TA #101: 🎁 21+ Ridiculously Useful Holiday Gifts for 2021; When Spotify Goes Wrong

Hey, you. You're doing great. [Click here to read this on the web](. [Ann Handley's biweekly/fortnightly newsletter, "Total Annarchy"]( [Abby, the Christmas Cavalier](?awt_a=8LvK&awt_l=OZZuR&awt_m=3a_KaERT8tUyQvK) Welcome to the 101st issue of Total Annarchy, a fortnightly newsletter by me, Ann Handley, with a focus on writing, marketing, living your best life. I'm glad you're here. Boston, Sunday, December 5, 2021 Ho ho ho, Turtle Dove! Once a year I set my Santa cap (sANNta cap?) on my noggin and give you my best gift picks for writers, marketers, creators. This is that issue. I almost started this letter + list to you this week with the greeting "Hello, Consumer!" But I thought better of it. Too snarky. And wrong. The holidays are less about consumption than they are about generosity, aren't they? The joy of giving to others. The deep gladness of surprising someone you love with something that's perfect for them. I live for those holiday moments: When you're all sitting around together and you watch someone open a thing that you just know (know!) is going to kill. And it does. They laugh. You laugh. It makes it all worthwhile. So, my 2021 Holiday Reveler... Let's buckle up! Here is my new + improved gift list for 2021. (Note: None of these links are affiliate links. All I get in exchange for your click is joy in my heart.) (Note 2: Many of the links here are to Amazon, for simplicity. But please source locally or from small business when you can; Amazon has enough money.) 1. A YEAR OF BOOKS. Twelve titles. Curated by you specifically for someone special. This is the best gift I've ever received, so I'm putting it first. Maybe you know someone who will feel as I do. Put them in a box. It'll be heavy, solid, as substantial as your love. And it'll give all year... not just on any one day. You could package them in a million different ways. - Promotion + Pay Raise in a Box (12 books on marketing/business/writing)? - A Year Cloaked in Mystery? (whodunits, thrillers) - 2022's Laugh Track? (humor titles) - A Year of Adventure? (international cookbooks) - Or maybe what 2022 really needs is No Drama! 12 Titles of Non-Fiction. 2. WRITER'S DIARIES. A writer's published diary is like seeing what ended up on the cutting room floor. It's the source material. The Darlings they cut. An Inside the Writer's Studio of How They Do the Work. I learn a lot about writing from reading writer's diaries. Some suggestions: [Virginia Woolf](. [Franz Kafka](. [David Sedaris: Volume 1]( or the brand-new [Volume 2](. I'm a major Sedaris fan; I got Volume 2 for my birthday in November. It sits on my bedside—I haven't started it yet. Some books are like that for me—I want to both savor it and inhale it, so I spend some time in limbo before diving in. (Just me?) 3. [A WORKING TYPEWRITER](. This will never not be on my gift list. Because writing on an old-school typewriter will change your writing. Especially when you're feeling stuck or plugged or uninspired. Seriously. It's distraction-free, it's weirdly and wonderfully tactile, And it slows down your brain so writing feels closer, in some way. Plus it's flat-out playful: Because you know what deserves more of a joyful vibe? 2022. [I shared my typewriter joy here](. The link above is to Etsy. But you can find them new in some office supply stores, or used around the interwebs. (Try Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, Instagram, or [here]( 4. [QWERTY KEYBOARD](. This wireless typewriter keyboard is a Bluetooth-enabled mechanical keyboard that has an old-school vibe with modern functionality. I keep mine in my Tiny House Studio, which—with its raw wood walls and high-speed Ethernet connectivity is also an old-school vibe with modern functionality. 4 ½: [WHY IS THIS OUT OF STOCK](. I want to include it so badly. 5. [SCRIVENER](. You wouldn't want to gift any old software—a PowerPoint subscription would be weird LOL. Yet Scrivener is the best software I've found for organizing and writing a book. So think of it less as software and more as a bat signal that I love you. I believe in you. And you are going to write that book in 2022. 