Having trouble picking out a present that’s just right for that special someone? Out of ideas for that ever-growing gift list? We’ve gathered up our favorite gifting ideas for literary-minded friends and family this holiday season and put them together into one handy list!
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Reading by candlelight is a wonderful winter afternoon activity. What better choice of candle to use than this “BOOKS” candle by Homesick? Reminiscent of an older leather-bound book mixed with a woody desk character of cedar and sandalwood. Hints of balsamic and vanilla finish the complex scent.
Give the gift of laughter! Papercuts is a card game “for the rude and well-read, created by our friends at Electric Literature. Described as “what Kurt Vonnegut, James Baldwin, and Virginia Woolf would play if they were alive, locked in a room together, and forced to play a card game,” Papercuts is the Cards Against Humanity™ for literature lovers and is sure to be a hit at any holiday party!
Thrill any and all readers on your list with a Rumpus gift subscription—we have 6-month and 12-month subscriptions to our incredible Book Club, and 6-month and 12-month subscriptions to the equally awesome Poetry Book Club! (And if you’re really out to impress a reader in your life, sign ‘em for both clubs here.) And, we offer 6-month holiday gift subscriptions to Letters in the Mail and Letters for Kids! And, all subscriptions come with a PDF you can print out and slip under the tree, so these also make a great last-minute gift.
This year it’s more important than ever to support free speech—why not snag cool gear at the same time? Check out the ACLU store, featuring giftable items like these cozy We the People socks!
While we’re thinking about socks, this adorable pair, found over at the New York Public Library, are sure to please any teacher on your holiday shopping list!
These clever pencils inspired by the Bard make a useful stocking stuffer for those who’ll be whiling away the winter months scribbling in notebooks.
Yes, every writer you know has already has too many notebooks. It’s part of our job to have too many notebooks, okay? But here’s a notebook that screams out to be journaled in. (Because another thing every good writer has? A good therapist.)
Short days and long nights can be exhausting. Snuggle up with a lilac library card pillow from famed NYC bookstore The Strand and catch a few extra zzzs while dreaming up your next masterpiece.
Dear Sugar diehards will happily find a place to hang our “Sugar Says” poster. Already own the poster? Find all things Sugar here, including our famous Write Like a Motherfucker mug (available with gift wrap this year!), our Special Edition version, available in very limited quantities only for the holiday season, and our BRAND-NEW pink “Be Brave” mug!
Give the gift of learning! Our friends at Catapult run amazing workshops, both online and IRL, featuring talented writers working in all disciplines. Subject matter ranges from advanced fiction writing to curing writer’s block and so much more.
With all the brilliant books you’ll be sure to find under your tree, you’ll be needing a new bookmark or two. May we suggest these distinctive, whimsical, and practical options from GiftBookmark?
We at The Rumpus fully support being fearless, and we love this enamel pin inspired by Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and just waiting to adorn your favorite holiday sweater.
For the book-loving babies on your list, show your literary love with these adorable blankets and hats from Storiarts, a husband-and-wife-led team who have been making handmade literary-themed products in Oregon since 2011.
If you’re looking for a gift that will steal the show, visit artist Jeremy May’s “Littlefly” online jewelry shop. As described by the artist:
Littlefly paper jewelry is made by laminating hundreds of sheets of paper together, then carefully finishing to a high gloss. The paper is selected and carefully removed from a book, and the jewelry re-inserted in the excavated space. Each piece is impossible to replicate, and is unique to the wearer. The beauty of the jewels extends within the piece: text and images pass all the way though the object, only exposed at the surfaces—giving a tantalizing glimpse of the book within.
It wouldn’t be a proper holiday gift list for the writing crowd without a flask—or so says our Managing Editor, Lyz Lenz. Lyz has been known to drink whiskey out of porcelain teacups, but on the go, she recommends this classic, classy drinking vessel.
Still haven’t found the perfect present? Click here to visit The Rumpus store, and explore all our merchandise. Your support is critical to our continued existence, and every purchase helps keep us alive.
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Feature image via Creative Commons.
