Comment

Comment by Celine Keating on March 20, 2012 at 1:35pm

Shawn - thanks for the response; I'll head over to your site and check out the info. Much appreciated.

And Karma, thanks for saving me $$. My ARCs went out too late for Kirkus (long story) and I might have been tempted. But the price is pretty steep, and I have some other reviews.

Meantime, I'll report back after my Goodreads and librarything giveaway experiences.

Comment by dianejwright on March 20, 2012 at 11:06am

Re: Goodreads... We tried both the giveaway and the early reviewers programs and had high-to-middling hopes for both. Our results were quite marginal in terms of numbers of reviews posted (though the reviews we did get were excellent!) but very high in books added and connections.

In the first instance, we spent over $500 on books and shipping. We didn't track our time on that promotion. In the second instance, we put in hours of list management and personal interaction. There, again, we didn't track so we don't know the cost -- not too bright, we know, but we've improved.

For us, the programs were both successful because our metrics were not reviews alone, as Barbara said. We enjoyed every moment and value our new friends, both personally and as new friends of Seedpod.

djw
Co-founder & Publisher, Seedpod Publishing
More about me at dianejwright.com

Comment by Judith Marshall on March 20, 2012 at 11:04am

Statics say that 60% of people who receive giveaways on Goodreads do reviews. I don't know if that true but somebody did a survey.

Comment by Shawn Lamb on March 20, 2012 at 10:10am

No, Karma, my publisher hasn't been of much help since my 1st book was published traditionally. The rest I'm doing, and I have some trusted reviewers I give copies to, but I don't give them out en mass to anyone who wants a copy.

True about Goodreads giveaways being for exposure, which is part of the point. But I don't expect reviews.

Comment by Karma on March 20, 2012 at 9:57am

Shawn, thanks, didn't realize they do giveaways. If you gave away three copies and know your book was exposed to at least 900 people (probably much more, because for everyone who applies there's probably at least one who doesn't) that doesn't seem like too bad a trade-off. Is your publisher providing free review copies?

Comment by Karma on March 20, 2012 at 9:52am

Celine, Kirkus doesn't charge for all reviews, they recently started offering online reviews for books not officially decided to review for the publication. Since almost every book published gets sent to Kirkus, 90% of them get offered this pricey consolation prize. 

I agree with Shawn, it's not worth the money. 

Comment by Catrina Barton on March 20, 2012 at 9:44am

I'm hoping not to have that problem,  considering I've written fanfictions for six years now and already have readers from around the world. I also did a poll asking if they would want to buy a book from me were I to get it published and was astonished how many said absolutely.

Didn't realize I had quite that many die hard readers. So I'm hoping between that, the twitterverse thing, FB Author page {Which I just started since I'm still figuring it out.} and my little teaser promo, that I'll have enough readers that will want to tell their friends.

I also have two die hard readers {one in Germany} who can't wait to get their hands on the WIP I'm fleshing out now.

Comment by Barbara K. Richardson on March 20, 2012 at 8:04am

Julija, I had great success with three different giveaways on Goodreads. I offered five books each time and had over 1,000 people sign up. Goodreads gives you a list of all who enter to win your book. I wrote personal notes to the entrants with the most followers, encouraging them to go to my website where I was doing a pay-it-forward book review giveaway. The five who won books did read and post reviews, as well as more than a dozen readers who came to my website for a free signed copy. The rules were: read and review my book within one week of receiving it, and pass it on to another friend/reader. This generated good vibes and many online reviews. I heard from an experienced (if somewhat cynical) author that readers have to run across a title twenty times before they'll really consider buying it. Goodreads giveaways are one way to get the book noticed by hundreds of readers.

Comment by Shawn Lamb on March 20, 2012 at 6:29am

Yes, Celine, the Kirkus cost is for indie authors and ranges from $425-$575. As for events, I've done the Decatur Book Festival in Decatur, GA for 2 years, Nashville International Book Festival, and various homeschool conventions across GA, TN & OH since 2010. I give workshops about fiction and the current state of publishing. Yes, I do receive invitations to events. Last year I was the only author at the National Bible Bee and Family Discipleship Conference. I write YA allegorical fantasy and Christian historical fiction, but all my book cross markets. I've written several posts about events, planning and engaging.

http://allonbooks-thekingdomofallon.blogspot.com/2011/08/event-plan...

http://allonbooks-thekingdomofallon.blogspot.com/2011/08/engaging-a...

Comment by Celine Keating on March 20, 2012 at 6:10am

Shawn, I've never heard that Kirkus charges for a review - is that for self-published books? In any case, I'd love to know about your experience w/booths at events - what kinds of events have worked for you and how have you gotten invited to give workshops? That does sound like a great way to build readership.

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