6 of the Best Ways to Get Paid to Read Books

It’s existent that speechmaking books is beneficial successful truthful galore ways, including improving our mental health. But there’s an unpopular payment that speechmaking books tin besides provide: money. Indeed, speechmaking tin go an income stream, turning passionateness into profit. Ever wondered however to get paid to work books?

While determination are several, wide avenues to bash that — specified arsenic getting a job successful the publishing industry, becoming a book editor oregon proofreader, narrating an audiobook, developing ebooks for a living, oregon becoming an audiobook impervious listener — I’d constrictive successful connected the easiest route, thing that could beryllium done close away: publication reviewing.

I’m a writer and writer regularly reviewing books for Publishers Weekly, and I’ve been doing this for 4 years now. Although the wage isn’t that great, it helps maine hone my penning and reviewing skills. It besides helps maine physique connections wrong the publishing industry. But a gig specified arsenic this mightiness arsenic good beryllium a full-time occupation itself; reading a publication for reappraisal purposes is simply a antithetic happening from reviewing a publication for leisure. There’s a batch of things to consider, and it mightiness not look that enjoyable astatine it appears.

But if you’re funny to go a publication reviewer and get paid to work books on the way, I person a database of six ways for you to effort below. The database includes penning for accepted magazines and publications that are proven to wage freelancers aft a published review. Maybe aft trying these gigs out, you mightiness get funny successful moving successful publishing. So, to trial the waters, a publication reviewing broadside hustle mightiness beryllium ideal.

Here’s however to get paid to work books done reviewing gigs:

There are besides opportunities for different kinds of writing, specified arsenic a Q&A and an writer profile, which you tin transportation to your editor.

Publishers Weekly accepts reviewer applications occasionally. All you person to bash is nonstop a CV and a illustration reappraisal à la PW. They don’t delegate a byline, however.

The reappraisal runs astir 350 words and is owed 2 weeks aft the publication is assigned. They wage $50, but it could spell upwards to $75 if they spot immoderate large writing. For representation books, they wage $40 for a reappraisal of 250 words. As with PW, they don’t springiness a byline.

“Reviewing for Kirkus Indie was fun. I got sent a dependable watercourse of books to recommend, usually 1–2 per month,” shares Sarah S. Davis, erstwhile Kirkus Indie reviewer and a Book Riot contributor. “I did person an accidental erstwhile I archetypal started to database what genres were my preferred genres to recommend. You don’t get to take which publication you get, but they volition often springiness you a sub-genre oregon class that you link good with. For example, for maine that was books astir health, psychology, and spirituality. My person who reviewed for Kirkus, however, ‘specialized’ successful geotechnical thrillers.”

To beryllium considered, submit a illustration review successful the benignant of Kirkus.

For a connection number of 150–175, the wage is simply a meager $15. If you cull a book, you get $5. Nonetheless, the champion happening present is that the reviews are signed. That means you get to person a byline attached to the review, whether successful people oregon online. In immoderate instances, however, the outgo could beryllium delayed due to the fact that the reappraisal is scheduled for a aboriginal issue. But erstwhile it gets published, you get to beryllium paid.

Here’s however to use arsenic a Booklist reviewer. Once accepted, you’d go an apprentice reviewer.

AudioFile assigns a mates audiobooks successful a month, and you person to constitute a reappraisal of astir a 100 words. They wage $10 apiece, which is disbursed doubly a year. Because of this outgo scheme, it would instrumentality a agelong portion to person the payment. Still, you person the state to take the genre of audiobook you privation to review, specified arsenic young adult, fantasy, classics, literate fiction, etc. In the reappraisal that appears successful people and online versions, you get to person initials arsenic your byline, but you don’t get to person your sanction printed successful full.

Reviewing an audiobook, however, is an altogether antithetic realm. Make definite to work the mag to get familiarized with the style.

“Reviewing books for the Online Book Club was a bully acquisition due to the fact that I got to work books and springiness my sentiment astir them, which I enjoyed,” says Yolimari Garcia, a erstwhile reviewer. “You tin take which books you privation to reappraisal from a list. However, you tin lone prime the books with higher payments if you person a precocious reviewer score. I reached the highest level, which was six. A level-six reviewer is allowed to beryllium an editor, which I was too.”

According to Garcia, the reviewers person feedback from the editors, who besides delegate ratings based connected the Review Team Guidelines. The nonsubjective is for the high-quality reviews to person a precocious people and those with debased prime to person a debased score. Some reviews cannot beryllium published due to the fact that it is wide that the writer did not work the publication oregon adhere to the rules, according to Garcia.

“You tin reappraisal arsenic galore books from the database arsenic you tin successful a period arsenic agelong arsenic you travel the Review Team Guidelines and conscionable the deadlines…The outgo is little if you are a low-level reviewer and higher if you are a high-level reviewer,” she adds. As with different publications that people publication reviews, Garcia says that “don’t expect to marque a salary” and “see it arsenic a hobby, a broadside gig, oregon a mean for gaining acquisition penning professional publication reviews.”

Here’s however to use arsenic a reviewer for Online Book Club.

The complaint is importantly higher, reaching arsenic precocious arsenic $800 for a 1,000-word review. However, since this is the high-paying path, it’s besides the astir hard one. It takes a batch of effort to trade the cleanable transportation to an editor, and sending the transportation doesn’t adjacent warrant an assignment. It mightiness beryllium connected the prime of the pitch, the publication’s editorial calendar, the spot of the penning portfolio, relevance of the book, etc. To get paid to work books successful this manner, 1 indispensable already beryllium an established literate critic. Think of it arsenic the be-all and end-all of reviewing.

For much tips connected however to transportation an nonfiction to a large publication, here’s a guide.

There are respective ways to get paid to work books, but publication reviewing seems to beryllium the easiest path. Because of the quality of this gig, though, you mightiness privation to supplement it with different book-related jobs. Here are audiobook narrator jobs for beginners and different jobs for publication lovers!