The brand spankin’ new platform for bookworms, Book+Main, is finally live!! HOORAY! So now what?
For starters, it’s important to understand that the whole premise behind Book+Main is that authors are the content creators and the readers are the curators. There are no ads, no algorithms, and no spammy “BUY ME NOW!” posts. It was our founder’s vision to deliver stories in their purest form and get them in the hands of new readers. If that doesn’t excite your little book nerd heart, I’m not sure what will.
You’ve registered and logged in … and unsure of what it all means. There’s so much to discover, where do you even begin?
Well I’m here to help you make sense of this game-changing platform. Let’s dive in, shall we?
Access Book+Main Bites
If you haven’t gotten this far, the Book+Main platform can be accessed one of two ways. First, from your personal computer at www.bookandmainbites.com. Secondly, you can access the site from your mobile device on both Android and iOS. Go ahead and download the app … I’ll wait!
Register & Create Your Account
There are two types of accounts available: Reader and Author. And today I’m just addressing the reader account, though I’ll share a little info about the author end so you can better understand how to best utilize the platform. Registration is easy, you select a user name and off you go.
Book+Main is more fun with friends, so track down your fellow bookworms by name or user name in the search bar and give them a follow. The larger net you cast, the more authors you’ll discover.
Search by Trope
We know that most readers are mood readers. Some days you want that sweet second chance romance and others you want the rom-com or maybe a dark, sultry piece. So when you’re in the mood for a specific type of book, but don’t know what to read next, search the tropes in the search bar.
Whenever an author provides a Bite they assign trope-specific search data. So if you decide you’re in the mood for a Romantic Comedy, you select the Rom-Com trope and it’ll generate a list of Bites that have been uploaded by authors and meet that specific criteria. The Bite itself is an except, deleted scene or piece of bonus content. The cool part is, is from the search function the author and book are both a mystery until you’re viewing the Bite.
The flames you see associated with each Bite are the sizzle rating of the individual Bite itself and not necessarily reflective of the whole book. So on my page, you may find that An Unforgivable Love Story has Bites with a flame ratings of 1 and 5. It all depends on the respective scene the author has provided.
Find Bites You Love
Once you’ve searched and found a bite you love, there are several things you can do. First and foremost, if you like what you’ve read and want to read more, you can click the book icon at the bottom of the Bite to access the links to purchase the book right then and there.
Second, you can “like” the Bite. Third, you can comment directly on the Bite with your thoughts. And fourth, you can share it with your own friends and followers.
Sharing is Caring
When you share a Bite, that snippet will drop into your Shared feed and will show up in the Shared section of all of your followers. It’s your way of shouting from the rooftops, “This Bite is glorious and everyone should read it!!!” It’s your seal of approval. Your recommendation. Your … you get the picture, right?
So not only is it important to Share the Bites you love, but also check your Share feed to learn which Bites your fellow bookworms are loving, too!
Follow the Authors You Love
Stay up to date with all of your favorite authors by giving them a follow, accessible from each of their profile pages. Push notifications will automatically be enabled, so if you want to turn those on or off, you can do so from their individual profile page by clicking the button at the top of their profile.
Authors you follow will automatically have their content fed into your stream of Bites, the first tab on your main page, appearing in real time. And if you haven’t noticed already, you’ll find an awesome mix of traditionally published and indie authors in the romance genre!
Discover New Authors
Beyond discovering new authors by searching the Tropes and seeing what your friends have Shared, you also have a Discover tab. The content shown here are Bites from authors you are not yet following and will appear in real time as they’re loaded into Book+Main.
If you find a new author that you love in the Discover tab, simply click their profile photo at the top of the Bite, and it’ll take you to their profile where you can follow them and check out all of their other Bites, Books and Shares.
Tell Your Book Loving Friends!
As I mentioned earlier, the more the merrier! So help spread the word to your book club, online reader groups, fellow bibliophiles and come discover all that Book+Main has to offer. And I have a feeling that all of this is just the tip of the iceberg!
Oh, and once you’re setup, be sure to give yours truly a follow! We should absolutely be friends over there!
I’m an author. How can I get involved?
I’m so glad you asked! I have an entire blog post dedicated to helping you get yourself up and going. Head on over to the Book+Main Author Fireside Chat to wrap your head around being an author on this groundbreaking new platform!
If you have any questions about Book+Main, what it’s about or how to get involved as an author, let me know! I’m one of the founding authors on the platform and have spent the past three months helping iron out the gremlins to ensure you guys have an awesome new sandbox to play in! I am more than happy to help answer any questions … and while I may not have the answer right away, I promise to help figure it out!
Author BL. Berry 
Awesome Post!! For those of us technology challenged.
How do you actually post stuff? I see no way of posting.
Hi, Tymber! Great question! Book+Main isn’t like Facebook in the regard that anyone can post anything. Only verified author accounts are able to *create* content for the platform. Reader accounts are to help you discover new authors and titles you may not have otherwise known about. Readers are essentially the content curators.
