10 Ways to Promote Your Writing During the Holidays

December 12, 2008 by admin · 12 Comments 

10 Ways to Promote your Writing Through the Holidays

Presented by Dee Stewart

Dee Stewart

 We have a few more weeks before Christmas, Kwanzaa, Watch Night and New Years. Bookstores have geared up for holiday shoppers, so no instore events for you to grab at the last minute. Public libraries have geared up for holiday reading events, so no author readings for you to participate in at the last minute. So what do you do? Table selling your books until 2009 or do you take advantage of Holiday Cheer? I say take advantage. Here are 10 ways to do promote your writing through the holidays.

1. Host a free children’s book drive at your local library. 

It’s not too late to schedule a meeting room or space at your local library or church bookstorefor a free children’s book drive. If you plan it now, you have time to get a local reporter and local vlogger to the event. Invite the public to drop off new books to the library for either giveaway or for the libary’s children’s section. On your event day have holiday punch and cookies and invite the public to pick up their free children’s book.

2. Give your book to local coffeehouses to include in holiday gift baskets.

Next week I meet with a popular lil house in my town by request of the owner. He loves authors and great books. And he’s Christian. We’re going to talk gift baskets with my client’s books inside and whether the spot will the my new spot for my Winter Reading Series. Local Atlanta Authors, let’s do this.

3. Host an Under the Dryer Book Signing at a Beauty Salon.

Have you ever been in a beauty salon? The long wait, the old reading material. What if someone was selling a book I could read while sitting under the dryer. Bingo!!  A client of mine sold out this weekend doing this event.

4. Write a Christmas story and have it published in your local community paper or regional magazine.

I wrote a story for Precious Times Magazine a few years back titled “Kissmas Time” from that story I received so many invitations to write articles for other magazines. I have a mailing list of people interested in my book (whenever that comes.) And I have had speaking engagement requests since that story.

5. Sponsor your local Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts Christmas Parade Float.

I just participated in my town’s annual Christmas parade. Loads of fun. I saw many familiar faces and have become a friend of the mayor. Yippee. Just because I’m out and about in the community. Sponsoring a float, making a banner, providing costumes, or just chaperoning kids in the parade will put you out in the community. People will become familiar with you. If you are an author, have the kids pass out bookmarks with candy attached to them or take your little Christmas story package it up and give it out to those on the parade route.

6. Read Christmas Stories at your local elementary school media center.

If writing is your life long passion, if you write for a young adult market, a soccer mom market, then get yourself to your local school and read the coolest book to kids. Host a Santa letter party.

7. Host an Online Book Giveaway, but not your book, instead giveaway:

·       one you know your readers want like Ted Dekker’s Kiss that comes out in January, or

·       one tied to the holidays like a Paula Dean Holiday Cookbook, or

·       give away a book to your friends you know are afraid to buy, but would love to read (for instance Carleen Brice’ Buy a White Friend a Black Book Month Project)

promote the giveaway and the winner by sending a press release to the winner’s local paper.Put the book in a gift basket from your local coffeehouse, Avon lady, you know what I mean…

8. Host a Holiday Book Party at a local restaurant

Publisher and author Dwan Abrams will be hosting a party this weekend in downtown Atlanta to celebrate her birthday, the holidays, and her fourth novel book release Married Strangers. The event is free to attend. It is also a book drive for a Women’s Prison Literacy Project. She’s got localebrities, book reviewers and bookstore managers popping through. The event has been promoted on local gospel radio stations, online mags, local papers, and to anyone within two paces of her.You do know now is the time to throw a party?

9. Build a tip sheet

Center the sheet around your book’s theme and the holidays, submit the tip list as filler for major local magazines and online magazines your readers read. My client’s can pull these tip sheets out throughout the year and tweak the

10. Be a frontdoor vendor at your local bookstore.

Ask your local bookstore if you can set up a table on the weekend to sale your books. Ask for two tables. One to sell your book and another to giftwrap patrons book gifts as a free service to the bookstore. All bookstore chains allow authors to do this. However, some bookstores will only talk to publicists or publishers.

