I'm *almost* ready to open the tours up for new books again but before then, I wanted to open up a post for everyone's comments or suggestions if you have any. Please let me know if you have any comments on the way things are run or suggestions for improvements. Feel free to be honest and post Anonymously, if you'd like.
Authors, please feel free to chime in too!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
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16 comments:
I think you should go through all your tours and find out where are the books are, and if they are on the right track. I still haven't gotten a lot of books from tours I signed up for months ago. Like Ballads of Suburbia and Shadowed Summer. (If you would like my help keeping track, I'd love to assist.)
Here are some of my suggestions:
Maybe put a limit on how long a person can keep a book like a week or two. I've signed up on some tours months ago and was high up on the list and still haven't received (or heard about) anything.
Also maybe cross out names of people that have read the book and shipped it so we know who has the book at all times.
Like Lili, if you ever need help, I'd also love to help out!
I like the idea of crossing out names or keeping a post somewhere that we can look at to see how soon our names will be coming up. I signed up for a number of tours but to date have only gotten one of the books. I glance at the posts about books but then have to look back at the email with the list of participants to find out where we are. Maybe have each tour listed and have people post there when they receive and send it out so the work is done by the participants and not just one person but makes it easy to see at a glance how far the tour has gotten. The time limit is a good idea too.
I think having less people participate in each tour would be helpful. I have signed up for a lot of tours but I have been very far down the list and I have only gotten 2 books myself. It's no one's fault -there are just a lot of people!
Instead of first come first serve - maybe have everyone who is interested sign up (maybe via a Google Doc) and then pick a random 5-10 people. If the tour moves a long quick enough another round could be made.
Also - having some type of central place where book locations are listed might help.
I wouldn't mind helping out with keeping track of book locations if you guys need any help!
I'm wondering if you should split tours based on how fast a person can read a book. A speedy tour versus a slower tour. I'm planning on reading my tour books in a day or two and I know other bloggers can do the same.
I think there should be a limit to how long a person can keep the book. (I also signed up for a lot of tours and so far, I've only received three books) And maybe, to keep track of WHERE all these ARCs are, delivery confirmation would be a good idea. It's not expensive and it tracks the book's progress so there's a much lesser chance of it getting lost.
I definitely think a limit would help. Another tour I do has that and it makes me read the book as quick as it comes in so I can get it right back out because I want to stay on the tours.
Thanks Harmony for all you do - I know this is tough and probably more than you bargained for. If you need help keeping up with some of the tours I would be glad to help.
Maybe have each tour listed and have people post there when they receive and send it out so the work is done by the participants and not just one person but makes it easy to see at a glance how far the tour has gotten. The time limit is a good idea too.
lingerie parties
I am a part of a couple of other tours and they limit the amount of time that you can have the book, which forces you to put it to the top of your TBR pile. I think you should only be able to hold a book for a week, especially if there are a lot of people waiting for it. I have three that I have signed up for and I have no clue when I might be receiving these books and it would be helpful to also know how close the book is to being at my home.
Need any help, I would love to help as well.
If would be helpful to know where/who has the books at any given time. Our publicists like to keep track of stuff like this so they can put the reviews in our files. It also helps authors convince their publishers to give up review copies, when they can plainly see that they're being circulated and reviewed as opposed to just disappearing into silence.
I just want to say thanks to everyone that has left comments so far.
The only thing most of you have commented on is a time limit - and we *do* have one. No one is supposed to keep the book for more than 2 weeks. Perhaps I need to work on making that rule more visible.
We're also working on tracking the books and I'll probably be emailing the few of you that have offered to help soon, so we can make that more efficient.
Thanks so much for taking the time to comment - it's appreciated!
I like the idea of having a limit onto the number of people who will be on any tour. For example, post 4-5 ARC tours at the beginning of the month, then have people email/comment with their preference as to which ARCs they most want to read. Prioritize in such a way that everyone will get on either their first or second choice, and maybe one of their other choices as well. (Did that make sense? lol)
As an author, I think it would be nice to see the tracking list people have mentioned above. Just to know where the ARCs are in the rotation and how fast they're moving.
But honestly, I think you've done a fabulous job putting together the first year's worth of tours. I know it's no easy feat, and you are a gem for volunteering so much time and energy to help put ARCs in the hands of readers. You rock, Harmony!
You're doing such a great job Harmony!
I agree about the time limit - and I think two weeks is too long to hold onto an ARC. The point of having the ARC is to promote the book and build buzz before the book is released, but I've been on a couple of tours where I could buy the book long before the ARC would have gotten to me. The time to keep the book should be limited to one week - or less. These awesome readers are bloggers; they know how to read a book quickly and if they know they won't be able to they shouldn't sign up. :)
First off, I want to commend everyone for the hard work they do on this site, there's so much to keep track of and to organize!
Second, I wanted to say that I too think two weeks is too long for an ARC- when you add in the time it takes the book to get from place to place via the mail it means that even a tour with ten stops could take over 20 weeks.
I too would appreciate a heads up on where the books are, it would definitely help me organize and plan my posts and upcoming reading. It might also be a good idea to shoot everyone an email reminding them of which tours they're participating in- I think I've recorded all the ones I've signed up for but I'm not 100% sure as I participate in several other tour sites as well.
Keep up the great work and here's to a great 2010!
Fix the contact link, so that people will be able to contact you when they have a question.
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