How to get book reviews

pschmehl

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How do self-publishers get book reviews? I'm aware that you can pay for them, but the prices are a bit steep for someone who's never done this before. I have contacted a number of free reviewers. Many of them were not accepting books for review, because they have so many. Others weren't interested in my genre (Christian fiction.) I took a shot and contacted a woman who reviews Romance but said she would look at anything, and she reviewed my book and posted the review on Amazon and Goodreads. But that's the only one I've managed to get.

I welcome any stories about your book review journey, successful or not, especially suggestions from those who have done well with reviews.

I realize this is a marathon, but my start has been painfully slow. I gave away 20 Kindle books on Amazon (in a sweepstakes), but not one winner has posted a review.
 

raelwv

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Generally, paying for reviews is frowned upon, although I'm aware of at least one paid service that matches books with reviewers, but doesn't directly pay them. For what that's worth.

I've had bad luck getting reviews. I've done LibraryThing eBook giveaways for most of my books and I'm not sure I've gotten one review out of the dozens I've sent out. I've had a slightly better result with Goodreads giveaways of paperbacks (they also do eBooks now), at least in terms of generating ratings, if not reviews.

I also tried reaching out to book review bloggers, but only got a couple of nibbles back for dozens of submissions.

Bottom line - I don't think there's a go-to way to get reviews, unfortunately.
 

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Read a bunch of book blogs and review sites in your genre
Offer the bloggers who read your genre a free copy of the book
* Do Not Expect Every Copy will = a Review
Participate in book giveaways on LibraryThing and GoodReads
Offer bloggers and book review sites with active communities a free giveaway of your book
 

pschmehl

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Re: paying for reviews. Does that include such places as Kirkus Reviews, Midwest Book Review and OnlineBookClub? All three charge a hefty fee (IMO) for reviews.
 

cornflake

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Re: paying for reviews. Does that include such places as Kirkus Reviews, Midwest Book Review and OnlineBookClub? All three charge a hefty fee (IMO) for reviews.

Yeah, their paid review service is different than their regular reviews.
 

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I didn't get many reviews, but if I had the funds and a new novel, I would go with Netgalley. There you pay to have an entry for the book that reviewers can request, rather than paying reviewers. An advantage to that is it'll get the book in front of reviewers who otherwise wouldn't consider it.
 

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How do self-publishers get book reviews? I'm aware that you can pay for them, but the prices are a bit steep for someone who's never done this before.

There's an obvious conflict of interests involved in paying for reviews. I wouldn't do it. And even if there weren't that conflict of interests I'm not sure it would give you much benefit to have one of those paid-for reviews. If they really helped sales, everyone would be doing it.

I realize this is a marathon, but my start has been painfully slow. I gave away 20 Kindle books on Amazon (in a sweepstakes), but not one winner has posted a review.

It's hard work, getting reviews. This is why trade publishers employ whole departments of people to market and publicise the books they publish, and routinely send out ARCs months before publication. I have seen upwards of 180 review copies being posted out for just one title, plus ARCs to book buyers to encourage them to order the book when it is eventually for sale.

Re: paying for reviews. Does that include such places as Kirkus Reviews, Midwest Book Review and OnlineBookClub? All three charge a hefty fee (IMO) for reviews.

I am not sure about the MBR or OBC. But I know The Kirkus Review has two strands: the free reviews, which are the ones which are taken seriously by those in the book trade, and used as a basis to buy book into book shops and so on; the the paid-for reviews, which appear in a completely separate area of the publication and which are mostly ignored by the book trade.

Everyone and his dog sends review copies to the big publications and as a self published author you have little chance of getting your book covered by any of the more prestigious ones--especially as your book has already been published, and they usually only review books prior to publication. If you want to get reviews, you have to be creative. Think about specialist interests, niche publications. Print and online. You can target both publications aimed at your readers, and at people who can get your book in front of your readers, just as trade publishers market to booksellers and publicise to potential readers. Also consider appropriate organisations and societies: there's a network of book groups and several of them are specialist, Christian bookgroups, for example.

I'm going to move this over to Book Promo now, as it's a better fit there than in Self Publishing.
 

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Paying for reviews is a violation of Amazon's terms and conditions. If you get find out, you'll get banned. And they're known to err on the side of banning rather than giving the benefit of the doubt. Don't do it.

What you could research is putting together an ARC team... but to be honest, if I saw a book with 15 reviews that all stated "I accepted a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review", I'd probably pass over it.

My thoughts on reviews are that the best ones are organic. Yes, there is a conflict given that many promo sites require a number of reviews to qualify... but I'm not overly convinced by promo sites as being worth more than an extra push on top of other marketing efforts.
 

davidjgalloway

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Paying for reviews is a violation of Amazon's terms and conditions. If you get find out, you'll get banned. And they're known to err on the side of banning rather than giving the benefit of the doubt. Don't do it.

