Summary

Write and Review is a community initiative aimed at fostering a network of authors who support each other through book reviews, with a focus on independent and small press works.

Abstract

Write and Review, spearheaded by a writer with over two decades of experience, is a platform dedicated to celebrating and promoting authors, particularly those in the independent and small press sectors. The initiative emphasizes the importance of authors reviewing each other's work to build a supportive community, offering visibility and potential financial benefits through networking and exposure. Contributors are encouraged to interact with existing reviews and follow a set of submission guidelines to maintain quality and visibility on Medium. The platform also provides an avenue for authors to request book reviews, with a preference for digital copies and a reminder to be patient with the review process.

Opinions

The founder expresses frustration with the "bland and uninspired storytelling" from major publishers and takes delight in discovering works from smaller publishers and independent authors.
Reviews are seen as a form of currency, providing encouragement and support to emerging writers, and should be offered freely to authors.
The community aims to elevate works and widen the reach of authors by organizing reviews in one place and building a network of reviewers.
Contributors are guided on how to submit their reviews to the publication, with specific formatting instructions to increase the chances of being featured in larger publications.
The initiative values proper image attribution and encourages the use of landscape-oriented images for better presentation on the platform.
The founder is committed to providing feedback on submissions to help authors improve their work and placement chances elsewhere.
Authors seeking reviews are encouraged to engage with the community and use the provided referral link to join Medium, ensuring a portion of the membership fee supports the writers they read.

About Write and Review

A community dedicated to celebrating authors

Thank you for your interest in Write and Review!

I have been working as a writer for more than 20 years, and I’ve met a lot of talented writers throughout the years. I’m often frustrated by the bland and uninspired storytelling that can be found in works released by major publishers, and I delight in navigating the vast universe of small press and independent novels.

Anyone who aspires to be a writer needs to dedicate a certain amount of his or her work week to writing reviews for fellow authors. If you are a new author, there is no better way to build a community than to review every book you read. Money is always tight for beginning writers, and reviews are like love letters that provide the encouragement for many struggling artists to carry on.

Building A Community

I firmly believe that book reviews should be free to the author. However there are many ways writers can receive a financial benefit from writing reviews. Reviews help you establish a network and create greater visibility for your own work. Once you achieve a certain level of notoriety as a reviewer, you might also find yourself inundated with offers of free products in exchange for reviews.

My purpose with this page is to organize all my reviews in one place and to begin to build a community of reviewers. The more people that are involved, the more works we can elevate, and the wider the reach of our efforts.

How To Contribute

If you would like to contribute to this publication, please follow and interact with some of the existing reviews. An interaction can be a clap (or multiple claps), comment, or share. I will see your interactions in my dashboard.

Next, send an email with ‘Request to Write for Write and Review’ in the subject line to: [email protected]. I will then add you as a writer.

After I’ve added you as a writer, you can submit a draft. First, create a new post in your Medium dashboard. Then, click on the three dots in the upper right hand corner. The dots will bring you to this drop down menu:

Next, click ‘Add to Publication’ and select ‘Write and Review.’ Remember, this drop down menu will not appear in your dashboard until I add you as a writer.

Submission Requirements

There is a great potential for new authors to achieve significant visibility through Medium publications. However, whenever you submit to a publication, it’s important that you follow the submission guidelines.

‘Write and Review’ is currently too small to expect major visibility for your reviews. However, I will assist anyone who contributes in perfecting their formatting so that they have a better chance of being featured in large publications.

As a general rule, please follow the submission guidelines of ‘The Writing Cooperative’ which can be referenced here. A quick summary of the guidelines is as follows:

Use a title and a subtitle. Highlight the title and format it with the large “T” option that appears in the pop up menu. Highlight the subtitle and format it with the small “T.”
Include an image. Please use a landscape rather than portrait style image because it looks better on the home page. Make sure the image is between 1,000 and 2,000 pixels wide. Properly attribute the image, if it’s your image put “Image Courtesy of Your Name.” If the image comes from Unsplash, use the tag that is provided when you download the image. I often take a picture of the book, or the kindle cover of the book on my device, and post that.
Use section headings when relevant and include a link to the Amazon page for the book at the end. Don’t use the search link because that adds in tracking information that can hurt the book:

Search link for ‘Reckless Traveler,’ Image courtesy of Walter Rhein

Abbreviated link for ‘Reckless Traveler,’ Image Courtesy of Walter Rhein

If there are other issues in your submission, I’ll make a note in the draft so you can see it. The purpose here is to provide feedback on your submissions so you have a better chance of placing your work elsewhere.

How To Request a Book Review

If you are not yet a member of Medium, please sign up for an account using my referral link:

Join Medium with my referral link - Walter Rhein

As a Medium member, a portion of your membership fee goes to writers you read, and you get full access to every story…

walterrhein.medium.com

You may send books even if you are already a Medium member.

I also would like for you to interact with some of the reviews that are already posted. Then send an email with the title of the work you want reviewed to: W[email protected].

I am happy to review digital copies to keep expenses low for everyone. Make sure that you also include a .jpg of the cover.

Once your book is on my spreadsheet, it might take me a long time to get to it, so please be patient. When the review is released, please take the time to share it on your social media and interact. The more interaction you can drive to your review, the more publicity you achieve for your novel.

Again, Thanks For Your Interest

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to comment or write. I look forward to hearing from you and wish you the best in your writing endeavors!