So, you’ve been working hard on your book. You have a beautiful cover, top-notch professional layout, and content that will guarantee your book will be a huge success — if you could just get someone to read it. IRIS/Edelweiss Digital Review Copy to the rescue.
What Is IRIS/Edelweiss Digital Review Copy?
Edelweiss — a service run by Above the Treeline — is essentially a book discovery tool which allows publishers to post their frontlist catalogs to a large network of potential reviewers. If someone on the network wants to review your book, they have the ability to request access, download your book, read it, and give you a review. The option to request access is beneficial because you’ll always know how many eyes are being drawn to your book and whose eyes are reading them. Such is the magic of DRC (Digital Review Copy).
It all begins with Edelweiss’ search bar, which allows the reviewer to narrow down searches to specific tags, such as publication date, age, or publisher. They can also see what is trending with the “buzz” tab which allows users to see what people are most excited about using features like their PW (Publisher’s Weekly) starred review, Indie next titles, and lists featuring the most popular titles. Another useful tab is their ‘share’ tab. This tab allows users to share the books they love by filling out a form and sending an email to whomever they’d like to share it with.
What does all this mean? If means that tens of thousands of book professionals are browsing the catalog constantly, from bookstore buyers to book bloggers to librarians, all looking for the next great book. Shouldn’t that be your book?
Isn’t This Kind of Like Netgalley?
NetGalley and Edelweiss are similar. Both offer Digital Review Copies to reviewers. Unlike Edelweiss, NetGalley allows independent authors to put their books directly into their catalog without a publisher.
Also, inclusion in Netgalley is considerably more expensive, coming in at $349 through IBPA, while Edelweiss is regularly $149 through IndieReader. (Find a savings of $30 below, for a one-time special of $119 for Edelweiss through IndieReader.)
How To Get DRC For Your Indie Book
IndieReader has developed an exclusive agreement with Edelweiss to offer independent authors a spot inthe IR In-Store catalog used by 37,000 book industry professionals — a benefit usually reserved for traditional publishers.
This is a great way for you, as an independent author, to gain exposure for your book. This tool has helped support self-published authors and book reviewers by moving the needle from a digital marketplace to the bookshelves of stores. This occurs because Edelweiss is used by a majority of independent bookstores, including Barnes and Noble. Similarly, librarians have access to this catalog which could determine the sales of your book.
DRC is very much a social network, which connects you with other industry professionals. While narrowing down searches for reviewers with Edelweiss’ interactive research tool, bloggers, librarians, and reviewers alike will have direct access to taking your book to the next level.
Get your first 6 months of Edelweiss for just $119 – Save $30 – with code DRCDROP.
Recommended Reading on DRC:
Edelweiss 101: A Guide For New Users from StackedBooks
Meet Edelweiss, Your New Favorite Book Discovery Tool from BookRiot