Leave a Review!

Want to make a writer happy?

Of course you do! You’re not a sadistic person who thrives on a diet of writers' tears and broken dreams (we call those people “editors”).

So how do you do it?

Seriously. Hop on Goodreads or Amazon and jot down a few words about their book. That’s all you have to do.

You were going to what? 

*Sigh.*

Look, authors appreciate it when people declare their undying love for us, but quite frankly, our spouses are getting kind of fed up with it, so let’s just stick to leaving reviews…

But D.L., I hear you say. I don’t know what to put in a review. Besides, your wife doesn’t look that mean…

No, but she is the jealous type. So let’s talk about what makes a good review!

If you look at an average book’s review page on Goodreads or a bookseller’s website, you’ll see reviews that run the gamut. There’s some who just leave one word, “Good.” If they’re feeling particularly verbose, it might be “Liked it.”

Then on the other end of the spectrum are the multi-paragraph reviews that take almost as much time to read as the book itself! Authors love these reviews because they’re full of feedback and information.

What’s that? My wife’s looking less tough by the minute? Okay… Okay…there’s middle ground, I promise. 

All it takes to make a writer smile is a quick, one paragraph review. Start by saying how much you *loved* the book. Then toss in a couple of things you really liked (but try not to give away any spoilers). Once that’s done, compare the author to someone, i.e. “if you like Stephen King, this is a book for you!” 

That’s it: 4-5 sentences and you’re done. Hit post. Feel good about making an author happy. Then go read another book…

*Sound of plastic smashing bone.*