Need to Ask an Author for a Blurb? Here’s the Secret Formula to YES
By Sonja Yoerg | May 2, 2017 |
Please welcome back guest Sonja Yoerg to Writer Unboxed today!
Sonja grew up in Stowe, Vermont, where she financed her college education by waitressing at the Trapp Family Lodge. She earned her Ph.D. in Biological Psychology from the University of California at Berkeley and published a nonfiction book about animal intelligence, Clever as a Fox (Bloomsbury USA, 2001). Penguin/Berkley publishes Sonja’s novels: HOUSE BROKEN (Jan 2015), MIDDLE OF SOMEWHERE (Sep 2015) and ALL THE BEST PEOPLE (May 2017). She lives with her husband in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.
We’re so glad to have her with us today to talk with us about how best to go about gathering blurbs for a novel.
Learn more about Sonja on her website, and follow her on Twitter and Facebook.
Rattling the Cup for Blurbs
Ask any author, even a very successful one, how they feel about hunting for endorsements for their books and “ugh,” will be a common response. Why? Well, asking for a favor can be awkward and this favor is rather large and rather important. A great blurb is like a gold star for your book.
Wait, you say. Don’t publishers get those blurbs for you? Occasionally, yes, but the bulk of the chore belongs to the author. Each new book you write will need endorsements from fresh authors so it’s a chore you can look forward to again and again.
I’m here to help. I don’t have a secret formula for getting an author to say yes, but I do have a few tips to make the process less frightening and, possibly, more successful.
Use email. Don’t pitch your book via direct messaging, or god forbid, in a tweet or any public space. Find the author’s email address or that of their publicist. Accept no substitute.
Explain your rationale. You’ve chosen this particular author for a reason, right? Perhaps because you admire their work? Tell them so. No need to gush, just let them know there is a rational basis for your request.
Show the author some love. It doesn’t hurt to follow them on social media and show some interest in their career. Dare I say that if you are asking them to read your book, you should’ve read one of theirs? I’ve been approached for an endorsement by writers who didn’t appear to know my work at all and hadn’t even shelved one of my books on Goodreads. Authors know how the blurb dance goes—they’ve been there–and most want to help, but throw them a bone.
Make it easy for the author to say yes. Provide a clear deadline. Offer the book in various formats, if possible. Do not, however, propose to streamline the process by sending only your “very best chapters.” (True story.) How thoroughly an author reads for a blurb is between them and their Kindle but to suggest a short-cut upfront is, in my view, unprofessional.
Do not, under any circumstances, offer to write the blurb for them. Smoothing the road for the author doing you the favor is one thing and unethical greasing is another. Ghost-writing your own blurb is the latter.
Always give the author an out. Always. I know. You really want that blurb and you’ve gone to a lot of trouble to get to yes, so why pull back? Because it’s polite. Because writers work hard and are extremely busy and have many books to read. If you acknowledge the demands your request is making on their time, they will think you are thoughtful, reasonable and a very nice person. I’m going to go a step further and suggest that after an author agrees to read your book, you give them another out: “While I hope you will be able to provide an endorsement of my book, I understand completely if you cannot, for whatever reason.” You are focused on your blurb, but the author is focused on his or her career and life. Deadlines loom. Stuff happens. And if the author doesn’t come through on this book, maybe he or she will do so next time. Play the long game.
If an author says yes, don’t rush to tell the world. Congratulations! You have a fantastic endorsement in your Inbox and the first thing you want to do is share the news. It is exciting, but my advice is to wait until you have all the endorsements you expect to receive in hand. Why? Say you post a blurb from Incredibly Famous Author on Facebook and that post is read by Not Quite So Famous Author whom you also asked to endorse the book. “Hmm,” says Not Quite So Famous Author, “she doesn’t need my blurb as much as I thought she did.” And your book moves lower in her TBR pile. Of course, not every author will feel this way, but discretion won’t hurt you.
Say thank you. I thank authors who blurb my books in three ways. First, I express my gratitude in an email. Second, when I have all my endorsements in hand, I publicly thank the author on Facebook. This post is not about the blurb (i.e. me and my book) but about the author and his or her generosity. As part of my thanks, I tout their most recent book. Third, when the finished copies are ready, I send them one and sometimes include a small gift. If this seems like a lot, think about how much time it takes to read a book and write an original, meaningful paragraph about it.
