THE Group for Authors! discussion

I am a fairly new indie author, having written the first book of an Apocalyptic/Dystopian series titled Luminosity. Prior to publishing, I only had a few beta readers. Seven months after publishing Book 1, I am finishing up with Book 2, hoping to pre-release and find readers who will accept ARCs, however, I'm stumped about how to find any additional feedback, as they will need to read the first book before they can provide the necessary feedback for Book 2. Most people would have to commit to reading two books worth of material in order to provide the feedback I'm requesting, and since I'm on a deadline, this may not work. Probably my fault, because I waited so long to find people, but with writing, my time is very limited.

Going forward, does anyone have any useful advice for finding reviews for a series? What process should authors use for seeking beta readers for a series they haven't started?

After reading your post, I found: http://www.yourwriterplatform.com/get...

It's a robust article with lots of ideas that I am finding interesting/useful and thought you might as well.

Personally, I've been a self-published author for less than a month, so my experience is limited. While I do have a philosophy on attracting reviews, I am not sure how useful it will prove for myself and others. I take a "long game" look at the process, and have it in my mind that if I create an abundance of high-quality content with many diverse access points to my body of work, that positive reviews will naturally result. It's kind of a "slow and steady wins the race" mentality.

As a reader I have rarely reviewed a book unless I felt strongly compelled to do so by the content itself. If I write a review for the sake of writing a review, it comes across as inauthentic and forced. If I write a review because I am driven to do so by strong feelings and excited thoughts, that review is is golden for the author. Those are the kinds of reviews I want behind my work; the ones that pop off the page because they actually mean something.

That said, I am going to check into Luminosity today. If it resonates with me, I'll buy it soon. If I have anything authentic and meaningful to express after reading it, I'll review it on Amazon and my blog.

J.M. wrote: "I am a fairly new indie author, having written the first book of an Apocalyptic/Dystopian series titled Luminosity. Prior to publishing, I only had a few beta readers. Seven months after publishing..."

Do you have an email fan base? If not, create one. On your author Website (imperative to have), create an email funnel. Connect it to something like MailChimp that will maintain your list for you. On your Website, offer something free... a short story, a ebook of your first book, etc. Then, six weeks before launching your next book in a series, offer a Read4Review to your fans. They get a free ebook of your latest in the series with the promise that they will post a review that follows all of the guidelines for Amazon (which is the most regulated of distributors in our world.)

In MailChimp you can set up newsletters, or emails, to your fans throughout the year. When you do an R4R, you send out an initial invitation to Read for Review, then you follow up with reminders, thank yous, etc.

This is a way to build a growing fan base and communicate with your readers, who love to connect with you.

I know this is probably confusing, and I'm leaving out a lot of detail, but that's the basic gist of it. Several gurus out there like Tim Grahl teach how to do this the right way. You might just google him and look into it.
Best, Carol

J.M. wrote: "I am a fairly new indie author, having written the first book of an Apocalyptic/Dystopian series titled Luminosity. Prior to publishing, I only had a few beta readers. Seven months after publishing..."

P.S. Here's a link to an article by Tim Grahl: http://timgrahl.com/automate-book-mar......
BTW, I am in no way connected to him. Just a follower of his methods which have helped me.
Carol

J.M. wrote: "I am a fairly new indie author, having written the first book of an Apocalyptic/Dystopian series titled Luminosity. Prior to publishing, I only had a few beta readers. Seven months after publishing..."

Dove tailing off Carol, Also check out Nick Stephenson's Reader Magnets: Build your author platform... : http://amzn.to/2fHw0JM
As mentioned above, I am in no way "connected" to Nick Stephenson, just familiar with his work.

Matt wrote: "J.M. wrote: "I am a fairly new indie author, having written the first book of an Apocalyptic/Dystopian series titled Luminosity. Prior to publishing, I only had a few beta readers. Seven months aft..."
Yes, Matt. I like Nick as well and read his stuff!

Do they really need to read book one to review book two? I've read books for series in different order and I don't find it a problem not reading all, or in consecutive order. Plus, on one book tour programme I'm with, offers to send previous books are often taken up.

I'd *suggest* that reviewers might want to read the first book, but don't make it obligatory.

J.M. wrote: "I am a fairly new indie author, having written the first book of an Apocalyptic/Dystopian series titled Luminosity. Prior to publishing, I only had a few beta readers. Seven months after publishing..."

With books in a series--at least if it's a multi-volume continuous story--it's common to create a summary of "the story so far" specifically for review copies. I remember reading and interview with Robert Jordan around the time of his fourth Wheel of Time book, and he mentioned the editor asked him to create a 3-4 page summary of the first three books to send out with the review copies. He couldn't get it under eight pages, and the editor couldn't cut it down much more, either!

Andrew wrote: "After reading your post, I found: http://www.yourwriterplatform.com/get...

It's a robust article with lots of ideas that I am finding interesting/useful and thought you might a..."

Thank you Andrew!

Wendy wrote: "J.M. wrote: "I am a fairly new indie author, having written the first book of an Apocalyptic/Dystopian series titled Luminosity. Prior to publishing, I only had a few beta readers. Seven months aft..."

Great advice, Wendy. Thank you.

Carol wrote: "J.M. wrote: "I am a fairly new indie author, having written the first book of an Apocalyptic/Dystopian series titled Luminosity. Prior to publishing, I only had a few beta readers. Seven months aft..."

Thanks Carol, I will check it out!

Roughseasinthemed wrote: "Do they really need to read book one to review book two? I've read books for series in different order and I don't find it a problem not reading all, or in consecutive order. Plus, on one book tour..."

I'd say it's preferable, just because they won't understand the character arcs and backstory, or even why they're in the situation they're in. I'd hate to have a confused reader, as it may result in a negative review, in which case, wouldn't seem fair.