Bookish Reviews

Q&A Time!

Q: I was wondering if you could give me some writing tips.

Writing tips I can give to anyone would have to be:

- read the criticism people give you (i.e. grammar, plot, writing, etc.).

- don't take the criticism to heart (they are saying this stuff to help you improve your novel).

- be unique, be you (don't write what you think will draw people in, write what makes you smile and happy that you ended up writing something something that is truly you).

- watch your grammar (sometimes it happens to the best of us, we fail to see the error until someone points it out to us)

- consider getting your cover professionally done (the better your cover looks, the higher the chance of you getting read).

- be careful about the length of the chapters (you don't want it to be to short - people won't stick around - or to long - people will get bored).

But most of all

- HAVE FUN! :)

Q: How do you get a lot of views?

There is no bulletproof way to gain followers but some ways you can increase your views would have to be:

- signing up for book reviews

- signing up for book clubs (under Community tab)

-  signing up for writing contests (monthly or random - Target, Grace Helbig, etc.)

- signing up for #JustWriteIt

-  put your novel out there (The Wattys and any other types of awards)

- not stealing people's ideas (original work makes you more successful) 

- never giving up

Q: How many novels do you read each week? 

About two or three physical books and the amount of novels I read and check out for WBRB (Wattpad's Best Romance Books) vary - usually ten books but it never has a set amount. It depends on how many recommendations I get and how many books I can read in that set amount of time. 

Q: What is your favourite romance novel?

Pride and Prejudice and Wuthering Heights. They are both my absolute favourite novels of all time. Even though Wuthering Heights does not have as much romance as Pride and Prejudice I still adore it. 

Q: What is the difference between an ARC and a Galley?

An ARC stands for Advance Reader Copy and is given to magazines, newspapers, bloggers, and reviewers for review. It is used as a type of marketing tool to gather hype about the book before it goes on sale. They're expensive to make but best to spread the word out about the book. There is also electronic ARCs, which can be read on any device though sometimes it does vary (Apple iPad, Kobo, Kindle, and sometimes desktop computer). 

A galley is an uncorrected proof, like an ARC, without the cover art. 

Q: What do publishers typically want?

- your blog must be up for six months and you must be blogging consistently 

- your blog includes book reviews and not just meme posts

- your unique monthly visitors or followers (GFC)

- if you have any social media stats (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. - typically how followers and likes you have)

Q: How do you get ARCs?

You can receive ARCs various different ways. I personally request them. 

Q: How do you request an ARC?

There are so many platforms where you can request novels (Netgalley, Edelweiss, ext.). Other ways to receive ARCs are (1) following publisher contacts - Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram - they tend to host a bunch of giveaways, (2) join social communities - Goodreads, Epic Reads, RazOrbill, etc. - they also host a good number of giveaways including ARCs, and (3) signing up for giveaways on book bloggers websites. You can also request ARCs by emailing publishers.

The best way to know which upcoming books are going to be out that certain season is to check out a publisher's catalogues. They will have PDFs which you can download and find out which books are going to be out during the season. They're mostly found on the publisher's web site. Another way to find it is through the website Edelweiss, a great way to receive digital ARCs and find out the upcoming book titles from every publisher. 

If you want to email a publisher to request a novel then look no further!

 First you want to introduce yourself, your blog (name, what it is about, url). State what types/genres of novels you like to read and what your blog has to offer. Be sure to include any other sites where you post your reviews (i.e. Amazon, Goodreads, etc.). Also include your mailing address.

Besides that, include:

- mostly visits/views

- monthly pageviews 

- followers

- how many times you post per month

- and if you have social media accounts (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, etc.) be sure to include your views and followers. 

Lastly, keep your emails simple and polite.