A Word On Free Books
Ever wonder why an author would willingly give away hundreds of copies of his or her hard work for free? (And trust me on this…writing IS hard work.) The answer is simple: word of mouth. The more people that have read a book, the more it gets talked about. And the more it gets talked about, the more it gets sold, and then the author can afford to stay at home and write another book. This is why you see guest authors on talk shows giving away a copy of their current book to everyone in the audience that day, for instance. The hope is that each person will read the book and then tell all their friends and neighbors to go buy it.
The way an author achieves word of mouth online is through good reviews. They have promotions on amazon.com in the hopes that a whole lotta people will download the free version of their book, and will then not only tell all their friends and neighbors, but will stop back by and leave a positive review on amazon, and on their own blogs, GoodReads, etc. This will make it more likely that shoppers won’t be able to resist buying the book themselves. Voila! More sales. Author can afford buy food and keep the power turned on, and then write more books. That’s how it works.
So, next time you download a freebie and enjoy it, maybe you could take a few minutes to stop by amazon and leave that positive review. It could make all the difference in an author’s sales, and if they could each thank you personally, I’m sure they would. And while you are at it, be generous with those positive reviews for the books you paid for, as well. Writing is time-consuming and difficult. We all love to read, so why not offer our support and encouragement to our favorite authors? Especially if we have just read their book for free.
I’m trying to be much better about this, myself, because I know how easy it is to think others will leave plenty of good reviews, and I don’t have to bother. So not true!
Just something for you to think about as you make your Christmas book purchases this year. I’m just sayin’…
Have a great Moon’s Day!!
Bookin' It 
I review the majority of the books I read on Goodreads, though my pile of unread freebies on my Kindle mocks me.
Since I absolutely read the GR reviews before most book purchases, I see the wisdom of passing that help on. 🙂
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I agree, Caitlin, that Goodreads is a great way to share information on books. But reviewing (copy and paste from GR, if it’s easier) on amazon is the best way to move an author’s books up in the amazon ranking so that it is easily found by folks browsing through titles. It’s so critical to sales that it can make or break a good book, so I’m trying to be much better about reviewing there first, and then on Goodreads. And last, of course, on my personal blogs.
As I learn more and more about how to self-MARKET a book, I hope to do a better job, not only for my own books, but in helping other authors get their books in front of buyers. This is one of the things I have learned, and I’m making a resolution to practice what I preach. I’m hoping others will realize what a difference they can make, too.
Good to see you here this morning! Thanks for stopping by.
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