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How To Get Reviews For Your Novel

I don't care what anyone says....reviews are important.



I hear a lot of authors that say they don't rely on reviews to read their books and they are full of it. That is why we have reviews and review sites like Goodreads, right?

I'm not saying that you have to read the reviews your novel gets, but reviews are important. They will help you market your novel, especially if you are self published.

Nowadays, more and more review sites are accepting self published authors to review. So you better be sure that your book is the best it can possibly be or you won't get the reviews you want.

Regardless, you need reviews.

Here are a few ways I get reviews for my novels:

1) Goodreads giveaways.

Taking advantage of the giveaway on Goodreads is a great way to get reviews. I offer three copies of my book when it's released using this Goodreads feature. I hold the giveaway for a month and get thousands of requests.

Once Goodreads announces the three winners, I send them a book copy from Createspace and I'm done. They promise a honest review. More importantly what I have found is that I'm getting review requests from people who entered and did not win, or they have gone ahead and bought the book and reviewed it anyways.

Good or bad, all reviews are welcome!

2) Press kit and reader review sites.

With every book, I create a press kit for it. I include a bio, head shot, cover photo of book, blurb, and all my links. That way the reviewer has everything at their fingertips. Easy peasy.

Here are a few sites: 


3) USE Amazon!

Did you know that Amazon has a link to all it's top reviewers?? And did you know that you can contact them?

HERE IS THE LINK!

Reviewers are sometimes more accepting than the book blogger and it's a valuable place where your books need to be reviewed. So  check them out! Go through their biographies and pick out the Amazon reviewers that fit the genre of your novel.

4) Use your Street Team! Your Street Team is composed of your loyal readers/followers/fans and they are the ones that is spreading the word about you and your novel, so they should be reviewing your books. Not in a sock puppet way (like a family or friend review who think every word you write is amazing!) . They should be encouraged to write an honest review, good or bad.

Reviews are very controversial. Some authors say they don't matter, but I say they do!

16 comments:

  1. Another timely and enormously helpful post, Tonya! Thanks for all you do to make this journey a bit easier:-)

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  2. Great advice. Thanks. I've not thought of contacting the top Amazon reviewers.

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    Replies
    1. Brinda, it's a great service that many authors don't take advantage of.

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  3. Thanks Tonya. You are always timely in posting as it relates to my releases. Great info. You are a gem. Thanks again.

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    1. Good, Gerri! I'm so glad it's helping you decide what is best for your marketing plan.

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  4. Really useful, Tonya,
    Thank you for this. I never thought of soliciting reviews, but this makes it sound perfectly professional, acceptable and easy to do.
    Great post.

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    1. Thanks, Manic. I only believe in polite and good moral behavior, so I would never give you advice that wouldn't be professional.

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  5. Great information. Am copying and pasting to a word doc to keep!

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  6. I'm new to this, so need all the help I can get. my first book due out st the end of Nov 12 so thanks ever so much
    Tracy

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  7. Hi Tonya!

    Thanks for the information. It's ALWAYS appreciated. Did you contact these reviewers before your release and provide an ARC, or did you wait until afterwards??

    AJ Lape

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  8. Thank you! Great places to get started. (I'm planning to release a chick lit ebook next month. Eeep! Wish me luck!)

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  9. A good point of view Tonya. Reviews are important. I don't have a novel published yet, but as a reader I almost always read the reviews, both good and bad, on Amazon before I buy a book.

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  10. Great tips for authors thanks for sharing

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