How to Find Someone to Review Your Book Text

Jonathan Friesen - Writing Coach

how to get your book reviewed one way to generate publicity for your book is to get it reviewed. But how exactly does one go about it? the obvious answer seems to be to simply mail out copies of your book, but chances are good that your potential reviewers are already being inundated with books and review requests. I recently surveyed writers to find out what their review experiences were like, and to find out what advice they could share. work with your publisher. some publishers will work with authors to help them get book reviews, depending on the company's size and promotional budget. Some will also have a list of contacts who have already reviewed their titles already. Find out how many review copies your publisher is willing to provide, and whether they will do the mailing for you saving you much time and expense. marian mccain says she discusses the review process with her publisher far in advance of a book's publication, in particular how many review copies can be sent out.

Peggy tibbetts says that with big name print publications kirkus, school library journal, booklist, horn book, nyt. So you work with your publisher's publicist and politely request, then remind her this must be done in advance. target publications and sites that review your genre. sending out books for review without adequate research beforehand is likely to result in your book being tossed in the wastepaper basket without being read. Search for web sites with similar subject matter to your book, says peggy tibbetts. Tracee lydia garner suggests looking at other books in your genre and their web sites to see whether they have posted reviews. Get those names and contact information, then send a note or letter and compliment them on their positive, intriguing reviews, asking if they'd be willing to review your upcoming release.

Garner also suggests talking to other authors to find out how they got their reviews. even if you have a publisher who is willing to provide help by providing review copies and contact information, it can't hurt to do your own research as well. After talking with her publisher about the review process, for example, marian mccain said she went into heavy research mode. I made a list of every magazine, journal, website etc that i could think of which may be appropriate for this non fiction book. I spent hours and hours online, typing keywords into google, looking through directories and so on, and found lots more.

After searching for review sites and periodicals most likely to request copies to review, cindy vallar reads some of their published reviews to determine how they review and whether i feel they will provide a fair review rather than rip the book to shreds. Before submitting a review request, vallar is always careful to read the submission guidelines. Some publications prefer queries by e mail instead of regular surface mail, for example. several months before one of his books is released, josh aterovis sends out a press release to everyone on his media contact list, offering review copies. He sends out in another press release after the book is published, again offering review copies. I also personally contacted reviewers who gave my first book positive reviews and asked if they would like a copy of my new book.

Clea simon suggests targeting specific writers both reviewers and feature writers with a short informational letter. Just a sentence or two about the book, maybe a sentence on why the writer might like it 'i read with pleasure your write up of the nine emotional lives of cats and thought you might be interested in my new book, the feline mystique.' , relevant info such as publisher, page count, price, and pub. Simon says that she found that many servers blocked mass e mails, so suggests taking the extra time to e mail potential reviewers individually. About two weeks after her publisher sends out review copies, tera leigh follows up with a package consisting of: one page cover letter, a bio with photo, a resume, and relevant clippings. Marian mccain says that after she compiled her potential reviewer list, she customized a letter for each editor, according to their focus and readership. Mccain kept track of the people who requested copies, and gave this list to her publisher.

Her publisher then sent review to each name on her list, plus contacts on their own list. After a couple weeks, she would e mail the editors/reviewers save this again to follow up and make sure the books were received. information to include in your letter: publisher, title of book, brief synopsis, date of publication. It's important they know approximately how long it will take to read your submission, says tracee lydia garner. Peggy tibbetts suggests the following letter format: dear editor, or editor's name, if known , i am the author of a new mystery for kids 8 12 years old insert your own one line book description here.

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