Amazon reviews help

[simpsonkeith9]

I just finished a futuristic fantasy novel (took me almost two years) and self published on amazon but I want to get reviews before trying to market it as it would probably be a waste of money without at least a dozen five star reviews. Anyone know how to get reviews besides asking friends and family to get it started ? Does my cover or blurb look good? I would love any help I could get, just remember this is my first fantasy novel i wrote so please be easy

here is the link if you want to give it a look its only .99

https://www.amazon.com/Infiniverse-Virtual-Reality-War-1-ebook/dp/B0C9XNZN4R/ref=sr_1_1?crid=C4QTOOFC7PPU&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.kwJZ5pjyYwDQSP0gcQROP53EbRTToOXG-ELaHRC2u27XA0K0qcoEfn6XKILdNCb-zBj9MrzVDoocl3M7diNsCrNYoLgYQqAIz0c7IIOo6tDF5zZqjAgqHr_WG2R12BRIrYUKawTVSHvh0o20Mv4Pf6Az7E5mYhB6A8ah-Kcdp6PEm0EixJGW0HhlONg-4NgD12wBpHbuVBACKHz096uf2YQ0s6rTPOeww9x9V963dcg.vBBbTUEqGwlC2pMwKu8Ig6kiy4leaMo1dvsdqIKZ8s8&dib_tag=se&keywords=infiniverse&qid=1709922163&sprefix=%2Caps%2C96&sr=8-1

 

[Not_Alice]

Okay, so first of all, this link is sufficient: www.amazon.com/Infiniverse-Virtual-Reality-War-1-ebook/dp/B0C9XNZN4R
There's no need for the rest of it. Second, I've been told that too many questions in a blurb put readers off. I don't know if it's true.
Third, and please don't take this hard now... you need more editing. I've read a bit from the preview, and you have two mistakes in the first two sentences alone. You can send the book out to review blogs all over the internet, but if you send something unedited, they will tear you to pieces.

 

[Finchbearer]

You ask if the cover and blurb look good. The cover is fine for an indie published e-book. The blurb for me is far too long, and as mentioned above way too many questions. I want to be hooked with a short impactful blurb that I can read in less than a minute and make my mind up as to whether I want to read a book or not. The strange PowerPoint additions below do nothing for me. But you already have two 5* reviews going for you so you’re already winning.

 

[ThinkerX]

I just finished a futuristic fantasy novel (took me almost two years) and self published on amazon but I want to get reviews before trying to market it as it would probably be a waste of money without at least a dozen five star reviews. Anyone know how to get reviews besides asking friends and family to get it started ? Does my cover or blurb look good? I would love any help I could get, just remember this is my first fantasy novel i wrote so please be easy

here is the link if you want to give it a look its only .99

https://www.amazon.com/Infiniverse-Virtual-Reality-War-1-ebook/dp/B0C9XNZN4R/ref=sr_1_1?crid=C4QTOOFC7PPU&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.kwJZ5pjyYwDQSP0gcQROP53EbRTToOXG-ELaHRC2u27XA0K0qcoEfn6XKILdNCb-zBj9MrzVDoocl3M7diNsCrNYoLgYQqAIz0c7IIOo6tDF5zZqjAgqHr_WG2R12BRIrYUKawTVSHvh0o20Mv4Pf6Az7E5mYhB6A8ah-Kcdp6PEm0EixJGW0HhlONg-4NgD12wBpHbuVBACKHz096uf2YQ0s6rTPOeww9x9V963dcg.vBBbTUEqGwlC2pMwKu8Ig6kiy4leaMo1dvsdqIKZ8s8&dib_tag=se&keywords=infiniverse&qid=1709922163&sprefix=%2Caps%2C96&sr=8-1

Getting reviews is a pain. My best success has come via participating in Goodreads Review Groups - ten people doing an assigned 'round robin' read of four books, while four others review your book. Currently, Goodreads Review Group #356 (out of this world) is looking for two members.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

It is so very, very tempting to hit that Publish button as soon as you can see your way to the ending. I know. I've done it. Took a lot to straighten everything out and the book in question is flawed, but that happens.

The advice I'm going to offer is short, but it's crucial to at least weigh. First, take it down. When your work is published, it begins to build your reputation, and in publishing reputation is everything. If you leave it up as is, it won't say good things about your skill, your craft, or your professionalism, and I'm sure you want it to speak to the very best you can be.

Put it in a drawer and hit the ground running with the next one. Keep it in the drawer. Leave it. Seriously. ...Okay, when it's gotten a little foggy, go ahead and pull it out for a read. Just a read. Next read comes with pens. Then you're going to invest in a couple of good books on English grammar. And only when you're feeling good and everything looks great, only then do you send it to an editor to find everything you missed.

