We all want reviews – lots of them and good ones. Some of us write in popular genres, have long email lists and no problem getting reviews in their many tens or more. The rest of us struggle – we ask our friends, our dentist and anyone we can think of until they look a bit bored.
That’s why I want to tell you about my experiences on NetGalley. I decided, as a micro-publisher, to place one of my books on it earlier this year as it has serious reviewers – librarians, journalists, academics and others who love to read – and, from my experience, they write thoughtful reviews.
I write books that don’t fit easily in any genre – based on confidential interviews, they enable people to talk about their lives in their own words and from the heart. The one I placed with NetGalley through BooksGoSocial, Life in a Hospice, is about nurses and others working in end-of-life care. And what happened? In one month, I received 12 reviews, of which 10 were 5 star.
But best of all, they were perceptive – not dashed off to meet a need, but aiming to communicate what the book is about and what it did for them. Here are just a few excerpts, to give you a ‘feel’:
“A brave book – not afraid to confront both the sadness and opportunity that comes from working with people at the end of their lives.”
“As the child of two elderly parents, this is a subject I think of almost daily: this book will make it a LOT EASIER to deal with.”
“As a hospice volunteer, I know well the beauty that can occur at the end of life…beautifully written and thoughtful…”
“It makes you realize that the troubles in your own life are not as important as those dealing with their own mortality…You take an inventory of your own life.”
“I was moved and overwhelmed by the care, compassion and honesty portrayed…This amazing book truly demonstrates the wondrous gift of a good death.”