Market My Novel

As a book reviewer for Pop Syndicate – and the virtual book tour host at Book Addict – I am approached by authors every day to review titles.

Earlier this year, I was approached hard and fast by an author desperate to have her true crime book reviewed at our site. She found me from a post at another author's blog. She e-mailed several times and I told her to send along a copy, and I would get to it after I reviewed a few other books.

This author expedited shipping (even though I told her it would be at least a few weeks before I could get to it) and e-mailed a few times to be sure I received it.

I was nearly ready to review it when I received another e-mail from her. She asked if I had reviewed it yet, and I said no, it was next in line. At this point, I was getting a little frustrated. It had only been a few weeks, and this was not a new release; it had been out for nearly eight months. There was no rush for us, and her persistence was becoming annoying.

Then, the author e-mailed back a response that not only angered me, but will forever keep her from being reviewed again at our site. Here is what she said:

I sat back in my chair, reeling from the audacity of this self-published author. She pursued me hard to get her book into our review system, then believed she would tell us not to post a bad review and we would do it?

Out. Rageous!

You can do everything you can to get your book in the hands of reviewers, but never, ever expect to dictate the final outcome of the review. Reviewers who are worth their salt never guarantee a good book review. Unlike the paid writers who expound the virtues of really crappy cinema on movie posters and DVD covers, most book critics take the time to read, compare to other works in the genre and write an honest review.

Needless to say, I did not review this book. I handed it off to someone else because the author's attitude angered me so badly. I politely decline to review anything else from the author, or pass it along to other reviewers.

Now, some might ask how this applies to marketing plans for authors. Quite simply, this author created a PR nightmare for herself. Her dogged pursuit was overkill, and her final statement so outrageous I refuse to review her again. Our site nets thousands of page hits per day. I guarantee there are not a lot of other review sites willing to take on self-published authors for reviews or virtual tours. This is one major virtual pit-stop no longer available to this author.

Do you really want to burn bridges because of your attitude? Think, before you send that next email. It is OK to follow up with reviewers to be certain they received your book, and ask about virtual tour dates, but that is IT. Daily e-mails and arrogance do not endear you to reviewers.