The publishing industry could look different in the future — the culprit: shifting thoughts toward book blurbs. If you have held a book before, most likely you have read or at least seen one. They often fill a book's back cover and provide insight into what you are about to read with a quote, usually from a notable author within the genre.
Over the last few months, authors and content creators have debated the topic, dividing some in the book world. At the end of January, Sean Manning, publisher of Simon & Schuster's flagship imprint, wrote an essay for Publishers Weekly explaining that he will no longer require authors to obtain blurbs for their books.
"I believe the insistence on blurbs has become incredibly damaging to what should be our industry's ultimate goal: producing books of the highest possible quality," Manning wrote.
A hiatus isn't anti-blurb
Book blurbing requires authors to read someone else's unpublished book and write a few lines about it. Though this can sound like a simple task, it isn't as easy as it might appear. Rebecca Makkai, author of five books, including Pulitzer finalist The Great Believers, announced on her Substack in December 2024 that she was taking a long blurbing break.
"Something happened to me that happens to a lot of writers," Makkai said. "Where I was asked for a blurb by the editor of this book. I dropped everything. I read this book. It took a long time. I wrote the blurb, and they said thank you, and it didn't go on the book."
Her blurb did make it on Amazon, but not on the book. The author had gotten more blurbs than they could fit on the cover. Makkai says that was a breaking point for her, which is why she is taking a two-year hiatus from book blurbing. She says the process takes hours, and it can be hard to avoid sounding cliche.
The time she spends reading another author's book is time she isn't focusing on her own writing and research. "I am devoting my mental energy to this book. It is a big ask. And it is a big ask, I know, anytime I ask it of other people," she said. Her current break allows her to focus on the historical research she needs for her upcoming novel.
Makkai says she has written over 150 book blurbs throughout her career, and she is not anti-blurb. "At this point in time in the literary world, they are still essential. It is just that we have to protect our time."
Blurbs remain important
Emilie Sommer, the book buyer for East City Bookshop in D.C., says she understands why Makkai and other authors might need a pause. She has also been asked to read and endorse books.
However, she understands the importance of blurbs. As a reader, Sommer says that if she sees an author she loves has endorsed a book, she automatically gives it a second glance. "Professionally, as the buyer for an independent bookstore, I rely on [blurbs] even more heavily," Sommer said. "Particularly for fiction debuts. It goes a long way seeing where the publisher envisions the book on the shelf." Sommer believes the authors who lend their support for the book through the blurbs help her determine who the book might be geared toward.
Blurbs help booksellers recommend books to customers looking for new reads. Outside of blurbs, Sommer says social media is the number one way customers decide what book options they want to add to their list.
But Sommer says social media will not make book blurbing obsolete, as social media enthusiasm is usually focused on genre fiction.
"I think that the literary fiction readers and debut literary fiction writers are often left out of that TikTok conversation," Sommer explains. "Perhaps their readers are not as active on social media. It doesn't have the same fan base that exists in some genres. Social media can't do it all for every book."
The online book community
BookTok and Bookstagram have become large communities for readers. Author Chip Pons started as a "bookstagrammer." His upcoming rom-com, Winging It With You, will be his first traditionally published book.
Pons says he sometimes feels like he has a foot in both worlds: a reader who loves discovering new voices and an author who is happy to have a seat at the table. He says when asked to write a blurb in the past, he felt disbelief that someone took the time to reach out to him and thought his platform could benefit them.
For Pons, book blurbs are about community. "I look at it like your most trusted friend that you ask for a book rec from." He says blurbs can help uplift marginalized and diverse voices in the community and get books to readers who might not have decided to read them if a prominent author in the genre didn't help.
Book influencers are changing authors' lives with their platforms, and their power is only growing, according to Pons. He doesn't think their presence will take away from regular marketing tactics but will complement them.
"I think we are going to start seeing — instead of just authors — I think we are going to start seeing book influencers' names on the covers of books, on the backs of books," Pons said.
As viewpoints around book blurbing shift, Pons says the support from authors in the community has been key in one way or another. When he thinks back to every pivotal moment in his writing career, there has always been an author in his ear who guided him with advice and counsel that changed everything for him and his family.
Prioritizing debut authors
As a new author, Annabelle Slator, who released The Launch Date on Feb. 11, just experienced the process of asking for blurbs for the first time. She says it was very bewildering. Deciding who to reach out to, what to say to each person, and trying to be as personalized as possible was essentially mental and emotional labor.
After her first experience, she says she sees the importance of blurbs for debut and newer authors. For her, book blurbs are like the references employers ask for after the interview, when they know they want to hire you. They are the last thing people look at to reaffirm their interest.
Now, Slator finds herself in a position to help other debut authors with her blurbs. Slator says she can see how it could be a time-consuming process. It could take 12 or more hours to read a book. This is why, going forward, she wants to prioritize writing blurbs for debut books and authors. "I know my time and efforts will have a genuine impact and a further-reaching impact," she said.
But book blurbing is more than a means to an end, Slator says. While trying to get blurbs for her book, Slator's publisher reached out to an author she admired. However, the author responded that they weren't blurbing at the time. Slator noticed the author followed her on social media, opening a line of communication. The author later posted about Slator's book on its publication day.
Much like Pons, Slator says social media is having a significant impact on the book community. "I do genuinely think there will be a trend of book bloggers blurbing more because I think if they are reading books professionally, that is their career," she said. "Does it not make sense for those people to be the ones who are also providing blurbs instead of authors who might not necessarily have the time because their job is producing the content?" As Slator hopes to continue incorporating change, she says she plans to look into using the book blogging community for blurbs for her next book.
This story was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.
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