- Have you ever heard someone say they got an ARC copy
of a book, or maybe you've been researching book promotions
and you've heard that ARCs are an important part
of getting book reviews.
Do you know what an ARC is?
Even more importantly, do you know why
they are so important to the success of your book launch?
If you don't, this video is for you.
(upbeat music)
Hey, there, I'm Julie the book broad.
I'm an Amazon overall number one best-selling author
and the founder of a fabulous company called Book Launchers.
Our super power is caring more about you
and your book than anybody else as we help you write,
publish, and sell a nonfiction book
that will boost your brand and make you money.
(bubbles gurgling)
Let's just dive straight into this one, shall we?
(laughs)
ARCs are advanced reader copies of a book.
Traditionally they are labeled
with an advanced reader copy on the manuscript.
This labeling could appear on the cover,
on every page at the top or bottom,
or as a watermark, so lightly labeled behind the text.
Personally, I don't like water marking
because it impacts the reading experience,
and you want positive early reviews,
so something that annoys them while they're reading
might not help with that.
Labeling was important in the days
before self-publishing because in traditional publishing,
they often sent them out well before they were finalized.
These days, a lot of self-published authors
send ARCs once the book is finalized
and they're just in pre-launch,
so they may not label the book at all,
and there's some folks that think that's best
because then, especially in the case
of a print book, the book can be passed on
to others after the reviewer is done with it.
But not labeling a book as ARC makes some authors nervous,
especially if it's an e-version of the book
because they fear their book could be copied
or sold by unscrupulous people
who get their hands on that ARC.
I'll get to protecting your ARC in a minute,
but first, let me touch on why ARCs
are an important part of the book launch process.
As we mentioned, advance reader copies
are copies of your book that are out
before your launch date.
Whether you label them or not,
they're still an ARC, and you use them
to get early endorsements that might go on the cover,
and as your launch date gets closer,
you're going to use the ARCs to solicit reviews
so that you have a bunch of reviews
on your launch date or launch week,
which is super important to everything you're doing
around your book marketing.
If you rush your launch date, you'll struggle
to get these reviews, and you'll be playing catch up
after your book is out, so we always recommend
that authors and our clients in particular
allow for six to eight weeks after the book is done
for sending out ARCs and building early review momentum
before your launch date.
But let's go back to the file protection.
(light drumming)
If you send printed copes, file protection
really is a minimal concern.
But many times you're going to be sending out
electronic copies 'cause it's more efficient and affordable,
so here are three things to think about
if you're worried about people taking your book
and selling it elsewhere when you send it out
as an electronic ARC.
First of all, be selective about who you distribute it to
if you're really worried about this,
and keep track of everyone who gets a copy,
which you should be doing that, anyway,
so you can follow-up and ask for the reviews.
Number two, you could also use a service
like NetGalley for your reviews.
They have controls in place for the digital distribution,
but this also does limit who you will be able
to send it to because all reviewers
on the NetGalley system have to be on the NetGalley system.
They can do that for free, but they still have to register,
which a lot of people won't wanna do.
Number three, don't worry about it.
My perspective is different than some
in that I'm more worried about getting people
to read my book than I am at trying to keep it safe
so I can make four or five dollars off every copy sold.
Sure, I wanna make money from the book,
but if someone steals it and distributes it widely
and people actually read it, well,
(laughs)
I have calls to action in the book
so they'll connect with me, and then they connect
with me, and viola!
(magical chimes) I have a potential client
or a new newsletter subscriber,
and someone else did the hard work
of finding that reader for me.
So I'm not gonna stress it.
In fact if someone wants to distribute my book
so widely it hurts my sales but I get a bunch
of new readers, I'm actually all for it.
But that's so unlikely to happen
unless you're a huge name author
with a widely anticipated book.
When that's the case, yes, you need
to take a lot of extra measures to protect your book.
But let's face it.
I'm a book broad with a wonderful family
of YouTube besties, but I'm not J.K. Rowling
or Margaret Atwood.
(laughs)
But speaking of YouTube besties,
if you like this video, smash that thumbs up button
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And when you comment the day a video is released,
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(magical chimes) #noboringbooks mug.
So go ahead, smash that thumbs up button,
and then post a comment below.
Just say hello and let us know
what book project you're working on right now.
In a sense, it's been such a delight
to be with you today.
I'd like to invite you over to this video
on Who to ask for your Amazon reviews.
You know, those people you might send an ARC copy to
now that you know what an ARC is,
or this video right here, which YouTube thinks
you really will enjoy.
Either way, I'm waiting excitedly
to see you again.
(upbeat music)