I’ve actually gotten a few questions on the ethics of paid reviews in the past, so I wanted to try to tackle this one outright. Is there anything wrong with paying someone for their review? The answer is that it really depends…

In one example, I had someone tell me about doing a book giveaway on Goodreads and basically paying for the advert in the hopes of the book getting into the hands of people who would write a review.
As far as I’m concerned, there is no breach of ethics here. You’re paying someone for their honest opinion of something you wrote. Though I admit it’s kind of unusual to have to pay for such things, it’s not unheard of and can certainly be beneficial. Word of mouth does help a lot and good reviews draw the attention of other readers.

The second example I had was of a writer who paid for people to write reviews… and then wanted to sue/remove one of them for writing a bad review. This is a breach of ethics. I honestly view this as a form of bribery. If your book can’t stand on its own merits and you have to pay just to get someone to write a good review, it’s time to re-think publishing. It’s not a good move because it’s a deceptive business practice where you’re basically lying about the quality of your work… or paying others to do it for you. DO NOT DO THIS!

In the end, there is nothing wrong with paying to get free copies of your book out there or even offering to pay readers to write an HONEST review. Keyword there. Honesty is the big differential there. If you pay, knowing full well that you run the risk of getting negative reviews, there’s nothing wrong with that. You’re asking these people to give their honest opinion. It’s risky, but if you’re good at your craft, it can pay off.
If you’re paying for positive reviews, only. Then you run afoul of good business practices.

In short, if you don’t think your story can withstand a little scrutiny, either don’t publish it or don’t pay for reviews. It won’t end well. Polish your writing and then put it out there. Let the public decide what happens next.

Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.

jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com

I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.

Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Note:
If you have read my books, PLEASE log into Amazon and post a review. I really love to hear everyone’s thoughts and constructive criticisms. Reviews help get my book attention and word of mouth is everything in this business!

Thanks friends!

Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim