Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Begging for Feedback

There's an awful lot of waiting involved when you write a book. Whether you self-publish or not, you have to wait for proof copies, wait for reviews, wait for feedback... But unless you are a famous person, you have to ask for reviews, from readers and from review organizations.  They do not come knocking at your door asking to review your book.  You have to ask THEM to review it, and you also have to send them free copies of it.  And so that is precisely what I am doing...

Midwest Book Review - On the weekend, I finally received a review from the well-respected Midwest Book Review.  The organization only reviews less than a third of the books for which reviews are requested, so I was excited and smiling when I received the review from them.  Without revealing too much, let's just say that it was a positive but problematic review.  It had a major error.  I have the right to use the review, which has some very favorable sentences that would be good for marketing purposes, but it didn't feel right because of the flaw.  So I wrote to them and pointed out the error.  I thought I might never hear from them again, but the next day I received a letter from the editor, who apologized and said he'd look into it with the reviewer.  I don't know if I'll hear from them again.  But given that they are a reputable organization, I really hope that I do.

Kirkus Reviews - Meanwhile, I decided that one review is not enough.  I may or may not receive a review from Publishers Weekly via the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award, and rather than wait for that and for the Midwest Book Review to get back to me, I decided to order a review from Kirkus Reviews.  You have to pay for these reviews, unfortunately, but it in no way guarantees a good review.  It is a highly respected company, and it has to stand by its reviews.  Once I receive the review (probably late April - more waiting), I'll have the option of making it public.  If it's bad, I don't have to have it posted on their website.  I predict it wont' be giving me five stars, but if it's mostly good, I will post it.



IndieReader.com - Finally, I sent my book for review to IndieReader.com.  Their reviews are free, but there's no guarantee your book will get reviewed at all.  With the Midwest Book Review, I knew I had a 1 in 3 chance, but with IndieReader, I haven't a clue what the odds are.  Still, worth a try.

In the end, I care far more what readers think of my book than what professional reviewers think.  However, good reviews from professional reviewers could potentially get me more readers, so it's a necessary evil.  If you have read my book and would like to review it, please do so on the Amazon of your choice.  You can use a secret pen name if you want your review to be anonymous!

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