Cross-posted to my journal at Deviantart.

So I just gave away an ebook for review: Nobody’s Victims by Leslie Fish.

I woke up to an email explaining that per policies, one particular winner does “not review books”. Also they thought they were getting a physical copy, by gosh! So they can’t accept the book I sent them.

Now I know I’m most likely wasting my time by typing this post, but…. publishers don’t make it a habit of giving away books FOR FREE unless they’re hoping you’ll take a few moments to review the thing. The whole point to an EARLY REVIEWER giveaway is so you can be one of the first to read the book, and then REVIEW the book. 

It’s not an early READER giveaway. It’s an early REVIEWER giveaway.

****REVIEWER****

Also, there is no federal or state law requiring you review it. No one is going to bust down your door with machete in hand, threatening to gauge your eyes out with a spoon if you don’t follow through on your half of the bargain for receiving the free book. So don’t review it! 

And if you can’t accept the ebook, simply delete it! There! All done! And without dramah! Until, that is, you emailed to complain passive aggressively that you were expected to follow through on being an EARLY REVIEWER.

And another thing touching on another incident years ago. Giving a book a one star because you’re illiterate and don’t know what it means when an author types a slang word phonetically in a character’s speech only means you’re, well, illiterate and should not be reviewing books. Most definitely not getting paid to do such. You don’t have the skills to do so. Go get another job you’re more suited for and leave the reviews to people who know what they’re doing. No. I’m serious.  

But I am worried that this person thought they were getting a physical copy. People like that are *why* I don’t give away physical copies anymore… Imagine spending hundreds of dollars to send out physical copies for review and then not getting a single one. Yes, that’s me. I am the one who spent money for nothing.

But more, I’m worried the book wasn’t marked as an ebook properly. Oh dears.