In the world of the self-published writing, it is not always easy to find a someone to review your book. So, it is exciting when you happen across a new site that offers the opportunity to have your book reviewed. The Lulu Book Review is such a site. Actually up and running in late February this year, the Lulu Book Review published its first review March 1, 2008.
The site is well set up and offers information about the site, how the review process works, there is a tab for the author to submit their book for review called "Pick Me". The requirements are as follows:
If you are a Lulu.com author and have a book for sale at Lulu.com, and you would like for The Lulu Book Review to read and review your work, then leave a comment here. Give a link to the book, your name and the title of the work, and a one to two sentence synopsis. Tell us why we should pick you for the next review.
I have browsed through the reviews and have found the reviews to be thorough and well-written, especially for such a new review site. Shannon Yarbrough, the site owner and reviewer, provides his credentials on a tab named "Who Am I?" and also has provided a look into the entire process of self-publishing through a section called "POD Diary."
The Lulu Book Review is also running a contest at the moment for all visitors who post a comment on one of the reviews ~ a chance to win a free copy of 1001 WAYS TO MARKET YOUR BOOKS by John Kremer.
So, if you are an author who has published through Lulu, it is well worth your time to stop by and check it out. The Lulu Book Review.
And if you are wondering, I am not in any way affiliated with the Lulu Book Review, just happy to have another opportunity to have my own book reviewed and wanted to share with my fellow authors.
Alan- It is true, not all reviews are positive. When you are earning a living at writing reviews, then you don't really have to worry about your words causing any tears, just as long as the check clears. I guess you really wouldn't have to worry about that if you weren't getting paid either, but at LLBR we've made it a point to only post positive reviews in order to be a part of a healthy marketing experience for the self-published author. Believe me, I've read plenty of books that I could write pages of insults about, but have instead, chosen not to. Besides, I want to encourage reading, not discourage it because of my own opinion of someone's work. We do touch lightly on some constructive aspects of the books we review, where we see fit to mention it. As for my personal opinion on negativity, just read some of my own freelance reviews which I have written for other products and books at Amazon.com. It "ain't" all five stars!
Best wishes,
Shannon Yarbrough
www.shannonyarbrough.com
author of STEALING WISHES
I agree with Alan that there are some really nasty people out there and caution is necessary, but so are reviews. So, do your homework and check out review sites before considering submission of your work.
The problem's arise if someone gave you a terrible review, I don't see how after having a terrible review from somebody; how that will get anymore copies of you're hard work to sell! mud sticks, believe me, just think carefully about the negative, there are some really nasty people out there!