In a previous post I talked about some of the more obscure book promotion sites and why, if the price is right, they're worth investigating.
The great thing about places like BookBub is that they're very well known and thus very popular. The bad thing about these places is that a) readers can afford to be choosy; and b) an author's ad is easily lost in the mix. Lesser-known sites don't necessarily make me a big fish in a small pond, but at least I won't be bumping into a thousand other fish.
I went on a bit of a frenzy this week and signed up for maybe five or six of the sites listed in this article. Perhaps it was my giddiness in reading something that didn't say BargainBooksy, The Fussy Librarian, or BookBub (though they're included on the list, too.)
My criteria was that they had to either be free or no more than $25.00, not malicious-looking sites, and obviously they had to be services that wouldn't exclude me due to my lack of reviews. I previously mentioned that a few of the links were dead (again, weird for a 2024 list).
In my zeal, I didn't keep track of all the ones I submitted my book to, but here are some of them:
Bookangel ~ This is a free site based in the UK that began as a private book club. An author can list a book for up to five days, and I believe that is renewable. But face it, if no one wants it after five days, they probably never will. I like the simplicity of the site and that its focus is on books, not (obviously) profit. I believe they do accept donations, but they certainly don't hammer an author to give one.
Best Book Monkey ~ I chose the free bronze package, which gets a book featured on the genre page for one day. Not sure if this would be at all helpful, but I was offered a spot in its newsletter for $3.95 and I grabbed it. Women's fiction isn't one of its listed genres, so I had to go with literary fiction (I don't like that moniker, since my book is not literary, but it was my only option). Best Book Monkey's customer service is prompt and genial.
Awesome Gang ~ Submitting a book is free, but if an author wants their book featured on the home page for two days, the cost is $10.00. Awesome Gang also provides links to other sites for free promotion. I haven't yet checked them out, but it's an additional resource. Again, the customer service interaction is pleasant. The date I'd chosen wasn't available, so they emailed me asking if a different date was acceptable. I appreciate being treated as a valued customer rather than a naughty child (see: BookSirens).
Book Raid ~ Book Raid could potentially be a bit pricier, because an author pays per click, but a 99-cent book only costs 20 cents per click, up to a maximum of $60.00. If I don't get enough clicks to total even one dollar (believe me, a distinct possibility), I pay nothing. Books are advertised via newsletter.
BookDoggy ~ Advertising a low-cost book costs $24.00. This was the most I spent out of all my submissions and the ad is only for one day (newsletter), but they do also promote it on social media. They also create a "video" ad for the book, also posted to social media, although since my promo isn't until tomorrow and thus my book isn't on the site yet, I haven't been able to assess the quality. Reedsy notes that BookDoggy has "tens of thousands" of subscribers and rates it five stars, so time will tell on this one.
Voracious Readers Only is not on Reedsy's list, but is often cited in Reddit r/self-publish posts. It claims to find an author 20 readers, and thus their free 20-book giveaway. An author can either mail out ARCs themselves, use an ARC distributor, or email an epub or PDF copy directly to the site for Voracious Readers Only to send out.
LibraryThing is not primarily a promo site, but an author can list a giveaway for free. In order to be accepted for a giveaway, the book must be newly published or yet to be published. The author can offer between 5 and 30 copies, and the giveaway rules state that entrants with a history of writing reviews are given priority. Keep in mind that the author is responsible for getting either an epub, PDF, or mobi to the winners. Create your own versions with calibre (free download).
BookGoodies ~ This one is quirky, but free. It seems to be a blog that also sends out a newsletter. Its submission form asks for essentially the entire details of your life (not really, but it asks questions that I've never seen asked before). I don't remember what date I chose for my book to be featured, but it's not on the site yet, so I went back and subscribed to the newsletter and maybe I'll catch a glimpse of my book in the next week or so.
Discount Book Man ~ Did they name it after Mister Bookman? Taking bets on that. Listing a book is free, but I have no idea what its membership numbers are. It does offer a newsletter and it lists your social media links next to your book listing. A featured listing costs $15.00. I don't know how effective this one is, but again, it's free.
It's Write Now ~ I just submitted to them today and I chose the free option, which gets a book listed on the home page for up to 3 days and included in the newsletter. There are also $10.00 and $20.00 plans. When I finished filling out the form, a message told me they'd "let me know". Okay. The site is apparently in Australia, so US authors could possibly expand their reach.
eReaderIQ ~ It's free to list your book. In fact, all you need to do is enter the ASIN number. They don't, however, guarantee that your book will be featured in their newsletter. One of the criteria is the number of reviews, which is not helpful when the book is a new release. Their mailing list is purportedly 47,000, so you be the judge on this one.
Book Reader Magazine ~ Submission is free, but for a featured slot on the site, it will cost $20.00. You can also complete an author interview, which was rather intimidating (I hate talking about myself).
These are the services I've chosen to date. Some of the sites on the list look a bit sketchy or have too small of a subscriber base relative to cost. Some are genre-specific, and as I said, some apparently no longer exist. A few have review requirements, which I can't meet at this time, since my book is new. One of them was flagged by my browser as potentially unsafe. There is also a listing for BKnights, which is really a Fiverr gig, but more than a few authors have stated on Reddit that they were happy with its results. I didn't submit, even though the price is $5.00 (plus an additional $5.00 for the newsletter) because its website seems to be tailored to authors, not readers (hmm, money sieve?), and it's cheesy. My website is 100% better and I did it myself!
Overall, if a site looks legit and well thought out and (especially) is free, I say, why not? I've spent far too much money on advertising, with disappointing results. However, I am not delusional. Even though most of these submissions were free, it's still unlikely I'll get more than one or two takers (except for LibraryThing, of course). It's been rather fun, though, and not frustrating.
If you're a penniless author like me, check them out.
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