Surviving Reviews
Have you ever wondered what it’s really like to have your own book reviewed by reviewers and readers? Recently I was Interviewed over at Frommipov (a great blog!) and Andie asked how I felt about reviews and how they affect me. I thought it was a great question, especially since my book has only recently been released. Here is the question and my honest answer from the shoes of a freshly published author. Please be sure to hop over to her blog for the full interview:
Do you read reviews of your books? If so, do either positive or negative reviews affect you?
Isn’t that a very loaded question to ask a debut novelist? But it’s a good one, so excuse me while I ramble for a long time…I do read them. I really like it when I can tell from the review that a reader connected with my story. Bloggers are especially honest and their reviews often show how personal the story has been for them.
It’s wonderful to know that someone “gets it” and of course I really enjoy those and I even link to some of them on my blog. This is part of the debut novelist’s journey – to get excited about positive reviews. When Romantic Times Book Reviews gave me 4 ½ stars, I was thrilled. My book isn’t a romance novel, but it does have a love story and it’s an honor that they reviewed my book. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t care.
My first negative review was by a major reviewer and I was devastated. It took my publicist and a friend who is a widely published writer to reassure me that it wouldn’t kill my career. My friend sent me her own negative review from the exact same publication and that’s really what it took to talk me off that ledge. I decided not to read the negative ones anymore, at least until I’ve been around a little longer.
Reviewers disagree with each other all the time, just like movie critics do and it’s important for writers not to worry too much about this. It’s not that I have received very many, but negative reviews can really set a debut novelist back when it comes to confidence. I admit that I wear my heart on my sleeve when it comes to a bad review. It’s every debut novelist’s nightmare that a bad review can somehow kill our career, even though we are told that it can’t.
When I do come across a negative one, I try hard to remember that it’s just one person’s opinion and I can respect that. I know that my first novel is not perfect and I admire when a reviewer can be honest even when negative. It makes for a review that can be very helpful to some readers. I just don’t want to read it myself. Personally, I tend not to review a book if I don’t love it. It takes some guts to publicly bash someone else’s writing. I don’t have the heart for it! I’m just a chicken.
The important thing as a writer is to remember that it’s one reader’s opinion and there are many reasons why this person may or may not like your book. For example, I’ve heard my book is too religious, not religious enough, a very difficult read, a too-easy read. It’s funny how conflicting reviews can be. On occasion someone will even refer to the inconsistencies or mistakes in the Advanced Reader Copy of my book, saying things similar to, in the ARC, this and this happened… While it would dishearten any writer that a reviewer would actually quote mistakes in the uncorrected ARC without first comparing it to the final copy (which all reviewers are supposed to do) those are actually the easiest poor reviews to handle because I know that what the reviewer refers to isn’t in the copy that actual readers will get. And even then, they probably don’t intend to destroy you. It just feels that way when you’re new at receiving reviews. Sometimes reviewers do have the final copy and they still think the book is bad. That’s their opinion and there are too many variables involved for me to second guess my work. That’s why I don’t read the poor ones anymore!!!
It’s an important topic that most of us don’t want to talk about because it’s scary for a debut novelist. Nobody really wants to admit that they actually care about reviews. Writers want to be aloof and above it all, but for first timers, it’s hard to say we don’t care. I’m just being honest. On the flip side, I am blessed to say that I have had more positive reviews than poor, at least that I know about considering I only read the good ones now. Overall I have survived the process so far!
