We’re always open to new ideas when it comes to self-publishing, marketing, and also reviewing. So, we have a new idea and we need your help. We’ve decided to give authors the chance to review their own books right here on LLBR. What are the benefits of reviewing your own book, you might ask? Well, first and foremost, it’s free publicity! FREE! It’s a chance to step up on the soap box and convince readers to read your book.
Many of us say that the reviews don’t matter. Reviews don’t encourage us to read a book or not. Reviews don’t discourage authors. Well, many of us lie too! There isn’t a single self-pub’ed author out there who doesn’t check out their reviews on Amazon. We may not always like them, but whether it’s two stars or five stars, we pay attention and read them. And while we shouldn’t take a bad review to heart, they still have an effect on us.
Now, don’t worry. LLBR isn’t about to become a self-reviewing site for self-published books. Heck, who would give their own book a bad review anyway, right? This is meant to be a fun experiment. But we aren’t looking for pitches either. Don’t try to sell us on why we should read your book. Just as if you were reviewing some other book on your own, tell us what you liked about it and why you’d read it. Tell us the good parts. And tell us the bad parts if you think there are any.
Start by writing your review. Try to keep it to a good 10 to 20 sentences. Email it to us at llbookreview@gmail.com along with a cover pic of your book, an author headshot if you have it, and include a link to where your book can be purchased (Amazon.com is a good one if your book is available there).
We’ll post a couple of reviews each week, calling this series Read My Book! Readers and blog surfers out there can chime in too. Read the reviews and post comments letting us know if you would read this book based on the review from the author. We all know that unfortunately Amazon.com’s star rating and reviews can make or break a product. Here’s your chance to see if your own review of your book would help gain any readers. Be creative! Heck, tell us who shouldn’t read your book and why!
So, take off the author hat and put on your reviewer book. Step outside the galley proof and take a good look at your book. Then, write a quick review and send it to us. Tell us why we should read your book!
What a great idea! So then, I’ve sent one to you for Gone.
You mustn’t blame me for trying.
Good writing to all.
[...] It’s been a while since we’ve had anyone review their own book, so thanks to our own reviewer Julie Elizabeth Powell for giving it a go! If you’d like to participate, email us direct with a brief 10 sentence review of your own book. It should not be a pitch, but an honest “outside yourself” review of the book. Include a book cover pic and author photo. More details can be found here. [...]