Bonus, contact your bookstore every week to see if any big time authors had last minute cancellations for their Holiday In Store Events. But be prepared to get books to them on short notice. You can do that right? If not, you might not to sign up for my BMP coaching sessions in 09.

If you read the lines, you will see that the most important thing here is to become a part of your community. The holidays are the best and most opportune to do this. There’s something to say about holiday cheer. It comes once a year. Take advantage of it.

This month Christian Fiction will host it’s last 1 question interview series of the year. The question is  what’s your favorite Holiday book. Send me a private message with your answer, blog site address, and book blurb, and I will post your answers on the blog.

Related Posts:

·    Pay it Forward Fall: Gifting Your Service

·    How to Maintain Peace through the Publishing Process

·    10 Book/CD Release Party Don’ts


Dee Stewart is a bookseller, multimedia journalist, novelist, publicist and now talk show host.  She is also inspirational book reviewer for Romantic Times Magazine, Atlanta Satellite Bookseller for The Mocha  Bookstores, and owner of Christian Fiction Blog.  Her writings have appeared in: Spirit Led Woman, Gospel Today, Advanced Christian Writer, Atlanta Christian Family, Mosaic Literary, Precious Times, Vertical Fix just a few.  In 2009 she will begin hosting book marketing coaching sessions for Christian artists. Follow her on Twitter at DeeGospel. Or visit her site at www.deestewart.com.

Don’t forget every Tuesday at 8pm EST join Dee and her gal pal, EIC of Good Girl Book Club Magazine, Marina Woods on Dee & Marina Reports on Blog Talk Radio. It’s a current events talk radio show discussing book publishing, media, and Christian entertainment from a progressive Christian WOman’s point of view.

Filed under: Articles, DAY 6 (SATURDAY), Panels & Workshops, Promo & Resources
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Sharing Literary Resources

December 12, 2008 by admin · 16 Comments 

Sharing Literary Resources
by Tee C. Royal

I will be sharing literary resources, but don’t feel slighted if you’re not listed.  Instead, share your information (or any other links) you recommend in the comments section. 

 RECOMMENDED BOOKS (FOR WRITERS)

  • Guide To Book Publishers, Editors & Literary Agents, 2006: Who they are! What they want! How to win them over! by Jeff Herman
  • Kirsch’s Guide to the Book Contract : For Authors, Publishers, Editors and Agents by Jonathan Kirsch
  • Negotiating a Book Contract: A Guide for Authors, Agents and Lawyers by Mark L. Levine
  • On Writing by Stephen King
  • Self-Editing for Fiction Writers: How to Edit Yourself Into Print by Renni Browne
  • The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr.
  • The First Five Pages: A Writer’s Guide to Staying Out of the Rejection Pile by Noah Lukeman 
  • The Shortest Distance Between You and a Finished Book by Susan Page
  • Woe Is I: The Grammarphobe’s Guide to Better English in Plain English by Patricia T. O’Connor
  • Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook: Hands-On Help for Making Your Novel Stand Out and Succeed by Donald Maass
  • Writing the Fiction Synopsis – A Step by Step Approach by Pam McCutcheon

RECOMMENDED BOOKS (FOR READERS)

  • A Book Lover’s Diary by Shelagh Wallace
  • A Passion for Books: A Book Lover’s Treasury of Stories, Essays, Humor, Lore, and Lists on Collecting, Reading, Borrowing, Lending, Caring for, and Appreciating Books by Harold Rabinowitz
  • Booknotes: The Booklover’s Organizer by Marilyn McDonald
  • How to Read a Book by Mortimer J. Adler
  • Only in Books: Writers, Readers & Bibliophiles on Their Passion by J. Kevin Graffagnino
  • So Many Books, So Little Time by Sara Nelson

GENRE SPECIFIC LINKS & ORGANIZATIONS

PUBLISHERS (includes major publishers & imprints)

  • Amistad
  • Dafina Books
  • Hatchette Books
  • Hyperion
  • Kensington
  • Kimani Press
  • NAL
  • QBoro Books
  • Random House
  • Simon & Schuster
  • St. Martins Press
  • Strebor
  • Urban Books
  • Urban Christian
  • Urban Soul

LITERARY GROUPS, BOOKSTORES & OTHER WEBSITES

LITERARY MAGAZINES & INDUSTRY NEWS

BOOK CLUBS & BOOK REVIEWS

MISCELLANEOUS RESOURCES 

Again, this list isn’t all-inclusive (and was compiled last year), but I hope it is useful to those wanting to stay IN THE KNOW regarding the literary industry.  Also, be sure to check out the resources accumulated over the years on the RAWSISTAZ site under Reader’s Rack and Writer’s Block.

