Rites of Romance Promo Opportunity

Here's a free promo opportunity from the Rites of Romance Reviews! See the post here. (If you're not already registered for the Romance Divas forum, you'll have to do that first.) I'm also reposting here, with permission:

Stella and I spent a few hours hashing the final details of this out. Right now, we're in e-zine form, but we're going about it a little differently than most e-zines (well, any that I've ever read).

Rather than being one hundred percent web based, we're going to offer a PDF download, with a print-style layout and all the features of a magazine you can hold in your hand. That's articles, short stories, poetry, most importantly BOOK REVIEWS, ads, and other industry and entertainment related stuff. This is our first step towards print, which we hope to achieve in the next couple of years.

Right now, we're offering free ad space. We have six publisher half-page ads and 15 quarter-page ads. Those are free, as are any reviews requested and printed, and we TRY our damndest to get every book reviewed that comes through my submission line. So far, so good, on that level. The ads are free for this issue. If you need one created, it's $15 or $10, size respective.

Right now, we need articles and we need short fiction. Our articles must relate to SMALL PRESS AND E-PUB only. It's what ROR is all about. If you have an article you think might work for us, PM me here and I'll get back to you with submission info.**check below for guidelines**

As for the short fiction: We're going to run a contest. The only requirements is you must be published by a small press or e-publisher (this is becuase we are showcasing e-authors, and we want this to be sort of a mini-promo for you. If a reader likes your short, chances are they'll look for your books).

We also need authors to interview. Again, e-pub and small press authors specifically. We're aiming for two interviews a month.

Now, in the future, ad rates run like this:

$50 for a full page, color ad ($40 for black and white). Add $15 if we're creating it. Both Stella and I are cover artists/digital artists with references.

$25 for a half page, color ad ($15 for black and white), add $10 if we're creating this.

$15 for a 1/4 page ($10 for b&w), add $10 if we create it.

Submissions for short stories, after this month, will be open. PM me here for info. Guidelines are simple. Stories need to be 5k or less, and rated about a PG-13.

Articles, same length or less, and pertaining to the SP/EB industry.

Any questions, ect, let me know!

ash (ritesofromance @ gmail.com)

6 Free Marketing Techniques

Author Regina Paul shares 6 free marketing techniques that work. We like free stuff that works. My favorite tip from her article is to offer free reads on your website or your Yahoo group.

To read the article, click here.

Regina Paul
Author of DESTINY'S CHOICES (Amira Press)

Quick Tip: Google Alerts

So you've ho'd yourself out to a bajillion review sites and are patiently waiting for your reviews to roll in. But did you know that the reviewer most likely will not tell you when they've reviewed your book? It's true. So if you're wanting to pimp your book with your glowing reviews, here's the solution:

Google Alerts.

I recommend everyone set one up. It's super easy. Just go to http://www.google.com/alerts, enter your info and boom, you're ready to go. I put in search terms for my name as well as my book title and I get emails every time I've been mentioned anywhere on the web. Also, here's a hint: If you want it to return just stuff with, say, Sonja Foust instead of everything with Sonja AND everything with Foust, put your search term in quotes. My search term would be "sonja foust" or "love in shadow" or both if I wanted to see only things that mention both my name and title.

Try it out. Stalking yourself is totally fun.

Sonja Foust
Author of LOVE IN SHADOW (The Wild Rose Press)

More On Reviews

I recommend you read a few reviews written by the reviewer before offering up your book (perhaps as a sacrificial lamb). You want to be sure the reviewer is both honest and polite, and appears to have actually read the book. It's very exciting to read a review of your book where the reviewer really gets it and refers to your characters like they're real people. That's what you hope for in every review...

To read the rest of this article, click here.

Karen Duvall
Author of DESERT GUARDIAN (The Wild Rose Press)
Join Karen's Yahoo! Group

Review Me, Baby

Getting your eBook reviewed is one of the easiest things you can do to help promote it. Reviews help in a number of ways:

1. They get your book up on sites around the internet, usually with links and purchase information.
2. If you get some good reviews, you can use some of the quotables for blurbs, either on a brag page in your book, on your website, or in your press kit. There are many places to post favorable reviews, once you have them.