"Review" is confusing without context, and there are two different things here; you are talking about reader reviews, while both those and professional reviews have been mentioned. "Paying for reviews" could mean paying a site like Kirkus to review your book, or it could mean paying a site or group to produce reader (product) reviews. This last is, as you say, forbidden, as well as unethical, and Amazon does indeed seem to consistently try to keep reader reviews honest by prohibiting paying for them. Professional reviews, as Old Hack said, are allowed, though whether they affect sales or are worth the cost is hard to determine.

Buying reader reviews is usually considered a sin on par with buying your own books to boost sales figures.
 

Undercover

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I didn't get many reviews, but if I had the funds and a new novel, I would go with Netgalley. There you pay to have an entry for the book that reviewers can request, rather than paying reviewers. An advantage to that is it'll get the book in front of reviewers who otherwise wouldn't consider it.


I second this about Netgalley. The past two publishers have done it for me, but for self-published authors, if you can afford it, I would do it. I've gotten a decent amount of reviews each time. Actually my latest book is on there now and it's gotten some reviews already and it doesn't come out till November.
 

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I'm not convinced Netgalley is a good option for self published writers, although I'd be happy to be corrected here. Most of the reviewers I know who use the site only consider books from trade publishers, so it might well not be worth the cost.
 

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I have two reviews. One from a fellow web board member and another I have no idea where it came from. Several twitter review 'facilitators' have contacted me saying they could get me in contact for reviewers, but I'm broke. I would look around for a swap deal. Review for review type thing...just a thought.
 

Melody

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I am published by an Indie publisher and am having the same problem with getting reader reviews. If you gift a book to someone on Amazon, like in a giveaway to a stranger, it seems like they then cannot post a review, because they didn't buy the book. Does anyone know if this is correct?

As far as self-published books, I know of someone who puts a note at the end of the book requesting reviews. Most people don't know how important they are for an author to have.

That is good to know that Goodreads is now doing giveaways for ebooks. When I checked in May they said print books only, so I'll have to check back.

The other thing I've heard is that your first book is the hardest because of not having other books out there with reviews and reviewers in place. We may just all need to help educate the average reader on the importance of posting one....
 

pschmehl

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I am published by an Indie publisher and am having the same problem with getting reader reviews. If you gift a book to someone on Amazon, like in a giveaway to a stranger, it seems like they then cannot post a review, because they didn't buy the book. Does anyone know if this is correct?
That is not correct. Anyone can review a book on Amazon, even if they didn't buy it from Amazon. I have done that several times. The one review I have (so far) is from an author who offers to review books and post the reviews. I have done the same for other authors. What Amazon will not allow is paying people to review your book.

As far as self-published books, I know of someone who puts a note at the end of the book requesting reviews. Most people don't know how important they are for an author to have.
That is good to know that Goodreads is now doing giveaways for ebooks. When I checked in May they said print books only, so I'll have to check back.
But does it result in reviews? I did a sweepstakes on Amazon and gave away 20 books. I've not gotten a single review.

The other thing I've heard is that your first book is the hardest because of not having other books out there with reviews and reviewers in place. We may just all need to help educate the average reader on the importance of posting one....
I'm sure that's true.
 

Polenth

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I'm not convinced Netgalley is a good option for self published writers, although I'd be happy to be corrected here. Most of the reviewers I know who use the site only consider books from trade publishers, so it might well not be worth the cost.

I've requested self-published books from there and seen self-published books with reviews that came from Netgalley copies. It may not mean as many reviews as a trade published book would get, but that's not really a fair comparison. The things self-published authors are buying instead are Kirkus reviews and social media adverts. The former will rarely be seen by readers. The latter tends to be as effective as burning money in the back garden.

Promotions like BookBub are effective for a lot of people, but it's unlikely that a book with no reviews will get a slot. It's not a thing for someone starting out.

A lot of us have no money to spend on promotion at all, so even those limited options aren't available. My experience of the free options is that it's difficult to make them work if a book doesn't have a concept that'd go viral. Which means writing a different book, rather than trying a different promotion. But where people do have money to spend, something that means a few extra reviews is likely to do more in the end than an advert everyone ignores. Reviews can open up other opportunities. I realise this all looks ridiculously tiny to someone with a full publicity campaign and bookstore placement, but tiny is the scale for most self-publishing.
 

Fuchsia Groan

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I post reviews of books I got as ARCs (or purchased at my local indie store) on Amazon all the time. I've met the required threshold for Amazon purchases ($50, last time I checked), and they aren't labeled as "verified purchases." They are, however, honest reviews, just like my professional newspaper reviews are.

I don't consider an ARC a "gift" that obligates me to write a positive review. Via my day job, I have more ARCs than I can read, and I imagine this is true for many (most?) reviewers. Real, substantial reviews take a while to write. They require thought. That's why it's so hard to get them.

If it comes from a publisher, and I hate the book, I might write a negative review (in the paper; I don't post those on Amazon). If it's self-published, and I hate the book or just don't think it meets a professional standard, I probably won't write anything. At most, I might cover it with a cursory blurb in the paper. No Amazon review.