*List originally compiled for an article on Blogging in Black in 2007*

Filed under: Articles, DAY 6 (SATURDAY), General Forum
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5 Tips for Dealing with Rejection

December 11, 2008 by admin · 7 Comments 

5 Tips for Dealing with Rejection

by Tee C. Royal

It’s a fact. Most people do not like to be rejected and this does not change for those in the literary arena.

I’m going to take a step back from RAWSISTAZ/being a book club founder & moderator and throw on my other hats. While it’s not something I actively promote, I have been a freelance editor and reader for around 7 years. I started both shortly after starting RAWSISTAZ, working directly for authors and also for a few publishing companies, but it’s never been the main focus of what I do, simply because RAWSISTAZ had the #1 slot. But during this time, I’ve seen hundreds of manuscripts, quite a few of which needed work and unfortunately I couldn’t recommend for publication.

Now, I’m an agent and focusing more on getting my agency running and taking what I’ve already done in the industry a step further and actually helping authors get their work published. Granted, there were a few deals I helped authors achieve prior to becoming an agent, but now I’m doing it “for real” and enjoying the experience. Unfortunately, one of the hardest parts is rejection. For the author and for me.

It’s hard rejecting potential clients, especially if I’ve enjoyed some of their previous work. It’s also hard having a client receive a rejection letter from a publisher. With the very first rejection I received, I was at a loss for words, couldn’t figure out why or what the editor must’ve been missing to pass on such a wonderful book. LOL. (I’m now sure this is what all authors think when they get rejections.)

The author took it better than I did, and I eventually put my feelings to the side and moved on. But it’s hard. Man is it hard. I also remember the first rejection I gave as an agent. I was overly concerned about hurting the writer’s feelings, so I took several weeks before I actually sent the email. Again, it is hard!

I said all that to say that I can now somewhat imagine being the author and dealing with rejection, but I do have 5 quick tips on the subject. Hopefully they will help those who may need that extra push to keep going.

1) BE PREPARED – Please don’t submit your work before it is completed. This not only means have the book finished, but ensure it’s been edited. I don’t know how many times I’ve received a query, requested more than the standard 3 chapters, but then I don’t hear from the author for several months. Why? Because they’re finishing the book.

2) ACCEPT CRITICISM – Again, no one likes being rejected, but you’ll find some agents/editors offer feedback on why the book didn’t work for them, suggestions on what needs improving, and things of this nature. Don’t be so quick to throw out these tidbits of information along with the rejection. Good can come from being rejected. Also keep in mind that it can be a good story, well-written, and all that, but it’s not right for that agent/editor, for that cycle, or various other reasons. It’s simply one person’s yes or no. Move on to the next person.

3) BE REALISTIC – There are thousands of authors out there, so you’re not the only one submitting your work to a particular agent or agency. Don’t assume that we’re sitting around fiddling our thumbs. We aren’t. Also, our existing clients are our primary focus, so while we would love to respond in 3-4 weeks or sooner, it simply doesn’t work out that way sometimes. Be patient and realistic while waiting for a follow-up. Inquiring every 2.3 weeks isn’t helping your case any. It actually hurts it. And, once you get the follow-up, don’t be arrogant, rude, obnoxious or all-knowing about it. It’s a turn off and could possibly turn what would’ve been an “I’m interested” into an “I’ll pass.” I loved an author’s work recently and could see the book doing well, but his reply to my request for the remaining chapters and a contact number totally changed my desire to work with him. Granted, it took quite a while to get to his submission and reply, but starting off his response with “It’s good to hear from you after 5 months,” wasn’t really too bright. Then, he didn’t send what I requested, but another “taste” of the book. What? LOL. Sorry, he had to go. Not following directions is one of my pet peeves.