6. [GRAMMARLY](. Again with the software. But think about it: A gift that has someone thinking of you all year long? A tiny AI-powered robot that subtly supports their best writing? Could there be an expression of a love more pure? I think not, Turtle Dove. Grammarly has really stepped up its game in 2021, probably because it recently raised a bucket-truckload (trucket? Buck-load?) of money. Those 200 million dollars have funded improvements that sail far beyond grammar-checker—like tone of voice functionality and integration with Slack, among other things. In other words, this $13B unicorn with a rainbow mane is riding our weak writing and sloppy sentences all the way to the bank. (Tortured metaphor—the robot hates it.) Which leads me to... Sometimes it's annoying to have a robot-assistant writing buddy looking over your shoulder. But sometimes it's satisfying to trash the robot's recommendations because every so often I really do want a tortured metaphor or a run-on sentence just for effect because this paragraph belongs to me-and-me-alone Grammarly so SMOKE. THAT. 7. [BOOK BLEND SPICES]( is another perennial fave. Food, puns, books (also TV & music). Schitt's Greek, Herb Your Enthusiasm, Sage of Innocence, and (my fave) Lord of the Fries garlic seasoning. The latter elevates my roasted potatoes into Nobel Prize territory. If potatoes were a Nobel category (root vegetable division). Which why not? (By the way, Grammarly is having an aneurysm over this entire paragraph.) P.S. Use code annarchy2021 for 10% off. 8. [THE BEST MARKETING EDUCATION](. More in the practical category: Marketing smarts packaged as an annual membership to MarketingProfs. It delivers year-round community, inspiration, education—like our Marketing Master Classes. The [SEO for Non-Techies Master Class]( is So. Freakin. Good. And check out our 3 newest Master Classes on [Branding]( [Marketing Strategy]( [Customer Experience]( and [Demand Gen]( It's always affordable. But this price is ridiculous: Code ANNTACLAUS21 gets you $100 off an individual or team (3+) membership. 9. [SHINOLA NOTEBOOK](. This journal feels special. Someone gifted me one last year with my initials in fan-see-pants gold, which makes it feel functional AND beautiful. I like how it lies flat because of its smyth-sewn binding, which is a centuries old book-binding technique that allows the pages to stay put when you open the notebook. This notebook also allows you to throw around words like "smyth-sewn" with the authority of someone who was class valedictorian of Notebook School. 10. [MOLESKIN NOTEBOOK](. Another notebook? Yes. Look here: A notebook seems like a simple thing. But it's not. So much goes into choosing the perfect one for you: paper feel, page smell (I once had one that smelled like apples), vibe, portability and size, its smyth-sewn status.... Moleskin is the Bo Jackson of notebooks: offering a rare versatility, range, breadth. You want an Extra Large notebook with graphic squares instead of lines in Lemon Green? And a pocket version to match? Moleskin is already warmed up and on deck. And that's as far as I can take any sports metaphor. 11. [MINI RING LIGHT](. Your 2022 needs good lighting so you don't look like you're in a hostage situation during your weekly standup. This package is both inexpensive and small. I recommended it last year, and I stand by it. Also let's talk about the product copy: "This lighting will give you more charming eyes. You will find that your eyes are full of charm, like the eyes of an angel." I loitered over this description for a long time, trying to call up the last time I gazed into the eyes of an angel... Are angel eyes actually charming? Or was I more attracted to the angel's personality? Anyway, my friend Kerry Gorgone does a lot of on-camera work, and she recommended this. Listen to Kerry. Speaking of lighting... 