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Tuesday, June 01, 2010

Launch Day


Want to win this great beach bag stuffed with great gifts that all have to do with The Mailbox?? (Especially the red flip flops, but you have to read it to understand why!!) Enter today at She Reads.

As the book becomes widely available today I have no idea what to expect. I have a devotion running today, which is linked to She Reads, where people can learn more about the book. And that's about the extent of my plans. In the coming weeks and days I will have guest blog posts and interviews running on various blogs and I will be doing some radio interviews. And I am doing signings around North and South Carolina during the summer. (See my "Where I'll Be" tab to find out where the signings are and please come out if you live nearby!)

And that's about all I know to do.

The rest is up to you, the readers. Last week I posted a list of things you can do to spread the word about the book and ran a contest to win a copy before you can buy it.

Today I thought I would post information about how you can write a review on Amazon about the book after you've had a chance to read it. If you've never written a review on Amazon, it's not hard and it's something that actually really helps. I know when I am considering a book I very often will read what other people think about it before purchasing it. Of course the publisher's going to say it's great, of course the author loves it. But what do real people with nothing invested have to say?? That's why the reviews are helpful.

So if you've read the book and would like to write a review, here are instructions you can follow:


How to Write a Product Review on Amazon:

Step 1: Go to http://www.amazon.com/. Choose the "book" category.

Step2: Type in "The Mailbox: A Novel" and look through the returned results to select the book that you wish to review.

Step3: You must have an account with Amazon in order to write a review! Log in (if you have previously ordered something through Amazon before)or register yourself with Amazon.com.

Step4: Rate the book using the "star" method. (between one and five stars). A product you dislike might get one star, while a superior product would receive five.

Step5: Title your review. Think of a catchy review title that will encourage browsers to read your review.

Step6: Fill in the text for your review. Keep it short and concise. Remember you are trying to persuade the reader to consider this book from the many others in the marketplace.

Step7: Preview your review (CHECK YOUR SPELLING) and submit. It should appear on Amazon's website within the week.

Thanks to all of you who take the time to review the book. And don't forget about Barnes and Noble's reviews either-- as of right now I have NO reviews over there!! I really do appreciate all the help you can give me. People like you are what make or break a first-time novelist!!
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11 comments:

Sylvia Goode Basham said...

Summer is the perfect time for reading a novel, for sure! As a homeschooling mom, the school year is just too busy. I'll have to see if I can get my hands on it :-)

Thanks for your devotional today. My husband was the consequence of department mergers last week. But having been through way more difficult things than this (imagine a failed business where we actually ended up paying to go to work, and then the loss of a child) we have seen God's faithfulness and have a seemingly strange peace about it all....

Marybeth Whalen said...

Sylvia, I am glad you have peace. That's so important. God will keep giving you peace as you navigate the unemployment world. I know He's been there for us every step of the way.

Pam said...

About 3 years ago, my husband was out of work for about 2 months. No, it wasn't a long time but it was a very scary time nonetheless. I would have to say we had a peace during that time that words cannot explain.

I loved your quote from your devotional today "We have what we need for today" and you trust God for the future. We found God to be so faithful during that time. We received anonymous checks in the mail every day for 2 weeks. God is a great provider! I, too, look back on that time as a very special time depending on the Lord like I never have before and I know your family will also look back at this time and see the great things God taught you.

This NC girl is looking forward to reading your book. I love to read books with a NC origin. Beautiful cover, by the way!

Blessings to you and your beautiful family.

Marybeth Whalen said...

Thanks Pam-- I love your story-- it's so true!! God loves to see us trust Him in the midst of calamity. He loves to see us cling tightly to His hand, to focus on Him even as the waters are rough around us. Not always the easy thing to do. Glad your family got through that time and grew through it too!

Cara Sexton said...

Congrats, Marybeth! For the Write Reason is my favorite writing resource and I'm excited to hear that you've branched into novels! I'll pick up a copy and read whenever I can squeeze in a few minutes here and there. Very exciting!

Shawna said...

Marybeth,

Thank you so much for your devotion today. My husband had a very similar situation occur last October. We thought we were where God wanted us, but he did have other plans and now I feel removed us from the situation to protect us. It was very upsetting to us, but God provided another job, a place to live and has continued to bless us! God is so good!!!!

Shawna

Jodie Wolfe said...

Congrats MaryBeth! How exciting for you!

Blessings,
Jodie

Renee Swope said...

Love this book!! Can't wait to get my signed copy! I'm so excited I posted about The Mailbox on my blog, Twitter and Facebook. I linked to She Reads, too. Decided to go a give-away as well. Love celebrating this big day with you!!

Pam said...

I realized that the "Kindred Spirit" mailbox is just a few miles from where we will be vacationing in a couple of weeks. I'm going huntin' for this mailbox. I wrote a post about that this morning on my blog telling my closest friends and family about your book. http://teamcason.blogspot.com. Can't wait to read it - got it ordered!

Oh Dear said...

Congratulations Marybeth!!!

Pat said...

Congratulations Marybeth!! I can not WAIt to get my copy!! To tell you the truth, you got me with the COVER!!!
Beautiful girl!!
Pat