4) KEEP ON MOVING – Don’t find yourself in the waiting mode; continue to write, query others, write more, and study the craft. Oftentimes, we find ourselves stuck in the “I’ma wait until” frame of mind, expecting someone to do something or for something to happen. While it’s good to be hopeful, it’s not good to be so expectant. Basically what I’m saying is don’t put anything on hold waiting on the “yes” because in some cases, you will be disappointed. Instead, live in the present, and again, continue to write, query, study and do research. Be confident in knowing that it’ll happen when and as it should.

5) CHANGE YOUR VIEWPOINT - Change your viewpoint about the rejection. Don’t take it personal, as an outright slight against you. The work was rejected, not you per se. Look at the rejection as one step further in recognizing your dream of being a published author (or of getting that agent, deal, etc.). Everyone started off with that first book. Many authors who were rejected numerous times over are now best-selling authors. So, continue to work hard, keep the faith, utlize the aforementioned tips and continue to perfect your manuscript. Then, submit again and again and again. It’ll happen.

Continued blessings to each and every one of you on the path to publication. May your rejections inspire you to work harder and one day secure your spot as a best-selling author.

Filed under: Articles, Day 5 (FRIDAY), General Forum
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Great Black Books 2008

December 11, 2008 by admin · 16 Comments 

TRR Favorites

It’s that time of year when many people review their reads for the previous 11 months or when others are searching for holiday (book) gifts. The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers (TRR) are doing a GREAT BLACK BOOKS 2008 list this, pulled from our Five on the Fifth column on Blogging in Black. These are books we have reviewed and given the tag TRR FAVORITES. As a reminder, most of these books received a 4.5 or 5.0 rating on a 5.0 scale. (And this is only a small portion, so be sure to visit http://www.blackbookreviews.net to find more!)

Did you read any of these titles? Share your list of favorites for 2008 in the comments section!

GREAT BLACK BOOKS ‘08 / RAWSISTAZ FAVORITES

January Features:
· Sweet Georgia Brown by Cheryl Robinson (Fiction)
· Murder, Mayhem and a Fine Man by Claudia Mair Burney (Mystery)
· Passin’ by Karen E. Quinones Miller (Fiction)
· Wind Follower by Carole McDonnell (Speculative Fiction)
· Where I Want to Be by Maryam Diaab (Romance)

February Features:
· Not Even if You Begged by Francis Ray (Fiction)
· Hotlanta by Denene Millner & MItzi Miller (Young Adult Fiction)
· Even Numbers by Barbara Grovenor (Fiction)
· Interceptions by Staci Robinson (Fiction)
· Choices by Skyy (Fiction)

March Features:
· Jezebel by Jacquelin Thomas (Christian Fiction)
· Faith Under Fire: Betrayed By A Thing Called Love by LaJoyce Brookshire (Memoir)
· The Mpire: In Search of the Lost by T.L. James (Fiction)
· Them by Nathan McCall (Fiction)
· Three Wishes by Janice Sims (Romance)

April/May Features:
- Long, Hot Nights by Candice Poarch (Romance)
- Like Never Before by Sylvia Lett (Romance)
- The Trophy Wife by Ashley & JaQuavis (Street Fiction)
- Dynamic Diva Dollars: For Women Who Aren’t Afraid To Be Millionaires by Elon Bomani (Self-Help/Business)
- Naked Love by Darnella Ford (Fiction)
- Sacrifice: Demon Hunter Series Book 2 by T.L. Gardner (Paranormal)
- Deception’s Legacy by Jacqueline G. Randolph (Fiction)
- One Dead Lawyer by Tony Lindsay (Mystery)
- Sexcapades by HoneyB (Erotica)
- The Knees of Gullah Island by Dwight Fryer (Historical Fiction)

June/July Features:
- Ivy’s Twisted Vine by Latrivia S. Nelson (Fiction)
- Too Little, Too Late by Victoria Christopher Murray (Christian Fiction)
- Money Power Respect by Erick S. Gray (Street Fiction)
- Forever The Fat Kid by Michael Boyd (Memoir)
- Love Tornado by Mable John and David Ritz (Christian Fiction)

