Reedsy Discovery is a site that claims you can earn money by writing book reviews.
If this is something you are interested in, I highly recommend you continue reading this Reedsy Discovery review.
Not only will you learn if the site is legit or a scam, but it will also give you an inside look at what it has to offer so you will know exactly what to expect from it before you even sign up. That way, you can properly evaluate if this opportunity is the right fit for you or not.
So let’s go ahead and get this review started, shall we?
What is Reedsy Discovery, and what does it offer?
Let me just make it clear that this review will focus on the Discovery platform of Reedsy and not the other community it has, which is mainly for freelancers who help in every stage of the book publishing process.
Reedsy Discovery is Reedsy's platform that helps people discover new books to read. It offers an opportunity for book reviewers to earn by reading books and writing a review about them.
It is a legit site because you can earn from the book reviews you write.
But this fact doesn’t automatically mean the site is worth it or the right opportunity for you. To find out if it is for you, you must first understand how it works. The only way to do that is to examine the earning opportunity it offers so you will have a clear idea of how much time and effort is needed to earn from it.
So here’s how to earn from Reedsy Discovery.
The earning opportunity – Writing book reviews
Before I explain how this opportunity works, let me just make it clear that there’s no guarantee you will earn money from every book review you write.
You see, the site employs a tipping system for its reviewers. When a member of Reedsy Discovery likes your review, they have the option to leave a tip for the reviewer as a sign of appreciation.
The tip can be any amount they want to give, so there’s also no guarantee of how much you can potentially earn from a book review. The first thing you need to remember about this opportunity is that it is a must to write a good and honest review about a book to have a chance at earning.
As for the book reviews you can make, you will be given two options on how to publish them.
As shown in the photo above, you have the choice to write reviews or create a video review of the book you read. Whichever option you choose, the most important thing to consider is to choose whichever option you are more comfortable with.
To start the review process, you have to log in to the member dashboard and pick a book you want to review. After you’ve chosen the book you want to read, the site will send you a copy of it in PDF, EPUB, or MOBI format. These formats will work well with mobile devices, so you don’t need to sit in front of a computer to read the book.
You need to submit the review before the deadline indicated by the publisher. If you fail to do so, you will not receive compensation for the review, which I will discuss in the next section. Review deadlines are unique to each book and are always set by the author or publisher. Usually, you will be given at least one month to submit your review.
If you are making a video review of the book, you will have to publish the video on YouTube and share the link with Reedsy Discovery. For written reviews, they have to be at least 300 words. If your review doesn’t meet the minimum word count, then chances are the author will not accept and publish it.
If your book review is accepted, it will appear in the reviews section of the page of the book on Reedsy Discovery for people to read or watch. That’s generally how the process works.
This opportunity is a bit time-consuming because reading a book requires time, so if you are intent on joining this site, you must carve out some time to read the books you have to review.
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How do you get paid?
As mentioned above, there’s no guarantee you will earn money from every book review you make. The only guaranteed compensation you will get from writing book reviews is that you will get a free copy of unreleased books.
But if you ever get lucky and receive tips from Reedsy members, then you can withdraw your tips via Stripe. You don’t need to earn a specific amount to withdraw your earnings. You can withdraw them anytime you want.
All you have to do is link your Stripe account with Reedsy Discovery, and you will be able to withdraw your earnings directly to your bank account. Overall, I would say the payment system of Reedsy Discovery is relatively simple. I like the fact that it offers a convenient payment method.
If you are interested in more sites that offer a convenient payment method, I recommend you check out the top sites that pay via direct bank transfer as well.
How much money can you make?
As explained earlier, there’s no guarantee you will earn any money from this opportunity. That’s why I would say that this site is only for people who love reading books because the guaranteed compensation you will get for every book review is a free copy of the book.
If your goal is to earn money, there are better ways to do that than to join Reedsy Discovery. This is why I would say the earning potential of Reedsy Discovery is very low or next to nothing, in my opinion.
If you want to earn money by writing, I suggest you check out the best freelance sites you can join instead. You will be able to find writing jobs from the freelance sites suggested by this list.
Can you use it on mobile?
Reedsy Discovery doesn’t have a mobile app, but you can still log in to the member dashboard conveniently using a mobile device because the site is optimized for mobile use. However, the time you can do this is if you are looking for books to write about.
As for the actual review you need to write, you will have to use your laptop or desktop for that. Apart from reading the books, there’s no point in using a mobile device while working on the site, in my opinion.
Who can join Reedsy Discovery?
The site doesn’t tell you exactly which countries it is available in, but from what I can tell, you will be able to apply as a reviewer regardless of where you live. However, that doesn’t automatically mean you are qualified to become a Reedsy Discovery reviewer.
You see, you will have to go through an application process if you want to become a reviewer. During this step, you will be asked to provide a link to the platform where you will be publishing your book review.
This means you either have to have a blog or a YouTube channel to have a chance at becoming a reviewer for this site. The good news is that your blog or YouTube channel doesn’t need to have huge traffic or thousands of followers for Reedsy Discovery to accept you as a reviewer.
What they are looking for in a reviewer is an active interest in reviewing books. They won’t accept someone who is just looking to earn cash by reviewing books. They have to see that you are a book lover to have a chance at becoming a reviewer for them. After all, the ultimate goal of the site is to help people discover new books to read.
To apply as a reviewer, you can create your own login details, or you can use your Google or Facebook account. You have to be at least 18 years of age or older to apply. Then, as mentioned, you’ll have to provide the link to your blog/site or YouTube channel.
After you are done with the application form, you will have to wait for Reedsy Discovery’s reply. It will typically take a few days or even weeks to hear back from them, so you have to be extra patient. If your application is accepted, you can start reviewing books immediately.
But as explained earlier, if you want to withdraw the tips you get from the book reviews you write, you also need to have a Stripe account and link it with Reedsy Discovery.
Can you get support?
The site has a FAQ page you can check out if you have any questions. But this page only discusses the basics of becoming a reviewer. The problem is that the site doesn’t have a contact page or even an email address you can use to request assistance for issues and inquiries you have.
That’s why I would say the site provides poor support to its reviewers because they don’t offer an easy way for you to get in touch with their support team.
Final Verdict
Reedsy Discovery is a site that will allow you to potentially earn extra cash by writing book reviews. It has a few good features, but it has certain disadvantages you need to keep in mind.
Let me conclude this review by summarizing its pros and cons to give you an overview of what it has to offer. Then you can decide if this opportunity is the right fit for you or not.
Pros:
- The site is mobile-friendly
- No payout threshold
Cons:
- Doesn’t offer guaranteed ways to earn cash
- Doesn’t provide support to its members
In my opinion, Reedy Discovery is only for people who love to read books and are interested in writing book reviews. The reason I say this is that the only guaranteed compensation you will get from the opportunity it offers is a free copy of the book you will be reviewing.
You can potentially earn money if you receive tips from members who appreciate your review, but that’s about it. If your goal is to earn extra cash, then there are better options out there.
If you want to earn from writing reviews, you can just build your site to post your reviews. If you don’t know where to start, I suggest check out how to build an online business and earn a full-time income.
This course will teach you how to set up your website so you can post the reviews you write. Then you can potentially earn a full-time income even when you sleep.
But if you are looking for simple and guaranteed ways to earn extra cash, I recommend you check out the top survey and GPT sites in your country instead. The sites on this list all have good earning potential, so you will be able to earn a decent amount in a relatively small amount of time.
If you have any comments, questions, or experiences with Reedsy Discovery, I would love to hear from you in a comment below.