Goodreads for Authors: How to Use It Within the Rules

A note on the rules: platform policies change. Read the current Goodreads Author Guidelines, Review Guidelines and Terms of Service before you act, and treat this article as general orientation, not legal advice.

Goodreads is a social network for readers: they track what they read, rate books and write reviews. For authors it is less a sales channel than a place to be discoverable and to build a reputation. Used well, it supports your launch. Used badly, it can get your book flagged. Here is how to do it properly.

Step 1: Claim your author profile

Create a normal reader account first, find your book, click your name on the book page and request an author profile through the Goodreads Author Program. Once approved, you can edit your biography, add a photo, connect a blog feed, list all of your books and answer reader questions. Make sure every edition of your book is combined on a single page, because ratings and reviews are counted per book page.

Step 2: Make your book page work for you

Check the cover, the description, the genre shelves and the series information. Your description is the same text you use elsewhere, so a clear, tight blurb matters here too; our guide on writing a blurb that converts shows how. Add your book to a few shelves that match its genre and invite your existing newsletter readers to add it to their "want to read" shelf. Adding a book to "want to read" is a no-pressure action that helps visibility.

Step 3: Use giveaways thoughtfully

Goodreads Giveaways let you offer free copies to entrants who sign up during a set period. It is a paid advertising product, and the fee and the formats available are listed on Goodreads. What matters for you:

• Give away copies to build awareness, not to buy opinions.
• Entrants are not obliged to review, and you must not demand or pressure winners to do so. A review, if it comes, should be the reader's free choice.
• Time the giveaway shortly before or around your launch so that interest is highest.
• Check shipping costs before you commit, especially for international winners.

Step 4: Take part as a reader, not as a salesperson

The healthiest way to use the community is to read and rate other books, join discussions about topics you care about, and answer questions on your author profile. Do not post links to your own book in every thread. Groups have their own rules, and self-promotion outside the designated areas gets noticed quickly.

What to avoid

• Paying for reviews or trading reviews. This goes against Goodreads' rules, and it also damages readers' trust in the ratings.
• Asking friends and family to rate your book without reading it. Ratings should reflect actual reading.
• Replying to critical reviews. A bad review is not an invitation to argue. Readers are entitled to their opinions, and public arguments rarely help an author. Take the feedback in silently and move on.
• Review bombing or targeting other authors' books. It is harmful and against the rules.
• Using fake accounts. Accounts that exist only to promote a book can be removed.

Where reviews come from: honest, voluntary readers

Goodreads reviews are written by readers who chose to share an opinion. You can encourage that in legitimate ways: a polite note at the end of your book inviting readers to rate it, a mention in your newsletter, and an advance reader team that receives free copies with no strings attached. If you do give advance copies, ask readers to say so in their reviews, and never ask for positive ratings. Our guides on finding ARC readers and on asking readers for a review contain ready-to-use wording.

Reading challenges, lists and updates

Besides reviews, Goodreads has features that cost nothing and keep your name visible: you can post short updates about your writing progress, share quotes from your book, and answer reader questions. Readers also create lists such as "cosy mysteries" or "best debut novels". You may point out that your book fits a list, but never ask people to vote for it in bulk and never create lists whose only purpose is to push your own title. Genuine interest grows slowly, and readers can tell the difference.

A simple 30-day plan

1. Week 1: Claim your profile, combine editions, polish your description and shelves.
2. Week 2: Invite newsletter subscribers to add the book to "want to read" and send advance copies to your reader team.
3. Week 3: Run a giveaway if it fits your budget and format.
4. Week 4: Launch, remind your readers once, then focus on writing the next book.

Keep readers coming from more than one place

No single site should carry your whole strategy. List your book on GetBookReviews to reach readers who browse for new authors, check the book library for inspiration, and see our overview of what Amazon allows, because the same principle applies everywhere: honest, voluntary reviews from real readers. If you want extra visibility for launch week, take a look at the advertising options.