Resources for Readers

Facebook Groups​

This is a fabulous Facebook community run by some of my favorite authors and amazing women.

JOIN GROUP

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A Novel Bee is a book recommendation and author adoration society disguised as a FB group.

JOIN GROUP

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Great Thoughts' Great Readers is a private group for readers and authors to meet and share great reads.

JOIN GROUP

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The goal of Readers Coffeehouse is to build a happy, supportive community where the focus is on stories we love, authors we follow, and inclusive, friendly energy.

JOIN GROUP

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Goodreads

If you're not already on Goodreads, go take a look. You can follow your favorite authors and see what they're reading, compare book lists with friends, and send that TBR (to be read) pile toppling over in no time at all.

JOIN GOODREADS

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BookBub

BookBub is another fabulous tool for learning about new books (including can't-miss ebook deals!), seeing recommendations based on your reading preferences, and following your favorite authors.

Join Bookbub

How to Help an Author

If you loved a book, there are a few little things you can do that will make a big difference:

1. Write a review. Whether you choose to post on Goodreads or BookBub, Amazon or Barnes & Noble, reviews make a big difference! It doesn't have to be long or detailed. Any review is appreciated (see below for helpful hints).
2. Recommend the book. Word of mouth is the best marketing.
3. Buy the book. Authors get paid when people buy their books. Books take months, sometimes years, to write and revise, and unless the book is already under contract, chances are your favorite author isn't being paid for that time. 
4. Preorder. If a favorite author has a new release coming, consider preordering. I didn't realize what a huge difference this made to authors until I became one. Now I preorder as much as possible.
5. Ask your local library to order the book. 

Why and How to Write a Review

I admit that before I jumped onto the wanna-get-published train, I didn't realize the impact reviews have on books. Sure, I scanned reviews but I always assumed it didn't make a difference whether readers leave them or not, except to other readers. And I can honestly say that a review by a stranger never pushed me to buy or not.

Silly me. How far I've come in the years since! 

Many readers do look at reviews. The more reviews a book has, the more appealing it is to some readers. And, here's the kicker, Amazon uses an algorithm for what books get included in their promotions. The more visibility a book has, the better chance it has to sell, and the more sales a book has, the better chance an author has of getting another contract to write more books. 

I love the graphic from Kathryn Craft with helpful hints on how to write a review.

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