If you've visited The Story, you might be familiar with a feature I do occasionally called "Dear Story Siren." If you not familiar with the feature, basically readers submit questions... personal questions, questions about blogging, author interview, publisher interaction, reviews, etc. It's my way of sharing some of the things I've learned during my blogging adventure. That being said, I am in no way a blogging expert, but I'd like to think I've picked a few things up along the way.
A lot of the questions I get have to do with publisher interaction. This is something that I think is very important for a blogger that is actively receiving review copies from publishers. I know that at a blogger myself, I want to continue to improve those relationships and be as beneficial to the publishers and authors as I can. The majority of the time I don't know the answers to these questions. I have my assumptions, but who knows if those are correct.
In turn, I was inspired to do something a little different with "Dear Story Siren." I'll be doing a special edition of "Dear Story Siren" geared specifically toward blogger/publisher interactions. I've contacted several publishing houses with a set number of questions to be answered, and I'll be featuring a different publisher each post.
Past Dear Publisher Posts:
Penguin
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
HarperCollins
Bloomsbury & Walker
Egmont USA
Flux
Random House
Candlewick
St. Martin's Griffin
Abrams
MacMillan
Simon & Schuster
Today's blogger/publisher interaction questions are from
Harlequin Teen!
What should I include in my review copy request?
You should include a link to your blog, and possibly anywhere else you post reviews (such as a GoodReads and/or LibraryThing account for example). The more influential you are in showing us how many readers you reach the more likely we will be able to send you a galley.
Also include what genre’s you are interested in/your readers are interested in and perhaps a bit about your reviewing background (how long you have been reviewing for, how old is your blog, etc.).
When is the best time to post my review?
Anytime before the release date of the book is best, but really, it is up to what you think your readers will enjoy most.
Do you want to be sent reviews of titles I've bought?
Most definitely. We love to track all the reviews we can. This allows us to share your valued opinion of a book with the author and other members of the Harlequin staff (from PR to editorial and even marketing).
Do you want to be sent reviews of titles that have been on the shelves for a while?
Yes. Especially with books that are part of a series, it can take more time for the first book to gain increased attention. For example, we still get reviews for The Iron King by Julie Kagawa even though it was a February 2010 release. The second book in the series, The Iron Daughter was just released in August and this propels readers to start at the beginning of a series.
All reviews, no matter what time they are posted, are valuable for both us and the author.
Is it okay to have a contest for an arc that I've gotten from a publicists?
Of course. This is almost a double bonus for the publisher because more parties can benefit from the one ARC. The blogger benefits from getting an early read, their readers from an early review, and the winner from a free book. However, all ARC’s are subject to change and may vary from the final text.
How many months do you like to see someone blogging before they request an advance readers copy?
We like to see bloggers who have blogged for at least a year with a strong consistency in posts and reader interaction through comments. However, it is more a case by case situation. If the blogger explains how they have aspirations to increase their readership and plan on blogging for a long time, this can be just as good.
What criteria do you look for in a book blogger before you will send you an advance readers copy?
In today’s economy, ARC’s are rarer than in the past. To help with this, Harlequin has solicited the help of NetGalley (www.netgalley.com), where we can invite bloggers to join our digital galley program. This lets us get ARC’s to more reviewers than it would ever be possible with hard copies. Having said that, we rarely send ARC’s out for review, but are more inclined to send the e-book version.
When you send a copy for review, do you like us to let you know it arrived?
No, this is not necessary. It usually takes 1-3 weeks to arrive by post, but we definitely don’t mind if you inquire when you have not received the book(s). However, for digital galleys it takes only mere hours.
Do you want us to send you links of our reviews that are negative?
Yes. This helps our many departments to create better products.
What if I can't get into a book that you sent me for review, do you want us to let you know that we won't be reviewing it?
As long as you stipulate somewhere on your blog that you will not review every book you read, if you feel it is not worth reviewing, that is good warning enough. But if you know someone at the publisher is waiting to see your review, it would be courteous to send them a note and perhaps instead have a contest for the book so that it is not wasted.
When is the best time to request an arc?
Digital ARC’s are available from us in this timeframe. Hard copies are usually available 1-2 months in advance of publication date.
Do you like sites that promote sharing advance readers copies?
Yes, I think this is a fantastic idea. For Harlequin, ARC’s are rare and it would be great for more people to benefit from each copy.
Is it better to contact an author for swag (bookmarks, postcards, etc.) or should we ask the publicist?
It is a great idea to ask the author, but it is also good to ask the publisher. We have a lot of swag at the office (depending on the book) and this way the author doesn’t have to pay for postage.