how to get ARCS – Advance Reading Copy

Don’t get me wrong, NetGalley is a fantastic service. It spoils many avid readers with oodles of ARCs. I am a casual blogger who happens to have many reviews on Amazon US and Goodreads. I’m thankful for each and every ebook I am approved for.

BUT…

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Here are the features I’d love to see added to the website:

1. A time limit for publishers to approve or deny our requests. I’ve waited over a month to hear about a title. Some of us only request a couple at a time in order to manage our stack. Waiting weeks doesn’t work.

2. The ability to cancel a request. Sometimes we get click happy OR the response is taking too long and our TBR pile has grown too big. Or perhaps we received the physical book via another channel.

3. A horror category. Really, no horror? You have “Outdoors and Nature” but no horror slot? **** This has been added! Yay!

4. Approximate page numbers on the description page. I tend to avoid titles over a certain length. If I request, I’d like to know prior to approval. That way I won’t request five jumbo books. We realize these are ARCs – just give us an idea of length. I click over to Amazon and Goodreads *every single time* before requesting. It’s kind of a pain.

5. “Considering” button. I cruise the list of books almost daily. Sometimes I see one I’m thinking about. I’d like a way to mark it, but not request it just yet. *Especially when pubs are taking too long to respond. See, so much hinges on that. 🙂

6. “OMG” button – well, whatever you want to call it. I have a list of my uber favorite authors. I’d love to receive an email notification when these authors have a new title available.

7. I wish the search function would scan the book description. So – if I put in ‘dystopian’ ‘gothic’ or ‘alien’ it would pull up books with that word in its description.

Hmmm… That’s all I can think of.

Truly, I love NetGalley. Thank you publishers for using their site. I hope my reviews have helped sell books.

Readers – what feature would you like to see added to NetGalley?

Thanks for stopping!

Jenna

I noticed a few search engine hits on this blog asking “how do I get ARCs?”

Well – this question isn’t answered quickly…. but here is my attempt.

(Friends, this post is old. If you have any new suggestions on how to get ARCs, please leave them in the comments. Thanks so much!)

If you are an everyday reader (like me 🙂 ) – the best way to eventually obtain review copies is to become an active reader and reviewer. Write many thoughtful reviews and post them on places like: blogs, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, Shelfari, Library Thing, etc.

It doesn’t hurt to have a Twitter or Facebook account where you post reviews as well. Only some of these outlets are needed… you won’t need to post on all of them.

Update – Instagram is now a popular place for book lovers. Just search for #Bookstagram

After doing this for 2 to 3 months, you can register on sites like NetGalley and Edelweiss and request ARCS. That might seem like a long time – but it isn’t. If you are an avid reader, you will continue this hobby for the rest of your life. Go for it!

Check out BookSirens, BookBuzzer and the Read Now section of NetGalley.

Blogging takes time and persistence – a great idea is to find a few friends and start a group blog. Or ask to become a guest reviewer on an established blog.

Why is this reviewing activity necessary?

Publishers and authors distribute ARCs in order to get exposure.

That is key to remember.

They need people who have a ‘reach’ reading and talking about their books.

Make sense?

That is my quick answer.

Other ways to obtain review copies – or free books:

1. Follow authors on Twitter or Facebook and watch for giveaways.

2. Many book bloggers host frequent giveaways. Find the bloggers who post on genres you like, bookmark their page and visit often.

3. Head over to Goodreads and enter their First Reads contests. Many of these titles are ARCs.

4. Have you tried the Cloud library app on you’re reader? Holy crap they carry a lot of books. Check out the instructions on your device on how to download. If you have an iPhone – easy!! https://amzn.to/29kLrnB

Thanks for stopping!

~ Jenna