As I contemplate the possibility of NOT getting a traditional publishing deal, I am forced to face my own prejudice against self-published books. And that’s just what it is: a prejudgment of a huge category of work. But here’s the problem, how does one find promising titles in a field of work flooded with quickly published books, some lacking any editorial or other oversight?
How does one find promising titles in a field of work flooded with quickly published books?
This 2022 article on Book Riot Article by Arvyn Cerezo sums up a lot of the issues with trying to find top notch indie author (self-published) books.
I’ve included there recommendations as well as a couple of my own. The two lists I found most easily intuitive are in purple.
Authors Reading. This site is a little clunky in appearance, but has some good reviews. They have an annual award for published works.
Book Life, a review section for indie books by the highly respected Publishers Weekly. It’s updated regularly and quite intuitive. Books receive a narrative review as wells as scores for cover, design, and editing. There’s even a “Great for fans of” section. They also sponsor an annual prize, eponymously named Book Life Prize, with some great looking, and sounding, titles. Super helpful! Here’s a link (and you can subscribe to the newsletter too).
Goodreads Lists. There are several lists on Goodreads dedicated to Indie Authors. Some have thousands of titles on them. Currently there is no easy way to sift through the books and search for a genre you might love. However, like most good books, the cover and title can be quite revealing.
Independent Book Review. This website includes small-press titles along with the self-pubbed. Reviews are starred if they received high marks. I love that if you click on a title, it takes you to a way to order it. Check it out by clicking here. Here’s a link to one example. Best of Little-Known Authors (Small-press and Indie authors)
Indie Author Book Reviews. This website/blog has a genre sorted book list. The site was founded by Mary Treadwell of Atlanta, who got her interest in indie author books thanks to a writer friend. The site is free, with a donation option. The book tour page appears to be very out of date, but there are recent blog posts. The few titles I clicked on had summaries rather than actual reviews.
Indie Reader Book Reviews. (So confusing to have THREE with such similar names!) This site gives scores up to 5. You can also search by genre. I picked one hybrid-published title to review in my newsletter. They have a paid entry contest, also.
On my mid-year resolution to rectify my traditional publisher prejudice, I’ve chosen a couple of books from Kirkus Reviews Best Indie Books
Kirkus Reviews’ Indie Best Books List. Published annually by the highly respected review platform Kirkus Reviews. Here is where all authors can earn a coveted “star”. Searching here is great, as you can sort the best-of list into genres. On my mid-year resolution to rectify my traditional publisher prejudice, I’ve chosen a couple of books from here.
For an indie author to be considered by most libraries, the rumor is they will need to have three starred reviews by respected platforms. Just which platforms these are may change as the industry does. But certainly, Kirkus is one of them.
Leave your suggestions in the comments!
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay