A little voting music!
Who doesn’t need more book reviews? No author I know of. Dave Chesson and Jordon Ring have put together a very helpful post sharing tips and 3 steps to asking for reviews and building relationships with your readers. Even though this is written for folks who have reader email list, I think some of the tips can be helpful in any interaction with a reader – email or in person.
Remember – any time you send or sell a book, politely and sincerely ask for a review. If you’re mailing it, put in a hand written request. I use colored paper to help it stand out a bit more. If I am asking in person, I look the person in the eye just before they are about to leave me and as for an online review, letting them know how helpful it is to me. I don’t tell them where to leave the review, I just leave that up to them. My name and my book title anywhere on the web is helpful, so it really doesn’t matter.
Asking for a review will up your chances of actually getting your reader to leave one!
Thanks for the helpful post, guys!
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One of the most difficult parts of book marketing (if not the most difficult) is getting reviews for your book, particularly quality reviews that exceed one sentence. Why is this? Because each potential reviewer is a busy person with a lot on their plate, so their time is valuable. Besides, remember back when you weren’t an author? It wasn’t evident to you how important reviews were, so you didn’t think to go out of your way to leave a review. It just sometimes…happened. So, as you can see, readers and fans need a little nudge and some simple tactics to get
Source: How to Get Your Email Subscribers to Leave Quality Reviews—Legitimately
Had to share a picture of the kids in my summer school writing and publishing class at New Glarus Elementary in Wisconsin.
It was elementary and middle school grade kids who spent a week with me learning about what goes into publishing a book, some basics about writing a story and then writing their own story.
I’m always impressed with the creativity of these kids. It’s a fun time with budding writers. Now I am in the process of putting their stories together into a book that they can s
hare with family and friends. Pretty exciting!
CKBooks Publishing
Where Publishing Dreams Become Reality
There is still time to enter the 2018
Readers’ Favorite Book Award Contest
When you enter, you automatically get a free review that they post for you on facebook, twitter, google+, Barnes & Nobel, Instagram and Pinterest. They also ask the reviewer to put it on their personal Goodreads account (if they have an account there) and you are able to put excerpts on your Amazon author central page (Amazon won’t let them post a review).
I entered my second Agnes Kelly Series book “Narrow Escape in Norway” this year and already received a 5 Star review! I won’t know if I’ve won anything until September.
“…This story is for all those readers who enjoy suspense, mystery, and adventure. I like the way the author creates secrecy and intrigue around the disappearance of Agnes’ father and pulls readers in to learn what exactly has happened to him. The fluidity in writing gives a good pace and movement to the story and the adventure, suspense, and laughs make the book fascinating to young readers. There is a sense of excitement and curiosity that builds up while trying to find out about Agnes’ father, which will keep readers glued to the book till the very last page. I am sure that, like me, young readers will be waiting for the next book.”
~ Mamta Madhavan
Yari is making a great point – looking at your manuscript (ms) in a different format and even on a different device can help you spot things you may want to change and things you have to change like errors. I like viewing my ms as a pdf on my tablet. Even going from computer screen to tablet, I notice different things. And I always recommend to my clients to print out their ms and read it that way as well (one of the last edits I do). I also read out loud. Another very helpful editing tool.
Thanks Yari!
Great resources for video book promotion!
Thanks Paul!
I have seen many people asking the search engines and in various video related Facebook groups questions like: “Where can I find free music to use in my videos?”“Where can I find Royalty free music?” “Free music for commercial use?” Because I see the same questions being asked so often, I thought it was time to do some research and find some useful answers.
We know that video is a great way to market almost anything these days, but when it comes to choosing and adding a soundtrack to your latest video ad, video product review, or even your latest blockbuster, you are entering a minefield!
Although a music track is “royalty free” this does not mean it is actually free to use or that you can just download it to your computer and upload it to your video editor. You need to check any licensing requirements very carefully to…
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Short of getting your cat to persuade your readers to leave a review of your book, how do you get people to review your book?
from spaceplace.nasa.gove
We can help each other!
I am aware of two facebook groups of writers through BooksGoSocial where authors read and review other authors.
BooksGoSocial Book Buying Review Club
This group requires you buy a book on Amazon and post the official review before you can ask for a review for your book. This is because Amazon will post reviews that are verified purchases. They don’t always post reviews that are not verified purchases. They will only allow a certain percent of non-purchased reviews.
In this group, you pick a book with the same price point as the book you will want a review for yourself (and you are only allowed to pick the last on the post list) – books that cost e.g. $.01 -.99 or $1.00 – 2.99 etc.
There is also a post for shorter books.
Then there is the BooksGoSocial Book Review Club
In this group, you are not required to buy a book, but you are required to prove you have reviewed another author’s book on Amazon.
Both of these groups require you to be accepted into the group and that you participate in the group, plus you can’t do review swaps – you review my book and I’ll review yours. Amazon can find these and they will take down these types of reviews.
Both of these groups are for middle grade through adult novels – fiction and non-fiction.
BooksGoSocial also has a group for children’s authors. Though this is not specific for reviews.
Hopefully all authors review any book they read, but these are 2 ways to guarantee you get reviews that are so helpful to you.
Yecheilyah has some sage advice and an extensive list of supporting websites! I’d bookmark this post if I were you.
Thanks Christopher – you’re the best Ape I know 🙂
Hey Guys! Wow. It’s been a long time. I miss you all!
*waves to readers and sits on virtual sofa*
This article started out extremely long but then I realized how necessary it was to keep this short and simple.There is so much information out here for Independent Authors and so many made-up commandments it isn’t funny. Everyone has an opinion on what the new author should and shouldn’t do. Everyone has a piece of advice to give or stones to throw. If you move this way you are doing it wrong and if you move that way you are still doing it wrong. There are more laws for the Self-Publisher than there are in the bible. There is something to say about everything. This is why I humbly advise each person to experience everything for themselves and to do their own research. Sometimes you don’t need to…
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Today is Virginia Woolf’s 136th birthday. I’m sorry to say, for such a known author, I have never read any of her novels. She wrote 9 novels, 6 short story collections and many other works.
She is was born in England in 1882 and died in 1941 at 49 years old by filling a coat she was wearing with rocks and walking into a river near her home. She fought with depression.
Some recommend if you haven’t read Woolf to start with Mrs. Dalloway (published in 1925), so I’ll give it a try. I’ll be sure to write a review.
What writer doesn’t like to read?
I don’t know if you’re an NPR fan, but I am. When I have work that doesn’t take much thought, I can even listen on my computer ! (gotta love that internet!)
So when I heard the short piece highlighting their Best Books of 2017 picks, I had to share it.
https://apps.npr.org/best-books-2017/
My books aren’t on the list – again 😦 but I’m not dead yet, so there still is time!
And for those that don’t know, I am running a sale through the holidays to celebrate the recent publication of the second book in the Agnes Kelly Series – Narrow Escape in Norway. 
Intrigue in Istanbul will be on sale for just .99!
Just .99
And if you want to give one of my ebooks as a holiday gift to family or friends, just contact me at christinekeleny(at)yahoo(dot)com and I’ll send you a special gift certificate that…
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Kevin has some good thoughts on beta – readers.
My thought is – and I’ve said this before – always thank your beta readers in some tangible way, whether you thought they gave you good advice or not. They are giving you their time, the that is a most precious commodity 🙂
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