***THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED***
My nightstand has started to groan and mumble under it’s breath and it’s not even holding all my books from BEA. Which means, yeah…now the dresser is starting to complain too. It’s getting loud in my room when I’m trying to sleep, so to quiet down the furniture, I’ve decided I need to part with some of my lovelies from time to time. Today will be my first Save the Nightstand Contest!
What am I giving away?
It’s an unopened package from BEA that includes the soft cover of DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE by Laini Taylor AND an Exclusive Extended Preview of DAYS OF BLOOD AND STARLIGHT!!!! (Release Date– November 6th)
No, I haven’t hit my head LOL!
So, why am I giving this away without even having taken off the wrapping and peeked inside?
First, I’ve read Smoke and Bone already so I already have a copy. Second, I know that the teaser will just drive me crazy!!!! It’s like asking me to hold an ice cream cone but only take a lick. Do you want my head to explode?
But I’m figuring some of you have been dying to read book one before Blood and Starlight comes out OR you just have a lot more control than I do and you’re capable of licking your books without any major ramifications.
So how do you get this lovely little book appetizer?
THE DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE did something that is really hard to do in the book world–it brought something unique to the table. In my opinion, the fresh concept combined with the fabulous writing made this book a force to be reckoned with. So I want to talk about what makes a book a stand out. Why do books go viral? And is viral created equal? Do you give the same weight and respect to all books that go viral? Do you see THE DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE the way you do TWILIGHT, DIVERGENT, THE SHACK, THE HELP or FIFTY SHADES OF GREY? (just to name a few viral examples) Is it the characters or the content? Is it word of mouth or marketing or perhaps just luck? I’d love to hear what you think about the topic.
This contest is open internationally and don’t forget to leave your contact information with your comment. You can’t win if I can’t reach you. Usually I run the contest all weekend but if the conversation is really good I reserve the right to make it last a little longer LOL! The winner will be picked by Random.org. Good luck and much thanks from my nightstand and my dresser.
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Does the first commenter win? I hope so! 🙂
I’ve always wanted to read SMOKE AND BONE. I read a teaser of the first chapter long ago, but am too busy buying books written by friends. I have a constant 5 stacks of books by my bed, too. It never seems to drop because there are just so many good ones to read and for every one I read, I’m buying two or three more! Or getting them from the library!
Thanks for the giveaway! My email is kglittle@msn.com
5!!! % is fabulous! I think I have at least 35 hence the contest LOL!
This is such a cool giveaway! Thank you!
I think a lot of components make a book go viral and become really popular. (See: The Hunger Games, Twilight, Harry Potter, etc.) When a book gets optioned to be made into a movie and is put on the big screen, the book definitely goes viral. A lot of times these books were already pretty popular, but being made into a movie majorly ups its status.
There’s also word of mouth. When people (friends, bloggers, celebrities, the guy at the coffee shop) recommend a book and people read it, that recommendation gets passed on and on. This is also where book bloggers help books become viral. If there’s a blog that a lot of people go to and follow (same with Twitter) and a book comes with a high recommendation, chances are that followers will read it.
I read books based on recommendations and, admittedly, by catchy covers and titles I see at bookstores and libraries. Recently, however, I’ve grown to want to read books from Twitter. I follow authors, agents, bloggers, etc., and they’re always talking about books. Through Twitter, mainly authors, you kind of get to see who they really are and sometimes that makes you want to read their books.
There is so much that goes into making a book that goes viral, but it’s important that the book is actually good.
Again, thanks for the giveaway! It’s a fun way to enter! (:
rachelpatrick93@yahoo.com
Rachel–I agree–Twitter has really started to have a big influence in what I hear people talking about and recommending. Kinda cool!
Haha I love the giveaway name idea… it sounds a lot like my bookshelf 😉 Anyway, to answer your question, I think there are different types of viral. For example, Twilight (no offense) is a terribly written book yet it is a New York Times Bestseller. I don’t think it was very popular before it was slotted to become a movie. The reason it became popular was due to pop culture making the whole vampires vs. werewolves thing something cool. And when people started to spread the word that the movie was coming out with actor x and actress x in it (through word of mouth), the book started to garner interest from those who wished to read the book before seeing the movie. However, there are other books (I don’t have one specifically in mind at the moment but) who are just so well written that they get really good reviews and everyone hears about how awesome they are so they pick up the book and then tell others about how much they loved the book and the cycle goes on and on. Well… that’s my personal opinion. 🙂
Thanks for the giveaway! I can’t wait to read the books: they’re on my to-read list >.^
~Shannon
alyssimagination@gmail.com
Thanks Shannon. One of the things I heard (I don’t know how true it is) but that when Stephanie Meyer first was marketing Twilight, she was a very accessible, relatable author. Teens felt really connected to her. Also, I think that part of the appeal of the story was that there was was no real way to “win” in this love triangle she had going on. Someone, in some way was going to take a major loss. The fact that she was able to skirt that thing that drew in so many readers is my biggest complaint with the series. She found a way to tie a bow on it at the end and that felt like false advertisement to me. Of course that didn’t stop me from staying up until 2am to finish reading it LOL!
