Decide on paid and advance-copy services
Create or verify the NetGalley campaign
Make sure your book is on NetGalley with the right settings and timing, so librarians, booksellers, reviewers, and educators can request a digital advance copy months before release.
Authors often hire help with this: publicity or marketing.
Why it matters
Most early reader reviews, many librarian purchase decisions, and a good share of bookseller enthusiasm start with an advance copy someone requested on NetGalley. For books without a large publicity budget, it is one of the few ways to put a galley in front of hundreds of professional readers at once. Timing it correctly, and watching what comes back, turns a listing into evidence you can use.
Your part
- What you do
- Verify. Someone else may do it. Inspect the result yourself.
- Who normally owns it
- Publisher and Author and Publicist. Publisher or publicist runs the listing; self-published author lists through an author plan or co-op
- When
- 3 to 6 months before publication, running through launch (Decide on paid and advance-copy services: six to three months before publication, before the money is spent)Checked September 13, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
Your part changes with your publishing route.
How to do it
The full walkthrough
NetGalley is a platform for distributing digital review copies. Librarians, booksellers, educators, media, and reviewers request titles, the publisher (or whoever runs the listing) approves or declines each request, and readers leave feedback that often becomes early reviews on Goodreads and retail sites. NetGalley is not a review outlet: it produces no review of its own, and listing a book there promises nothing beyond exposure to people who ask for it.
Traditional publishers run NetGalley through their own accounts. Your task is to ask whether your title will be listed, when it goes live, how long it stays up, and whether it is open to all members or approval-only. Some publishers also run NetGalley promotions (newsletter placement, featured titles) that you can ask about.
Hybrid presses may include NetGalley in their packages or offer it as an add-on; read your agreement. Self-published authors can list a title through NetGalley's own author offerings or through a co-op that resells space on a shared account (several author organizations and service companies run these). Costs vary by route and duration, so compare before buying.
A useful campaign starts three to six months before publication, runs through launch, and is paired with a plan to respond to feedback and collect early reviews. Listing a book and forgetting it is the most common outcome, and the least useful.
Common mistakes
- Listing so late that the book is out before most readers finish it.
- Leaving requests unanswered for weeks.
- Uploading a draft that does not match the finished book.
- Treating NetGalley feedback as a trade review; it is reader feedback, useful but different.
- Buying a co-op listing without checking how many readers actually see that account's titles.
Identifiers for Create or verify the NetGalley campaign
Set a status on any record and it joins this step. All book identifiers.
| My status | Identifier | Why this matters | Yours |
|---|---|---|---|
| NetGalley The main platform for giving reviewers, librarians, and booksellers a secured digital review copy before publication. | This decides who can read your book before it is out and how early, and feedback posted through it frequently reappears as reviews on Goodreads and retailers around publication. Traditionally and hybrid published authors normally ask whether the book will be listed, when the listing goes live, how long it stays up, and who approves requests, and a hybrid author should confirm who is paying. If you publish the book yourself, this is a real expense you choose, and it needs an approval plan, a plan for reading the feedback, and enough lead time, typically three to six months before publication, to be worth anything. Record the listing dates and check that the description and review file match the book you intend people to read. | Add your NetGalley listing link |
What done looks like
- The title listed on NetGalley 3 to 6 months before publication, with the correct cover, metadata, and publication date.
- A stated approval policy (open to all, or approval-only with criteria) and someone assigned to act on requests.
- The listing open through launch, with an end date you know.
- Feedback reviewed regularly and early reviews recorded with links.
- For self-published titles, the route and cost chosen deliberately and logged.
Evidence. Done means someone says the work happened. Verified means you checked the confirmation, link, or public record yourself.
Ask your publisher
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Sources and last checked
- Official source
- Official source (opens in a new tab)
- Last checked
- September 13, 2026
- How confident we are
- Verified
Rules and deadlines change. We last checked this information on September 13, 2026. If you see something that needs updating, please tell us.