What if I get a self-published book that I love? Tbh, this doesn't happen a lot, but it did happen recently. I met an author at a local reading, and she sent me an e-pub of her trilogy opener. I wolfed that book down and wrote a glowing blurb for the paper. The book already has over 100 Amazon reviews, so clearly I'm not the first to be impressed.

So, my advice? Look for self-published books in your genre that have lots of earnest-sounding, meaty reviews (not generic praise), and then go over to the author's blog and see if they reveal any of their tips and tricks. Study their books to see what resonated with readers. Get involved in your local writing community and network. Pitch local journalists. My paper blurbs a lot of presentable self-pub books that have in-state authors, though we rarely do full-length reviews of them. (By "blurb" I just mean "write roughly 100 words explaining what the book is about, with praise only if applicable and sincere.")

I know how tough it is to get reviews. I'm trade-published, my ARCs were all over, and I still don't have that many. I treasure every single substantial review I get, even if I need Google Translate to understand it, which happened recently. :) I think of Goodreads giveaways as a visibility booster for the book that might eventually result in a couple reviews, or a single review, or no reviews at all. (The advice I've heard is to run a lot of short giveaways.)

Boosting visibility, especially to a target audience, is good. But writing the next book is even better.
 

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A lot of us have no money to spend on promotion at all, so even those limited options aren't available. My experience of the free options is that it's difficult to make them work if a book doesn't have a concept that'd go viral. Which means writing a different book, rather than trying a different promotion. But where people do have money to spend, something that means a few extra reviews is likely to do more in the end than an advert everyone ignores. Reviews can open up other opportunities. I realise this all looks ridiculously tiny to someone with a full publicity campaign and bookstore placement, but tiny is the scale for most self-publishing.

My bold. I think you're so right here: reviews on Amazon and Goodreads stick around forever. They're very useful. Far more so to many writers than ads.
 

CathleenT

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I traded for a lot of my reviews. I prefer to trade a beta read--I'm a pretty good critique partner, and that eliminates a lot of the tit for tat mentality. If you do trade with other authors, it's important that you both buy copies. You have to really screw up to get Amazon to ditch a customer review.
 
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Check out http://bookbloggerlist.com which has lists of bloggers that review books in different genres. Even if you search under a specific genre, I found that a lot of the blogs don't actually review books in that genre. So be sure to look at each blog's review policy to see which books they prefer to review and if there are any restrictions on content, format, etc.
 

pschmehl

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I've done this sort of thing before. My experience has been that tons of them have so many books in the queue that it will be months before you can get a review. Of the remainder, very few are interested in my genre. It's frustrating.
 

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You generally start promo for your book months before release date.

That means you're sending out ARCs, ideally, 90 days before release date, with a goal of having reviews readable by readers and potential buyers starting 30 days before release.

Minimum, you should be sending out ARCs (Advanced Reading Copies, whether digital or print) six weeks before release day.

Before that day, you've been reading review sites and blogs and reviews in publications so you've got a list of places/people where you're going to solicit reviews. Just know that you're going to send out a lot more copies than you get reviews. That's the way it is.

Don't send a copy of your book, even in digital form, without asking if they're interested first. And don't blanket request; cherry pick the sites /reviewers/publications that you think will like/be interested in your book.
 

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I am encountering this exact problem, and am trying to help fix it a bit : I created a website where giveaways are listed for free / and where I and (2 other contributors) review books honestly and without asking for crazy guidelines or physical books, like I've seen elsewhere. In essence, the whole giveaway / review system is screwed up and we hope to generate enough traffic to make it right, a little. NetGalley was mentioned here - and it is good for readers (I have an account as well) but their fees are way above something that a self-published author or a small publisher will consider hence they keep "the rich - rich and the poor - poor"
If you want to participate, either to get a Review or to list a giveaway, please private message me. I don't want to share the web address, as one of the MODs already removed a post where I shared info. If many of you are interested I will ask permission to share it.
 

AW Admin

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I am encountering this exact problem, and am trying to help fix it a bit : I created a website where giveaways are listed for free / and where I and (2 other contributors) review books honestly and without asking for crazy guidelines or physical books, like I've seen elsewhere. In essence, the whole giveaway / review system is screwed up and we hope to generate enough traffic to make it right, a little. NetGalley was mentioned here - and it is good for readers (I have an account as well) but their fees are way above something that a self-published author or a small publisher will consider hence they keep "the rich - rich and the poor - poor"
If you want to participate, either to get a Review or to list a giveaway, please private message me. I don't want to share the web address, as one of the MODs already removed a post where I shared info. If many of you are interested I will ask permission to share it.

The post was removed because your initial post was entirely about promoting your site. We're a community; we understand the need to promote, but we expect participation in the community. Moreover, as the mod noted in the PM, it's not smart to put your email address in a public post.

This is your second post; you haven't responded to the mod's courteous PM, and you're, again, promoting your site.

Please read the The Newbie Guide to Absolute Write.

Please also read How do I promote on Absolute Write with aplomb, and What's this deal about "engaging the community"?

And if that's a problem for you, then this isn't the site for you.
 
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