After all the research, writing, editing, rewriting, and efforts to get a book published, most Catholic authors are well aware of the challenges of raising awareness and interest for readers to take a chance on a Catholic book, fiction or non-fiction. Many in the Catholic Writers Guild have been doing this for years and still put a great deal of effort into this area.
We’ve all probably asked ourselves why we are writing in the first place. What is the objective in reaching out to readers with faith-based stories? What better teacher than Christ, who shared wisdom and faith through intriguing stories and relatable characters? I was thinking we could also ask ourselves how we can support other Catholic writers and our objective when we post reviews of members’ books. Hopefully, supporting each other can help to raise awareness for all faith-based books.
A few ideas come to mind:
- Social Media: Posting other members’ books – releases, sales, awards, reviews, and interviews on social media – Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, websites, etc. I’ve tried to do this as often as possible with the thought that any reader who was interested in one of my books may also be open to other Catholic authors’ works.
- Endorsements: Being willing to read and endorse another author’s book can help to support their work and raise awareness of your own work if your name and latest books are on their back cover.
- Interviews: If you have an interview on TV, radio, podcast, etc., mention the Guild, your publisher, and other Catholic writers.
- Shows/Fairs: Try to share a booth with fellow authors and support each other. It makes for a fun day and a cherished friendship.
- Reviews: Posting reviews on Amazon, Goodreads, and other sites can be the most powerful way we support each other. Potential readers often take a chance on a book based on the recommendations of others.
Number of reviews:
The number of reviews helps raise visibility for authors’ books, so posting a rating or review can greatly help. Did you know that after 20-25 reviews, Amazon includes the author’s book in “also bought” and “you might like” lists, and after 50-70 reviews, Amazon highlights the book for spotlights and its newsletter?
Positive nature of reviews:
This may be an area where people differ in approach, but we should ask what our objective is in posting a review. When we read a book by another Guild member, are we posting ratings/reviews to help support them and Catholic writing?
Some suggested guidelines might be as follows:
- Try to be both positive and generous in ratings and review comments. Don’t feel as if you have to be the tough grader to offset others when it comes to a fellow member’s book that they will struggle to sell a handful of.
- If you didn’t like the book or the genre or even finish the book, don’t post a review. If other readers enjoyed the writing and story, don’t go out of your way to be the negative exception.
- If you have a critique and suggestions, share them personally with the other author versus through a review. I have a feeling they will be grateful and open to your help.
I have had the good fortune of connecting with many wonderful authors and members of the Catholic Writers Guild. I’ve felt blessed to get to know some of you and am so happy to try to help support your work to share the good Word through Catholic writing. I am also grateful for all the help, advice, and support I’ve received from fellow members. I am sure many of you have ideas and success formulas you would like to share. I think everyone would love to hear them in our journey to share with our readers.
God bless you and your writing,
A fellow CWG writer
Excellent Advice!