I've heard it said by people who supposedly speak with authority that blogs don't sell books. Now, I know that even the most popular book blogs won't have a readership to rival that of the newspaper book pages, but even so, I'll wager that we have greater influence among our own, smaller readership than do the reviews in the press - that is, you may be more likely to listen to the views of Blogger A or B, whose tastes are similar to yours and who feels more like a friend recommending a book than those of the (perhaps anonymous or less familiar) reviewer in the paper. That point has topical relevance, too, in that tonight sees the announcement of the 2010 Man Booker Prize winner, and a huge upsurge in sales for that book, whatever it is, is guaranteed, but some readers who instinctively shy away from Booker books and the like may yet be drawn to them by a blogger's having paved the way, as it were - by a post along the lines of "I enjoyed it, so you may, too."
I am still a regular buyer of books, despite being sent so many by publishers, and while I read the newspaper book pages, most of the books I end up getting are those I've read about on blogs. Often the acquisition is months after I've first seen the post in question, but I keep a note of titles I want and will either get them myself, as and when, or put them on my Christmas and birthday lists as suggestions for the family when they ask me what I'd like. No-one would be able to trace the eventual purchase of Book X back to a review by Blogger Y, but that is where the sale arose. Furthermore, when I in turn come to talk about the book here, others will read it, and that viral effect shouldn't be underestimated.
To go back to publishers for a moment, I'd love to know something about their policies on sending out review copies, but judging from the multitude I am offered and the number of individual houses or publicists within the big houses who are regularly in touch with me, they must see the blogs as a worthwhile means of spreading the word about their books.
So, let's have an informal poll:
1. Have you ever bought a book or borrowed one from the library (I'm including borrowings as library requests must have some trickle-down effect on sales) as a result of reading about it on a blog or blogs?
2. If you blog about books yourself, have any of your readers ever come back to you to tell you that they've read a certain book because of your post on it, or have you been aware of such a purchase through affiliate links?
My answers to these questions are "yes" and "yes", but I'd love to know yours if you have a moment to spare.
