Book reviews can be enormously helpful to an author. Those who decide what new titles to order for a bookstore or the library often consult reviews first. Readers, too, may be persuaded to pick up a book based on what they read in a review. And we’ve all heard the urban legend that you need to have 50 or some magic number of reviews on Amazon to trigger the algorithm in favor of your title. But not all book reviews are the same. There is an enormous difference between a customer satisfaction report on Amazon and a starred review from Kirkus. Below, I’ll return to reviews from your readers, but to begin, let’s focus on book reviews. A book review is a form of literary criticism, although criticism varies between description (summary review) and analysis of content, style, or literary merits. Editorial independence is key and your book will not be reviewed by someone with whom you have any personal connection. Book reviews are typically published 30 days before release to 90 days after publication. That means your Advance Review Copy (ARC) needs to be in the hands of the reviewer two to three months prior to your book’s launch. Publishers Weekly, Shelf Awareness, and Kirkus Reviews offer independent, unbiased, critical reviews of notable books being published weeks before they’re released. Their primary audience includes booksellers and industry professionals. Reviews are also published in Library Journal, a trade publication for librarians, and School Library Journal, targeted to media specialists and…
When Jill Swenson asked me to write a 500 word post for Swenson Book Development LLC book blog, I was apprehensive. For one, writing creatively has never been one of my strengths. But writing critiques, doing research, and procrastinating are. Helping others write is why I want to work in book publishing. Even if the publishing industry is struggling. I refuse to say publishing is… [Read More]
Filed Under: Authors, blogger, blogosphere, Blogs, book blog, book professionals, connect, Danielle Sherwood, Facebook, Galley Cat, industry trends, Jill Swenson, links, magazines, pleasure reading, Publishing industry, Reader, Shelf Awareness, Swenson book Development LLC, The Millions, Tumblr, websites, WordPress
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The collaborative effort of Victoria Boynton (poet) and Marney Lieberman (artist), entitled “Contraptions,” reminds me of a game that the Surrealists used to play at dinner parties. In this game, one person would write a word or draw a portion of a picture on a sheet of paper. The paper would then be folded over, so no one else could see its contents, and passed to the next guest. This person would write a word or draw another part of a picture on the blank space below the paper’s fold. After all the dinner guests had made their contributions, the paper would be unfolded, and there it was: a microcosm of the creative power of the unconscious mind.
Perhaps this book is itself a “contraption” for accessing the untapped resources of the heart. Using the delicate balance of poetry and art, Boynton and Lieberman hold a séance to call forth “our dark hearts and our light hearts,” and decide to “welcome whatever comes.” Beyond this, though, I am fascinated by the fact that it seems Boynton was playing a Surrealist party game all by herself. Sometimes even Boynton has no idea what is coming next in her poem, nor what has come before. Thus, the poet and the reader unfold the paper together.
Boynton is uninterested in giving a guided tour of the emotions, objects, ideas and imaginings which she catalogues so thoroughly and so irregularly throughout the book. The reader feels much the same as the narrator of “Contraption: missing part,” who spends the entire poem wandering through aisles of parts and pieces, searching for the right one. The mistake, for the narrator and the…
My friend Robin gave me a starter bag to make Amish Friendship Bread; sweet bread that tastes like a moist cake. For the first five days I opened the gallon sized bag to release the air and then seal it and smash the contents in the bag. On the sixth day, I added a cup each of flour, sugar and milk. Then I sealed the… [Read More]
Filed Under: Amish, Author, Baking, Book, bread, Community, connections, Darien Gee, Food, Friendship, Friendship Bread, Kitchen, oven, Pudding, Readers, recipes, Starter, Stories, yeast
We begin the season of soaking up the sun and relaxing with a good book. Here at Swenson Book Development, LLC, I am not the only one who is reading books worth sharing with other readers. Over the coming weeks look here for guest bloggers who will review what they’re reading. There are a half dozen books I find myself reading simultaneously. I look forward… [Read More]
“Attendance at BookExpo America last week, including BlogWorld, was 23,067. Excluding BlogWorld, whose participants were not included in last year’s attendance figures, attendance was 21,664, down just 255, or 1.2%, from 21,919 in 2010. BEA emphasized that this year’s slightly lower number reflected higher standards: the show “strategically vetted more attendee groups to improve the quality of those participating in BEA.” One resulting major change:… [Read More]