One of the hardest things to do as a writer, is to get honest feedback. A lot of times, we are dying to hear what a complete stranger would think about our plot, tone or structure of our story. Do people really get our words or are we just sounding or writing in a bunch of jumbled words like Boomhauer of King of the Hill.
Enter Reviews.
A fellow author, and muse from a far, CP Patrick drop some knowledge on how we really are looking to get honest feedback through reviews to help understand our writing styles, promote our book and hopefully attract new readers. We promise that reviews are not to stroke our egos–ok it may help our egos some if it’s amazing feedback we never thought we would ever hear from a stranger…but that’s not a bad thing right?
Check out an excerpt from her post, A Word on Reviews, which shines some much needed light on why your thoughts are vital for us newbies. And after you’ve read the “why”, help a sister out with a review on one of my books currently on #SpringReading sale on Amazon.
Authors often ask readers to leave reviews, especially new authors. But it’s not for the reasons some people might think. It has less to do with ego and more to do with receiving honest feedback, marketing opportunities and attracting new readers….
Honest Feedback
Publishing a book is an exciting and nerve-wracking experience. There’s the joy of “I did it!” Which is quickly followed by “Oh my God! People are going to read my book!” And we all know how cruel the Internet can be. Certainly, every author receives negative reviews. Go look at some of your favorite books or current best-sellers. There are rave reviews and soul-crushing reviews. Because that’s reality – not everyone is going to like everything…Marketing Opportunities
What many readers may not know is that reviews are often tied to marketing opportunities for authors. And not just favorable reviews – the number of reviews help too. This is particularly true for ebook subscription marketing opportunities as well as Amazon book pairings. One of the reasons The Truth About Awiti has done well is because of the number of reviews that the book has received…Attracting New Readers
Another benefit of leaving a review for an author is that reviews help attract new readers. Don’t you enjoy reading book reviews before making a purchase? If you really enjoyed reading a book, one of the most helpful things you can do is leave a review on Goodreads and the site where you purchased the book, such as Amazon, B&N, or even your favorite indie bookstore. Your review just might be the one that influences readers to purchase the book…
Second shameless, but honest plug: I would love for you to review my two books! Untraditional: A Collection of Passion-Fy Short Stories and Like. Love. Lust. A Collection of Passion-Fy Prose and Poetry are both on sale on Kindle for only $0.99–this week only!
The Chronicles of DNC 