Book reviews aren't scary! How to find & write them

A recent online writing critique session turned into a discussion of book reviews – how to get books reviewed as well as how to cope with reviewers when we do find them. It reminded me that I haven’t blogged about the how-tos of book reviewing recently, or mentioned one of the most helpful sites I’ve found for locating reviewers.

The most promising site by far for fiction -- Reedsy’s annually-updated list of book bloggers. Reedsy promises it to be a “vetted catalogue of active book blogs and thoughtful, quality book reviewers.” Search it by genre, by friendliness toward indie-published books, by average traffic, domain authority, and more. 

If you are a book blogger who would like to apply for inclusion in the catalogue, you can do that at the site as well.

For authors who long to see their reviews on paper, please understand that large metropolitan newspapers like The Dallas Morning News in my city, are tough places for book reviews. According to a former book page staff writer at the DMN, it receives several hundred books weekly from authors, but publishes at most only five. 

For a comprehensive list of newspapers and magazines that publish book reviews, check New Pages. And consider contacting smaller papers. A hometown, county or regional paper might be a good fit. Your local library may be able to make suggestions.

And speaking of regional publications -- for Texas writers – or authors of books with special appeal for Texas – I recommend Lone Star Literary Life. Check the site for what LSLL does – and doesn’t accept. Still, with limited time and space, it can’t publish free reviews of every acceptable book with a Texas focus. In that case, writers may opt to buy a review ($249 for fiction, $279 for nonfiction). Again, check the site for terms and conditions. 

Not a Texan or writing a Texas-focused book? Check with local writing groups for other regional outlets for reviews. 

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image: pixabay

OK, so, you write? Consider writing book reviews. You already know it’s one of the best things you can do to promote your fellow writers. 

Book reviews had always seemed reminiscent of the essays I always dreaded writing in school. But after posting a few blog posts dealing with books to Goodreads and Amazon, I decided I had the whole book reviewing thing down cold. Unlike school, nobody grades the review writers, which removes a lot of pressure. It’s a matter of using the same basic formula we learned in school – tell people what you’re going to say, say it, and tell them what you said. 

However, for potential reviewers who want more structure, I like the online tips from the Writing Center at University of North Carolina’s College of Arts and Sciences:

•  Introduction (including the name of the author, title of book and main theme) – although as a fiction writer, I prefer starting with a “hook” in the opening paragraph, and including genre and intended age group (if relevant). 
• Summary of content (remembering not to reveal the ending!)
• Analysis and evaluation of the book
• Conclusion (restatement)

A few additional helpful suggestions from UNC as well as Writing-World.com: Review the book in front of you, not the book you wish the author had written. Be precise. Check to be sure statements you attribute to the book are accurate.

There’s also an entire cottage industry on the Internet about how to write reviews for Amazon, including on Amazon itself. The book itself has to be available on Amazon before the online giant will accept it. But as I can personally attest, contrary to popular belief, reviewers don’t have to buy the actual book from Amazon. Presumably Amazon considers even non-buyer reviews a service to its customers. 

Amazon also likes reviewers of any of its products (not limited to books) to indicate why they liked or disliked a particular one. And it has suggested lengths – 75-500 words. 

Having written all this, I admit that I also have some requirements for reviews. I receive far more requests for reviews than I can honor. As a general rule, I also do not review indie-published books. And I’m wary of reviewing the books of friends, who have probably had their fill of my critical comments long before publication!