I apologize for not having my typical Thursday book review post up today. I have been busy. I will, however, have a blog tour stop tomorrow for On Holy Ground by Louise Cole. Until then, I figured I would throw another book blogging tip your way. Why not…right? So, here we go…
Welcome back to my newest blog series…Book Blogging 101. I am no expert, these are simply things that I have discovered or learned from my book blogging journey. I hope that these tips and tricks I share can be helpful to you.
Tip #2: Netgalley
If you have not yet discovered the amazing joy of NetGalley, you soon will. NetGalley is an amazing resource for book bloggers, but it can be overwhelming initially. First, let me tell you what the website actually is.
NetGalley is a website where you, as a book blogger, can request to receive a free e-copy of a novel to review. It is not solely for book bloggers but for librarians, booksellers, and other book-related titles. Many of these books are ARCs (advanced reader’s copies). The best part about this is that it is 100% free to sign up for!
When you first sign up it may be tempting to get right into requesting books…hold off. The most important thing to do first would be complete your profile.
Completing your profile
Basic Information: Here you will show publishers what type of reviewer you are…librarian, blogger, etc. You will provide your name, book blog site address in the company field and at the bottom, address if you wish (I did not add mine), social media links, and a brief bio. What do you put in your bio you ask? Good Question…it is hard to talk about yourself sometimes. Now let me remind you I have only been blogging for 5 months and my bio is not the best. I will, however, post it so that you can see what I included in mine.
I am a full-time wife, mom of two boys, and book reader. I dubbed myself the Bibliophagist…or commonly known as the devourer of books. I love reading books within many different genres, including books with diverse characters. This allows my blog to reach a wide range of readers. I typically post book reviews twice a week.
I have loved to read from the day I first learned. I currently beta read, review, proofread, and edit books. I would love to provide an in-depth and valuable review of your novel. If you need more information, please feel free to email me at thebibliophagist90@gmail.com
Find my Goodreads profile here: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/8637102-cassandra
I used a mixture of personal and professional information in my bio. This allows publishers to know just a tiny bit about who I am behind my book blog.
Additional Information: This is where you can add any professional associations you may have, subscribe to the newsletter, and change the appearance of your name on NetGalley reviews.
Reading Preferences: This is straightforward…you choose genres of books that you would like to read. This makes it easier to see more of what you like.
Now you should go request all the books that seem interesting…right? WRONG!!
Requesting Books
I know it is exciting that there are so many books at your disposal. This is a word of advice…do not go crazy! If you do, you will quickly find yourself overwhelmed with books to review.
Even though you are new to NetGalley, you will be approved for books. Do not be sucked into thinking nobody will approve you. This will lead you to request way more books than you can handle at a time.
The secret to getting approved most times is to check out the approval preferences on the publisher’s NetGalley page. This is not the end all be all though. I may not have a huge blog following, but am still approved for some of the exciting new releases! My best advice is, do not be afraid to request a book you want. Just…do not get carried away!
The most important part is to review your books. I see many one-line reviews on NetGalley…if that is your thing fine, but I feel you should at least say more than “I liked the book.”
Feedback Ratio
What is the feedback ratio? This is a ratio of the number of books requested and the number of reviews given. The higher, the better. NetGalley says that the suggested feedback ratio is 80% but it is not a hard rule. Especially when beginning and you have 5 books on your to read shelf. I have heard of many that had super low review percentages but were still provided books. A tip to help boost your percentage is to request some of the read now books and post reviews for those.
Now that you know a little more about NetGalley, go on and get started. Happy Reading!
Well, I hope you enjoyed this Book Blogging tip! Let me know what you think below. Do you have any questions about NetGalley? Do you love it or hate it? Do you have any advice for new book bloggers discovering the wonders of NetGalley?