Book Blogging 101 – How to Write a Review Policy

It has been a while since I did a Book Blogging 101 post and I felt that it was time to make a change. I want to really work on my blog this year, gain some great followers, and bring you all high-quality content. That means I will have less of the ‘filler’ posts and more reviews and other great posts. I have some great ideas spinning around in my head, I just need to make the time to get them done.

 

Welcome back to 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 are useful to all of you.

 

Tip #8: How to Write a Review Policy

 

Now, I know what you are all thinking…the same thing I was when I began my book blog. “I don’t need a review policy because I am small and nobody will request that I review their book.” Well, I have some news for you. Even as a new book blogger you will get review requests. Maybe only one every so often but you will. Now you ask “Great! I want requests!”

 

 

It might sound great at first but what happens when you are only getting requests for you to read books that are not in your preferred genre. You might never get a book review request because they have no idea what you are looking for in a book. Why would an author or publisher spend time and money to send you a book when they don’t know what genre you read? ARCs are rare, often only a certain number of them available for them to send out for advanced reviews.

 

“What is a review policy exactly?”

 

A review policy tells publishers and authors everything they need to know about your reading preferences; your likes and dislikes, preferred reading medium, and much more. This allows for people to look at your policy and determine if they should email regarding their book or not. Why waste time on emailing people who would not be interested in the book…right? We are all after efficiency after all.

 

Now that we’ve established that you need a review policy…how do you make one?

 

Let’s find out!

 

Making your review policy

 

1) Add a new tab or page to your blog for the policy

Your review policy should be easily accessible, preferably on the top navigation bar of your website. This allows publishers and authors to quickly find it. You could put it in a drop-down menu on the navigation bar but I would advise against that. It makes finding it just a bit more difficult. The faster they can find it, the better off you’ll be. Like I said above, we aim for efficiency. An author’s or publisher’s time is valuable, no need to waste it by making them search for your policy.

2) Mention your preferred genres

One of the main reasons to have a policy is to tell authors and publishers what you enjoy reading, so this should be one of the first things you include on your policy. It is a waste of time to have to respond to an email request of a book within a genre you just won’t read, not only your time but theirs as well.

3) Mention your preferred reading format

Just as with your preferred genres, this helps the author avoid wasting valuable time. If you prefer only reading physical copies but the author doesn’t know and emails to offer you an e-copy, you will have to respond accordingly. So, do you read print copies? Do you use a Kindle or Nook? What about audiobooks?

4) Let them know where you live

With the outrageous costs of shipping internationally, it is very important to mention where you live. It would be upsetting to accept a request and then have them to take back their offer because they are unable to ship the book to you. Now, this really applies mostly to those who DO NOT live in the US or UK, since most publishers are located in those two areas. Again…this saves time.

5) List the places where you will review the book

Where can they find your review, aside from your blog, when it is posted? Amazon? Goodreads? Other bookselling sights such as Barnes and Noble? Will you be promoting their book outside of your blog? This would also be a good time to list what social media platforms you use to do that.

6) Indicate the time period you take to review the book

You can include this but I did not put this on my policy. I chose not to include it because depending on my backed up TBR it might be longer or shorter than the time period mentioned on the policy. I discuss this directly with the publisher or author when I reply to their request.

7) Add a contact form

Again, this goes in line with efficiency. You can add a link to your email address in the words ‘contact me’ or direct them to the contact page of your blog but it takes more time. I added the contact form at the bottom of the policy page.

8) Be sure to let them know if you guarantee a review

Will you review every book that you receive? Do you share both negative and positive reviews? What about books that you DNF (Do Not Finish)? I mention up front that I do not

9) Discuss your rating system

Ratings are very subjective. Let everyone know up front what each level of your ratings means. This is not a must-have, for example, I do not have that on my policy at the moment. If you use something other than the typical ‘out of five’ system you should absolutely mention that on your policy page.

10) Update your review availability

I do this often. If I find I have too many books on my TBR, I’ll put up a note mentioning that I am not accepting review requests at that time. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth to have to turn down a review request because I am too full with reviews. I could’ve saved everyone a lot of time and frustration by just updating my availability. If you are still receiving emails after mentioning you are not available for reviews…then you do not have to be so nice. Although, for the sake of your reputation I would remain polite.

 

 

Remember, these are only suggestions. Each person has different ideas about what they want to include in their policy. You can add as much or as little information as you want. I do suggest bullet lists because they are always easier to read. Your review policy is a fluid document. This is something that is likely to change as you grow as a book blogger. As time goes on your reading preferences might change.