August Features:
- Motherless Child: Stories of A Life by Sarah Gordon Weathersby
- Just Too Good To Be True by E. Lynn Harris (Fiction)
- You Gotta Sin To Get Saved by J. D. Mason (Fiction)
- Shameless Hoodwives by Meesha Mink and De’Nesha Diamond (Street Fiction)
- Orange Mint & Honey by Carleen Brice (Fiction)

September Features:
- Crown’s Jewel by Cynthia D. Toliver (Fiction)
- Seeds of Bible Study by Carol McDonnell (Non-Fiction/Religious)
- Three Doors Down by Michele Sudler (Romance)
- Taneesha: Never Disparaging by M. LaVora Perry (Young Adult)
- Broken by Robin “Robbie” Ayele (Mystery)

October Features:
- Sinful Too by Victor McGlothin (Fiction)
- Harriet Tubman: Imagining A Life by Beverly Lowry (Non-Fiction)
- Floss by Monica Marie Jones (Fiction)
- Lady Preacher by K. T. Richey (Christian Fiction)
- Charlemagne Mack: Rise of the Queen, Personal Journal #1 by Stephen M. Jones (Young Adult)

November Features:
- Uncle Otto: A Novel by Winifred Cook (Fiction)
- So Good It Hurts by Na’Kisha Crawford (Self-Help)
- Rhythms of Grace by Marilynn Griffith (Christian Fiction)
- In The Night of the Heat by Blair Underwood, Steven Barnes and Tananarive Due (Mystery)
- The Shadows by L.A. Banks (Paranormal)

December Features
- This Life Isn’t Perfect Holla by Sandra Foy (Romance)
- Ruby and the Booker Boys: Trivia Queen, 3rd Grade Supreme by Derrick Barnes (Young Adult)
- Reflections of A Mississippi Magnolia: A Life of Poems by Patricia Neely-Dorsey (Poetry)
- Blackbird, Farewell by Robert Greer (Mystery)
- Family Skeleton: A Brother and Sister’s Journey from Murder to Truth by Sabrina Carmichel-Yaw and Aurora (Memoir)
- Southside Nefertiti #3 by Mike Sales (Comic)

————
The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers (TRR) are the team of reviewers for RAWSISTAZ Literary Group (www.rawsistaz.com) and are committed to supporting and spreading the word about African-American titles. Since inception in January 2001, they have reviewed approximately 4,500 titles, been published in numerous print and online magazines, and provided online newsletters for book lovers worldwide. For more information visit www.blackbookreviews.net or www.therawreviewers.com.

 

Filed under: Articles, Book Clubs, Book Discussions, Day 5 (FRIDAY), General Forum
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Reader & Writer Tips

December 10, 2008 by admin · 40 Comments 

Sharing another article I’ve written…

Please add your own tips as this is a topic we could continue for days. Tomorrow, I’ll provide a listing of literary resources I find helpful and break them down in categories, for readers and writers.

Reader & Writer Tips
by Tee C. Royal

::::::READER TIPS::::::

Keep a Reading Log. A simple spreadsheet of what you read, the author’s name and your general thoughts is a great tool for avid readers. I’ve been doing this the past 5 years consistently and it’s rewarding to see the diversity of my reading selections.

Share Recommendations. Most readers are in book clubs or various online groups. Share your recommendations as this is a great promotion tool for authors.

Step Outside the Box. Everyone has preferred genres, but challenge yourself to read one book a year outside of the genre. You may be pleasantly surprised.

Read The Book Selection. I don’t get why so many people join book clubs and never read the book. It seems pointless.

Elaborate During Discussions. The simple “I liked the book” says nothing. Really evaluate a book and try to apply it to your life. See how it relates to past times and events. Know why you like a book and why you don’t. Consider what you would’ve done differently, what may have worked better.

Buy the Book. Yeah, the library is great and all, but the whole borrowing of books is getting out of hand. Skip lunch a few times a month and save that money as your book money if there are financial issues. If you don’t have those issues, stop being cheap.

Stop Harrassing Authors. Some of our book buddies give readers a bad name. Stop stalking authors ya’ll. They do have the right to privacy.

