Full circle

I’m a bookworm. Thus, I need to read books to escape, function, relax, centre myself, etc. I know that this sounds like a pitch for Bookworms Anonymous or for a book club, but it isn’t. It’s a thought that came to my mind commenting on a post in a beloved author’s group. When I conclude my comment with “Hey, that would be a good idea for a post!” that’s my muse hitting my brain and I knew that she wouldn’t let me go until I wrote it all down.

The trigger: a writer telling readers how authors appreciate their telling them that they love their books.

This is a full circle:

The author writes and publishes a book. The readers buy and read the book and love it. The readers then thank the author online, write reviews, recommend the book to friends and on social media. The author knows their books are loved and write more books. And so on.

Full circle between an author and their readers.

Word of mouth does a lot

Word of mouth is an important part of the author-reader relationship, in a sense. It is also, sometimes, the most difficult thing to do, because what can you write in a Goordreads/Amazon/B&N/Audible/etc. review?

Well, this is up to you. It could be something as simple as “That book was so good I couldn’t put it down!” A long review with a summary and such isn’t necessary, especially on a vendor’s site because the blurb is on top of the item. And unless you’re used to it, it can contain spoilers, which is a big no-no!

But knowing that a vast majority of readers loved a book I haven’t heard of might incite me to read it more than with only the title, the cover, or the blurb, especially if it is an author that I don’t know.

That’s why, after seeing many authors I like mentioning the importance of leaving reviews, I stopped being review shy and started to actually write them, at the very least on Goodreads, when not directly on Amazon (where I buy my eBooks). The latter I sometimes forget because it requires logging into the site.

That was before the creation of this blog, of course, but since this is still a baby blog, the views are higher for my actual reviews. Then again, I also take time to share authors’ tweets (yes, I’m more Twitter than Facebook), or tag them when I write a post about one of their books. My own personal way of keeping the circle running.

More word of mouth? Telling friends about books you read and love! Simple, efficient, and fun.

The positive chain

When I had my first job, some 22 years ago, I had this training about marketing, in which it was mentioned that a bad experience reached 10 times more people than a good one. Hence the importance to leave reviews when you like something. Not only stores. It’s also valid for books!

You love a book? Talk about it! Because yes, the naysayers will always be more vocal than those who genuinely love something. Leaving a positive review can do a world of difference for an author, insofar as they know the readers love their work, and it is, ultimately, an incentive for them to write more in a series, for instance.

Because if we think about it: we need the authors to write books. But they need us more to know what we readers like and what we don’t. If only the unsatisfied readers write reviews, that will tell the authors that we don’t like their books, and they will stop writing them. (Side note: if I don’t like a book, I never leave a review. I one or two-star, but I don’t review. The rating is enough.)

Instead, let’s start a positive chain of good reviews, recommendation posts on social media, and so on. This way, it will make a world of difference for the authors, who put everything they have into their books, and everyone will be happy!