Interesting blog post on Goodreads Author Dos and Don'ts

[Danielle The Book Huntress , Literary Adrenaline Junkie]

I think this has a some good feedback on how authors should approach Goodreads. Also good for non-author members who wonder about how to interact with authors without feeling required/guilted to read their books.

I personally enjoy chatting with authors on Goodreads, but I have always wondered when an author stops being a booklover. Sometimes it feels as though Goodreads becomes just about self-promotion.


http://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_...

Your thoughts?

PS. We show respect for each others' opinions on this group and for each other, even when we don't agree.

[Jim]

That is great advice for authors & now that GR has been written up again, I expect we'll see another influx of new authors making all the same mistakes. I wonder if Otis could post this as a must-read for all the new ones?

[The Pirate Ghost, Long John Silvers Wanna-be]

As a reader, my initial reaction is, well said. Then, as a thinker (an affliction I'm barely able to control and the Navy tried their darndest to stamp out of me...upon failing that, they promoted me to Chief Petty Officer.) I started thinking about Authors, their roles on goodreads and reactions.

Generally, I agree with the basic belief that Authors on most good reads boards should be considered, and should consider themselves to be, readers and participate the same as everyone else.


Generally, I am against spamming in all its forms and I agree, let the reader or group reach out to you rather than insert yourself into a conversation to talk about your book.


Generally, I agree that readers are not idiots. They will sniff out your evil plans if you have your own agenda on a thread and, ultimately, it will work against you. Readers don't trust subtle hints and maybe not staying away from controversy, but, at least steer clear of the melodrama that is common to (but not all of) social networking sights. A small percentage of reviewers use goodreads as a personal playground to trash authors and book and there is no way to engage them without getting tainted yourself. Most readers avoid that kind of melodrama too and the only think you can do, either in dealing with it, or defending against it is call attention to yourself in a negative light. Strategically, not personally or even remotely emotionally healthy, letting the bad guys draw real blood and cross the line earns the most sympathy. Better not jump into a gunfight with a knife (I always say) and always be honest in reviews and posted comments. (Come from an honest place or point of view, not a contrived one.)


I use the term "generally" because I think this, though accurate and good to follow advice (very good to follow) does not take into account what authors (and I mean independent publishing authors in particularly) have to do to market their books. Picture this:

You’re in the supermarket waiting in line to get "rung up" and the line has stopped moving. The lady ahead of you is talking with the cashier while waiting for some poor stockboy to find the shelf tag, since some fool took the last can, for pork and beans...and it's his first day.

So, with time on your hands, and, having heard the cashier and some older person talk about boils, skin rashes and hemorrhoids long enough you look around you and, there in a rack near the register, or on an end cap is a display of books. Some have flashy covers featuring a muscular yet rugged looking man holding some type of weapon and a Barbie Doll like female in as much undress as they can imagine and not look too trashy and some huge beast bearing down on them. Next to that the top five romance novels, next to that the latest non-fiction releases ... an Oprah-book-shelf waiting to show you who the next winner is that they picked. Or worse, go get a coffee at the Starbucks in Barnes and Noble.

Now, think indie author who writes ebooks. What checkout line to you wait in that has your book out for others to see? Where’s the Oprah-fan-pick of the week with your book in the running? Nowhere. You see, publishers publish thousands of books and take them thousands of places where tens of thousands of people pass by per day/hour/minute and see the cover and get to look at the words. Some buy but most do not. Still that’s a heck of a lot of exposure. Indie authors don’t get that. The equivalent of that kind of mass marketing exposure for an Indie author and an indie book may be, popping that “link” into a post that gets recognized in a post by somebody else. To the indie author, every time he gets you to go to his website, or to B&N or to Amazon.com that’s the same as every time somebody in the grocery line picks up their book to read the back. Every time somebody mentions your book in a discussion thread, that’s the same as a shopper glancing over a rack of books on the shelf.

My point is, sure, we can get all huffy and pumped up and demand indie-writers not intrude into our reading discussion but if we successfully closed our threads to indie books, he loses chances to get his book looked at.

There just isn’t a viable substitute. If we want a change in the actions of authors on Goodreads, maybe there needs to be more options for them to get the word out about their book?

[Lisa P, My weekend is all booked up!]

