# Getting Amazon/Goodreads reviews



## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

I've already published, but I'm wondering about the process of supplying review copies to people. What are the "guidelines" for this? How do you even find these people? Thanks in advance.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

You are looking for reviews.    Do you have a facebook page?  What genre?


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

cinisajoy said:


> You are looking for reviews. Do you have a facebook page? What genre?


Yes, I have a FB page. But only people I know follow it at the moment. It's YA paranormal urban fantasy (bleed into horror).


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## philjson (Nov 25, 2014)

http://www.theindieview.com/indie-reviewers/

They update the list frequently.


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## Indecisive (Jun 17, 2013)

Some options: Book a reviews-only blog tour. Story Cartel (haven't tried this myself-- it gets mixed reviews). Ask people to review it on goodreads through a group (try this one: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/60696-making-connections). Create a print version through CreateSpace and run a Goodreads giveaway.

There are a bunch of other possibilities, but these would be at the top of my list for you.


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## Ravenandblack (Jan 27, 2014)

Search for groups on Goodreads that read your genre. Many have a read to review R2R programme. Just be sure to introduce yourself, respect the group's rules, and above all don't come on too strong with the sales pitch. Most R2R reviewers will also post on Amazon/other retailers.


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

Great thread. Thanks for starting it, artofStu.

Do you have to have your ebook on Amazon already in order to get ARRs on Goodreads?

How do authors get Advanced Reader Copies to reviewers otherwise? Email PDFs? 

Do you need to officially copyright your ms before doing this?


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## Chinese Writer (Mar 25, 2014)

Check out the Making Connections group on GoodReads. They have a section call ARR for authors looking for reviews. Just check the the post on how the ARR program works and follow the directions. I got 3 reviews from out of the 18 eARCs I emailed out and two of them posted on Amazon too. I notice some authors get a lot of request and some get nothing. All depends on the presentation of the book (like at the bookstore).


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## Dom (Mar 15, 2014)

Do a Goodreads giveaway for a week or two. Just giveaway 1 book. It needs to be a paperback, so you'll probably spend about $10 on that.

This will get a lot of eyes on your book in Goodreads. You should get a couple hundred "to-reads".

When the giveaway is over, find 10 people who entered but didn't win and message them, offering them a free ebook copy. Don't be pushy but let them know that even though they lost, they still sorta won. Make sure you only pick people from the list that give a lot of reviews and like your type of book. Don't ask them for a review, just wait and some will give it.

This doesn't necessarily lead to Amazon reviews but it can, and it's a step towards building personal relationships with some fans. Doing this has given me some of my best one-one-one interactions so far.


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## Walter Spence (Nov 22, 2014)

To add to Domino's suggestion, you'll probably want to check out the profiles of any potential reviewers to make sure they read and enjoy the genre(s) you write in.


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Thanks for all the advice. I actually am doing the Goodreads giveaway thing, but I have it set up for a whole month. It ends the 23rd. I've also posted on several groups on Goodreads, though not all of them seem to have R2R programs.


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## Jake Kerr (Aug 6, 2014)

> When the giveaway is over, find 10 people who entered but didn't win and message them, offering them a free ebook copy. Don't be pushy but let them know that even though they lost, they still sorta won. Make sure you only pick people from the list that give a lot of reviews and like your type of book. Don't ask them for a review, just wait and some will give it.


This is genius.


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## vkloss (Sep 22, 2014)

I'm guessing this only works if you actually have a print version of your book...?


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

vkloss said:


> I'm guessing this only works if you actually have a print version of your book...?


The Goodreads giveaway requires print versions. But you can give review formats in ebook form. It depends on what that person will accept.


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## ShayneRutherford (Mar 24, 2014)

vkloss said:


> I'm guessing this only works if you actually have a print version of your book...?


You can do a LibraryThing giveaway with only an ebook version.


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## Evenstar (Jan 26, 2013)

At the end of the book, offer the next book for free if they leave a review and email you letting you know. I saw this done in a book I read and when I checked she had over 200 reviews! I'm not sure how frowned upon it is, but it was clearly working.

For me, I have done some of the above and it didn't net much. I got the most reviews by doing a free run. A few thousand downloads should net you about 10.

Other than that, just wait until you have more books and some people on your mailing list, then ask them in exchange for a freebie.


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## Geoff Jones (Jun 20, 2014)

Here's something that worked well for me:

I scrolled through page after page of Amazon reviews for books similar to mine (Jurassic Park and The Mist) until I found reviewers who had posted their email addresses.

I emailed these folks, explained that I had written a similar book, and asked if they would be willing to review it.

It's labor intensive, and only a small percentage responded, but I got some of my best reviews doing this.