I agree with what Shannon said. Books go viral for a lot of reasons, sometimes because they’re good, sometimes because they’re timely, and sometimes also because they’re bad (remember William Hung from AI?) For me, personally, most of the books that have caught my interest are those recommended by other people e.g. book bloggers and friends. If I love it (or hate it) I would talk to people about it and become another link in the viral chain. I rarely talk about books I am ‘meh’ about though, so I suppose it’s got to stir some really powerful emotion in me.
lesly7ch(at)yahoo(dot)com
That absolutely speaks to the argument that there is no bad press so to speak. Which may be true. If you hate something and speak up against it–you draw attention to it and usually you will draw as many people who like it as hate it. Then there are always people who will just want to be part of the conversation. I know I’m like that with 50 Shades of Grey–I had to read it because I wanted to know what everyone else was talking about LOL!
Although I think books go viral for a number reasons (catching onto the right trend, good publicity, it’s been optioned into a film etc.) but I also think a major component of a book becoming really popular is luck. Although I think Twilight was reasonable well-written with an interesting plot-line, there are many books out there which are simply much better. Nonetheless, I can’t really talk, as I own the entire series 😀
Another example of a book that went viral that I do not like AT ALL is Fallen by Lauren Kate. The premise for the book was interesting, but the writing and characters felt flat & I was ultimately disappointed. I seriously have no idea how this book became so famous.
So although I think a good plot-line, interesting characters, a eye-catching cover and beautiful writing is all a part of a book going viral, luck or good timing is a heavy influence on the popularity of the novel (Fallen being a good example of this).
Anyway, I absolutely adored Daughter of Smoke and Bone and can’t wait to see what happens next in Days of Blood and Starlight, so thank you so much for the chance to win!
rachchan2006@yahoo.com.au
I agree…LUCK is the secret sauce!!!!
For me, it’s all word of mouth. I watch what my friends are queuing on Goodreads and what they’re reviewing. Then I see what people are talking about on Twitter. And if I really love a book, I give it away to friends. What makes a book go viral? It’s so hard to tell. A great cover. A new and unique premise. The promise that there’ll be more books in the same vein. Extra online content. Great maps or back materials. These are all things I look for in an awesome series.
Word of mouth gets me every time. If everyone is talking about the same book it makes it almost impossible not to give it a try.
I think there’s a lot of different reasons that books can go viral. Obviously if they’ve made it onto the NY Times bestseller list they’re going to be talked about a lot and that definitely leads to the book going viral. A lot of times it’s because the book is so awesome that it’s talked about constantly and it makes me have to read it. But, other times it can be because the way people feel about the book is split with about half people loving it and half hating it. So a lot of people read it just to see what the big deal is and to be able to add their own opinion to it, lol. That’s what I’ve seen a lot of with Shades of Grey. I’ve heard tons of people that loved it, but then I’ve got other friends that couldn’t even make it through the first book because they thought the writing was so bad. Either way, though, a lot was said about the book and now it’s sold a lot, which almost makes me think that there really is no such thing as bad publicity. Whether what’s said about the book is good or bad, it still makes more people aware of the book. Most of the books I read now are ones that have been recommended to me by friends or that I’ve read good things about online, on twitter or blogs. I follow a lot of authors, book bloggers, agents, etc. on twitter and if they mention a book that is good, I almost always add it to my list. Some books I’ve read after following the author on twitter, because things they’ve tweeted have made me really want to read their books. I even have a book club that some twitter friends started and I now get a lot of my recommendations from those in the club with me. A lot of the books I’ve read lately I wouldn’t have even known about had I not heard about them in my book club. Now I think a big part of what books people read has to do with things that are seen or heard online.
I think controversy is an interesting element to add to the viral equation. People like to feel passionate about things and that can easily fall into the positive or the negative side of things. I’m beginning to agree that “the haters” may not be getting what they want out of the negativity. I love this…
“Censors never go after books unless kids already like them. I don’t even think they know to go after books until they know that children are interested in reading this book, therefore there must be something in it that’s wrong.”
― Judy Blume
I usually read every book that seems interesting that crosses my path. I go for really popular books and for the ones almost no one knows about. If a book has a great and interesting story, something refreshing and amazing characters I will read it. I usually go by recommendations from my friends and from good people of Goodreads or I stumple on a book in a bookstore that seems to stand out. I know a lot of people that are drawn to books by their covers but to me a pretty cover is just a bonus.
I love being a champion for a good book that hasn’t gotten the press it deserves!
I think for a book to go viral the idea has to be fresh and new, it has to get good publicity from bloggers and publishers, and the whole time has to be just right. I think it’s almost like an equation, a+b+c=a book gone viral. You need that perfect set of variables that are impossible to explane, that one allure that draws people in and just doesn’t let them go.
It all has to come together in a perfect storm!
I have been wanting to read Daughter of Smoke and Bone ever since its release. I think some books stand out because of their originality (I don’t think the same for Twilight or Fifty Shades of Grey, former I feel is a lot cliched with painful non-existent chemistry and the latter is a Twilight fan-fic, period). I think marketing plays a huge role in it as well, you can’t know a book exists unless you see or hear about it somewhere. But the best publicity, I believe, is by controversy. People will want to read a book all the more if its surrounded by a lot of controversy. But some books are just so plain awesome that it’s no surprise that they go viral (Eg: Harry Potter).
BTW thanks for the opportunity to win!
email: priya.1dt@gmail.com
I have to agree…marketing plays a huge role…it has to.
This contest is now closed. The winner was Kimberley Griffiths Little!!!!
Oh I LOVED Daughter of Smoke and Bone and I can’t wait to read this one. Am I too late for the contest??? lol.
<3
LOL, btw, I know I was late. Still. I WANT THAT BOOK!! 😛