There will be a lot. It is known.

While you're at this you can also dig in and get to work on your cover and blurb and whatnot. I recommend going through a designer, but I also kind of suck at graphic design currently and am happy to leave it to pros. In exchange we get this. Click on it. Trust me.



Now, while you're finishing your first book - yeah, still finishing - you're getting your social media lined up, your website and blog, and you're joining groups for both writers and readers so you can make friends, learn new skills, and find your tribe. This is also how you gain reviews. You participate in the community. Welcome!

 

[Karlin]

It is so very, very tempting to hit that Publish button as soon as you can see your way to the ending. I know. I've done it. Took a lot to straighten everything out and the book in question is flawed, but that happens.

The advice I'm going to offer is short, but it's crucial to at least weigh. First, take it down. When your work is published, it begins to build your reputation, and in publishing reputation is everything. If you leave it up as is, it won't say good things about your skill, your craft, or your professionalism, and I'm sure you want it to speak to the very best you can be.

Put it in a drawer and hit the ground running with the next one. Keep it in the drawer. Leave it. Seriously. ...Okay, when it's gotten a little foggy, go ahead and pull it out for a read. Just a read. Next read comes with pens. Then you're going to invest in a couple of good books on English grammar. And only when you're feeling good and everything looks great, only then do you send it to an editor to find everything you missed.

There will be a lot. It is known.

While you're at this you can also dig in and get to work on your cover and blurb and whatnot. I recommend going through a designer, but I also kind of suck at graphic design currently and am happy to leave it to pros. In exchange we get this. Click on it. Trust me.

View attachment 3731

Now, while you're finishing your first book - yeah, still finishing - you're getting your social media lined up, your website and blog, and you're joining groups for both writers and readers so you can make friends, learn new skills, and find your tribe. This is also how you gain reviews. You participate in the community. Welcome!

My experience has been similar. I need to write without thinking about all the fine points. Then I need to let it rest. This is critical, because you won't see anything if it is fresh in your mind. Then read, fix. Then you need an editor. Things that are crystal clear to you will be confusing to the reader. You need someone else to read it.
At some point I decided to take my writing seriously, and paid an editor (this works only if you have the money needed). I finally got a 'traditional' publisher interested, and then a whole new cycle of corrections and changes took place.

Writing is more fun, to put it mildly, but you need to have a polished work if you expect anyone to read it.

 

[Mad Swede]

A. E. Lowan has already said it. First impressions matter when your very first book gets published.

Get an editor. You need a developmental edit because (and I'm sorry to have to write this) your pacing is off and this shows on the very first page.

You also need someone to proof read the final copy, two errors in two sentences on the opening page isn't acceptable. For dyslexic readers like me those sorts of errors wreck the story immersion when our reading software is trying to make sense of what you wrote.

Your blurb is way too long, as long as some of my prologues. It doesn't grab me. Shorten it a lot - it shouldn't be more than two or three sentences long.

Don't publish your book until you've sorted these things out. Yes, this all takes time and it will cost. Don't stint on these things. Editing a book should take two or three passes between you and the editor, and it takes several months. Proofing the final copy will take two or three weeks to do properly - and even then you'll be doing the final read through.

As for reviews, your book is over 800 pages. It should take a week or so before a serious reviewer has got through a book of that length. Seeing a couple of five star reviews for a book that long come that quickly after publication, for a book with two errors in the opening sentences, just makes it look as though you called a friend or two and asked them to help. It isn't serious and it doesn't give a good impression.

In many ways writing is the easy bit. It's getting the story into a fit state for publication which takes the time and effort.

 

[Prince of Spires]

A few different pointers than those above me (though listen to them, they know what they're talking about). In terms of reviews, what you are looking for are ARC readers. ARC stands for Advanced Reader Copies: technically people who read your book before its out', though most also read books that have been published. You give them your book for free (the ebook most of the time), and they read it and review (if they enjoy it usually).

You can find them all over the place. There are several Facebook groups. There are also dedicated websites offering the same thing. Google is your friend here.

You can also get Beta Readers. These are people who read your book and provide you with feedback on your book. This is before it's published. Sort of like an editor, though these are usually amateurs compared to a professional editor. It's why most people who work with beta readers will either only use one they absolutely trust, or they will use multiple, and only take advice if more than one of them says something. You can get these both paid and free. Again, Facebook or Google are your friend here.

 

[Finchbearer]

Getting reviews is a pain. My best success has come via participating in Goodreads Review Groups - ten people doing an assigned 'round robin' read of four books, while four others review your book. Currently, Goodreads Review Group #356 (out of this world) is looking for two members.