Good luck,

Geoff


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## Caddy (Sep 13, 2011)

I found review sites from the list provided in a post above, and I emailed any of them who reviewed indies in my genre. I also found reviewers/bloggers on Facebook, by typing in my genre and finding their pages. Then I clicked on their "about" and got their website and followed directions there on how to request a review.  I ended up eventually getting several reviews from blogs/review sites. It took time. Like, over a year. Other reviews came in from readers, but for places like Bookbub, having reviews from reviewers/bloggers does help. It's work.


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## derekneville (Jun 18, 2014)

You have a great advantage in that you have such a solid looking cover and a great blurb. I definitely recommend using Goodreads to join a few groups and get to know the community. Reach out in the appropriate threads. That's where having that great blurb will come in handy and get people interested to read and review your work. I've found exchanging reviews too can be exciting in meeting fellow authors.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

Oh Caddy you have good reads reviews


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## Pauline Creeden (Aug 4, 2011)

Blog tours work well, and Netgalley, story cartel, or books machine. Also making your book free will often generate reviews. There are some groups on facebook for the purpose of connecting authors and reviewers too.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## Iain Ryan (Jun 25, 2014)

jakedfw said:


> This is genius.


Agreed


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## Lucian (Jun 8, 2014)

Thanks to the O.P. for asking the question.

Big thanks to all of you who answered with such useful advice.


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

Also watch Goodreads for when someone places your book on their Wants to Read list. I got my first review that way. I just sent her a note thanking her for her interest in my book and asked her if she would like to a free copy in exchange for an honest review.


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

Geoff Jones said:


> Here's something that worked well for me:
> 
> I scrolled through page after page of Amazon reviews for books similar to mine (Jurassic Park and The Mist) until I found reviewers who had posted their email addresses.
> 
> ...


How did you send each reviewer a free copy? Is that something you can do thru Amazon?


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

Pauline Creeden said:


> Blog tours work well, and Netgalley, story cartel, or books machine. Also making your book free will often generate reviews. There are some groups on facebook for the purpose of connecting authors and reviewers too.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


Thanks for the intel. Story Cartel looks great.


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## Sever Bronny (May 13, 2013)

Domino Finn said:


> Do a Goodreads giveaway for a week or two. Just giveaway 1 book. It needs to be a paperback, so you'll probably spend about $10 on that.
> 
> This will get a lot of eyes on your book in Goodreads. You should get a couple hundred "to-reads".
> 
> ...


Woah, I'm in agreement with the others here--what a great idea! I started a giveaway last week and already have 177 people requesting, but I made it for two months! Should I have done it for a shorter time span I wonder?

Having a hard time grabbing reviewers' attention this time of year, so heading over to those Goodreads groups now


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Sever Bronny said:


> Woah, I'm in agreement with the others here--what a great idea! I started a giveaway last week and already have 177 people requesting, but I made it for two months! Should I have done it for a shorter time span I wonder?
> 
> Having a hard time grabbing reviewers' attention this time of year, so heading over to those Goodreads groups now


I did one month, but I noticed that a lot of people do it for two months, even though I think GR recommends one month. I think, as a reader, I would find it annoying to enter a giveaway with that long of a timeframe, which is why I chose to do only one month. But I agree, totally the wrong time of year to do it.


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## Sever Bronny (May 13, 2013)

artofstu said:


> I did one month, but I noticed that a lot of people do it for two months, even though I think GR recommends one month. I think, as a reader, I would find it annoying to enter a giveaway with that long of a timeframe, which is why I chose to do only one month. But I agree, totally the wrong time of year to do it.


Gah, I knew it. I was looking at all the book promos there and most were two months, so I made like a lemming and jumped. Knew I should have followed my gut ...


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## Hannah Steenbock (Dec 2, 2014)

Thanks for the great question and all the amazing answers. I'm definitely looking at a Goodreads Giveaway for my next release.


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## hayley (Oct 21, 2014)

I've ran three goodreads give away and recieved great reviews. One is my number 1 fan and reviews everything I write. 
I got in touch with people that added it to there to-read list. Review profile before messaging them. Again I got a great response, and great reviews.

I was selected in one of the goodreads groups to have my book reviewed. I recieved 5 stars reviews from all but one that gave me a 2 star. 

When I launched first book my goal was reviews over selling. I've ended up with 42 reviews in 3 1/2 months across Amazon & Goodreads averaging 4.7. 

I've tried the following 
Story Cartel result 0 reviews
Orangeberry tours result 2reviews (was ment to get 10)
I gave 5000 away and got 4 reviews the following week.

Currently running with reading addiction 7 reviews due in the next week.
When live on netgallery today, and I have a few other things. 
Goal is 100 reviews by April, for when 4th in series is ready. 

I'm launching a new series and plan to run a Goodreads give away every week for 3mths(USA only due to shipping costs.) Also to contact those that add it to there to-reads list.


