Tip 2: (And this is something I’ve come to notice in a publishing role more than I ever did as a bookseller…) When reviewing, concentrate how the book made you feel, and who you’d recommend it to rather than describing the plot. Publishers are looking for those reactions and opinions over everything else.

Tip 3: Post reviews and make noise as early as you want. I think it’s a bit of a myth that publishers want you to hold fire for publication day to share your reviews. Early reviews help to create a buzz and encourage pre-orders. Quotes from early reviews are really helpful. There’s nothing to stop you re-sharing on publication day! In fact, please do!

I’ve so much respect for bloggers. Blogs require a lot of time and energy. I’m in awe of anyone that successfully carves out time to keep the plates spinning in their own spare time. It reflects such a level of commitment to the art of promoting books and reading. Heroes, all of you.

Also, I much prefer when bloggers follow the professional routes for communication – email and twitter are great, and I don’t really mind if you contact me on Instagram (but the other two would be preferable) but sometimes I get messages on GoodReads and all sorts of random places and it can feel a bit like being bombarded about work from every angle. My GoodReads is for personal use and chances are, if you message me on there, I’m not going to remember that you did when I’m back at work.

 

Cultivate a relationship with publicists. The more I work with you, the more I know that you’re reliable and enthusiastic, the more likely I am to send big, exclusive titles your way and to think of you when I get a book I know you’ll like. Also, don’t just go for the big releases. Bloggers are a core part of launching debut authors and we really appreciate your support. Plus, you never know what exciting new author you’ll be the first to read!   

 

Large follower numbers are great, but high engagement is better. If you get really good engagement but have lower Twitter/Instagram followers, make sure you highlight it to me. I’m interested in the community you’re part of and how you interact with it.

 

When you’re writing your review, don’t worry too much about making it sound super professional – we just want to hear your enthusiasm, so if you loved it and want to shout about it, that’s great! From a publicity perspective, as well as you guys helping us to spread the word and build buzz around the book, we’re also looking for snappy quotes we can pull out from the review – so really thinking about what it is about this particular book that you enjoyed, why you’d recommend it, and how it made you feel. 

 

Also, always email rather than tweet your requests, if you can – this is 100% the best way to make sure I definitely spot your request! If there’s a specific book you’re hoping to review I’d recommend emailing around 4-6 weeks before publication, as this is when I’m looking to send copies out.

1.      Be clear in your approach publishers: I often get emails from bloggers asking to be on our mailing lists, but their messages contain little information about their blogs and/or reach data I can’t decipher. I want to know about your interests, what sorts of books you’re reading and what you’re looking for so I can get a sense of whether you’ll like the books I’m working on.

2.      #BookPost on social media: I love seeing bloggers share what books they’ve received and get excited about a proof or sparkly cover before they’ve read the story. It shows that the blogger is engaged and passionate. If you read the book ahead of publication and want to share your review, do it! Publicists want to see early reviews and buzz, so there’s no need to hold back until publication. 

3.      Email signatures: This is going to sound a bit lame, but it’s so helpful if you put your up-to-date postal address in your email signature! I’m often sending out books in a hurry and if your address is in the body of your email, you will likely receive it quicker.

I would also recommend that if you are ever invited to attend a book launch party to definitely go for it if you can, we would really love to meet you in person. It's also a great opportunity for you to network and meet other people in the book world to grow your contacts. 

E.G. ‘Pure magic, this book made me laugh and cry!’

Tip 2: Be honest – if you’re not enjoying a review copy please email us to let us know. We are always happy for you to pass it on to another blogger who you think would be a better fit. Much as we’d love for all books to have 5 star reviews, we don’t want you to compromise the integrity of your blog. This is a collaborative process, by privately sharing your feedback we can get a clearer idea of the best books for you in the future.

Tip 3: Please don’t DM authors requesting local visits or interviews, these should always be sent to the publicist. An author may open a DM while travelling or on holidays and won’t always be able to give you an immediate answer. If you email us, we can check their schedule and find a date that works best for everyone.

