Book Blurbs


​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​​









After great reviews, the second big author’s dream is having cover blurbs (endorsements) from famous people who’ll say nice things to entice other people to buy books. Often, especially for a new author with a new book, it’s just not possible to get cooperation of an expert who will add authority to yours.



That doesn’t mean your book has to be “blurbless.” There’s nothing wrong with asking for and printing blurbs from friends and family, if they’re appropriate to your book. Often a blurb from an “ordinary person” who really read your book and with whom prospective readers can identify, will seem more genuine and be more effective than a blurb from a star who spent just ten minutes skimming. Later on, if a celeb falls in love with your words, you can revise the cover to in-clude the new comments.



My book, I Only Flunk My Brightest Students: stories from school and real life, deals with my life. It made perfect sense to use blurbs from people who know me, rather than a blurb from some distant Nobel Prize winner I’d have to bribe to get a few words from. The book is funny. Identifying my front cover blurber as “author’s classmate since first grade” reinforces the mood. It’s almost a parody of traditional stuffy or irrelevant IDs (“professor of Indo-Eurasian folk medicine at the University of Guatemala,” “Miss Tallahassee 1972 Runner-Up,” or “Three-Time Northern Utah Senior Citizen Spelling Bee Champion”).



A blurb written by a previewer of my Stories I’d Tell My Children (but maybe not until they’re adults) was so good that there was no need to explain the blurber’s background.



The best blurb generally goes on the front cover, don’t forget blurbs for the back cover, for the first inside page, for online booksellers, and for your own web pages.



There’s nothing wrong with your acting as a writing coach. You can edit blurbs as long as you don’t change the meaning. You can even write a blurb and ask someone to “adopt” it.

In some fields of writing, blurbing is corrupt, with authors trading blurbs in order to publicize their own books. Some blurbers dominate their fields. They are like hired guns, or medical experts who will provide an expert opinion at a trial for whichever side will pay the most money. Some experts seem to write more blurbs for other books than complete books under their own names.



On the other hand, plenty of perfectly nice experts and authors refuse to do blurbs because they are just too busy.



I think that the value of blurbs from authors is diminishing, simply because it has become so easy to become an author. Perhaps this website will make the situation even worse.

If you write a book about artistic pickle slicing, a rave blurb from the author of a book about headlight replacement may not accomplish much for you. An endorsement from a Pulitzer Prize winner might mean a lot more, but would be tough to get unless he happens to be your father.



Tips for better blurbing



One prime purpose of a blurb is to borrow credibility from a well-known authority or tastemaker whose authority and taste may be better known than yours. Select your candidates carefully. Even if your college roommate is now a Hollywood star, his fame does not mean he can write a meaningful blurb for your book on tennis, cooking or bathroom remodeling.

​

Don’t be too timid to approach famous authors, politicians, business leaders and celebrities, especially if you have some-thing in common which can create a bond. You might be pleasantly surprised. Write a good letter and explain how you think the book relates to the prospective blurber. Find a reason to compliment the candidate. If possible, refer to a time when you were in the same place, perhaps during a speech or a book signing or on an airplane. (I once sat next to Geoffrey Holder.)



A good way to find “amateur” blurbers who might write sincere comments about actually benefiting from your book is to observe online communities which are concerned with your subject. If you find articulate people with problems your book solves, offer to send them free advance copies (even PDFs if bound copies are not yet available) in exchange for their comments. You can say that you’d like to know if the book was helpful and how it can be improved. Mention that you might like to quote their comments, but don’t guarantee it.

Try to get some sincere and well-written blurbs from people who have read your book and know its background and value. That can be more useful than a few perfunctory words from a distant celebrity because readers will be better able to identify with recommendation from “civilians.”



If you’ve written a how-to book, the best blurbs will come from people who have actually been helped by it, not by other authors using your book as a billboard to hawk their books.

One page of blurbs should be enough, but some people make a mini-chapter out of them. That seems like a silly and egomaniacal waste of trees. Once you get beyond the first page, the blurbs get pretty weak, or poorly written, or both. Watch out for blurbs that are overwritten or pompous, where the blurber is more impressed with her own words than with the book she’s blurbing about.



Brevity and clarity are better than overabundance. You want one to three sentences -- not 1,000 words. Don’t be afraid to edit. Again, get approval for changes.



Some writers put the same blurbs on the back cover and inside the book. That’s silly and obvious padding.



Don’t use blurbs from people who have a financial interest in the book. One book I read has a blurb from someone who works for the company that published it. That’s tacky. The book also has reviews that promote books written by some of the blurbers. Tit-for-tat is tacky, too.

Short blurbs are usually better than long blurbs. Humorous blurbs (if appropriate) are often better than serious blurbs.



Request blurbs as long in advance as possible -- as soon as you have a draft of your book that is good enough to show. The book does not have to be complete. You can probably get by with an introduction, a table of contents, and a few chapters sent as a PDF. If you want a blurb from someone famous, it’s probably better to send an ARC (previous chapter) than a PDF.



Incorporate good “early” blurbs into your back cover and first page as soon as possible. If other blurbers read them, they may be more likely to write similarly positive comments.



Keep in mind that the people you are requesting blurbs from are probably even busier than you are. You can request or suggest that they send their blurb in two weeks, and check with them in three weeks if you have not received it -- but don’t nag. Even though you will be providing publicity for the blurber, you stand to benefit more from her effort, so respect her presumably hectic schedule.



You may be able to speed things along and get a more powerful blurb if you write a few samples that the blurber can use as-is or modify. It’s best to customize the blurbs for each target.



Don’t assume that all potential blurbers will actually deliver, even if they promise to do so. And some of the delivered blurbs may be unsuitable. Always ask for more than you have room for in and on the book -- probably twice as much.



Blurbs should be as specific as possible and relate to the content, effect and advantages of your book. “Best book I ever read” won’t mean much, unless the statement is coming from someone well known for literary taste.



After your book goes on sale, you will probably receive unsolicited comments from readers -- either as letters, email or comments on booksellers’ websites. Ask permission to use the good ones as blurbs. Most readers will be thrilled to see their name on or in your book. Blurbs also go on websites, sell-sheets and press releases.