Newspaper reviews and book blogs

[Dave Rosenthal]

A new member of Book Blogs, I write for The Baltimore Sun's Read Street blog (www.baltimoresun.com/readstreet). It has allowed us to experiment with online features, including a U.S. map of favorite bookstores, as coverage shrinks in the print edition.
Do publishers and authors pay enough attention to bloggers? Are bloggers replacing newspaper reviewers, or does each offer something distinctive? What's the place of a newspaper blog in all this?

[Kelly Leonard]

This is a great discussion topic. I look forward to reading Book Blog members' replies.

I head up online marketing at Hachette Book Group (formerly Time Warner Book Group) where we've been working with bloggers for book review coverage, features, give-aways, authors' guest blogging, and more for several years.

For insight into our approach to working together with bloggers, check out interview here dating back to 2004: http://www.populationstatistic.com/archives/2004/11/29/time-warner-...

Kelly

[Dave Rosenthal]

Here's what Joshua Henken, the author of Matrimony, said yesterday when I asked him about the topic (which he has addressed on blogs): "The rise of book blogs is a good thing, it seems to me, but the concomitant decline of book sections in newspapers certainly isn't. It gets harder and harder for new writers to be discovered when the page space for book reviews keeps shrinking. What's happened to the book section at the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the L.A. Times, etc. is bad news for the diversity of literary culture in the U.S. ...
"None of which is to say that blogs aren't playing an important and good new role in the dissemination of information about books. In the same way that MATRIMONY was helped by print reviews, it was helped by blog reviews and other blog attention. People who like to criticize blogs say that there's no vetting process the way there is with newspaper book sections, and while that's true enough, my own sense is that there are good print reviewers and bad print reviewers just as there are good bloggers and bad bloggers. And the line between the two isn't as clear as it used to be."

[Tricia]

I like the idea of a newspaper blog. I read most of my news online, including local news, so a book feature online would be something I would check out. I get the newspaper, but I hate to say it mostly ends up unread in the recycling bin. I think blogging offers something a little different than a print format because it allows for continued discussion between the blogger and the reader for extra questions and clarifications. Also, I choose which blogs I read because I have grown to trust those reviewers and I know that, more often than not, we have the same taste. Sometimes I read blogs that are very different from my normal reading habits just because I want to try something new, and I think the newspaper is a good avenue for this as well. I also think newspapers are a great way to highlight local authors, feature library happenings and author visits.

[Bermudaonion]

I think there's room for both. The problem I see with newspaper reviews is that they're only in large markets. I live in a small metropolitan area (Greenville, SC) and the only book reviews in our paper are for cookbooks or local authors. The Sunday paper does list the NY Times bestseller list, but there are so many good books beyond that out there. Since I've started reading book blogs, I buy a lot more books, and since I started writing my blog, I pay attention to who publishes them. I get my recommendations from blogs, magazines and newspapers.

Publishers and authors do pay attention to bloggers. I've found them to be friendly and accommodating. Of course, I work hard to hold up my end of the bargain, too.

[Luanne]

I think that blogging is replacing some of the newspaper coverage. I agree with bermudaonion - my local (although fairly large) newspaper covers only certain genres and a lot of mainstream authors and is only in the 'weekend section'. I enjoy discovering an author or book that is new to me and I have found blogs to be the best place for this. I do feel that a newspaper blog has a place in the blogosphere as well as indie bloggers.
I feel that publishers definitely recognized the relatively new role and importance of blogging in their marketing campaigns. A lot of authors have also realized the impact bloggers can have, especially new or unknown writers.
That's it for my two cents!

[Norm Goldman]

This is another good question David. Unfortunately, many news media have cut back on the number of reviews that are published and thus it is quite obvious that web sites such as my own, bookpleasures.com, have become quite important in promoting books. I can vouch for this by the dozens of review requests we receive every week and these are from main stream publishers as well as self-published authors.

I likewise am a new member of Book Blogs and perhaps you may consider joining bookpleasures.com?

Regards,

Norm, Editor Bookpleasures.com

[nbmars]

I wonder if there is a generational component to preference. People I know who are sort of in my age cohort would never want to give up the Sunday morning ritual of good coffee, a breakfast treat, and the great big newspaper full of art and entertainment. But younger adults seem more tied to their I-phones and getting their news from blogging, slashdot, etc. If this is so, perhaps it might be worthwhile to investigate book purchases by age group, in order to ascertain which method of promulgating reviews translates into more sales.

Personally, I think each medium has different commendable aspects. I like blogs to get a flavor of the popular reception to a book, and especially for quick plot summaries. I like newspaper reviews for more wide-ranging analyses.

[Elizabeth W.]

Well, I certainly hope they can co-exist, because I'd like to be a part of both worlds. I review books for the Star-Ledger in Newark, New Jersey. I started my book blog as a way to showcase press clips, as well as establish a routine for myself, blogging clearly and coherently on a number of book-related topics, in order to showcase my writing to a wider audience (and potential market.)
For almost a year now, I've been blogging, and discovering that I'm part of a thriving, wider community of book bloggers. I've had publishers and publicists reach out to me, and offer books for review on my blog.
Blogging has also helped me write with more ease, and hopefully better quality.
Although I know it's a transitional and tough marketplace for newspapers' book pages, I would love to build relationships with other publications and editors, to increase my freelance business, write more reviews, and reach a wider audience.