About Reviewing

How did you get started?

I have always been a very passionate reader. Reading was a way for me to escape my reality. A local author friend of mine thought I would be perfect for reviewing books. I found a great company called Candid Book Reviews that was actively looking for reviewers to join their team. Through Candid Book Reviews they introduced me to many creative and talented authors who I am blessed to still read and review for today.

How do you review a book? Is it a read first, and then make notes, or do you make notes as you go along?

Many of the books I read are on my Kindle or hard copies that the authors send me. If it is a Kindle book then I usually use the highlight feature as I go. That makes it easier to go back when you are reviewing it. If it is a hard copy, I make notes as I go.

What are you looking for?

I am looking to help promote Indie Authors any way that I can by providing them an honest review on multiple social media sites. All I ask in return is for their book (mobi, pdf or hard copy) and their friendship. I pride myself in having a friendship with the authors. We communicate heavily on my HeidiLynn’s BookReviews Facebook page.  I have 2,303 followers made up of authors, personal assistants, book boggers/reviewers, and fans of my reviews.  Along with book reviews on my site I can add book covers, synopsis of the book, buy links, and author bio and pictures. This can also be cross posted to my Facebook page for more viewers to see it.

If a book has a great plot, great characters, but the grammar is less than perfect, how do you deal with that?

If I find the grammar, spelling or formatting of the ebook is off I will let the author know upfront before I post my review. This way if it is a ARC copy they can fix the issue before the book goes live. However, if the formatting and spelling are really bad I will have to bring it up in the review.

How long does it take you to get through, say, an eighty thousand-word book?

Depending how good the book is I would say 3-4 hours.

How did you come up with your rating system, and could you explain more about the rating system?

I won’t review anything that is below a 3 star for an author. I don’t think it is fair to the to bash the author on the social media sites. They work hard for their craft. If I feel like I can’t read the book or It does not deserve higher than a 3 star I will contact them. I will let them know my reasoning behind it and obviously apologize.

You will usually get a 5 star from me if you write something close to your heart and it shows in your writing, books that grab your attention from start to finish, and books that leave a permanent etching in your memory.

What advice could you give to authors looking to get their books reviewed?

Do your homework on the reviewer before messaging them. Make sure they review what genre you write before approaching them. Please introduce yourselves to us reviewers telling us about yourself, your book synopsis, how you learned abut us, etc.

I would say go on Facebook and start a street team of ARC (Advanced Reader Copies) reviewers. Build a relationship with your readers and get to know them. They are your fans and look up to you.

Try going on NetGalley that is an amazing resource for authors and reviewers. I have found some extremely talented authors there.

Do you get readers emailing you and thanking you for a review?

Few of my readers have commented on my reviews.  However, I have gotten much more positive feedback from authors thanking me for my review. Many have said I had made their day, that they have cried, that my reviews were very thorough. I have a section on my website of that authors reviewed my service.  This feedback is priceless and is why I love doing what I am doing. Giving back to the authors that let me escape to new worlds without leaving my couch!

My advice to authors on getting a ‘bad’ review (hasten to add that might mean a perfectly honest, well written, fair review – just bad from the author’s point of view) is to take what you can from it and move on. Under no circumstances to ‘argue’ with the reviewer – would you agree with that?

Yes, I agree with that. The author wants an honest review and I am going to give you what you asked for. I won’t lie in a review.

About Reading

We talk a lot about writing here on the blog, and possibly not enough about reading, which is after all why we’re all here. Why do you think people love reading? We’re seeing lots of statistics that say reading as a pastime is dying – do you think that’s the case?

For me reading is an escape from reality into a new world for a while. I don’t think that is true that reading is dying. Even my young nieces and nephews are always with a book in their hand.

About Writing

We’re told that the first page, paragraph, chapter, is absolutely key in making or breaking a book. Agents typically request only the first five pages of a novel; what do you think about that? If a book hasn’t grabbed you by the first five pages, do you put it down?

A really good book would grasp my attention and pull me in by the end of the first page. If it doesn’t capture my interest by the third chapter then we might have a problem.

Is there anything you will not review?

YES. I will not read Paranormal, Sci-Fi Fantasy, MC, Shape-Shifters, Political, Historical, Time Travel

End of Interview:

To see HeidiLynn’s reviews, visit HeidiLynn’s Book Reviews.