The first ever Stuff Your Earbuds Day happened on Aug. 25, 2023. The event was basically the audiobook equivalent of the viral Stuff Your Kindle Day event. While Stuff Your Kindle Day offers thousands of free ebooks, Stuff Your Earbuds Day brings you access to free audiobooks instead. Since Aug. 25, 2023 was the first EVER Stuff Your Earbuds Day, there were only 71 titles available to stuff. We can’t wait for next year’s event to happen again on Aug. 25, 2024!
But how do you make the most out of Stuff Your Earbuds Day? I got you. As an avid reader and book reviewer, I did a deep dive into the best tips and tricks for scoring free books online in this event! Plus, participating author Rebecca Hefner shares her insight into Stuff Your Earbuds Day, too. Happy listening!
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What is Stuff Your Earbuds Day?
Stuff Your Earbuds Day is a one-day-only, author-led event where indie authors (i.e. writers that aren’t contracted with any of the five biggest publishing houses in the industry) offer their titles for FREE. It’s organized by Romance Audiobookworms, the sister organization to Romance Bookworms, which runs Stuff Your Kindle Day.
Currently, the event only runs once a year on Aug. 25, but we anticipate it’ll expand to multiple times a year, just as the ebook event has.
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What sort of free audiobooks can I find?
Since the event is run by Romance Audiobookworms, you can expect to see plenty of swoon-worthy titles across different romance subgenres. Rebecca Hefner, the bestselling author of the Etherya’s Earth series, says readers can look forward to “…audiobooks ranging from steamy contemporary romance, sweet contemporary romance, paranormal romance, historical romance… and more!”.
And, for readers looking to diversify their TBR (that’s “To Be Read” for the uninitiated), the lineup of participating books honors many writers from marginalized communities. “There are so many fantastic titles,” Hefner says. “We’re also highlighting POC authors, disabled authors, and LQBTQ+ authors, so make sure you check out those categories and show those authors some extra love!”
How to Participate in Stuff Your Earbuds Day
Since the event is pretty new, it can seem overwhelming to navigate. But don’t worry. Between our success with Stuff Your Kindle Day and Hefner’s insider knowledge, here’s everything you need to know:
1. View participating free titles at RomanceAudiobookworms.com on Aug. 25.
The site will officially go live tomorrow, Aug. 25, 2023. From there, you’ll be able to access a list of all the available books. Each title will also have links to all the download methods available across platforms and devices. There won’t be a ton of plot descriptions in the list, so as always, exercise caution if you’re sensitive to certain topics. (I recommend going to BookTriggerWarnings.com and using CTRL + F to see if the titles you’re interested in have trigger warnings.)
2. Make sure your preferred audiobook listening device is ready beforehand.
Since there’s only one day to access all these titles, I recommend getting your tech set up in advance. While that may seem daunting for readers who prefer physical books, we’ll walk you through it. And don’t feel the need to pick up any new devices just for the event. You can use your existing tablet or smartphone.
Hefner suggests using the following apps on your device, whether it’s an Apple or Android, to get your audiobooks:
- BookFunnel
- Kobo
- iBooks
- Google Play
- Barnes & Noble Nook
- Spotify
“Each app is available to download for free and the audiobooks will be spread across each of those platforms,” she said. Just note that you may need to set up a free account if you don’t have one already.
3. Browse the site on a computer, if possible.
We anticipate at least 65 participating audiobooks this year. When you consider how many platforms those titles are being offered on, it can seem like a lot to keep track of at once. Hefner says to make it feel less daunting, scroll through the website on a laptop or desktop if possible, for better viewing on the bigger screen.
However, if you’d rather not listen to an audiobook on your computer, there are strategies to make the most of using a mobile device. “If you’re on your phone, perhaps look through one subgenre at a time and make notes on your phone’s notes app so you remember which categories you’ve already downloaded from,” advises Hefner. This will make the process less overwhelming and easier to navigate overall.
Stuff Your Earbuds Day FAQs
1. Do I need to return these audiobooks at any point?
Nope! Any of the participating titles downloaded via the links on RomanceAudiobookworms.com are yours to keep. It’s not like a library, Kindle Unlimited, or Audible loan where you have to give it back eventually. You own any titles you download during the event.
2. Are any participating titles available through Audible or Kindle Unlimited?
Unfortunately, no. These platforms operate via a subscription model so their titles aren’t actually free. Even if you do score a free membership through your Amazon Prime benefits, any downloaded audiobooks will be loans. Instead, participating titles can be accessed via BookFunnel, Kobo, iBooks, Google Play, Barnes & Noble Nook, and/or Spotify.
3. Is it really free?
Yes! The audiobook listening apps are free to download. You may need to create an account for the platforms but those are free to make as well. No subscriptions are needed.
Once you’re viewing the participating audiobook on your preferred platform, just do a quick double-check to make sure the price is actually $0.00. (Sometimes when authors change the prices on their end, tech glitches can cause the prices to not actually update in the storefront. It’s nobody’s fault, just another struggle of living in a digital world.)
4. What happens if I miss the event or don’t have time to download all the audiobooks?
While it hasn’t been confirmed yet, we predict this event will make a comeback next year. Since it’s organized very similarly to Stuff Your Kindle Day, we suspect that once it gains more traction, it’ll follow a similar schedule to its sister event. Stuff Your Kindle Day happens quarterly so as interest mounts we think Stuff Your Earbuds Day will happen quarterly before too long, also.
5. Are there any kids’ books available?
The event’s overall selection is more geared toward adult readers, with lots of steamy, erotic, and spicy audiobooks on the roster.
However, there is a section for Young Adult titles. But there are no audiobooks for readers younger than 12. As always, parental discretion is advised.
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