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## Paul Kohler (Aug 14, 2013)

Great question and responses! I'll be returning here frequently to help garner some reviews for my own books! Thanks!


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## Sever Bronny (May 13, 2013)

hayley said:


> I've ran three goodreads give away and recieved great reviews. One is my number 1 fan and reviews everything I write.
> I got in touch with people that added it to there to-read list. Review profile before messaging them. Again I got a great response, and great reviews.
> 
> I was selected in one of the goodreads groups to have my book reviewed. I recieved 5 stars reviews from all but one that gave me a 2 star.
> ...


I scribbled an entire yellow sticky from this and smacked it onto my desk! Great points, thank you


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## Celeste Carrara (Dec 8, 2014)

I don't have hundreds of reviews, but here's how I got the ones I have.

GOODREADS!! Seriously, Goodreads has been great to me. Not only have I met great people (authors & readers) but I have found fans of my books that'll read & review everything I write. 

I only have 2 (out of the 9 books I have) available in print. I ran a Goodreads giveaway for both of them (ran it for a couple of weeks) and was happy with the results. The people who won did review the book and I got hundreds of people add the books to their "to read" shelf.

I am an active memeber of a few Goodreads groups and I have used their R2R programs. For the ones that don't have a specific R2R program, they do have a board where authors can promote or ask for reviews. I offer my book in those groups for free in exchange of an honest review. I have ePub & .mobi files and once the person sends me their email address, I email them which ever file they need. I have never had someone agree to read the book and not provide a review. BUT, not all of them put that review on Amazon. That's why I have way more reviews on Goodreads than I do on Amazon.

One of these groups has accepted one of my books (Rediscovered Love) for their group read in Jan. That should get me more reviews. (I'm actually really nervous about it & hope they like it!!)

I've tried LibraryThing (you can use ebooks, you don't need a printed version like you do for Goodreads). Gave away 25 copies got 0 reviews.

I've done blog tours (used Goddessfish prom0 - love them!) and only got a handful of reviews from the over 20 blogs I've toured over the past 2 years.

I had 2 of my books in KDP select and ran free days in the hopes to get more reviews. I had a total of around 3 reviews across both books with over 600 downloads.

I've done Rafflecopter giveaways of signed books or ebooks and received maybe 2 reviews that way out of over 200 entries.

I have never had luck with contacting a blog directly & getting them to review my book. Oh wait that's not true, a few actually did agree to review some of them, but then I never heard from them again... that was over a year ago, 2 years ago for my first book. lol

Next I plan on trying to contact the reviewers I've found on Facebook. But I'm still using Goodreads. In fact, I have 4 books out right now being reviewed by readers on Goodreads!


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

I see a bit of a trend. Free books don't seem to garner many actually reviews. Here's my theory about that. People don't read free books. They get them because they're free but then they don't read them. But people read books they pay for. I don't expect to ever make my books free. I'll give copies away here and there (and definitely will give them away for reviews), but I'll never make it free.

Probably. Never say never, right?

Still, not gonna happen.


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## Walter Spence (Nov 22, 2014)

Making the first book in a series free in order to draw readers in for the rest of the books has been a staple of indie publishing for years now, but I do find myself wondering if this tactic could become less effective over time. The more product there is out there, the more price becomes less and less of a concern versus available reading time. Or so it seems to me.


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## Accord64 (Mar 12, 2012)

Sever Bronny said:


> I started a giveaway last week and already have 177 people requesting, but I made it for two months! Should I have done it for a shorter time span I wonder?


I've run several GoodReads giveaways and found that my best results came by listing it for a period of only 10 days. I did this after noticing that most entries came within the first couple of days, but mostly in the last 48 hours. People generally wait until your book appears in the "ending soon" list (which is the default view) before entering.

Goodreads recommends a one month period, but I think that works better if you're running a wider promotion that's directing people to the giveaway. My last giveaway lasted 10 days and I got over 600 entries without promoting.


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## Becca Mills (Apr 27, 2012)

artofstu said:


> I see a bit of a trend. Free books don't seem to garner many actually reviews. Here's my theory about that. People don't read free books. They get them because they're free but then they don't read them. But people read books they pay for. I don't expect to ever make my books free. I'll give copies away here and there (and definitely will give them away for reviews), but I'll never make it free.
> 
> Probably. Never say never, right?
> 
> Still, not gonna happen.


People definitely read free books; if they didn't, permafree wouldn't be such a powerful marketing tactic. But it does seem to be the case that free downloads are not reviewed as frequently as paid books -- either a higher percentage of freebies go unread, or readers just aren't as invested in reviewing them. Last I checked, the review rates on my free book were 1 review/99 downloads at Google and 1/368 at Amazon. The upside is that you move so many free books that you end up accumulating a lot of reviews.


