The Fine Art of Asking for Reviews, Blurbs, and Anything Else

By Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Excerpted and Adapted from the third in the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers, How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically: The ins and outs of using free reviews to build and sustain a writing career

To find even more support for your book or your career, we often need to get more comfortable with asking. You can put your reporter’s hat on and ask—tactfully—questions that will help your career or for favors that will help you expand your base (including reviews, blurbs, advice, etc.). Make the point that your contact’s answer or help is a gift to you, and that you would be pleased to reciprocate when the need arises. Try some of these possibilities:

•    Ask fellow attendees at writers’ or other conferences.

•    Ask directors of conferences if they offer a review exchange or provide an area where you can distribute fliers or sell your books. If the answer, is no, ask if they have other suggestions or know of other resources that might help you.

•    Ask instructors and presenters if they have a list of pertinent resources or know where you can find one.

•    When you’re on the Web, look at the resource pages of the Websites owned by bloggers and other online entities to glean ideas and help. Use the contact feature to ask questions or send queries.

•    Think about classes you have taken. The instructors may have a policy against reviewing students’ work but may be a resource for other needs; , ditto for your fellow students. (I hope you would try to do the same for them!)

•    Ask members of your critique groups or business/professional organizations.

•    When you read, make a note of books and their authors, columnists, experts in your field. Almost all magazines, newspapers and journals list publishers, editors, columnists, etc. and you might be surprised at how many might say “yes” to a request for a blurb or a mention of your service or book as a resource.

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MORE ABOUT TODAY’S GUEST BLOGGER

This little how-to article was extracted and adapted from my giant (415 pages) of How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically: The ins and outs of using free reviews to build and sustain a writing career https://www.howtodoitfrugally.com/getting_great_book_reviews.htm third in the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers by Carolyn Howard-Johnson. There is just so much to know about putting reviews to work for your book and endorsements (for your book or business!) Learn more about my books for writers and visit my free Writers’ Resources pages at http://howtodoitfrugally.com. It’s also easy to use my review blog. Just follow the submission guidelines in the left column at http://TheNewBookReview.blogspot.com

Extending Life of Authors' Fave Reviews - Free Resource

Sometimes a review so good comes along that authors are loathe to let it die. They might include it in their media kit or add it to their websites. But then they run out of ideas for it.

But wait! Its life can be extended with new Nonfiction Authors Association’s member Carolyn Howard-Johnson's blog.

The New Book Review is a review blog that doesn't judge a book by its cover or by the press used to print it. If one reviewer loved a book, that qualifies it for more coverage. If a book is so new the author may submit a synopsis. Authors, publicists, and reviewers are asked to follow the guidelines given in the left column of the blog and, in return, are asked only to let their fans and the media know it is there through their networking channels. That helps expose every review on the blog (a cross-promotion of sorts) and gives authors an opportunity to reach the reading public.

Many authors who submit include author bios and information on their reviewers. In turn, authors use information in each review as a resource—the names of reviewers, review sites, publicists and more. A search engine helps visitors to find past reviews using keywords.

The blogger, Carolyn Howard-Johnson brings her experience as a publicist, journalist, marketer, and retailer to the advice she gives in her HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers and the many classes she taught for nearly a decade as instructor for UCLA Extension’s world-renown Writers’ Program. She is dedicated to helping other writers with free services like The New Book Review as well as the the books in her HowToDoItFrugally Series of books for writers which have won multiple awards.

Check out the author's  Back to Literature column for www.MyShelf.com.