I participated in a great Twitter conversation hosted by Bibliocrunch on Tuesday called #indiechat. We ended up discussing all sorts of topics, but the main conversation centered around how to ask book bloggers for reviews on their sites.
On Blog Book Tours
A "blog book tour" is an online, promotional event during which an author schedules "appearances" on a collection of blogs related to authors, writing, the subject matter or genre of his/her book, etc. It's a great way to get people talking about your work, and it can be more effective (and less expensive!) than a "real world" book tour.
@emmalarkins You DO have to be careful who you use. I got a blog tour request today for a genre I don't blog about. Not okay. #indiechat
— Julie (@JulieHeartBooks) April 3, 2013
@emmalarkins I use tribute-books for my 'review' tours #indiechat
— lmpreston (@LM_Preston) April 3, 2013
For my tour I send a nice email to the bloggers on my list and directed them to the tour media page I had set up for them. #indiechat
— Alicia Kat Dillman (@KatGirl_Studio) April 3, 2013
Getting spots on your tour isn't about spamming as many book bloggers as you can. It's much better to approach potential hosts with the intention of collaboration, not "What can you do for me?"
@julieheartbooks This. And it's not personal. You must build relationships with bloggers. They want to know you AND your books. #indiechat
— Kelly P. Simmon (@KPSimmon) April 3, 2013
On Getting Reviews As an Indie
One of the tricky things about self-publishing is that many reviewers will only deal with traditional publishers. During #indiechat, we talked about some of the ways to get around this issue.
I actually use #Goodreads as a resource by searching out books like mine, inviting reviewers of those book to review mine #indiechat
— lmpreston (@LM_Preston) April 3, 2013
I don't generally review indie/self pub. BUT if an author demonstrates they've read my policy, I'll consider it. #indiechat
— Julie (@JulieHeartBooks) April 3, 2013
On Innovative Promotion Methods
Hafsah of IceyBooks had a great suggestion for getting exposure without having to convince bloggers to read your novel:
One great way to get attention for your book - a cover reveal. Most bloggers (I am) are open to it bc its easier than a review. #indiechat
— Hafsah (@IceyBooks) April 3, 2013
Interested in checking out the next conversation? Find info for the April 9th #indiechat here! And let me know if you have any questions about how to participate in Twitter chats :)
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