Freebooksy & Bargain Booksy

Freebooksy and Bargain Booksy are the flagship newsletters of Written Word Media, a bootstrapped company founded by Ferol Vernon and Ricci Wolman in 2011. Together they reach over 1.5 million readers across genre-specific email lists. Written Word Media's author base numbers 45,000+ and spans self-published writers, major publishing houses, small presses, and publicists.

The Two Newsletters#

Freebooksy promotes free ebooks to genre-targeted subscriber lists ranging from 95,000 (Graphic Novel & Manga) to 922,000 (Mystery). Pricing runs $25–$245 for standard features, with Series Promotions at the higher end. The book must be free from the promotion date until 12AM PST the following day, be at least 50 pages, and be available in English. An editorial review (decision within 72 hours) can reject books with poor cover or description quality.

Bargain Booksy promotes discounted ebooks priced $0.99–$5.00 to genre lists ranging from 66,000 (LitRPG) to 636,000 (Mystery). Standard features cost $20–$90 depending on genre. A Deal of the Day tier ($100–$240) adds highlighted placement in the Freebooksy email on top of the standard Bargain Booksy newsletter and website slots, for a combined audience of 501,000–1,522,000 — available for Romance, Mystery/Thriller/Cozy, Fantasy/Paranormal, and Science Fiction.

Deal of the Day carries stricter editorial standards than a standard feature: the book must be over 100 pages, priced $0.99–$5.00, and not have run on Bargain Booksy in the previous 30 days. There is no minimum review count or star rating for either standard features or Deal of the Day.

Freebooksy's published price table carries a "last updated February 4, 2025" stamp; Bargain Booksy figures above are read from the live checkout, which supersedes the older marketing pages still cached on bargainbooksy.com.

What You Get#

• Genre-specific targeting: 20+ genre categories on each platform; list sizes published alongside prices, so cost-per-subscriber is calculable before you buy
• Deal of the Day: Cross-newsletter placement for four major genres; requires editorial approval and a 100+ page book
• Limelight: Dedicated single-author eblast, Gold/Platinum members only — $550 on Freebooksy (281,000 subscribers), $500 on Bargain Booksy and on Red Feather Romance (the romance-only brand)
• Subscriber Surge Giveaways: $75/slot; 60-day genre giveaways where readers enter to win ebooks plus a Kindle eReader in exchange for joining author lists. One book per giveaway, 50+ pages, priced $0.99–$14.99. Written Word Media targets at least one new subscriber per dollar spent
• Premium Membership: Gold ($125/yr, capped at $200 of savings) or Platinum ($250/yr, capped at $500); 10% off every purchase, promo slots 14 days before free members, live chat support, and Speaker Series access
• Reader Reach Ads: Full-service Meta (Facebook/Instagram) and Amazon ad management, priced separately at $150–$900 per campaign depending on length, with roughly 60% of the fee going to actual ad spend. Amazon campaigns run 5 days

Who It's For#

• Series authors running free days: Freebooksy pairs well with KDP Select free promotions, especially for book 1 of a series with books 2–3 priced at $0.99–$2.99
• Nonfiction authors: Bargain Booksy nonfiction categories (Nonfiction, Self Help, Cookbook, Travel) consistently rank among the best-value promotions in independent comparisons
• Authors with an existing backlist: The promotion ROI improves significantly when there's something to sell-through to; standalone first books see limited returns

Pricing: Freebooksy standard features $25–$245; Bargain Booksy standard features $20–$90; Bargain Booksy Deal of the Day $100–$240; Limelight $500–$550 (members-only). No subscription required for standard features — pay per promotion.

Strengths#

• Accessible entry: No waitlist or strict acceptance rate for standard features, unlike BookBub Featured Deals (roughly 10–15% of US submissions accepted). Submit, get a 72-hour editorial decision, and schedule.
• Transparent pricing and list sizes: Every genre shows the subscriber count alongside the price — authors can calculate expected cost-per-download before buying.
• Deal of the Day cross-promotion: Two newsletter placements for a single fee, with combined reach above 500,000 in every eligible genre and over 1M in Mystery and Fantasy.
• Stable 15-year platform: No acquisition or ownership changes. Still bootstrapped and independently operated.

Limitations#

• Short-lived rank boost: Downloads spike on promotion day and return to baseline within 1–2 weeks. No lasting Amazon rank effect for most titles.
• Low review conversion: Roughly 2–3 reviews per 1,000 downloads is typical — free and discounted book readers convert at low rates.
• US-centric audience: Most downloads come from US readers; limited reach for authors targeting other markets.
• Bargain Booksy requires genuine discounts: Authors who promote at their regular price rather than a real sale see significantly lower performance.
• Stale public pricing pages: Several bargainbooksy.com marketing pages still serve 2020-era prices and a "$0.99–$4.99" eligibility range. Book from the checkout at secure.writtenwordmedia.com and treat the older pages as unreliable.

Alternatives#

BookBub Featured Deals reach 10,000–30,000+ downloads per promotion and have higher ROI per dollar, but acceptance is selective and prices span $122 (Children's, free) to $4,216 (Historical Fiction at $3+). EReader News Today offers similar pricing to Freebooksy and is frequently cited as comparable or better value for some genres. For authors who want newsletter promos plus email list-building in one place, Written Word Media also offers Subscriber Surge Giveaways alongside the promotional newsletters.