Buying Reviews...A Moral Dilemma

I'll admit I didn't get a lot done over the Easter Weekend, although I did do a bit of research. Through some Twitter contacts, I discovered there are a few companies on the Internet offering indie authors reviews...but for a fee.

The fee itself is not prohibitive, and reviews are definitely needed on Amazon to help promote your work, but I do have to admit that the payment for reviews structure bothers me; first, because for years I was an entertainment journalist and during that time I would have never accepted a fee for a good review for a movie, book or CD. I'm sure there were many opportunities, like that time a representative for one of the big movie studios handed me a straight-to-video copy of Slumber Party Massacre 3, knowing he was handing me a terrible movie, and a good review was probably next to impossible—it was, unless you're into those kinds of ‘B’ movies. As a reviewer, I felt I had an obligation to whomever read my stuff to at least be honest. I don't know how that honesty works in the pay-for-a-review marketplace.

I'm sure their intentions are honorable, but how do they handle a poorly written manuscript, or one that isn't up to professional standards? Part of being successful in this marketplace has to be proving that your work is worth purchasing; that's why I like the option of allowing potential readers to read the first three chapters. That should at least give them an idea as to whether or not you can write; it will not let them know whether your can plot and whether your plot holds up for a book length manuscript, but, then again, there's always a risk when purchasing a book or going to a movie we just can't love or like them all.

I'd be curious to know what others think. I've read stories about indie bands seeding an audience with people to shout and scream when they know a record company A&R person might be attending that performance, to help stack the deck in their favor. That's not exactly honest, but possibly sometimes we need to stack the deck in our favor if we can it's up to us to make sure that if we do, we provide those we deceived with quality work.

I'm going to attempt the other route looking for honest reviews. That may be naive, but I don't think it's completely impossible. I guess, in time I'll know. And while I'm at it, I'll provide anyone who reads this with a link to the first three chapters of my latest thriller, The Marquis Mark, pre-ordering on Amazon for June 7th, with the hope it might just entice - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25177334-the-marquis-mark