As a reader/non-author, I think that if authors want a "how to" on promoting their books here on Goodreads, they should check out our threads here at A/A Aficionados for a few days. We have a great mix of readers and authors here, that interact in a very comfortable and relaxed manner. We know about all of our member-author books, we can discuss and read them if we choose, but we do not feel pressured or uncomfortable if we don't. I personally love interacting with authors and feel that the author-members in our group here do a great job of negotiating that middle ground area. I feel the author-members are a big part of what helps to make this group fun and successful.

[Mark]

I'd agree, this group does an awesome job of making authors feel welcome, bringing them in and making them a valued part of the group, without ending up drowning in spam - it should be a case study for how it's done :-)

[Jim]

Oh, jeeze. I confess. I'm a would-be author. Got two of 'em just about to drop out the end of the book machine. And, yes, I'm a reader, too. Reading all the time, instead of editing.

The thing is, readers are always looking for books to read. And "we" (got my reader hat on now) look everywhere. Prowling through used bookshops, the Goodwill Store, online sites, review blogs, book festivals, B&N, Borders (not any more, miss that place). It's like an obsession. And my basement library is packed full of books. You don't even have to read 'em. Go down there and hang out with 'em. Feel the energy wafting off 'em. And soon my Kindle will explode. There's over a hundred packed in there, too. Yikes!

[Steve]

Good advice. I intend to release an ebook some day and I guess promoting books without spamming or alienating people would be like a minefield.

I've read a handful of new ebooks that have been self published and found them to be pretty good with original story lines. In fact much better than some tired old novel released by a big publisher long after the author wrote his/her best stuff. Jack Higgins springs to mind unfortunately. I intend to read indie authors more often and I guess this is a good forum to find them.

[Danielle The Book Huntress , Literary Adrenaline Junkie]

I can see how hard it must be for indie authors to get the word out. I think it's a delicate balance. Be available but don't be pushy or annoying about it. I like to chat with members on Goodreads about books and find out after the fact that they are authors. Once I realize how much they love reading and books, then it makes me a lot more excited to check out what they have to offer.

I'm glad that this group does give authors a way to get their name out there but at the same time a safe place for readers who don't want the constant hard sell. There are many reasons why a reader won't read a particular book, and we don't ever want that reason to be because the author was rude, pushy, or annoying about their books.

[Jim]

I think this group is to be commended for how well it treats authors. So many groups treat them like crap & it doesn't make sense to me at all. Yes, some authors are jerks & can get pushy. Yes, there are a lot of them & no, they don't always read the directions, but they're excited. They've worked for months & years to create their book. They're providing us (me, anyway) with some of the cheapest, most exciting & fantastic trips I'll ever take.

[Tim]

Great topic! Personally, I would only use something such as a free give-away here to let readers know that my work is free. That's as far as I would ever go, unless a group has a topic that specifically asks for authors to say something about their work. I have learned to be more self-disciplined as opposed to when I first published. The 'rush' of getting the word out oft-times superseded common sense:-)

There are many sites out there for book promotion where I can, and have, placed my work. Some are free, and some charge a modest fee. I find them very effective and a great alternative for marketing.

Goodreads to me, is what its title says. It's about finding a 'good read' based on comments by its members.

[Seeley]

Great thread. I am a reader and an author and approach GR primarily as a reader. I read Heidi's bullet points and agree as much as it's common sense. I auto-delete event invitations (never understood why I would go to those) and I try not to mention my book in a forum/message unless it's asked of me or pertinent to the discussion.

From time to time, I will send an email to GR friends about my book, but only if I have a specific reason to contact that specific person. I rely on advertising and blog posts to do most of my evangelizing.

Peace, Seeley

[Lance]

Goodreads is one of the few venues in which an author of whatever type can find a large number of people who are 100% guaranteed to read books. That's called a market, and any author would be silly to pass it up.

That said, while authors have an obligation to try to be good GR citizens, GR groups shouldn't be surprised when authors show up on their virtual doorsteps wanting to promote their books. Groups should set up mechanisms for authors to do that; some do a better job of this than others.

It would also be helpful if more GR groups made a point of choosing indie-published books for their group reads (as A/A does) based on member recommendations. Believe me, Cussler and Patterson don't need more sales help, but a few dozen sales to a GR book group would really make an indie author's week -- and the group would be nearly guaranteed to have access to the author to answer questions and participate in the discussion.