Reading can really pay off - not just in the educational and “you look more brilliant” type of way but you can also win a lot of free stuff. All you have to do is follow your favorite authors and post reviews for their books on websites like Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Goodreads.
I was fortunate enough to read a book by Bella Andre’s called The Look Of Love, if you haven’t read it yet – do – if you like romance like me! I read her book as an ebook and I away make sure I go until my Kindle tells me I’m at 100% of any book because you never know what you’re going to find at the end. I’m glad I did because in this book she had a contest. All she asked was you write a review for her book and post it to any site then send her an email with where you posted it and the user name you did it under. I did this for her book and sent her an email. I woke up on April 6th to an email telling me I WON a Kindle Fire!!! If you were a fly on my wall that morning you would have had to cover your little ears. I was beyond excited to find out I won new Kindle! So see…it pays to read!
Pretty much ever author out there now has some way for the reader to connect with them. Most of them have 4 or 5 different outlets that let you connect with them to find out what they are up to. Most of them have a website of some sort that lets you know what they are working on, give-a-ways like bookmarks and stickers and if they are involved with any type of book tours, hops, review. These three things all sound the same and they can be or they can be very different. Cathy C. Hall of Cathy C’s Hall of Fame breaks it down into how they are different but yet similar. A book tour is where an author’s book goes to a different authors sign and that person basically interviews the author on how they came up with the idea, what they like to do and what they’re going to do next. A blog hop (which I think is the greatest because you can get A LOT of free books on some of them) is usually centered on a theme – Halloween, romance, vampire. Here the authors posts a blog on their page and encourages people to post comments at the bottom of the page and answer a question or just leave a random comment with their email address and then send you on to the next authors page. Get it; it’s a hop so you jump from page to page. The author then uses your email address and sends you the free ebook that they were promoting. A book review has nothing to do with the author themselves. Their book is sent to a blogger and that person is asked to read the book and write up a review as to what they thought about it.
Authors are up-to-date when it comes to social media. I haven’t found one yet that isn’t on Facebook and Twitter. They not only use social media to promote their work but to connect and interact with their fans. I know the ones that I follow (and yes I follow a lot of them) don’t just sit on the sidelines and watch what their fans are saying but actively engage them and respond with comments and suggestions. Bella Andre’s on her Facebook page yesterday (April 23rd) put “Have I mentioned recently how much I love my readers?! I heart all of you!! : ) Thank you so much for the sweet notes and messages : )” To this comment alone she received 15 comments and 73 likes. Other authors that are constantly talking with their fans and chatting back-n-forth are Michelle Madow, Lacey Jackson Weatherford, Belinda Boring and Brenda Pandos.
Another way that authors connect with their readers is by using a site called Goodreads.com. This is a site that is used like a virtual bookshelf and book club. It is where you can list the books that you have already read, the one you’re currently reading and what you are planning to read in the future. This site is a site that a lot of authors use and you can get book recommendations from them and if you have a lot of authors that you follow you can get their latest blog posts all in one location.
Following authors is a GREAT way to find out what’s coming up next as well as getting incite one what their reading and if it’s any good and worth taking a look at. If you have favorite authors that you like I highly suggest you find out if they have a blog, Facebook page, Twitter and Goodreads accounts. It’s worth the effort to be in the know!
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