Although paying for professional reviews has become rather common for self-publishing authors, beware of relying on them for credibility with readers, bookstores, and libraries
With the increase in self-published titles has come increased demand for professional book reviews—those written and published by established industry review outlets. When paid book reviews were first made available on the market, some industry watchdogs raised an eyebrow and questioned their integrity. Now, more than a decade later, the practice has become so commonplace it is hardly remarked on. Still, opinions differ on the value of the paid review.
In October, Publishers Weekly announced they would start offering paid book reviews. The reviews will run as part of BookLife, the PW supplement dedicated to self-publishing. While the paid reviews will be written by PW reviewers, they will remain distinct from the non-paid PW reviews meant for industry insiders. In fact, PW says their paid reviews are meant to help readers rather than booksellers and librarians. (Disclosure: Jane is a paid columnist for PW’s BookLife.)
This isn’t the first time that PW has ventured into the paid-review space. In 2010, the magazine launched PW Select, a supplement focused on self-published titles. At the time, it was charging authors $149 but not guaranteeing a review; however, paying indie authors received a listing in the supplement and some other marketing perks, plus a digital subscription to PW. Before long, PW Select stopped offering reviews, although it’s unclear whether the reviews were discontinued due to public criticism (as you’ll find here at Writer Beware) or for some other reason.
There are now several major services competing to provide indie authors with professional paid reviews. Below we’ve compiled a summary. In all cases, reviewer identities are not revealed, and negative reviews (or any review the author simply doesn’t like) can be suppressed from publication. Self-published authors approaching traditional review outlets—such as PW, Kirkus, and Foreword—can steer around the paid options by submitting their books through the standard, unpaid submission process. However, only a tiny percentage of books submitted receive a professional, unpaid review; established, traditional publishers secure most of that coverage.
Kirkus Indie
Founded in 1933, Kirkus Reviews is a book-review magazine published twice a month. Kirkus Indie is its paid review arm.
- Review cost: $350 for a picture book, $425 for a traditional review, $575 for an expanded review (500 words instead of 250 words)
- Where it appears: Kirkus’s website. Reviews may be considered for publication in Kirkus’s magazine and newsletter.
BookLife Reviews
BookLife is run by Publishers Weekly, a magazine that has been publishing weekly book reviews since the late 1800s. PW launched the BookLife supplement in 2014 and BookLife paid reviews this year.
- Review cost: $399
- Where it appears: On BookLife’s website, as well as in the BookLife supplement, which goes out to PW subscribers
Clarion Reviews
Founded in 1998, Foreword Magazine focuses on reviewing books published outside of the Big Five. Its paid-review service, Clarion, was first offered in 2001; Foreword gives itself credit for creating the paid-book-review industry.
- Review cost: $499
- Where it appears: Foreword’s website and book wholesalers
BlueInk Review
BlueInk publishes only paid reviews. It was started in 2010 by a literary agent and former book-review editor of the Rocky Mountain News.
- Review cost: $395
- Where it appears: On BlueInk’s website and Ingram. Children’s book reviews are added to the Children’s Literature Comprehensive Database. Select reviews may appear in Booklist (a traditional book-review outlet), No Shelf Required, and other venues.
Self-Publishing Review
Established in 1998, SPR offers paid book reviews as well as other services for writers and small publishers.
- Review cost: Starts at $79 for 70+ words, but those who want the ability to suppress must pay at least $219
- Where it appears: On SPR’s website, with further promotion at higher price points
IndieReader
Founded by an author, IndieReader has been providing paid book reviews for self-published authors since 2009.
- Review cost: $275
- Where it appears: On IndieReader’s website and Ingram
This is not an exhaustive list; you can also find paid reviews offered by a range of service companies, such as Reedsy Discovery.
One challenge of paid reviews: their purpose and intended audience isn’t necessarily clear. Are they for readers? Booksellers? Librarians? In some cases, paid review services get re-sold or bundled with other marketing packages by self-publishing companies, who can’t always be trusted to convey the value of such reviews or how they ought to be used. And the review services also promote themselves in ways that muddy the waters. Kirkus’s marketing in particular has encouraged writers to submit their unpublished manuscripts for review if they hope to attract an agent’s attention or land a publishing deal. (Here’s one example.)
Advocates of paid reviews—usually the people who run such services—say that impartial, professional reviews are important. For example, advocates argue that Amazon readers value objective, expert reviews (which appear in book listings under “Editorial Reviews”) over reader reviews that could be biased or uninformed. However, everyone knows that Amazon’s algorithms favor books with reader review activity, and marketing services like BookBub prefer to feature titles with an impressive track record of reader reviews.
Paid-review advocates may also argue that a review from a recognized source makes a better impression on booksellers and librarians, if not readers. But some librarians and booksellers don’t trust paid reviews. Rebecca Ekstrom, a school librarian near Albany, New York, says that librarians do not take such reviews seriously. “Librarians know that the review[er] is going to be more positive than if they were not paid.” Mary Gleason, a librarian at the Rochester, New York, public library, who was head buyer for the entire system for ten years, says that while buyers rely on Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and Library Journal for purchasing decisions, she herself has never even looked at a paid review from Kirkus or Clarion. (Our thanks to book sales and marketing expert Amy Collins for finding librarians willing to go on the record about this.)
Bottom line: Marketing vet Penny Sansevieri offers guidance that perhaps best sums up the situation: “If the author only has paid reviews, that’s a problem—and booksellers know this. But if the review is a mix of paid and free, that becomes a more balanced book presentation.” She emphasizes, though, that authors too often inflate the power of a single review. “A single review doesn’t sell books, and single reviews in and of themselves aren’t sales tools—it’s part of a bigger package. So authors need to focus on other reviews, and in particular getting reader reviews.” She added that it’s useless to pay for reviews if the book is low quality in terms of editing and design. “No amount of paid reviews can save a poorly done book,” she says.
Jane Friedman has spent her entire career working in the publishing industry, with a focus on business reporting and author education. Established in 2015, her newsletter The Bottom Line provides nuanced market intelligence to thousands of authors and industry professionals; in 2023, she was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World.
Jane’s expertise regularly features in major media outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Today Show, Wired, The Guardian, Fox News, and BBC. Her book, The Business of Being a Writer, Second Edition (The University of Chicago Press), is used as a classroom text by many writing and publishing degree programs. She reaches thousands through speaking engagements and workshops at diverse venues worldwide, including NYU’s Advanced Publishing Institute, Frankfurt Book Fair, and numerous MFA programs.