Work Together. There are a million book clubs, with hopefully very similar goals of helping authors and reading great books. Why be competitive or even go so far as to steal information? (Someone stole the entire RAWSISTAZ site one time and claimed it as their book club, with a new name and new colors and everything. It was crazy. (And it’s gone now.) But we can work together, share information, do joint projects, without the competitiveness.

Don’t Settle. Stop buying poor quality work. Raise your level of expectation and constructively share feedback with authors.

Be Honest. Whew…can we stop giving the “you go girl” dap to poor quality work or books of your favorite author just because she may have given you a free book once. I heard one book club president tell an author (at a literary event), and this is verbatim, “send your book to us, we’ll give you a 5-star rating. We love you.” Her book club will never be credible if that info gets out.

Have Fun. Reading and discussing books is supposed to be fun, so enjoy it. And, stop trying to go to blows over some made up characters. LOL. Enjoy that time bonding with your sister friends, that’s what the whole book club experience is about.

::::::WRITER TIPS::::::

Have a Plan. Don’t just say you want to write a book…do it. And, don’t just jump on the latest bandwagon, DO YOU. No one can do you better than you can, and if you’re not quite there yet, study, research, and take classes to help perfect your craft. Devise a plan to help you get from point A to point B.

Read. I’ve heard many authors say they don’t read. What? Ummm, never ever say that loud enough for any book enthusiast to hear you. Read the works of others, study what makes them good, and use that information to find out what your strengths are and perfect them.

Research. I can’t stress this one enough. Don’t expect anyone else to do this for you. Yes, others can be used as resources, but always know how to look up things, research, and stay abreast of the latest industry news. Get subscriptions to Publisher’s Weekly, Black Issues Book Review, Writers Digest, or simply sign up for these places online. Most have online versions of their magazines. Websites and blogs such as Book-Remarks, AALBC, The Blacklist, Blogging in Black, RAWSISTAZ, TheGRITS, and others are great sources of information to stay aware of what’s going on and how it affects writers.

Be Professional. OMG, you would not believe how some folks act in email, query letters, or even out in public. Remember that you are not only selling your book, you’re selling yourself. Agents and editors don’t want drama, moody, demanding, annoying, or those folks whose hands you have to hold. Be professional at all times. (And don’t harrass folks either.)

Practice Email Etiquette (and Patience). Don’t send nasty grams. ROFL, I’m laughing now, but it’s not really all that funny. I’ve gotten quite a few nastygrams from disgruntled authors wanting to know where a review was, if I had read their books, did I get their submissions, is there any word on the partial they sent in, am I going to represent them, on and on. And while I understand the frustration, realize that the publishing industry is for the most part, not a “fast” industry. It takes time to read/review books, read/respond to queries, and yep, even to negotiate a contract and actually get your books on the shelves. It doesn’t happen overnight.

Follow directions. I know I work folks’ nerves with this one, but please please PLEASE follow directions. When you don’t, it creates much more work for that person to follow-up or fix the problem. Realize that there are reasons a person asks for things a certain way. If they say no attachments, don’t include them, or more than likely your email will be deleted.

Be Careful. Not everyone claiming to “help” you is really planning to do so. There are wolves in this industry too and they will try to gobble you (and your money) up. Ask around; get references! Don’t be too desperate to get out there that you sell yourself short.

Build inventory. Agents and editors love it when authors have several completed books in the hopper. It shows you can start/complete work and you’re more than likely in it for the long-term.

Plan to Market. No one knows your book better than you, so plan to market it. You should start well in advance of the release of your book and continue throughout the release and following months. This includes getting a website. Stop being cheap or thinking you can’t afford a site. You can find low-cost domain and hosting for $10-$25 per year and decent websites (or blog set-ups) for less than $500 (and places like WordPress are free. So please, please please…get your www-FirstnameLastname-com domain NOW.

Be Gracious. A thank you goes a long way, so do thank those who have helped you. Additionally, learn to accept criticism, and use it as a tool to take your writing to another level. Another thing, be proud of your accomplishments, but not arrogant.

Support Others. Some readers read 100+ books a year. Stop thinking your book is the only one competing for their attention. Support your fellow authors.