This is great idea cause it’s a review for a review type situation. You’re obligated to finish someone else’s work because they’re reading yours. Not so great for the time poor though.

 

[Not_Alice]

You give them your book for free (the ebook most of the time), and they read it and review (if they enjoy it usually).

There are those who will ask for money for a review. Sometimes outright, sometimes not very subtly hidden - "please consider donating to my website", "for a certain fee we will pubish a review within a guaranteed time frame", "your subscription fee will gain you access to a group of devoted readers" - each of those means "pay or we won't review your book". Steer away from those people. Yes, you can purchase a 5-star review, but it will only make you look bad, and Amazon usually doesn't accept those reviews.

 

[pmmg]

I don't know an answer to this question. To pay people to review seems a bit un-genuine to me. Just trying to game the system.

I would suggest along the lines of Thinker X. Find those willing to trade review for review.

I suppose my greater answer, which I am not at yet, is there is a lot to marketing. And the more you put yourself out there, and put the energy in, the more you might find people attracted enough to do this on their own.

But, I'd strongly recommend listening to the chorus above. Is this book really ready to be in the published world?

There is no such thing as 'please be easy' once you go live.

 

[ThinkerX]

I don't know an answer to this question. To pay people to review seems a bit un-genuine to me. Just trying to game the system.

I would suggest along the lines of Thinker X. Find those willing to trade review for review.

I suppose my greater answer, which I am not at yet, is there is a lot to marketing. And the more you put yourself out there, and put the energy in, the more you might find people attracted enough to do this on their own.

But, I'd strongly recommend listening to the chorus above. Is this book really ready to be in the published world?

There is no such thing as 'please be easy' once you go live.

I need to clarify something here. Amazon does not tolerate and is alert for 1 to 1 review swaps.

Goodreads and one or two Facebook sites get around this with 'Review Chains.'

In the short form, Author A puts up a request for somebody to read their book. Author B accepts that request and puts up their book for review. Author C puts their book up, and reviews Author B. Then Author A reviews Author C's book. With the Goodreads Review Groups, this is done with ten Authors, each of whom read and review four books. Each Author has a fixed spot on a list of ten. People can and do get bounced from these groups because they reviewed somebody else and cannot review that author. (That is what happened to me in the prior group. The current group is slow to get underway because of these issues.

 

[The Dark One]

This is great idea cause it’s a review for a review type situation. You’re obligated to finish someone else’s work because they’re reading yours. Not so great for the time poor though.

I've always been wary of such groups as I can't help but feel that 4 star minimum reviews are expected and that honesty will turn you into a pariah and potentially facing rating retribution.

 

[ThinkerX]

I've always been wary of such groups as I can't help but feel that 4 star minimum reviews are expected and that honesty will turn you into a pariah and potentially facing rating retribution.

My books usually got three stars in the Goodreads Review Groups. (Grammar bugs).

In the prior Group, there were a couple of books that consistently received 1-3 stars (no storytelling ability)

 

[Finchbearer]

^ One of you is saying that the review group produced biased reviews, the other is saying they’re pretty honest. How do you know what’s what before going in on something like this?

 

[The Dark One]

I didn't report on experience. I reported on what I suspected would happen, given human nature.

 

[Finchbearer]

That’s fair, although I wanted to know more if there was a general discussion that took place between reviewers to say what you expect of each-other before diving in.

 

[pmmg]

That’s fair, although I wanted to know more if there was a general discussion that took place between reviewers to say what you expect of each-other before diving in.

Well...I am sure that happens.

In a place where reviews are traded, I am sure there is an undercurrent of giving a higher rating cause if you dont, it may come back to bite you. Moreso if its a community where people have to get along.

I like what Thinker described as, a pool of 10 where you review a number, but not each other directly, but even there....some may feel compelled.

Best is....real honest reviews that all like the work and lots of em.

 

[ThinkerX]

That’s fair, although I wanted to know more if there was a general discussion that took place between reviewers to say what you expect of each other before diving in.

The closest there is to that is a series of rules, restrictions, and cautions posted in the thread for each Goodreads Review Group.

Do not try to influence those reviewing your book, make sure your book's grammar is good (that was my issue), be polite, and stuff like that. Reviewers are expected to post reviews on Goodreads and Amazon. They can either buy the books from Amazon or have the author send them a PDG/EPUB version (I buy all of mine, makes it easier with Amazon.) There is great effort put into avoiding review conflicts, especially anything that smacks of a one-to-one review situation. (Review trades.) I got bounced from one group because of such conflicts.