58 – How to Become a Book Reviewer, with Katherine Scott Jones
Does talking about books put you in your happy place?
Do you enjoy influencing readers to pick up good books and steer away from bad ones?
You might want to try your hand at reviewing books.
Katherine Scott Jones – book enthusiast, reviewer, and author – introduces us to the art of book reviewing.
Katherine got into book reviewing for two reasons:
- She loved to read.
- She needed a blog to help establish an author platform for the novels she wanted to publish.
Book reviewing isn’t for everyone.
Katherine and I discuss who should – and shouldn’t – become a book reviewer. She points out that readers, publishers, and authors are looking for different qualities in a reviewer.
Readers want a reviewer who is honest – whose judgment they trust.
Publishers and authors want:
- Reliable reviewers who post reviews during the book launch period.
- Reviewers who write for a specific audience and can demonstrate an established blog readership.
- Reviewers who post balanced critical reviews, not merely a synopsis of the book.
- Reviewers who cross-post their reviews to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Goodreads.
4 ways to get started as a book reviewer:
1. Establish your blog and key social media channels and begin growing your readership.
2. Contact a publisher’s PR department and follow their reviewer guidelines. Cite your credentials: briefly introduce yourself, provide the link to your blog, share your metrics (audience and numbers), and explain why you want to review a book and how you can help the publisher.
3. Follow your favorite authors’ blogs and social media channels. When the author announces a street team (aka, launch team) for their book launch, you can apply to be on the team. If you’re accepted, you will have the opportunity to help the author promote their book.
4. Check out book review sites and organizations such as:
- Celebrate Lit Publicity Group (Christian books)
- BlogChatter (general market books)
- NetGalley (general market and Christian books)
Pro tips for reviewers
Katherine shares important considerations prospective reviewers must make, such as:
- Why it’s critical to post a book review policy.
- Why you should limit the genre(s) in which you write reviews.
- How to write a balanced, fair review… especially when you don’t enjoy the book.
- How to follow up with the publicist/author after you publish your review.
Few things bring a book lover more joy than recommending books they love. Book reviewing is a fun way to serve authors and enrich readers, while honing your analytic writing skills.
Related episode featuring Katherine
Episode 47 – Audiobook Recommendations and Listening Tips, with Katherine Scott Jones
About Katherine Scott Jones
Katherine is a book enthusiast and an author who writes inspirational women’s fiction with a global accent. She writes for women who love stories about real-to-life relationships, people, and places.
Her stories show God’s hand in tending to intricate matters of the heart as well as complicated matters of the world. They are books that celebrate beauty in the midst of brokenness.
Katherine grew up in coastal cities and overseas as her family moved with her father’s Navy career. She now lives in Seattle with her husband and their two teenage children.
After graduating from Whitworth University with a degree in communications, she freelanced to magazines before turning her hand to fiction.
Katherine is the author of Her Memory of Music and Shadow Sister.
She loves black coffee, bold wine, world travel, BBC dramas, and morning walks with her husband. When not ensconced in her writing chair, she might be found training for an occasional 10k, planning the next family trip, or researching her family tree.
Find her at katherinescottjones.com
How to Keep Up With the Show
Click here to join my my email list and I’ll notify you about every episode. (When you subscribe, you’ll also get my free guide, Essential Resources for Running a Writing Business.)
Join The Professional Writer Podcast Community (private Facebook group), where we discuss what we’re learning, meet our guests, and encourage one another on our writing journeys.
If you know a writer who would be interested in The Professional Writer Podcast, please share this link with them:
https://bloggingbistro.com/podcast
Thank you!
Laura