HOW TO APPROACH PUBLISHERS // Today we discuss etiquette??? & I give advice on how to talk to the (not so) big and scaries of the publishing world!

Hey guys! Today I’m coming at you with a really exciting and hopefully really helpful blog post all about talking to publishers! This year I finally got up the courage to approach publishers about review copies and so I thought I would blog about it! I plan on writing more posts like these soon on my blog so let me know if there’s anything you want me to write about/ have questions about!

I don’t want to make this post too long because I plan to talk about a whole bunch of things in this series, so I’m mainly talking about the starting points for format and manners here! 

First up, I just want to say, don’t stress! It can be nervewracking talking to publishers, especially if you’re not used to it, but it’s really nothing to lose sleep over!

HOW TO TALK TO PUBLISHERS

Before I dive into how to write a review request and all that fun stuff I wanted to write a blog post with advice on how to write your requests. If that makes any kind of sense… Nope. It doesn’t.

Okay, starting again – I want to talk about how to format your requests and actually talk to publishers – I’m not focusing on the actual words you’re saying yet – am I making sense yet? (probably not, sorry)

PARAGRAPH LENGTH? FORMAL OR INFORMAL? HOW MUCH DO I SAY???

I only want to cover a few things and make this pretty short, so I’m just focusing on the top 3 things I think you should go in with, and this is coming from the person who did the dumb thing and just dived in without thinking and/or doing any research. I’m not going to focus on what you should say (though I will in another post if you guys would like me to!), but on how you should say it, so I hope this is helpful to you guys!

1 Try to keep your email short and sweet! I love emails as much as the next person who loves emails does, but if your job is in the media department I’d wager you probably have to go through a lot of emails throughout the day so do you think they really want to read an essay on why you want them to send you a book? Honestly, if I wasn’t in the best of moods (and this is me being totally honest, so don’t hate me), I would just chuck the email in the trash without finishing it.

Keep your paragraphs (preferably only 1 or 2) short and try to only include the necessary information. Don’t go on a tangent about how the author changed your life or how you have like, 6 tattoos inspired by the last book in the series because while that’s great and all, it’s pretty irrelevant information in this context.

2 Be mindful of what you’re asking! Only ask for one thing and try to be as nice as possible without coming off as an asskisser. It’s all about manners – you’re not demanding, you’re asking!

So, only request one thing… Unless you’ve built a good relationship with the publisher and you’re a reliable reviewer (you’ve read all or most of the books they’ve sent you in the past). By all means, send more than one email but request your books separately and not all at once! This is not a NetGalley binge, they will actually be sending you physical copies and that’s a big deal and a wonderful privilege! (on that note: don’t request books you’re not fully interested in).

3 I can’t believe I feel like I even have to say this, but manners are so important here people! You should try to be formal and respectful because hey, if they accept your request they’ll legit be sending you a book for free! But, above anything else I’ve written – manners are key! If you come off as a kissass it might be cute, but if you come off as rude or entitled – you’re going in the trash folder in the blink of an eye!

So, overall, use your manners, try to be formal but not sound like you have a pole up your nether area, keep your email on the shorter side & try not to stress yourself out! It’s much simpler than it sounds and it’s really nothing to get worked up over!

Good luck and let me know your thoughts questions, comments and concerns on approaching publishers in the comments!

HOW DO YOU APPROACH PUBLISHERS?

DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER ADVICE FOR TALKING TO PUBLISHERS?

AVE