Practice Positivity. Surround yourself with positive folks and steer clear of those who sap away your energy. Believe in yourself and your dreams.

That’s it! I hope you have enjoyed and will share some of your own reader & writer tips. (And anyone who wants to also share them on the RAWSISTAZ site, please email me directly with WRITER (or READER) TIPS in the subject line, and include your tip, name, and a link to your website. (Please note that it may not be up within a week or two.)

Filed under: Articles, Book Clubs, Day 4 (THURSDAY), General Forum
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More on Book Reviews

December 10, 2008 by admin · 9 Comments 

Hey all, I wrote this article last year and wanted to share it during the conference. 

More on Book Reviews

by Tee C. Royal

What is a book review?  How does it help the reader or the writer?  Is it for the reader or the writer?  What’s a good book review, a bad book review, or even a true book review?  And, why do some reviewers love everything they review?  Have they chosen to only post “good” reviews or do they truly like everything?  Questions questions…

First off, a book review is basically a person’s opinion or critique on a book based on a set of standards or an analytical take on a book.  Most share what the book is about and then how the reviewer feels about the book.  This varies from reviewer to reviewer, but it’s important to not only give the brief overview of the book, but to also share just exactly how the book falls based on things such as the plot, pace, characterization and other elements of style.

For The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers, I share the following tips when it comes to reviewing:

Reviewing Tips:
- Give a brief overview of the story and main character (or two) — don’t tell too much though.
- Give your likes/dislikes of the book in a constructive manner.  No sugar-coating, but try not to be harsh or mean.
- Include thoughts on the elements of writing: plot, main issue/lesson/message, character development, author’s writing style, setting, etc.  Don’t forget to mention any editing issues.
- Don’t give away any spoilers, tell too much of the book or tell the ending.
- Try not to be cliche-ish in your opinion portion or sugarcoat things.
- Always be honest; a good review can be written for a bad book. 
- Make the review your own style and please DO NOT USE “this reviewer”

Is it possible for the review to help both the reader and the writer?  Yes.  For the reader, it helps them identify with the book to see if it’s something they may or may not like.  For the writer, it points out the good and the bad of the book, hopefully in a constructive manner that isn’t an attack.  Yes, there are bad books (poorly written, bad execution, repetitive storylines, no editing, etc.), but a good review can still be written for a bad book, if it employs those elements needed to help those who read it.

I’ve touched on what a review is above, which would make a “good” review and more than likely a true review, which can only be done once the complete book is read; LOL.  I won’t go there.  A good or bad book review will vary according to what a reader is looking for, what they prefer, etc., but for me, a bad book review doesn’t really say anything or it sugarcoats the problems with the book (or fails to mention them) or it’s all “you go girl-ish” or it’s so technical, I don’t “really” know what the reviewer is saying.  I want to be able to answer several questions when reading a review:  What is the book about? Why do I care?  <grin> How does the book make the reviewer feel? Is this something I would be interested in?

Almost done. 

The last piece I wanted to cover is reviewers who seem to like everything.  This can be one of the most annoying aspects of book reviews because we KNOW there are some bad books out there.  For some, they simply choose to only share the reviews for books they like.  For others, they just may not have a high standard for what they expect in a book.  But for me, I believe in sharing it all, the good and the bad.  How else will a writer learn?  Get better?  Reviews should not be looked at as the end all, be all, BUT they can be great tools for improving one’s writing, if you’re open to it. Not everyone wants to hear “this needs work” but instead are looking for the “you go girls” of the review.

As a reviewer, this is annoying, but my best piece of advice would be to take what you can from a review, learn from it, and move on.  Don’t take it personal.  Don’t linger so much on the review you can’t move forward.  And, above all, don’t attack a reviewer if they didn’t get what you set out to do.  It is possible you didn’t actually do it.  To the reader, don’t be so quick to write off all reviewers — some of us work very hard and it is not all that easy to review all the time.  To the reviewer, stay true to you and your opinions on a book and always back it up.  Tell why you liked or disliked a book and as long as it is not mean or harsh, stick by it.  It is, after all, YOUR opinion.

Filed under: Articles, Day 4 (THURSDAY), General Forum, Panels & Workshops
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