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

artofstu said:


> I see a bit of a trend. Free books don't seem to garner many actually reviews. Here's my theory about that. People don't read free books. They get them because they're free but then they don't read them. But people read books they pay for. I don't expect to ever make my books free. I'll give copies away here and there (and definitely will give them away for reviews), but I'll never make it free.
> 
> Probably. Never say never, right?
> 
> Still, not gonna happen.


Well now let's see. 50% chance your free book will be read sometime this decade. Thing is I may get 5 or 10 freebies at once.


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## delly_xo (Oct 29, 2014)

Honestly, as a reader, when authors reach out to me DIRECTLY to promote their work, it always feels like it falls short. Like they're desperate or something. 

And they are.

It turns me off, I can't help it. 

I think my first review was a paid one, I instragrammed the cover and put some hashtags like #romancebookbloggers #booklovers #kindleselect, etc - Instagram is great because there are no character limitations, and if they are, it doesn't seem to work well for me. 

THEN - my Instagram, Twitter, and FB are all synced, so when I post to ONE, it picks up on the other and I don't have to duplicate efforts. 

I made it FREE for 5 days during select, and one of the freebook Twitter handles managed to pick it up by chance and they re-tweeted the link. It was downloaded over 19K times while it was free and I currently have 75 reviews.

The book has been out for over two months now, downloaded almost 28K times (paid, select, free) and 75 reviews. The number of reviews I've received is infinitesimal when I think about the number of copies on kindles. 

Don't beat yourself up. Reviews are hard to get. I gave out 15 ARCs for my last book, and only 2 have reviewed it on Amazon and 1 tweeted about it. 

Good luck to you and hope you get some more reviews soon! (also, make sure to check .ca, .co.uk, etc - those reviews don't sync with the US Amazon site, you might have some you don't even know about!)


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## Jake Kerr (Aug 6, 2014)

All in all, I thought Story Cartel was a good investment. My YA novel (see sig below) generated about 5 or 6 reviews that were both on Amazon and Goodreads. For $25 I can live with that. I also received reviews from mailing list people that I specifically asked for if they wanted to review the book as an ARC. That generated 2 or 3. So, really, it's incremental.

Yet to be decided: I'm on a one month Netgalley co-op. I just asked, and I've had 50 review requests, which I guess is pretty good. No reviews yet, although the coops been going for less than two weeks. I did a Goodreads giveaway, and am in the process of another one. Neither has generated a review yet, but it's early.

Anyway, about one month later, some rudimentary work like the above, and my book has 8 reviews on Amazon, with a rating of over 4.


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## Sever Bronny (May 13, 2013)

I'm curious, would Story Cartel conflict with KDP select exclusivity? I'm guessing since it's in exchange for a review that it's okay, but just want to confirm  

(Was it Cinisajoy that confirmed it already once before? Hmm *scratches head*)

_EDIT:_ Googled it and came across THIS. Looks like it's a no-go for people enrolled in KDP. *Curses!*


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## Crystal_ (Aug 13, 2014)

I got about 40 reviews through a one month NetGalley co-op. There was a great variety in the quality of reviews--some were a single word, others were practically essays--and in the ratings.

Goodreads can work too.

But, in both cases, the reviews will likely be harsher than average customer reviews.


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Sever Bronny said:


> I'm curious, would Story Cartel conflict with KDP select exclusivity? I'm guessing since it's in exchange for a review that it's okay, but just want to confirm
> 
> (Was it Cinisjoy that confirmed it already once before? Hmm *scratches head*)
> 
> _EDIT:_ Googled it and came across THIS. Looks like it's a no-go for people enrolled in KDP. *Curses!*


Hmm. More reasons Select is starting to look like a bad idea. Won't be renewing.


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## Sever Bronny (May 13, 2013)

Crystal_ said:


> But, in both cases, the reviews will likely be harsher than average customer reviews.


You mean Net Galley and Story Cartel? Hmm, maybe I should wait until I garner some regular reviews from regular people before submitting to these kinds of sites then ...


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

Since you brought up my name are Story Cartel reviews allowed on Amazon ?


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## Sever Bronny (May 13, 2013)

cinisajoy said:


> Since you brought up my name are Story Cartel reviews allowed on Amazon ?


From what I've been reading, yes, but take that with a grain of salt as I don't have a source. Can anyone confirm?


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

Emily Wibberley said:


> How did you send each reviewer a free copy? Is that something you can do thru Amazon?


Most of us email a mobi and epub file to each reviewer. You can upload a doc file to www.draft2digital.com and they will spit out a mobi file and an epub file for you.

You could send each reviewer an Amazon gift card so that they can buy your book and post a verified review. However, many KB authors have been burned by this. Amazon gift cards are non-specific, meaning nothing stops them from buying a different book with the gift card you sent them.

Another thing some have done is post their book on Smashwords and sent each reviewer a code so they could get the book free from Smashwords. The problem with this method is that reviewers get confused then and post their review to Smashwords instead of to Amazon.


