Dear Direct Response Letter Subscriber:

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Want to get good reviews for your book?

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Well, now you can buy them!

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There are a number of paid book review services, including BlueInk, IndieReader, Kirkus Reviews, and BookLife.

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Some focus on writing a book review you can use across your marketing including media kit, Amazon page, and award application.

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A few actually publish them; e.g., BookLife by Publishers Weekly (PW), where the "BookLife" Reviews section follows the PW reviews section in every issue of Publishers Weekly.

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Likewise, Kirkus Reviews offers a paid service called Kirkus Indie for self-published authors.

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According to Hasmark Publishing, "These are established organizations, many with decades of history in traditional publishing, that now serve independent authors with the same caliber of review they provide to major publishing houses."

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So, should you pay for book reviews using these services?

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As an old-school, 69-year-old author of 100+ published books, paying for reviews doesn't sit right with me.

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When decades ago, one of my books was mentioned in the New York Times Book Review, it made my day.

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And when Kiplinger gave another of my books a short but positive mention, it sold 1,000 copies in just that week!

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I also fear that a paid review is not a legitimate review, neither honest nor earned.

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But we are living in a new world today—and so my prejudice as a Baby Boomer against paid reviews is admittedly not universally shared.

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When my first book was published in hardcover by McGraw-Hill in 1982, it was at a time when being an author meant something.

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My colleagues and clients were impressed, and the publication of my book raised my star as a professional writer.

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I also enjoyed writing occasional book reviews. For which I was paid by the newspapers that ran them—and not by the author.

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But I fear that era is bygone and will never return.

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There is an overwhelming amount of noise in books specifically and content in general.

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Likewise, if you can just buy your way to a good book review, does that review really mean anything?

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Regards,

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