If you are an author currently waiting to be verified, know that you are currently using the reader interface. Once verified, you’ll have access to your dashboard to begin uploading content into the platform. However, there are a few things you can start doing now to out yourself in a prime position once your trial kicks in – build your network of followers, select Bites from your published or copyrighted works and start securing the rights to images to support your Bite. Once your account is verified, you’ll be able to go in and upload all of these things for everyone to read, comment, like and share!
Does that help answer your question?
Yes. I signed up as an author. How long do authors have to wait for their accounts to be verified?
Hi Kristina! Unfortunately I don’t have a timeline for length of process. Given the response, I would imagine a week or so.
Effing fancy … so effing fancy. And I love you!!
Love this concept. I applied as an author yesterday. How long does it take to get verified?
Hi Lara! Author accounts have to be verified before they go live. While there isn’t a set time frame, they are being verified in order of registration. But until you’re verified you are setup with a reader account to familiarize yourself with the platform.
I love this concept! How long does it take to get verified for an author account? I requested it yesterday under Lara Ward Cosio.
Thanks!
Hi Lara! This is the million dollar question right now that authors are asking. And while I don’t have an answer for you, know that author accounts are being verified in the order of registration. The verification process is super important to ensure that no fake accounts or spammers are given access! As soon as an account is verified, you should receive notification via email and be able to access the dashboard! 🙂 I’m sorry I don’t have a definitive date, but I know the team appreciates everyone’s excitement to onboard!
Okay, sounds good – thank you!
How much is it for authors to be a part of it? I haven’t completed my info because it says I can “start my 14 day trial”… I’m trying to feed teenage boys, I don’t have spare.
Hi SH!! I actually have a post going live tonight that’ll address all of this and more! Stay tuned. There’s also pricing available on the b+m website.
I can see no way on the website to find out pricing or I’m on the wrong website. Again, I won’t complete my registration until I know the bottom line.
Head on over to the author fireside chat post!
I can’t seem to get passed Steo two of the registration. After I select authors to follow and click next, I get “unknown error”
Hi Kelly! It sounds like you’ve found a gremlin (and those are expected with every launch). While I don’t personally have the answer to this hiccup, I’ll do some digging and see what I can uncover. In the meantime, you can ask the dev team over at the Book+Main Facebook page directly. I know they’ve also been posting updates on their page throughout the day about known issues and their respective solutions.
Thank you!
Is there an ETA on how long author accounts are taking for approval? It would really help to have a FAQ on the site. Right now, its really confusing what we should be doing?
Hi Lori!! Great question! I actually have a blog post going live this evening talking directly to authors and onboarding onto the platform!! (I’m currently in a car on the way home from the airport right now, otherwise it’d be posted.)
Accounts are going to be verified on a first come, first serve basis. So depending on when you registered will impact your overall wait time. So unfortunately an exact date or wait period can’t be given. And while it may take a little time to get through all of the pending authors, we promise you won’t be waiting months on end to get in!
But the verification process is super important so B+M can avoid fraudulent accounts, scam authors, etc.
Pingback: How To Use Book+Main – From the Creative mind of sai marie
Hi! Just registered as a reader and I want to favorite bites to come back so I can purchase them at a later date. How do you suggest doing that? I didn’t see an answer to this in your post above. Is it “sharing” the bite?
Yes!!!!! I completely forgot… THE BOOKMARK FEATURE! The little bookmark ribbon you see with each bite will allow you to save that bite for a rainy day!
Pingback: Book+Main Author Fireside Chat
Hi I just have to say I love this, still just learning all it can do. Where does it state the costs to purchase books on the sight? I see the book and the format button but no price.
So the site itself isn’t a distributor. The links from each book on the site will take you to either Amazon or iBook to purchase for the listed price on that platform. Does that help?
Yes thank you, again this sights pretty awesome!
Reblogged this on adventuresthruwonderland and commented:
I wanted to share about this new site, and this post lays it out so well!
I can’t figure out how to add more authors I’d like to follow. When I originally set up my account something happened and I couldn’t get to see other authors past letter F. It started that spinning, like it was about to advance to next group to choose from but stopped. I can see in my profile the authors I current am following, but nowhere on the site have I figured out how to add more I’d like to follow. Is there somewhere I’ve missed that I can go to add more authors?
Hi Tammy! You should be able to search an author’s name in the search bar. Have you tried it on both the app and website?
I tried to download. I can’t find it.
Hi Kathy! Are you on Android or iOS?
I registered a few days ago, and apparently people can follow me on the site, but I haven’t received a confirmation email or the ability to post bites. Who can I contact for help?
Hi Abbie! This means you’re still being verified. All author accounts operate under a reader account until they are verified via iBooks or Amazon. It’s a lengthy process given the number of authors trying to onboard. I’d suggest giving it a couple more days and if you still haven’t heard anything, reach out to the team via their Facebook page!
Will do, and thanks 🙂
Are we allowed to use the Books+Main Bites logo that shows up in a Google search in our newsletters and on social media to invite readers to follow us and others on the site?
Hi Abbie! I would recommend pulling it from the website or Facebook page to ensure it’s the official logo and not a knock off!
Pingback: Jami Davenport | USA Today Bestselling Author » Book+Main Bites
Pingback: Learn to Love the Numbers
Pingback: Want a bite? Try Book + Main – USA Today Bestselling Author Courtney Hunt