4 ms·

How do book fans discover and boost the gems among the streams of books?

• TedDoesntTalk 4y ago
  The same way it’s been done even pre-internet: recommendations, word of mouth, book reviews.
• extr 4y ago
  Yeah as the other commenter notes, book discovery is a difficult problem that hasn't shared in the gains made in algorithmic recommendation for other forms of media. If you think about it makes a lot of sense...literature has high cost of consumption (in terms of time spent), preferences are incredibly subjective, non-transitive to a degree not seen in music/film/tv. Your best way is the "old fashioned" approach of becoming familiar with reviewers and others who share your taste. In terms of boosting already existing authors who you enjoy, unfortunately sales are still king. Buying a bunch of copies of their book within 18 months of it's release (including in ebook or audiobook format!) is basically the strongest signal that you can send to get them additional visibility and promotion. Some publishers take softer metrics (like social media engagement, tour/signing turnout, etc) into account, but again, mostly as a proxy for what sales might look like.