Gathering endorsements is a chore. But when an author you admire says wonderful things about your book, there is no better feeling. Good luck!
Sonja Yoerg grew up in Stowe, Vermont, where she financed her college education by waitressing at the Trapp Family Lodge. She earned a Ph.D. in biological psychology from the University of California, Berkeley and wrote a nonfiction book about animal intelligence, Clever as a Fox (Bloomsbury USA, 2001) and four novels: House Broken, Middle of Somewhere, All the Best People, and the upcoming True Places (1/19). Sonja lives with her husband in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.
Some of what you say completely validates my instincts so thank you for this. I was fortunate with my short story collection to have reasonable access to some writers whom I admire. The irony for me was that one writer who I really didn’t expect to say yes was very happy to do it whereas another writer I thought I had a friendship with said she doesn’t do blurbs. A learning experience, indeed. With my novel due out next April, I’m just now beginning to rattle the cup again, which makes your thoughts especially timely.
I’m glad my ideas dovetailed with your instincts, Deborah. As for our expectations of which authors will “come through” for us, all I can say is that it’s impossible to know the rationale for yes or no. All we can do is accept and move on, as I’m sure you have. Good luck!
Excellent advice! As with most things in life, good manners and thinking beyond oneself will overcome many obstacles. Sometimes the trickiest part in getting the endorsement is getting that email address. Oh, that the days of not needing to self-promote were here again, if they ever existed at all!
Thank you, Linda. And I hear you about self-promotion. I’m afraid, though, it is here to stay. Thanks for your comment!
Thanks, Sonja, for outlining the process. Everything you wrote makes sense. You’re right, reading a book for review takes a considerable amount of time for a working author and deserves to be acknowledged. Though I’m not at the stage yet of asking for blurbs, I’m going to save your column for future reference. And I just read the first page of your new book on Amazon and have to say, it looks remarkable; can’t wait to read it. So I’m doubly thankful I stopped by Writer Unboxed today.
Maggie,
Happy to help! I wish you the best with your writing and thank you so much for taking a peek at All the Best People!
Sonja
I credit author blurbs with helping me land my agent. This is all great advice and querying authors should consider getting blurbs to help them get a leg up. But it’s so important to be sincere. I didn’t ask any authors to blurb my book whose work I didn’t admire. I also made sure that my MS was polished to a high sheen.
Yes to everything you say, Kimberly. Professionalism and sincerity will carry you a long way toward your goals. Congratulations on gaining representation!
I agree with every single item you hit, Sonja.
I do think that when starting out, especially if self-publishing, which many of us do, the writer may need to ask authors who have not yet hit the “big time” but have books that they’ve enjoyed. On my latest YA, one of my blurbs came from Publishers Weekly, and the other from an indie writer acquaintance who wrote a novel that takes place in NC where I reside, and where my book also takes place. The PW blurb is on the back, and the author’s blurb is on the front. Top billing was my gift to this writer for taking the time to read, review, and allow me permission to use her words.
To add one more tidbit: What goes around comes around. It is just as important to offer a blurb as it is to ask for one. So, once you are standing on the top rung of that literary 5-star ladder, pay it forward!
BTW, could you please give me a blurb?
Haha. Just kiddin’. ; )
Leslie,
Sounds like you’re already a pro at securing endorsements! And the choice to put the author quote on the cover is the right one. A study (don’t ask me which one) showed that quotes from people have more impact than ones from trade publications.
And, yes, returning the favor of providing a quote is the right thing to do. If only we had unlimited time to read. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?
Sonja
This is really helpful. I didn’t realize authors were typically expected to recruit other authors to plug them. It seems like quite a challenge for any new writers who lack established connections in the literary world.
Kate,
It is indeed a significant challenge for new writers. But writers are generally a friendly bunch and getting to know some, even without a specific need in mind, is worthwhile. I had no connections when I started and now I do. It takes time. Best of luck to you!
Sonja
Thank you. Getting ready for this in a few months.
Best of luck to you, Zara.