Blogcritics

Interview with Gail Pool, Author of Faint Praise - The Plight of Book Reviewing in America

Mayra Calvani — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:56:38 EDT

"I think that good reviews have always been an endangered species," states Pool.
Former Boston Review Editor Gail Pool has been involved in literary journalism for three decades. She has been a magazine editor, a review editor, a critic, a columnist, and a freelance journalist. Her columns, essays and articles have appeared in publications such as the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the Houston Post, the San Diego Union-Tribune, the...

Interview with Judi Clark of MostlyFiction.com

Mayra Calvani — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 20:49:27 EDT

"If someone just wants free books, I recommend that they visit their local library," states Clark.
Started in 1998, MostlyFiction.com is an online review site with about 16 staff reviewers who review an average of 20 books a month. One thing that is of interest to authors is that each review is linked to the author's website and includes the author's complete bibliograpy with links to Amazon. If you'd like to become a reviewer for...

Interview with Hilary Williamson of BookLoons

Mayra Calvani — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 13:06:51 EDT

"We do write negative reviews when called for, but try to always end on a positive note," says Williamson.
Founded in 2002 by Hilary Williamson, BookLoons now offers readers close to 10,000 reviews on various genres -- from children's to teens to most adult categories. Williamson is very selective when recruiting reviewers and edits all reviews herself before they appear on the site. On average, between 100-150 reviews are added to BookLoons each...

Interview with Rachel Riebeling Durfor of Rebecca's Reads

Mayra Calvani — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 14:54:46 EDT

"To most authors, their book is like their baby, and you never tell a mother her newborn baby is kind of, well, unattractive."
Established in 1998 by Rebecca Brown, Rebecca's Reads is a book review site and publicity service website. When Brown retired from reviewing in 2006, the site remained online but it wasn't until January 2008 that it flourished under new ownership with many new services for authors and readers. Rebecca's Reads considers most type of...

Interview with Lea Schizas of Muse Book Reviews

Mayra Calvani — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 17:15:43 EDT

"Unfortunately, I do believe that many �writer friends� who are reviewers do help fellow writers," states Schizas.
A resident of Montreal, award-winning multi-genre author and editor Lea Schizas describes herself as a late bloomer who “finally woke up after a 23-year self-induced coma taking care of the family, and rediscovered my passion for writing.” She is the co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of two Writer’s Digest 101 Top Writing Sites of...

Interview with Andrea Sisco of Armchair Interviews

Mayra Calvani — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 19:15:09 EDT

"We'd like authors to remember: A review is one person's opinion," states Sisco.
Andrea Sisco is the co-founder of Armchair Interviews and the author of the forthcoming mystery novel A Deadly Habit, to be released from Five Star in 2009. Started in 2005, Armchair Interviews now has about 100 staff reviewers who review an average of 200 books a month. This popular review site receives about 2 million hits a year and has been...

Interview with Kevin Eagan of Blogcritics Magazine and There There Kid

Mayra Calvani — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 14:23:28 EDT

"The Internet is a great place to find some excellent review sites, but it's also rife with gushy fan forums that hold no weight," states Eagan.
Kevin Eagan is one of a team of editors at Blogcritics Magazine and founder of There There Kid, a blog focusing on cultural and literary criticism. He also writes a weekly feature for Blogcritics called The Early Word, where he talks about some of the latest fiction books being released by both big and small publishers. In this interview, Eagan...

Interview with Rachel Smith of Bitten by Books

Mayra Calvani — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 00:30:58 EDT

"Honest, subjective reviews garner the trust of your readers and endear them to actually listen and act upon your advice," states Smith.
Rachel Smith is the founder of Bitten by Books, a new book review site focusing on paranormal fiction, urban fantasy and horror. At the moment, the sites has 18 reviewers who review about 100 books a month. Smith considers both electronic and print copies. She's also currently looking for more reviewers to join her team, especially those who...

Interview with Eveline Soors of Euro-Reviews

Mayra Calvani — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 22:12:25 EDT

"It is unprofessional of an author (or publisher) to directly attack a reviewer for just giving his or her opinion," states Soors.
Eveline Soors is the Book Review Editor of Euro-Reviews, a Belgium-based online review site specializing in women's fiction -- biographies, memoires, African-American books, chick-lit, column books, erotica, and other women related non-fiction. What makes Euro-Reviews stand apart from other sites is that they also review books written in Dutch....

Interview with Cheryl C. Malandrinos of The Book Connection

Mayra Calvani — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 16:55:28 EDT

"Give readers some credit; they don�t need biting marks from a reviewer to learn the areas where the book failed to meet a person�s expectations."
Cheryl C. Malandrinos is the Editor of The Book Connection, a blog focusing on reviews, author interviews, and on hosting virtual book tour guests. She's also a reviewer for The Muse Book Reviews. Cheryl is currently looking for more reviewers to join her blog, especially for those who review ebooks. A virtual book tour coordinator for Pump Up...