MSI Press Blog

  It is Tuesday. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side.  Today's topic is giveaways. Do they really help in obtaining book reviews and promoting your book? Let's take each question separately. Do book giveaways really help in getting book reviews? Once upon a time they did. Today is seemingly a different story. Library Thing was and likely still is a popular place for giveaways. After all, it is a beehive of book review postings. We used to give away a couple dozen copies each time a book was released. We do not do that anymore. In the past, when Tim (last name forgotten) was the head of Library Thing, a book given away was tracked; it resulted in a review, typically on LT, Amazon, and B...

  It is Tuesday. Time to tall turkey. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side. Today's topic attempts to answer the questions, "Do giveaways help sell books?" You will find authors completely divided in belief and experience on this question. So, are giveaways worth it? Yes. If they go to good quality (active) readers, who are likely to tell others about the book or to write a good review. If the book is the first in a series and you want stir up a desire for the remainder of the series. (Sort of like a loss leader at a grocery store.) If you have other related books, though not in a series, that might attract readers' attention, having read your giveaway. Yes, if there will be eno...