Discussion:: Should Book Bloggers Get Paid For Their Reviews?

This morning author Michelle Gorman of Misfortune Cookie wrote about an experience she had with ChicLit Girls when she asked if they would review her book. They responded with a letter stating a good review would cost $95.00. This is where the drama begins. If you want to read the emails exchanged, I suggest you check out Michelle's blog. 

Let's weigh in on the subject at hand--should they be paid for their reviews? ChicLit Girls stated that Kirkus charges for their reviews. Which they do, $425-$575 per review. I find that steep, but not unreasonable. They are professionals. Once the book has been reviewed, the author has the right to do with it what they want--publish it on the site or not. The question is not if Kirukus should be charging but if book bloggers should charge for their reviews?

What say you?

We'd all love to be paid for doing what we love. I love to read and if somebody paid me to do it I would feel I hit the jackpot. I understand that these book bloggers are just trying to get paid for doing what they love, but I'm not sure I would categorize them as book bloggers any longer if they were receiving monetary compensation for reviews. Book bloggers work countless hours {for free} to promote books. We don't have the kind of monetary sponsors the rest of the blogging world does. We are lucky if we get free books. What I find shady is that they are stating that they will provide a good review for the price of $95.00. That doesn't sound like an honest review to me. Heck, I only accept books for review I think will knock my feet off! Don't we all do that? But, we're not guaranteeing a good review before we've read the book. They should also be clearly stating on each subsequent review {and their website} if they were paid for their opinion. All in the name of full disclosure. I'd like to know which books paid for a review, but I'd be hard pressed to find it honest. I don't know if I could trust it.

But why aren't we charging for our reviews? Wouldn't you like to be paid for your hard work? I'm not charging because I do not personally have the credentials to do it. I don't feel that book bloggers hold that kind of klout in the industry. Most authors and publisher's aren't even sure how to deal with book bloggers. They are trying to figure out how we fit into the marketing plan. I book blog because I love reading. I love talking about good books. I don't want to be the kind of person that only talks about books that I've been paid to talk about. A marketing tool to be used however author's and publisher's want. I don't feel I would be able to give unbiased opinions on books if I was being paid per review. I do find ethics come in to question when one guarantee's a good review, for a fee, without having read the book. Readers want honesty. I know I do. 


Do you think Book Bloggers should be paid for their reviews? Let's get a good discussion going.