Cheap Christmas Gifts for Aspiring Writers or Authors

Shopping for Christmas gifts for a friend or family member who is a writer is going to be a fairly easy task. Besides the most obvious gift of all, flattery, there are several other very good Christmas present choices for the budget minded shopper to pick up for a burgeoning author. Here are few fun and economical suggestions:

Business Cards

Almost everyone knows that VistaPrint offers business cards that require payment for postage as long as the recipient doesn't mind a VistaPrint logo printed on the back of the card. Not everyone knows, however, that periodically e-mails are sent out to newsletter subscribers that offer Premium Business Cards without the logo for the same shipping and handling only price. For the cost of postage (which is under $6.00), you can design a lovely business card for your favorite writer. Throw in a nice business card case for extra points!

Lap Desk

Lap desks can run the gamut from being a minor expense to being very pricey. Amazon.com provides several unique options in an economical price range for a writer's Christmas gift. Be sure to purchase a lap desk that features enough room for a netbook or notebook as well as the traditional pen and pad!

Nice Pens

The traditional pen and pad set brings us to another superior yet budget friendly present - a pen and pencil set with your favorite writer's name engraved. A matched set of implements suitable for engraving can be purchased quite easily for less than $25.00 (some jewelry stores will even carry these lower cost varieties). Wal-Mart stores offer economical engraving if you order the set online.

Instant Coffee Packets

For the writer in your life who frequently burns the midnight oil, consider laying in a selection of single serve instant coffee packets for them. Nescafe sells small packages of their instant coffee for only $1.00 a box at Wal-Mart stores and for a splurge a few packets of the new Starbucks VIA can be thrown in on the side!

Writer's Market 2010

On the upper end of budget-friendly Christmas presents for writer's comes the quintessential reference tome, Writer's Market. The 2010 edition is out for around $20.00, but for an extra $10.00 the print version can be purchased with a year long subscription to the online portal for Writer's Market included. This gift will provide your friend with hours of hopeful reading!

Have fun shopping for the writer in your life this Christmas and always think of a fun and personal spin to put together with traditional holiday gifts.