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## delly_xo (Oct 29, 2014)

Cherise Kelley said:


> Most of us email a mobi and epub file to each reviewer. You can upload a doc file to www.draft2digital.com and they will spit out a mobi file and an epub file for you.
> 
> You could send each reviewer an Amazon gift card so that they can buy your book and post a verified review. However, many KB authors have been burned by this. Amazon gift cards are non-specific, meaning nothing stops them from buying a different book with the gift card you sent them.
> 
> Another thing some have done is post their book on Smashwords and sent each reviewer a code so they could get the book free from Smashwords. The problem with this method is that reviewers get confused then and post their review to Smashwords instead of to Amazon.


I also send an ePub, but the ePub version I send out, I watermark with "ARC".


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## Jake Kerr (Aug 6, 2014)

Story Cartel reviews are allowed on Amazon, even if they say "received a copy of the book for an honest review via story cartel," and the pretty much all day that. See my reviews for examples.


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## Accord64 (Mar 12, 2012)

Sever Bronny said:


> I'm curious, would Story Cartel conflict with KDP select exclusivity? I'm guessing since it's in exchange for a review that it's okay, but just want to confirm
> 
> (Was it Cinisajoy that confirmed it already once before? Hmm *scratches head*)
> 
> _EDIT:_ Googled it and came across THIS. Looks like it's a no-go for people enrolled in KDP. *Curses!*


I also confirmed this directly with Story Cartel. They were quick to confirm that I had to wait until I got out of KDP Select before going with them. I appreciated their honesty.


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## 69959 (May 14, 2013)

I've used Story Cartel in the past to get a decent number of reviews, but you can't just upload it and forget about it. You need to promote it (share with your following, submit it to giveaway sites, and the upgrade to have it featured in their newsletter) to get any real results. Also, expect negative reviews. Some of my harshest, most scathing reviews are from there.

Going free, whether with KDPS or perma-free works. Expect about 1 review per thousand downloads. Again, you might get some negative reviews, especially if the rest of your series isn't free. Just saying.

You can do review tours. I got about 12 amazon reviews from Xpresso tours earlier this year. Most of the reviewers posted on their blogs, but not on the other sites. Also, a lot of the tour companies let you offer review copies to their bloggers. I've never tried that, but hopefully the rate of reviews on Amazon and other vendors would be higher than a tour.

Offer review copies to your newsletter subscribers. People who already like your work are more likely to give positive reviews, so that's a plus.

There's a new site that I haven't tried, but looks promising: http://www.BookReviewBuzz.com. I would imagine it has the same restrictions with KDPS as SC. (The site appears to be down now, but I'm sure it'll be back up soon.)


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## antares (Feb 13, 2011)

1. Amazon reviews.

I have had difficulty getting reviews. I am grateful to the OP of this thread for inspiring me to work for reviews. Yesterday, I asked for reviews from 10 reviewers.

I thought I got the link from this thread. Perhaps it was another. http://www.theindieview.com/indie-reviewers/ 
I went through the list of reviewers and chose those who review SF and have no objection to sexual content. I sent review requests to those who met my criteria. Got one request for epub today. Sent.

I have some close associates online. I plan to ask them for reviews this weekend.

2. Goodreads reviews.

IIRC Goodreads requires a print copy for their reviews. I have no print copies to offer. I'm out.

IMO Amazon reviews are more fruitful; that is, $. I am neither looking for nor interested in Goodreads reviews. If they happen, so be it. I shall never know.


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## Jake Kerr (Aug 6, 2014)

> I've used Story Cartel in the past to get a decent number of reviews, but you can't just upload it and forget about it. You need to promote it (share with your following, submit it to giveaway sites, and the upgrade to have it featured in their newsletter) to get any real results.


As a data point, I put my book on Story Cartel and promptly ignored it. I got about 3-4 reviews on Amazon/Goodreads. What I thend did was send out a single reminder email to the people who dowloaded the book and nicely asked them to review the book. That led to 1-2 additional reviews.

So: Set it, forget it, and then follow up once. That worked for me.


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

Thanks for this thread!

I'm in the process of trying to set a release date but I want to try to get some reviews first.

I'm trying to time a book cover blast after which I'm told I'm supposed to make the Amazon preorder link "live."

Hopefully I can get some reviews by then...but I'm not sure how much time to give it.

How long does it usually take to get reviews? Or do you all just set a release date and roll with it?

Honestly I am humbled by all you guys. Navigating self publishing has been such a challenge!

I am so grateful for everyone's advice!


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

Oh and another thing--

Is is safe to send reviewers mobi and ePub files? I've been reading that thread about Jay Cute's plagiarism on Amazon and it got me wondering.


