1 Peanut Butter Lovers Day
• March 2 Old Stuff Day
• March 7 National Crown Roast of Pork Day
• March 8 Be Nasty Day
• March 9 Panic Day
• March 9 International Fanny Pack Day
• March 10 Academy Awards
• March 10 International Find a Pay Phone Booth Day
• March 10 Middle Name Pride Day
• March 16 Everything You Do is Right Day
• March 18 Awkward Moments Day
• March 19 Poultry Day
• March 20 Extraterrestrial Abductions Day
• March 20 Proposal Day
• March 25 International Waffle Day
• March 26 Make Up Your Own Holiday Day
• March 30 Take a Walk in a Park Day
• March 31 World Backup Day

Be sure to check out the list of book-related occasions during March in our 2024 literary calendar, too.

Which of these crazy March occasions speak to you? How will you use next month to help generate conversation and call attention to your book in a lighthearted way?

It’s easy to add a little warm-weather pizzazz to your book promotion calendar, too. Just link your book to any of the fun, unexpected, and wacky holidays and occasions offered by this mid-year month.

After all, July is Cell Phone Courtesy Month, National Anti-Boredom Month (you’re never bored when you’re reading a book!), and National Grilling Month.

How to use these unusual occasions

Let’s look at a couple of special days in July and how they might help you bring more attention to your books.

• July 10 is Teddy Bear Picnic Day, an occasion tailor-made for children’s book authors. Collaborate with your library to plan and host a stuffed animal picnic in the children’s book section. Write a guest post for a mom blog about how to plan a neighborhood teddy bear picnic.

• Is one of your book’s characters lonely? Use Cheer Up the Lonely Day on July 11 to blog about what people can do to make someone like your character smile. Maybe your nonfiction book encourages self-care. Create a series of social media images that explain how supporting someone who is lonely will cheer us up, too.
• Some of us (raising my hand here) are happy to finally be recognized with Be a Dork Day on July 15. If your characters are dorks (or if you are one), distribute a tongue-in-cheek tip sheet about 10 ways to be a dork. Turn those tips into a series of social media posts. Ask people on Facebook to share the dorkiest thing they’ve ever done.

You might want to brainstorm with a friend about how to use these holidays or events to your advantage. Open your mind to the possibilities and have fun with them.

Use these July book promotion possibilities

Expand your book promotion with this short list of unexpected and fun July holidays. Look for more on the Holiday Insights site, too.

• July 1 International Joke Day
• July 2 I Forgot Day
• July 2 World UFO Day
• July 3 Disobedience Day
• July 5 National Workaholics Day
• July 6 International Kissing Day
• July 7 Chocolate Day
• July 10 Teddy Bear Picnic Day
• July 11Cheer Up the Lonely Day
• July 13 Barbershop Music Appreciation Day
• July 13 Embrace Your Geekness Day
• July 14 National Macaroni and Cheese Day
• July 14 National Nude Day
• July 15 Be a Dork Day
• July 15 Cow Appreciation Day
• July 15 National Give Something Away Day
• July 17 National Ice Cream Day
• July 20 Moon Day
• July 22 Hammock Day
• July 23 National Day of the Cowboy
• July 24 Cousins Day
• July 26 All or Nothing Day
• July 27 Walk on Stilts Day
• July 30 International Day of Friendship

Be sure to check out the list of book-related occasions during May in our 2022 literary calendar, too.

How can you link any of these to your book or its theme, message, characters, or mission? Please tell us in a comment.