Are you looking to start book blogging or reviewing, and need some guidance on where to begin? Just what is NetGalley? Here’s a practical, friendly guide to help you get started.
Sections:
Tips / Review Etiquette / NetGalley / Blog Tours / Mailing Lists and Influencer Programmes / Request Forms / Social Media
Tips
Know your niche.
If you’re a general reader across genres, that’s absolutely fine, but sometimes niche bloggers may receive preference for certain ARCs. For example, if you predominantly review romance, publishers may not prioritise you for horror titles. That doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong, just be aware that audience alignment matters.
Be polite.
This should be obvious, but sadly it isn’t. I spent eight years working in PR and Marketing, often sending out game review codes and organising press coverage. Review copies can be very limited and are usually divided across different teams (PR, Marketing, Social/Influencers). Not every request can be granted, so if you’re declined, stay polite. I’ve seen more than a few unnecessary complaints online!
Be flexible.
Physical proofs are wonderful, but they’re also limited, incur printing and postage costs and that obviously means they have a bigger environmental impact than digital copies. Being open to ebooks or audiobooks not only increases your chances of being approved, but also shows publishers you understand the realities behind proof distribution. Flexibility makes you easier to work with.
Make it easy.
Keep your bio updated with all your relevant contact information. Publishers often look for reviewers in specific locations or with certain platforms, so having everything clearly laid out in your bio makes their job much easier. The less digging they have to do, the more likely they are to work with you.
Review Etiquette
- Disclose if you received a proof or free copy.
- Avoid spoilers.
- Ensure you post on your specified deadline for online tours.
- Share your reviews on digital storefronts (such as Amazon and Waterstones) once the book is published. Star ratings and reviews genuinely help with visibility and can make a real difference to an author’s reach.
- Tag authors and publishers where appropriate but never tag authors in negative reviews. This is a huge no-no for me personally. I don’t post negative reviews at all; if a book isn’t working for me, I’ll simply stop reading it. There’s no such thing as a bad book, just the wrong book for the wrong reader at the wrong time. If my review is mixed, I’ll still skip tagging the author when I share it. That’s good etiquette. Coming from a games background, I spent years handling social media and community discussions and the feedback could be awful often crossing from critique into outright insults. And that was directed at large teams. A single author should not be tagged into your public takedown of their work. Recently, I even saw someone tag an author twice: once in the text, and again in the image, which featured their book with a giant DNF plastered across it. Because of that, the image appeared on the author’s own profile.
NetGalley
NetGalley connects authors and publishers with reviewers and industry professionals. Publishers can upload digital review copies for you to discover, request and review.
Getting Set Up
There is a UK and a US version of NetGalley, and they differ in availability and publishers, so make sure you sign up to the correct one. Create your NetGalley profile and include:
- A profile photo. This could be a selfie or a logo if you’re going to be reviewing on a website
- A short bio. Include who you are, what genres you enjoy, where you review and any stats you may have
How to Read
Books can be read:
- in a web browser via NetGalley Reader
- in the NetGalley Shelf app on iOS or Android
- via Send to Kindle or Send to Kobo (if enabled by the publisher). At the moment, NetGalley supports ePUB for Kobo, with PDF support still being rolled out.
When browsing a title, scroll to “Available on NetGalley” to check which devices are supported.
Requesting and Feedback Ratio
Approvals may depend on:
- feedback percentage ratio
- bio/available information
- location
- the publisher’s approval limits
Feedback percentage is very important, so how do you get it up when you’ve just created your account? You may get lucky and be approved for books based on your bio. There are also books that do not require you to request them and can be read instantly. To find these go to NetGalley → Find Titles → Browse Books → Read Now.
To keep your feedback percentage high, try not to request too many books all in one go. It can be tempting, but trust me they will build up!
Blog Tours
Blog tour companies organise coordinated reviews across blogs and social media. Most offer ebooks, with limited physical copies. Here are some companies you can sign up with:
Mailing Lists and Influencer Programmes
Publishers and freelancers often maintain blogger and influencer databases. Requirements can change, so check each one individually. Some you can sign up to include:
- BloggerHQ
- Bloomsbury Creator Circle – currently requires a minimum of 3,000+ followers
- Bonnier Hive
- Book Break Insider from Pan Macmillan
- Bookouture Influencer Team
- HarperCollins Readers Room
- John Murray Press’ The Lit Circle
- Little Brown Book Group Influencer Newsletter
- Orion Books Influencer Programme
- Penguin General Influencers
- Tandem Collective – sign up for their newsletter which is sent every Friday
- Rachel Quin Marketing’s blogger database
- Verve Books
- Vintage Influencers
Request Forms
Some publishers also offer ARC request forms directly through their websites or Google Forms. Examples include:
Social Media
Publishers often offer proofs directly through their social media posts and stories, so it’s always worth keeping an eye on your favourite accounts. Make sure you’re following the correct territory (for example, UK rather than US) to ensure you’re eligible for any proof opportunities they share. It’s also important to check that an account is intended for reviewers, for instance Penguin Huddle is specifically for booksellers only.
Engaging with publisher content can also increase your chances of being contacted directly. If you regularly share their books, interact with their stories and posts, or show genuine enthusiasm for their authors, publishers may choose to reach out to you with proof opportunities. Visibility and interaction genuinely help.
I hope this guide helped! If you have any questions then please do drop a comment below.
Beth Reads Crime 
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