Image Courtesy of Blindogg Books
How Discovering Indie Authors Changed How I Read Books.
by Rainne Atkins
I got my first kindle in 2012 and as I read a few books from Amazon’s “Top 100 Free” I guess at least some of them were by indie authors, I just didn’t know it. I also joined Goodreads at around the same time, but the only reviews I left were for books I’d won in Goodreads giveaways.
Last May, I started blogging. I was full of great ideas of what I was going to blog about, but when it came to putting my brilliant shouts on paper, I dried up and had only managed a couple of posts. Then I stumbled on the #IndieRoar Challenge, which introduced me to the world of the Indie Authors, and my eyes as a reader were opened.
As I met and became friends with a number of indie authors, I began to realize how important reviews were to them, not to mention their book sales. From then on, I vowed to leave reviews for every book I read. I also began reading more books by indie authors. I like to think that my reviews have improved with time, and I love it when an author takes the time to comment and thank me for the review.
Most of authors I’ve come into contact with are friendly and patient. They understand that it takes time to read a book and that I can’t always read their book immediately. Occasionally I come across an impatient writer. Their book goes to the bottom of my list, or simply doesn’t get read at all. So be warned authors.
I do accept requests for reviews, but I had to remove this fact from my blog as I had more requests than I could handle. Some authors even sent their books along with their initial request for a review and I felt obligated to read it. I was never comfortable being put in that position. I am slowly learning to say, “Sorry, but no.” 😉
To some people self-publishing means bad quality books, or not good enough to be published by a traditional publishing house. I categorically disagree. I have now read a lot of indie books and I can honestly say that the majority of them are as good and, in some cases, better than any traditionally published book I’ve read.
Although I’m not an author, I am a member of three Author Groups on Facebook. I love that they’ve welcomed and accepted me into the indie author family. I say family because that’s how it feels. Some bickering and disagreements but mainly love, friendship, help and support for each other. And I enjoy being a part of it.
I’m an avid reader, and I blog. I get a lot of pleasure from putting reviews and blog posts together and helping, even in a small way, to promote and support indie authors and their books. I wish more people would follow suit.
Find more writing and publishing tips at Nothing Any Good.
About the Author
Rainne Atkins is a 51-year-old Mum and Grandma from the UK. She gets a lot of pleasure from being creative, whether it’s drawing, painting, card making, knitting, sewing, or doing any other ‘artistic’ activity. She loves to try new crafts, although she is not always successfully! You can see some of her crafty efforts on Rainne’s Ramblings, Just Books, Pinterest and Facebook.
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Well said, Rainne. I think the “not good enough” label is something we indie authors may have to fight for a long time to come. It takes time to overcome a stigma. But not unlike the world of trad publishing, there are well-written and entertaining indie books and there are some that aren’t. That should be left up to the world’s book-buyers and reviewers to decide. But it still stings when I browse a blogger’s review requirements only to find that dreaded notation, “Will not consider self-published novels.” But thank YOU for being open to us indies and favoring us with reviews. Rest assured, it IS appreciated. Now if only the rest of the world would follow your lead….
Great post!
Like you, I didn’t know much about the indie world when I ventures into it. I hadn’t realized the importance of reviews, although truthfully I also hadn’t read a lot of indie authors before I started writing. I’d stuck to trad published out of ignorance.
So glad I expanded my preferences. 🙂
Thank you for sharing, Veronica! I was once told a great comment. I had wrote an article about how the quality and the finished product of indie books had improved tremendously over the last 5 years. I said the books are hit and miss, but the quality is now on par with traditional publishers. Someone commented, “Yes, indie books are hit or miss, but so are the highly marketed traditionally published books.”
It is such a simple comment, but really insightful. Books always seem to be hit or miss, that’s why book recommendations (and reviews) are so important.
Please check out https://usbookreviews.com/ , they are really great in book reviews. They give 100% honest and wholesome reviews and they love working with indie authors. Good luck.