Also, keep your social media platforms fresh and up to date! I was very late to joining Twitter, but this has quickly become one my favourite platforms in engaging with publishers, authors and other book bloggers.

From a publisher’s point of view I’d say, again, don’t be afraid to reach out. Blogging and social media is constantly changing and if you’re bringing something new to the table then just go for it! We’re always looking to keep our contacts updated and we’re always so grateful of the support of all the awesome bloggers out there!

Here are four tips I hope will be useful…

· Follow publicists on social media to see what they’re working on but email them to ask for review copies. I only ever really use twitter during work hours and rarely check it on weekends. I hate the thought that I might miss a blogger’s request on twitter so email is always the best place to find me. My Instagram is currently private.

· Email a link to your review to the publicist or tag in the publisher in a post when it’s online. We often have to create a round-up of top reviews for the rest of the publishing team and the author themselves so having an extra nudge reminding us that your review is live means we’ll share it far and wide.

· Consider sharing your review on other platforms such as GoodReads, Waterstones and Amazon. I know Amazon isn’t everyone’s favourite and personally I think everyone should be supporting their own local bookshop but Amazon rating can make a huge impact on an author’s career, especially a debut author. Then tell the publicist that you’ve shared the review and they will be incredibly grateful (as will the author themselves).

· Include your latest statistics with us. When you first email a publicist its best to share your social media and blog statistics – sometimes we only have a limited number of book proofs or advanced copies to give away and we want to make sure that you have a good number of followers to share your review with. For bloggers just starting out I’d recommend reviewing the books you’ve bought to build up your portfolio before asking publishers for free copies.

concept (for instance, live-streamed interviews) can really stand out, and help bloggers with smaller follower-counts who might not otherwise qualify for a limited ARC-run.

Showing interest in debut authors or smaller releases is another way to start building your relationship with a publicist – if we know you’ve produced high-quality content in the past, we’re much more likely to work with you again.

Finally, something I’d always say to bear in mind is not to take rejections on ARC requests – or sometimes even a lack of a reply – personally. I’ve mentioned the incredible number of emails which go through a publicist’s mailbox, which often leaves little time to read requests, check a blog’s following and make a quick decision. On occasion, requests can also go unnoticed, so it’s always worth sending a quick follow-up email if you haven’t had a response within a fortnight.

Early proof reviews from bloggers can be invaluable to a campaign so make sure your review is quotable, with a short headline quote that sums up your longer review. There’s the chance this will be used on the finished book.

It can be challenging keeping up with the online community chat (I’m a full-time working mum of three) which is why I love meeting face-to-face if the opportunity arises. Try and attend book launches if you get an invite or get to your local book festival so you can meet publicists in person. Now that video meetings have become the norm, you could suggest a virtual meeting with a publicist to tell them about your blog and to hear from them about upcoming titles.

Enthusiasm for particular books is wonderful in a busy inbox, so be specific and don’t worry too much about saying what you think we want to hear. All we really want to know is what you genuinely think about our books and what might work for you, and we can go from there!

I’d also say that it’s so important with your blog – as in life – to be yourself. You don’t have to make your blog try and fit a mould – so write about the books you truly love, which light you up and make your heart race. Only you can put together your specific, personal corner of the Internet, so make it as ‘you' as possible and you’ll be going down the right path.

Cancelling all our live events has been heartbreaking but virtual events mean bloggers from all over the country can now attend events for free so that’s a really exciting opportunity. Make sure we have your details and if you’re invited to something do attend and share with your followers if you enjoyed it.

I’m also always on the lookout for a really fantastic quote that can be pulled from a review and used throughout the publicity campaign. There’s only so many times a publicist can say that the book is amazing without some wonderful reviews and beautifully phrased quotes to back us up, so that’s definitely something to keep in mind!

Also when requesting a review copy – include as much detail as possible, i.e stats and address etc! Super helpful and saves a lot of time.

It’s also really great if your reviews include what your thoughts are on the book instead of summarising it, and even better if there are a couple of really quotable sentences that I can use to show off our book in our weekly campaigns updates or even on Amazon! Book bloggers are fantastic.