Today, I'm talking about writers reviewing. A touchy subject given the sock puppet carry on of last year. Like it or
not, that brouhaha has affected how writers reviewing books, especially in
their own genre, are perceived. Though writers reviewing books
has always held a certain curiosity, right?
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| Discrete plug: My rockstar book hits the digital shelves 1st July 2013. |
Types of reviews you might see:
OMG I love this book. I want to have this book's baby. This book is *almost* better than a hot tattooed rockstar.
Meh.
I lit this dead tree book on fire and it shall warm me and mine for many months to come because it was that damn long and boring.
Say you know I'm a writer and you read my review. Do you trust me? Or do you call my objectivity into question? Do I know the author or is there a chance I'll meet them sometime in future? Do I see this book as competition trying to lure my lovely fans away from me? Or perhaps I harbour a secret grudge against this person due to an incident at the last romance writers conference that exists solely in my head but shall soon spill out across the internet in a bloody wash of horror? Mwhahaha
Paranoid, I know, but you get my point. Writers reviewing is a complicated tentacle ridden problem. Do we need to chose sides to this degree once we're published? We all know how important reviews are and how tough this industry can be. We all want to help our friends and share our love of books and reading. Maybe a fair chunk of the problem is moot given Amazon is slowly taking down any reviews done by authors.
Paranoid, I know, but you get my point. Writers reviewing is a complicated tentacle ridden problem. Do we need to chose sides to this degree once we're published? We all know how important reviews are and how tough this industry can be. We all want to help our friends and share our love of books and reading. Maybe a fair chunk of the problem is moot given Amazon is slowly taking down any reviews done by authors.
Now for a slight change of topic. Let's say I didn't take to a book and declare as much on Goodreads or Amazon. Maybe I just diss it a bit on Twitter or something. I'm entitled to my opinion, sure. But writers, stop and think...
If the romance writing community isn't a wonderful, supportive place where we all at least try to get along, why the fuck not?
No one knows better than a writer that a book is someone's baby. Writers have to grow
skin and scales similar to that of a komodo dragon to stand up to all that is
slung their way. That’s part of the job. But do other writers really need to join in?
Doesn’t such behaviour suck the soul out of our world just a little? If the
book lacked a certain something, there are plenty of actual reader reviewers
out there to say as much and, we all know, they will. You, however, are first and foremost a writer. Is it really professional to bag someone elses work publically?
To sum up, for me reviewing no longer feels right. Not even just reviewing the books I loved and shutting up about the ones that left me cold and/or embittered. I'm going to promo the writers and books that I love here on my blog instead. Now, as always, this is only my opinion. Nothing more, nothing less. I have friends who are writers that review. Some of those friends have reviewed my books and I'm extremely thankful for their time and affection for my work. Peer love is a beautiful thing and it means a huge amount. Though if they said something bad about it grrrr. I'm definitely not buying them a beer next time I see them. I also have friends who choose not to review. Each to their own. Everyone needs to find their own happy. But if you're out there, talking down another writer or their books, please think about shutting the fuck up. The world seems to be full of negative shit these days. Please consider not adding to it.
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| Your complimentary porny ladybird chaser. |
P.S. Re the negativity rant: No, this isn't about anything anyone said about me. My delicate little artistic feelings haven't been hurt. But if you'd like to send me flowers, chocolates and/or Richard Armitage, I'm cool with that. Thanks.
If I could I would love to send you Richard Armitage. Everyone needs a little pick me up in the afternoon!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your thoughts Kylie. Definitely food for thought.
You are so good to me, Georgie. And yes, just my opinion on reviewing. Everyone needs to do what is right for them.
DeleteYou are writing something that doesn't have zombie's? Please don't add versatility to your array of talent.
ReplyDeleteThe torrid tale of the ladybirds lovefest must be told. Plus, rockstars are yummy. :)
DeleteI'm with you on the no negativity. I read many books. Even with the ones I hated or didn't finish, it never occurred to me to rant about them online. I can't believe the vitriol. Seriously, people, it's a book. It didn't set out to hurt/bore/offend you. If you have a serious beef, such as perceived plaigarism, or poor formatting or grammar, by all means say so if you want, but politely.
