Blogs: How long till you know it's right to contact a publisher to request a book?

[Alex]

Hey guys!
So i'm new to the blogging world and I was wondering when is the right time to contact a publishing company to ask them whether they will give you a final copy or arc of a novel?

Here's my blog, its quite new:
http://possessionofbooks.blogspot.com.au/

Thanks for the help, really appreciate it!

 

[Alison M.]

Wait at least 6-9 months of solid, consisting blogging and reviewing before contacting people. You're going to have a really hard time with it though since you're Australian. From what I've heard publishers don't send books outside the US too often. It's pretty expensive for them. Maybe try looking in to Australian publishers?

You could also try NetGalley if you have an ereader. That will probably be your best bet to get eARCs.

[Lisa LaVergne-Pottgen]

Believe it or not, I am in the US,and many of my requests have been from overseas authors.  I have on up on my site already from an overseas author, and just received a handful of requests from the UK.  Believe it or not, location is not always as important if you are willing to take ebooks.

[Alex]

Thanks for the advice and I guess I will have to start accepting e-books 

[Jennifer Kitchens]

I'd say you can start whenever you'd like, especially if you don't mind being told no.  :)  I started asking after about 4-5 months.  I got a lot of no's.  Still do.  I do have a couple of publishers who now send me books.  I would highly suggest accepting e-versions of the books, since it's cheaper and easier for them to send them to you.  I agree with Alison - NetGalley is also a great resource - sometimes they will send you a print version if you ask, but not often.  Good luck!

Clean Romance Reviews

[Alex]

Thankyou! And i don't mind being told no to :)

Will join Netgalley!

[Lisa LaVergne-Pottgen]

It is going to vary significantly a lot of times depending on if you are willing to do indie books or not.  I have a willingness to do Indie books, so I have had no shortage of books to review.  I just got my first couple of big name publisher books and I have only been going for a month or so, but I post consistently and post quality reviews, and that will show.

[Alex]

Thanks for the ideas and tips :)
 

[Kathryn]

When should you approach a publisher? When you've got a lot of traffic coming through your blog, have proven that you can write a decent review and your blog has found its niche. There is no set time frame for doing this.

Alison M, why do you assume that the asker is wanting to request books from American publishers?

[Alison M.]

I think he'll run into the same problem with any non- Australian publisher. ARCs are just as (if not more) expensive as final copies of books. Combine that with the fact that international shipping is pretty pricey and the fact that there aren't tons of ARCs to be sent out. It would be pretty expensive to send him a physical book (like his review policy states). I'm not saying that some people won't send him books but it might not be as many as he would hope for. If he were open to eARCs, he likely wouldn't have any trouble.

[Kathryn]

What I meant was why did you automatically assume the asker was talking about publishers that are not based in Australia? Does it state this in the question or review policy? I can't see that part anywhere ...

[Alex]

Thanks for the great tips! :)
Really helpful

Take Care 

[Lisa LaVergne-Pottgen]

I recently listed with the Indie Reviewer Directory.  It is put out by PassKey Publications, and since my listing went live yesterday, I have gotten 10 requests.  Every one of them has sent me their book.  My blog is less than 2 months old.  I have found that a lot of the MAJOR publishers want you to be reviewing for 6 months, but I have found that Indie published books are a great way to get to that point.  I will always have a special place in my heart for self published and independent authors, as I hope to join their ranks in the next year, and I have yet to find a book I have not enjoyed having gone that route.