“This book is the worst book in the world. I read half way through the book and gave up because it made no sence” [sic] —Actual One-Star Review from Amazon.com Every author has it happen sooner or later: the dreaded one-star review. Any review less than glowing is likely to sting a bit, so a review of fewer than four or five stars may cause you to want to take some … [Read more...]
Etiquette for Authors
Authors who want their books to be noticed will collect more fans and support by remembering their manners than by expecting people to fall over them as authors because they have a false sense of entitlement. A simple “please” and “thank you” and some common courtesy goes a long way in making authors and their books popular. Authors care very deeply about their books. Often … [Read more...]
Authors of Children’s Books Will Love New iPhone App
As a book publicist I am always on the lookout for new tools and technology to reach consumers and convince them to purchase my client’s books. During the past decade, the most important tool has been the Internet, especially email, online search (like Google and Yahoo), and social media, such as Facebook and Twitter. During the past couple of years, it has become very clear … [Read more...]
How to Handle a Bad Review
Face it. Bad reviews happen. Even the most acclaimed writers get bad reviews. Evaluating a book is a subjective process, and personal preferences won’t always match the book. Unfortunately, too many writers take bad reviews personally and even go to the extremes, engaging in negative banter, slander, and threats. Here are a few tips to help you take those bad reviews with … [Read more...]
I’ll Give You My Paper Book When You Pry It From My Cold, Dead Hands!
I did an email survey to 1767 book reviewers on August 9 and just tallied up the results. It does have some critical business intelligence that publishers can use to understand how far we can go with eBooks at the present time. I was really surprised with the depth of feeling and reluctance to the trend towards eBooks. At least based on the number of respondents, perhaps … [Read more...]
Why Be a Beta Reader?
One of the most important parts of my writing process is to find beta readers. Oh, there’s different types of beta readers and all of which I use for different reasons. They are indispensable in the process of getting your writing in shape. YOUR STORY AND THE READER’S Oh, yeah, there is always more than one side to a story. I’m sure you heard that one before. Well when it … [Read more...]
Turning a Negative Book Review into a Positive
You can’t win them all. It’s as true in book publicity as it is in any other part of life. So when you open up that newspaper or log on to that blog only to find your book torn to pieces by a rabid reviewer, how do you possibly walk away with some positive thoughts? The first thing to keep in mind that while many reviewers will give their honest opinion, some aim to dish out … [Read more...]
Be Grateful for a Bad Review
Reviews are the least expensive and most effective form of book promotion. More than 300 titles are published each day. There is no way anyone can know and rank them. That is why bookstores, libraries and readers rely so heavily on book reviews. Reviews sell books. Occasionally a book receives a negative review. The reviewer might be having a bad day, might be envious of … [Read more...]
How to Get Your Book Reviewed on Blogs
Book reviews are an easy and effective way to promote your book. People like hearing about new books and what others think of them. You've probably seen book reviews published in your local newspaper or in your favorite magazines. You may even have seen them on T.V. during news or talk shows. Those are all good places to have your book reviewed, of course. But … [Read more...]
Get Pre-Publication Book Reviews
I hear it all the time: “Self-publishers and small press never, ever get reviewed in the big review publications! They only review the big New York City publishers.” I’m here to tell you, that’s simply untrue. Almost every one of the books we've published and represented over the last 6 years have received at least one review from "the Big 5" (Publisher's Weekly, … [Read more...]