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Emily Wibberley said:


> Thanks for this thread!
> 
> I'm in the process of trying to set a release date but I want to try to get some reviews first.
> 
> ...


Is this your first book? If so, why are you doing a prerelease?


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## cinisajoy (Mar 10, 2013)

Emily I think it depends on how well known the reviewer is.  I get review copies all the time.


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## Becca Mills (Apr 27, 2012)

Emily Wibberley said:


> Oh and another thing--
> 
> Is is safe to send reviewers mobi and ePub files? I've been reading that thread about Jay Cute's plagiarism on Amazon and it got me wondering.


They could certainly use those files to pirate your book, but I don't think you'll find many established book bloggers who'd do that sort of thing. Besides, as soon as you actually publish the book, someone will very likely buy it, pirate it, and return it. 'Tis the way of things.

ETA: By "pirate it" I mean offer it for free, not the idiotic thing Jay Cute was doing. What a bozo.


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

artofstu said:


> Is this your first book? If so, why are you doing a prerelease?


I'm so new at this that I don't even know what a pre-release is.

I'm just doing a book cover blast. WHat is a pre-release?


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Emily Wibberley said:


> I'm so new at this that I don't even know what a pre-release is.
> 
> I'm just doing a book cover blast. WHat is a pre-release?


I'm sorry. I meant preorder. Why are you doing preorder? Do you have a bunch of fans already who will preorder your book or is there some other reason?


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

I don't know haha.

I am doing a book cover blast because that's what I've been told to do.

Then I am told to set a pre-order link on Amazon because it will take some time to collect reviews.

But please tell me if you have a better strategy!

I am thinking of releasing in February.

I have low expectations for sales. I am just trying to establish a platform for a future trilogy.


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## derekneville (Jun 18, 2014)

I just wanted to add onto the piece around pre-order ... I set my novella to pre-order about two weeks before release so I could send ARC over to reviewers and bloggers. I figured this would give them a chance to read it and have time to write up a review. It was also helpful to link them back to the Amazon page. I hope this helped.


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## beccaprice (Oct 1, 2011)

cinisajoy said:


> Emily I think it depends on how well known the reviewer is. I get review copies all the time.


I'd love to send you review copies of any of my books, Cin - you write such thoughtful reviews!


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

cinisajoy said:


> Emily I think it depends on how well known the reviewer is. I get review copies all the time.


Do you like to read YA fantasy?


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

derekneville said:


> I just wanted to add onto the piece around pre-order ... I set my novella to pre-order about two weeks before release so I could send ARC over to reviewers and bloggers. I figured this would give them a chance to read it and have time to write up a review. It was also helpful to link them back to the Amazon page. I hope this helped.


Thanks, Derek. I think that's what I'm going to try to do.


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## vlmain (Aug 10, 2011)

derekneville said:


> I just wanted to add onto the piece around pre-order ... I set my novella to pre-order about two weeks before release so I could send ARC over to reviewers and bloggers. I figured this would give them a chance to read it and have time to write up a review. *It was also helpful to link them back to the Amazon page. *I hope this helped.


Bold added by me. That's a great idea! Sending them a link to the book's page makes it convenient for the reviewer and could really help increase follow through. Nice!


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Here's what I don't get about ARC's. If a book is ready enough to have someone read and review it, why isn't it published already?

Maybe I'm missing something, though.


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## Claire Frank (Jul 28, 2014)

I think the idea is to launch with reviews on day 1 - so yes, the book is ready, but you launch it early to reviewers so you can hopefully get them to post reviews on day 1 or soon as soon after the publication date as possible. 

Something like that... 

Thanks for this thread, by the way - you've been asking so many of the same questions I have in the last few weeks, so thank you!


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Claire Frank said:


> I think the idea is to launch with reviews on day 1 - so yes, the book is ready, but you launch it early to reviewers so you can hopefully get them to post reviews on day 1 or soon as soon after the publication date as possible.
> 
> Something like that...
> 
> Thanks for this thread, by the way - you've been asking so many of the same questions I have in the last few weeks, so thank you!


I get that. I just feel like, if it's ready, it could be up making sales. I'd be interested in knowing how effective that method is, though.

And you're welcome.


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

So Patchwork Press (nice people BTW) said they need an ISBN number for me to join the co-op. Since I've been trying to do this all (e.g., converting my file to mobi and epub, creating my own cover art, etc) myself to save money, I don't have one. I'd have to buy one for $125.

But if I went ahead and used a service like BookBaby, they'd give me an ISBN "for free" as part of the package.

I am tempted to go ahead and use an epublishing service (bookbaby, smashwords, recommendations?) to save me the future headaches of learning whatever it is I know I'm going to have to learn next. 

Thoughts?


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## vkloss (Sep 22, 2014)

They gave me a dummy ISBN for free when I was with them (Patchwork Press).


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

Oh, that's good to know, thanks!


