I'm tickled by the very quick response of the BookLikes team--my account is now a "verified" author account. Woot!
That little checkmark you see on the top-left corner of my profile picture demonstrates that BookLikes has agreed that I am, indeed, a published author. Imagine! ;)
I love that BookLikes has this feature right out of the gates. Given the current climate in online reader-author communities, I want people to know right up front who I am and what I do. Honesty is the best policy, IMHO.
Just because I'm an author doesn't mean I'm not a reader. I was an avid reader well before I decided to take the plunge into writing. However, my voracious appetite for reading has been somewhat quelled by my new vocation. ;)