ReplyDeleteAnd if you are a writer, I agree that if you can't find anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. Don't lie in writing because your own reputation is at stake. (I reserve the right to be creative with the truth to the writer's face, if I know them.) Just keep your rude opinions to yourself.
But I'm currently in the camp of asserting that I do have the right to be nice about books I like in public. If Amazon want to take them down, so be it. I mostly do it on my blog anyway. I've been a reader much longer than I've been a writer.
Negativity sucks. I think deep down we all know this to be true. The situation with reviews is so damn complicated and our love for books is huge. It's a tough one.
DeleteJust sent Richard off for a shower, he won't be long ;)
ReplyDeleteYou're right Kylie, about the writing world being tough enough without more mud being thrown from our own corner of the room :)
I'm still going to promote other writers books if I choose. And though I rarely write reviews, I am still going to do that too if I choose. Afterall for me it's all about the book written by a clever author (friend or NO) and what that story meant to me as a reader.
Ok Richard should be there soon. :)
Damn it, he said he was only going out for milk!!
DeleteMy view is if I can't say wonderful things online - I dont' mention the book or authors name. I would prefer to promote than demote someones hardwork.
ReplyDeleteI think that's a great idea, Cassandra. Thanks for stopping by.
DeleteExcellent Post and completely agree! It's hard enough to make it out in the world without other authors giving less than polite views publicly. This is one reason why I love to beta read and beta listen for folks... then I can give honest, objective feedback before their baby is launch to the world. Feedback before the last round of galleys is always easier to handle then after the fact.
ReplyDeleteLove the lady bugs!
Constructive feedback is always useful. Hell, it's integral. A writer without a couple of CP's to hand would be a damn worry. Glad you like the ladybugs, Killion.
DeleteWell said, Kylie! Great handling of a difficult topic. I don't review either, but spread the love in other ways :) Nina D
ReplyDeleteThank you, Miss Nina. I appreciate you stopping by. :)
DeleteThis was an interesting little rant and I hadn't thought much about this before. To be honest though, I put almost zero stock in an author's review of another author. My automatic assumption is that there would be pressure in the writing community to NOT be negative towards another author, therefore anything they say is virtually irrelevant to me. This is especially true when I look and see that that author has only ever given 5 star reviews EVER, and that every book is the most amazing thing they've ever read. (I call bullshit!) I also believe this to be true of certain book bloggers. What better way to get authors and therefore readers to notice you then to stroke their egos to no end? (Again....bullshit)
ReplyDeleteAs a READER I think our reviews should be completely honest. There's no need to be cruel or nasty (I suspect some people are just angry in general and want a stage to scream it from) but I base my book purchases largely on book reviews. I figure if I'm going to spend a fairly large amount of my hard earned money on books, I have the right to write and READ honest opinions about them.
Lol, I'm feeling the urge to continue but I fear that I'M starting to rant now! BTW, I love your books and I'll gladly give whatever you choose to write a fair shot. :)
Hi Kristin, no review system will ever be perfect. People have bad days and take their animosity toward a book that didn't work for them way too personally. Sometimes I wonder if they think the author sat in a small dusty room for months, working out best exactly how to KILL THEIR JOY!!! Plus people just like to snark sometimes.
DeleteLove for a book is so subjective. One person adored one aspect but wasn't so keen on another. The next will disagree entirely. Finding a book blogger who shares your tastes is a huge help, I think. Honest, thoughtful reviews, good or bad, are a wonderful thing. There are some great reviewers and bloggers out there, bless them one and all. And thank you very much for the kind words about my books. :)
I love this idea Kylie and I might even steal it myself. It's a much nicer way to get across your favorite books rather than the star rating.
ReplyDeleteCool. Go for it, Ann!
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