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Emily Wibberley said:


> So Patchwork Press (nice people BTW) said they need an ISBN number for me to join the co-op. Since I've been trying to do this all (e.g., converting my file to mobi and epub, creating my own cover art, etc) myself to save money, I don't have one. I'd have to buy one for $125.
> 
> But if I went ahead and used a service like BookBaby, they'd give me an ISBN "for free" as part of the package.
> 
> ...


You don't want to use Createspace?


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

My understanding is that Createspace only works with Kindle and not epub, nook, etc. Am I wrong?


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## Indecisive (Jun 17, 2013)

Emily Wibberley said:


> My understanding is that Createspace only works with Kindle and not epub, nook, etc. Am I wrong?


CreateSpace is for print books. It doesn't work with ereaders in any way. It's a branch of the Amazonian Empire.


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## Accord64 (Mar 12, 2012)

ameliasmith said:


> CreateSpace is for print books. It doesn't work with ereaders in any way. It's a branch of the Amazonian Empire.


True, but CreateSpace will also take your print manuscript and will format & upload it to Kindle. I've never had them do this for me (they always ask), so I have no idea how well it works.


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

artofstu said:


> I get that. I just feel like, if it's ready, it could be up making sales.


A book has 30 days after release to sell enough to make it onto the 'hot new release' lists for its categories. Then comes the dreaded '30 day cliff'. So if you can get reviews up on day one and get ads early in the 30 days, it is a good idea.

An alternative to setting up a pre-order of the Kindle book is to put the paperback up ahead of time so that reviewers can actually post their reviews before you release the Kindle book and start the 30 days. One disadvantage of this is it takes a few days for the Kindle page to merge with the paperback page.


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## Cherise (May 13, 2012)

Emily Wibberley said:


> So Patchwork Press (nice people BTW) said they need an ISBN number for me to join the co-op. Since I've been trying to do this all (e.g., converting my file to mobi and epub, creating my own cover art, etc) myself to save money, I don't have one. I'd have to buy one for $125.
> 
> But if I went ahead and used a service like BookBaby, they'd give me an ISBN "for free" as part of the package.
> 
> ...


Set up a CreateSpace version of your book just enough so that you get the free ISBN for your book from Amazon. Very easy. You can complete the paperback later, when you have the cover for it.


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Cherise Kelley said:


> A book has 30 days after release to sell enough to make it onto the 'hot new release' lists for its categories. Then comes the dreaded '30 day cliff'. So if you can get reviews up on day one and get ads early in the 30 days, it is a good idea.
> 
> An alternative to setting up a pre-order of the Kindle book is to put the paperback up ahead of time so that reviewers can actually post their reviews before you release the Kindle book and start the 30 days. One disadvantage of this is it takes a few days for the Kindle page to merge with the paperback page.


In my case, the print and ebook versions didn't get linked for a couple of weeks. I had to ask them to do it. I was also told (by Amazon) that it would take even longer for any print reviews to sync. In my opinion, pre-orders for unknown authors, trying to get reviews ahead of time, is usually an exercise in futility.


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## Pauline Creeden (Aug 4, 2011)

Cherise Kelley said:


> You could send each reviewer an Amazon gift card so that they can buy your book and post a verified review. However, many KB authors have been burned by this. Amazon gift cards are non-specific, meaning nothing stops them from buying a different book with the gift card you sent them.


Actually - this is against Amazon's terms-of-service for reviews - I only know because I had an author do this for me, and then he had all of his reviews purged because he did this with several Amazon Top Reviewers, and it's against Amazon's rules - you can gift a copy of the book for review, but no other compensation, including gift cards for the exact amount of the book at Amazon - frustrating :/


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## FictionbyAngela (Nov 8, 2014)

Pauline Creeden said:


> Blog tours work well, and Netgalley, story cartel, or books machine. Also making your book free will often generate reviews. There are some groups on facebook for the purpose of connecting authors and reviewers too.
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


On story cartel, what does "one launch" mean? Is that giving the book to 1 person, or is that running 1 book to as many people as will sign up for it? It doesn't seem to give a lot of info on the website.


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## Pauline Creeden (Aug 4, 2011)

FictionbyAngela said:


> On story cartel, what does "one launch" mean? Is that giving the book to 1 person, or is that running 1 book to as many people as will sign up for it? It doesn't seem to give a lot of info on the website.


It means that one book will be available to their readers for their limited time - 2 weeks or a month, I can't remember how long it is - later if you do a second launch of the same book, it will be available again...etc


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

After my cover blast, I got a lot of "followers" adding my book to their "want to read." Is this just a courtesy among book bloggers? Or should I reach out and offer free ARCs to them...without expecting a review of course but hoping for one? Or is that totally gauche?