12. [VERILUX HAPPY LIGHT](. My friend Ashley swears this Happy Light helps her thrive throughout the deep, dark Minnesota winter. Ashley suggested it to me on text. Before I even responded I think she sensed my skepticism. "Sounds lame but useful," she added without prompting—snipping my skepticism off at the quick. 13. [WATERPROOF NOTEPAD](. Because every day I solve at least one world problem mid-shower. And I promptly forget it once I'm dry. 14. [WRITER'S BLOCK SOAP](. So I don't believe writer's block is a thing. But soap obviously is. So is clever copy that sells soap to wash away fake writer's block. I also love the Quarantine Nostalgia soap ("Smells like puzzles and home-cooked meals") and Office Naps soap. 15. BOOKISH CANDLES. Forage Candle Company has the best domain name: [SmellsLikeBooks.com](. The shop sells 40-ish different scents—from A (Avonlea) to W (Wuthering Heights). I don't know how Hemingway himself actually smelled. But this shop has reinterpreted him as a mix of lemon peel and verbena with notes of bourbon. In the absence of data... seems about right. 16. [YOUR OWN LIBRARY](. DIY style. These make me smile every time I see one in the wild. 17. [THESE NOISE-CANCELING HEADPHONES]( because people breathing nearby is pretty annoying. [These]( came recommended to me as well. 18. LITERARY FUNKO POPS. Funko Pops are limited pop-culture collectibles—vinyl figurines with square-ish heads and button eyes that reflect pop culture's vacant soul. (LOL. Jeeeest keeeding.) Most of the Funkos are produced through licensing deals with major brands, like Disney and Marvel. But there are a handful that are literary-mind. Like [Stephen King](. [George RR Martin](. [Edgar Allan Poe]( (for a price). I wish there were more contemporary women authors. You can find [Jane Austen]( on eBay. But where's Tina Fey? Toni Morrison? Maya Angelou? Beverly Cleary? (Funko Product Team: Get on it.) 19. [VAHDAM TEAS](. Loved by Oprah. Mariah. And me. 20. [2021 CUSTOM VAX ORNAMENT]( from the artist (and marketer) Lori Magno. Could there be a better way to memorialize 2021 on your holiday tree? I think not. And finally: 21. [A PERSONALIZED, SIGNED BOOK PLATE FOR EVERYBODY WRITES or CONTENT RULES.]( buy Everybody Writes or Content Rules from the bookseller of your choice. I personalize it for you, as the ones below, but with the name of someone special. [Fill out this form](. Easy? Peasy. P.S. Only 100 available. So get on it. [This book will make you more attractive](?awt_a=8LvK&awt_l=OZZuR&awt_m=3a_KaERT8tUyQvK) * * * DEPARTMENT OF SHENANIGANS [Spotify flex. But make it weird](. EVENTS Select virtual events this month 📅 12/7-12/8: [VIDEO DAYS.]( Use code VD21Ann for 100% off the 99€ fee. 📅 12/14: [HOW TO GET YOUR B2B CONTENT TO RANK.]( This is for you if your boss constantly asks, "Why aren't we on the first page of Google? 📅 12/15: [HUMAN + MACHINE: THE FUTURE OF CONTENT.]( Join Paul Roetzer, our friends at Persado, and me in a conversation about how Artificial Intelligence is changing content, messaging. 📅 12/16: [B2B MARKETING TRENDS: LIVE WITH LINKEDIN.]( LinkedIn has been running thought-provoking conversations with Marketing leaders all year. Carla Johnson, Alex Rynne, and I close out the series with a look at the year that was as well as What's Next, B2B homies? * * * Thanks for reading this far. Thanks for your kindness and generosity. Stay safe. Stay sane. You're doing great. I'll be back on December 19. [Ann Handley]( P.S. If you like this newsletter and want to support it, you can: 1) [buy a book](. 2) Get yourself some [$WORD coin](. (Read more about [creator coins here]( 3) Simply forward this newsletter to a friend with an invitation to subscribe right here: [www.annhandley.com/newsletter](. SPECIAL THANKS to [AWeber]( for being the provider of choice for Total Annarchy. If you are looking to up your email game, give them a shout. Share: [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [LinkedIn]( Ann Handley is the author of [Everybody Writes]( and other [books.]( [Subscribe to this newsletter.]( Follow her elsewhere: Ann Handley 9 Bartlett St., #313, Andover, MA 01810 [Unsubscribe]( | [Change Subscriber Options](