The Bengali Nomad vs. The Book Blogging World: 411 on physical review copies and ARCs (the South Asian version, at least)

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The Bengali Nomad's Rant

First of all, I initially started blogging in 2012, and took a long hiatus between 2014-2017? Ish, relocating to the US (for educational purposes) in between. Therefore some of the publicity contacts I have provided here may not be valid. But if such a problem occurs, you are more than welcome to leave a comment on this post and I would be more than willing to help you out. Regardless, I will still provide details on finding the right contact.

Let us start with the basics. What are review copies/ ARCs? Well, if you are a book blogger/bookstagrammer/booktuber or any person actively involved in book publicity, then chances are that you might be eligible to receive review copies of books from either authors or publishers (in most cases). Review copies can either be finished copies or Advanced Reader Copies/Galleys (abbrev. : ARCs). ARCs are copies that are released about a few months (sometimes even a year) before the actual publication date, with the sole purpose of generating buzz about the book before its release. As someone involved in book media, I consider receiving review copies a huge honor and you should as well. Publishers are spending money to send these books out. And if they decide to send you a review copy, then it means that they consider you to be a credible source for feedback. But back to the point. The difference between receiving a finished copy and an ARC for review is that with a finished copy, you are allowed to sell it if you want. Since an ARC/galley is a pre-publication copy, you are not allowed to sell it. Because that would mean destroying the credibility that you’ve worked so hard to earn. Frankly speaking, I’ve never sold review copies. I gave them away because giveaways generally help with promoting books (which was the initial reason behind me receiving the copy).

Moving on from the ethical aspects (DON’T YOU DARE SKIP OVER THEM), here is how you can receive review copies.

Digital versions:

The most popular websites for requesting digital galleys are Netgalley and Edelweiss. I have never done it but I think that you can also request for physical copies from Edelweiss. I rarely use Edelweiss though.

Physical copies:Now there are a number of ways to score physical review books/ ARCs, aside from asking the publisher. I will list all of them down (at least, all that I can remember) here. If you’ve got extra sources that could help with this list, please let me know.

a) Requesting directly from publishers (and sometimes authors): Now it is more professional for you to request from publishers, as authors only receive a limited number of copies. But sometimes an author might just be willing to send you the book, so it never hurts to ask. But remember, publishers are always your first source. It is always intimidating to write an email to a publisher, but trust me, these people are super friendly. Don’t be disheartened if they say that they can’t send you a copy, sometimes they just have a limited number in store. Keep trying and eventually you’ll receive a response! Now in terms of what a publisher is looking for, here is what I have for now:

• 1-6 months min. of blogging/bookstagramming/booktubing experience. When I first started out (back in 2012) they cared more about the number of followers but I think that these days it’s mostly about regular page views. The follower count might be important for bookstagrams though (I just started mine: thebengalinomad either in Jan. or Feb. so I am still new to this arena).  

• Consistency.

• Being able to post/share your review on multiple platforms. The more outreach you have, the better.

Also one other thing, some publishers may not respond to your email but may still send you a review copy. That has happened to me several times. Other publishers might have a blogger mailing list (a form) that you would have to fill out to be in the system. It’s always good to do your research about these things. I’d always recommend people to check for mailing list forms before directly emailing the publishers. Or wait for a response for about a week and then go on a mailing list hunt. Either way works. So a list of publicity contacts that had worked for me (back when I was based in Bangladesh):

Abrams and Chronicle Books: publicity@abramsandchronicle.co.uk

HarperCollins: marketing@harpercollins-india.com ;

childrens.publicity@harpercollins.co.uk

Penguin Random House UK: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.co.uk/media/media-contacts/ This link contains a bunch of contacts separated by imprints.

Penguin Random House India: PRH_Publicity@penguinrandomhouse.in

Scholastic: publicity@scholastic.co.uk

HMH Teen: http://hmhteen.com/ARC_request

Macmillan: http://us.macmillan.com/about/contact
Bloomsbury: marketing.temp-in@bloomsbury.com
Sourcebooks: publicity@sourcebooks.com

Now this a very old list. Since I am used to emailing the US publicities now, I haven’t actually used these in a while. BUT, should you find yourself in a situation where you really want to request a review copy of a book but don’t know who to contact: go to the author’s website. Find their publicist’s email in the contact section. That’s the best way to go about it. Or just shoot the author/publicist at hand an email asking them about the book’s rights in Asia/South Asia and whether they can help with connecting you to someone. You will be surprised at how helpful people are. You can usually find the UK/International publishers by going to the book’s Goodreads page and checking out the other editions. But by general rule of thumb, it’s usually the UK/India branches that have rights to Bangladesh (South Asia). Contacting the UK publisher first is a better decision, as the Indian counterpart may take awhile to receive rights/review copies. (I know, publishing rights are weird).

b) Shelf awareness: Shelf awareness is basically like a goldmine. You can sign up for their newsletter by going to this link and entering your email in the subscription box to the right. The blinking ads on each issue (sign up for both the Reader and Book Trade newsletters) are mostly links to forms which allow you to sign up to receive books/ ARCs. Some of these are giveaways, where others are actual ARC request forms. While this website is mostly US based, I still managed to receive a decent number of books back in Bangladesh. In fact, I received one of my most anticipated HarperTeen ARCs in the past from a Shelf Awareness newsletter. Trust me, it’s a good source to utilize. And NEVER be disheartened when you don’t receive a book. I used to send out TONS of emails back in the day. I even kept a list of the books I wanted(still do), along with their respective publishers. It’s a good list to have.

c) Participate in giveaways! : Bloggers do giveaways ALL THE TIME! Including myself. So always keep an eye out for those. The odds are never too low. I myself have won several giveaways myself. HINT: This might be a good reason for you to follow my blog (if you’re on a mobile device, scroll all the way down and go to web version ; then on the right, follow by Google+ and subscribe via email in the subscription box)

d) If you’re based in Bangladesh, you can always join my ARC Circulation Group. All I require is that you at least have a Goodreads account and that you post a review there as well as on any other social media platforms/blogs that you have. And be punctual with passing on the ARC. And of course, take good care of the book.

That’s it for now! I am also planning on doing two other posts in this feature: another reason for you to follow! Signing out for the day. Happy Reading!