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## Kylo Ren (Mar 29, 2014)

Emily Wibberley said:


> After my cover blast, I got a lot of "followers" adding my book to their "want to read." Is this just a courtesy among book bloggers? Or should I reach out and offer free ARCs to them...without expecting a review of course but hoping for one? Or is that totally gauche?


I assume you're talking about Goodreads? You could offer ARCs to some of them, if you want, but I would try to make sure they read the genre your book is in and also see what kinds of other reviews they've left. I gave a review copy to someone I wish I'd checked their other reviews first and also what kinds of books they read. The person really wasn't someone who regularly reads my genre, and they weren't overly enthusiastic generally when reviewing books. They tended to give good reviews to a certain type of book and everything else was graded low.


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

Great advice, thanks ArtofStu! (And yes, I'm talking about Goodreads).


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## Pauline Creeden (Aug 4, 2011)

Emily Wibberley said:


> After my cover blast, I got a lot of "followers" adding my book to their "want to read." Is this just a courtesy among book bloggers? Or should I reach out and offer free ARCs to them...without expecting a review of course but hoping for one? Or is that totally gauche?


it's not at all gauche. In fact, a USA Today best-selling author recently advised doing exactly what you suggested. But she also suggests that you make it absolutely clear that you do not expect a review, and that you're giving your ARC away simply as a thank you for adding the book to their want to read list. Although, yes, a lot of bloggers are doing it out of a courtesy, there will still be some that respond that they want your book. So for example if 100 people added your book to read, and forty respond that they would like a book copy, and eight of those respond in kind with a review, that's eight reviews you'd wouldn't have had. Typically they may be only Good Reads reviews, but a lot of readers are on Good Reads because they want to interact with authors. So, reaching out to them gives them a positive feeling about you as an author before they even pick up your book. And I can't see any negatives to that


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## ShayneRutherford (Mar 24, 2014)

artofstu said:


> I get that. I just feel like, if it's ready, it could be up making sales. I'd be interested in knowing how effective that method is, though.
> 
> And you're welcome.


Stu, when we used to get ARC copies at Chapters (for the booksellers to read and review) there was always a big banner across the front cover that said something along the lines of 'This is an uncorrected proof copy and is not intended for resale'. That way people would know to expect some typos and such. They would usually come out several months before the release, so people would have time to read them.


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## elizafaith13 (Sep 22, 2014)

Domino Finn said:


> Do a Goodreads giveaway for a week or two. Just giveaway 1 book. It needs to be a paperback, so you'll probably spend about $10 on that.
> 
> This will get a lot of eyes on your book in Goodreads. You should get a couple hundred "to-reads".
> 
> ...


Wow. I never thought about doing that. Great advice!

My first Goodreads giveaway didn't produce results. I gave away 10 books and didn't see one review from the winners.


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## JR. (Dec 10, 2014)

I've been trying to figure this out recently, and this is what I've learned. I'd appreciate anyone correcting anything that is wrong.


1) The point of promotion for the new author is to boost the book onto certain lists, after which Amazon takes over
2) Pre-orders mean your ranking starts straight away
3) If you don't get significant pre-orders, your rank starts to dive straight away
4) By the time your book releases, you're ranking down in the millions, making it exponentially more difficult to claw your way onto the lists that will promote for you
5) Meaning you have to spend a crap ton on marketing, both time and money, to ever see that book up where it should have been had you held off on pre-order


ARCs have nothing to do with pre-orders, so that doesn't seem to be a valid point.


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## Jan Hurst-Nicholson (Aug 25, 2010)

artofstu said:


> I did one month, but I noticed that a lot of people do it for two months, even though I think GR recommends one month. I think, as a reader, I would find it annoying to enter a giveaway with that long of a timeframe, which is why I chose to do only one month. But I agree, totally the wrong time of year to do it.


I think readers enter and then forget about it. I doubt if anyone is chewing their nails waiting for the result of a Giveaway.


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

JR. said:


> I've been trying to figure this out recently, and this is what I've learned. I'd appreciate anyone correcting anything that is wrong.
> 
> 1) The point of promotion for the new author is to boost the book onto certain lists, after which Amazon takes over
> 2) Pre-orders mean your ranking starts straight away
> ...


I'd love an answer to all these questions too!


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## AnonWriter (Dec 12, 2013)

I posted this in the YA Support Thread but I thought I should post it here as well...

I posted my book in the Looking for ARRs (in the the Making YA Connections thread at Goodreads) and got zero nibbles.

A kind reviewer (whom I met through an email query) said that she noticed my post looking like the wallflower at the school dance and suggested I try joining the Lovers of Paranormal and Shut Up and Read groups where I might have more luck getting reader/reviewers.

You all might know this already, but I thought I'd share. These groups appear to have active ARR and R2R communities.

The links are here:

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/72929-lovers-of-paranormal

https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/56898-shut-up-read


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