Some warnings about eBook reviews:

1. Develop a thick skin now. If you're going to submit your eBook around for reviews, don't expect every reviewer to praise your book as a shining jewel in an otherwise dismal pile of ePublished tripe. It's not gonna happen. Your precious manuscript might get panned, no matter how brilliant it is. There is no accounting for taste, so be ready to let the bad ones roll off.
2. If you're spending a lot of time submitting your eBook for reviews, keep your budget in mind and remember how much time you said you'd spend on this stuff, and then spend it as wisely as you can. This may mean not submitting your book for review on every site listed here. Pick the best ones and go with those.

See more great advice on getting reviews from Karen.

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for: the list of eBook reviewers. I checked all of these when I posted them for validity. I also checked the Google page rank, which is listed to the left of each site to help you decide where to submit your eBook if you're under time constraints. If you see an error, please email me. The internet is an ever-changing beast and I'm sure I won't be able to keep up with everything. Along those same lines, if you have an eBook reviewer you've used and don't see here, email me or leave a comment (and, if possible, please include a link for the page with the submission instructions) and I will add it. Thanks! Enjoy.

6 Absolute Write - submission email at bottom of page
6 Authorlink
6 The Romance Reader - click email link in left column to submit
5 All About Romance Novels
5 Books 'n' Bytes
5 BookReview.com - submission must be in Palm format
5 Coffee Time Romance
5 eBook-Reviews.net
5 ForeWord Magazine
5 KnowBetter.com
5 MyShelf.com
5 NewAndUsedBooks.com
5 Nights And Weekends
5 Romance Designs
5 Romance Junkies
5 Romance Reviews Today - Request a Review link halfway down page
5 Romantic Times
5 The Best Reviews
5 The Compulsive Reader
5 Wild Child Publishing
4 Affaire de Coeur - via postal mail only, required 4 months prior to publication
4 All Books Review - click Pick A Reviewer from sidebar, then scroll down for review request email address
4 Alternative-Read.com
4 A Romance Review
4 Authors After Dark
4 Cocktail Reviews
4 eCataromance.com
4 Fallen Angel Reviews - scroll down for email links for review requests
4 Fresh Fiction - E-books and .pdf format must be discussed and approved prior to sending.
4 Gotta Write Network
4 Huntress Reviews - email halfway down page
4 Just Erotic Romance Reviews
4 MyRomanceStory.com - instructions at bottom of page
4 Novelspot - submission email halfway down page
4 Road to Romance
4 Romance News Magazine - submission instructions in left column
4 Romance Reader at Heart
4 Roses & Thorns - "If you'd like us to consider your book for review contact BAQuinn@aol.com."
4 Scribes World - closed to submissions until Spring '07, click Request a Review near the bottom
4 Sensual Romance - instructions for authors near bottom
4 Sime~Gen
4 The Romance Readers Connection - Request a Review email link at bottom of page
3 Author's Choice Reviews
3 CK2S Kwips and Kritiques
3 Enchanted Ramblings - email for submissions at bottom of page
3 EscapeToRomance.com
3 Fiction Forum - not currently accepting submissions
3 In The Library Reviews
3 JoyfullyReviewed.com
3 Night Owl Romance - email address for submissions listed
3 Once Upon A Romance
3 Realms of Love - email Scarlet
3 Rites of Romance Reviews - email address for submissions listed
3 Sensual Reads and Reviews
2 In The Library Reviews
2 My Book Cravings - review request form at bottom of page
2 Romance At Heart - request a review link in left column
2 Romantic Observer - submission instructions under Publishers & Authors heading
2 The Romance Studio
2 TwoLipsReviews.com
1 Mirage Romance Reviews
1 Red Roses for Authors - email address for submissions in right menu bar
0 Authors of Romance and All Genres
0 Black Butterfly Review Group - submit by mail only
0 Book Binge - submission email address top left
0 Digigirl's Library - paranormal romance only, click Contact Us
0 Sweetness and Light
0 The Long and the Short of It - click Request a Review

You might also try Book Connector. They've got a free service that lists compatible reviewer sites when you enter your book's information. I tried it and it seems to work really well!

Sonja Foust
Author of LOVE IN SHADOW (The Wild Rose Press)