by Anne R. Allen
I’m not sure anything stings as much as that first bad review. You’re riding high in triumph. You finished the project that may have taken decades to complete. Then you survived the crushing editing/ querying/ rejections/ revising/ editing again process. But now you’re finally a published author.
Yay!
Whether the publisher is yourself or the Random Penguin House, the feeling is the same. It’s your baby and you just gave birth. You are experiencing a moment of bliss.
And then…splat.
That review. Somebody hates your baby. They really hate it. You are a talentless hack and a worthless defiler of language. They say you should never write another word and suggest you take up underwater basket-weaving or making throw pillows out of dryer lint.
And it hurts like #$&@.
Last week I got a note from a new writer who has had fantastic response to his first book. The book has blurbs from A-list celebrities and it was recently named to a “ten best” list in his genre.
He’s had a triumphant debut any author would kill for.
But last week he got that thing. That first bad review. Not entirely bad, but pedantic and condescending. The author was devastated.
He wrote asking me if he should he rewrite the book to fix the “problems” the reviewer had pointed out. The Spanish version was about to go to press. Should he halt the launch? How could he fix all these things the reviewer had complained about?
Here’s What I Told the Author After his First Bad Review.
Congratulations! You know who gets bad reviews? Every published author who ever lived.
Now you’re official.
Reviews like this are rarely about the book and mostly about the reviewer. The guy’s in a cranky mood. The book didn’t elevate him to the spiritual Narnia he craved, so it’s a bad book.
Funny–just yesterday I decided to skim the 99 reviews on my boxed set of the first 3 Camilla comedies. Some were scathing.
- One said “these books set the Women’s Movement back 200 years!”
- The next one said “These are so Politically Correct I wanted to throw up.”
- Another said “this book was so long and disjointed I had no idea what was going on.” (Um, that’s because it’s three different books?)
- And there’s the one that just said, “horibble.”
What do these reviews say about my books?
Nothing.
Zip, zilch, nada.
Did I learn anything? Yeah. A lot of people do not get irony or satire. Others skim so fast they don’t even know what book they’re reading. And some people are not as smart as others.
And you know what? I’m not writing for those people.
Yeah, you got hit by a stray projectile and it hurts. But it’s just a projectile. All about the thrower, not the target.
Don’t change anything in your book. Your book is out there and it can hold its own.
I know it’s early in the afternoon, but a nice bottle of bubbly might be nice to celebrate getting your first bad review.
Chocolate is good too.
And here’s another tip that’s guaranteed to make you feel better:
Read Amazon Reviews of Classics and Bestsellers
This is one of the best ways to cheer yourself up when you’re celebrating your first bad review. It might even work better than chocolate.
Just put a classic or bestselling title into the search window on Amazon and read the one and two star reviews.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Bad writing, long run on pompous sentences, totally boring characters and very little plot don’t add up to a classic in my opinion. Mostly it’s plot, what little there is, involves some rich full of themselves people trying to score some booze and looking for a party during prohibition.
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
“This is a book that seems great until you read it. There’s nothing brilliant or profound that I found.”
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
I much preferred the version with zombies.
Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh
“After reading the entire novel, I was left with the reaction of “So what?” I also determined that Evelyn Waugh was extremely arrogant and filled with exaggerated, unwarranted self-worth.”
A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
“Ponderous, constant use of unintelligible slang, endless useless conversations. I tried slogging through this mess, but finally gave up and sought better books.”
Of Human Bondage by Somerset Maugham
“Phillip Carey is such an ignorant character that I could not finish the book. I gave him chance after chance to grow a brain but he failed me every time. I do not associate with people like this in real life, so why would I do so in fiction.”
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
“Labored through 8 chapters before finally giving up. Completely uninteresting, poorly written, and absurd.”
Sons and Lovers by D. H. Lawrence
“I have not read this book yet; but am not looking forward to it”
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
“What an utterly terrible novel. Racist, sexist, poorly written, and absolute trash moralism. Steinbeck has as much command of adjective as a fifth grader, and his understanding of the subject this book focuses on, labor economics, is about that of a fourth grader.”
The Shining by Stephen King
“This book was not scary at all. A lot of the scares were repetitive and childish.”
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
“It’s witchcraft!”
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
“I did not like this book at all. All the drug, booze, swearing was just too much for me to overlook. Perhaps there is an element of society that lives this kind of life, but I really didn’t enjoy reading about it.”
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
I did not find this story believable, and the characters were awkward and flat It just dragged on with no spark.
As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
I’ve read more interesting cereal boxes.
***
Yup. All authors get awful reviews. Lots of them. You will too, so buckle up.
There Will Be Worse Reviews
You think you can’t get any review more devastating than that first one. But buckle up. You need to be prepared. In the age of the Internet, the customer review is one of the places that people feel they can vent their anger at the world.
There’s the reviewer who saw you in person and has to mention your weight or your hair loss. Or that you’re a lot older than your author photo. There’s the one who saw you’re a Facebook friend of their ex’s new squeeze, so you’re a target of bitter revenge. Then there’s one who decides you’re a Nazi or an antifa spy.
I heard from one author whose ex-mother in-law leaves sock puppet reviews on all her books calling her nasty names and accusing her of all sorts of nefarious deeds.
Sometimes Amazon will remove those, if you make a request through Author Central showing how they break their TOS, but usually they won’t.
Yeah. Stuff happens. We live in a world where people can be utterly heinous on the Internet without consequences.
We have to build callouses on our souls, or we won’t survive in this business.
Yeah, but…What if the Reviewer is Right?
You want to believe, but there’s that niggly little thought that won’t go away: what if that reviewer is right?
Okay, first you have to define “right.” Art isn’t a mathematical problem. There can be many right answers.
Multi-million seller Catherine Ryan Hyde addressed this in our book How to be a Writer in the E-Age:
“One of the biggest breakthroughs I ever had was when I learned to stop saying, “Is it good or is it bad?” and switched to, “What is the market for this? Who would like this kind of work?”
Dealing with the opinions of others is, in my estimation, the hardest part of being a writer. But there’s a question you can ask yourself at times such as these, and the answer will tell you everything you need to know. The catch is that you have to ask it on a deep level and answer honestly.
The question is, “Do I agree?”
When you can answer that question honestly, a great deal of initial confusion will fall away. When you base changes—or the refusal to make changes—on that answer, you will be honoring your reader, your work and yourself.” …Catherine Ryan Hyde
You made a whole lot of artistic choices when you wrote your book. Did you feel good about those choices? Then don’t second-guess yourself.
Stand by your muse and ignore your first bad review. And all the bad reviews that come after!
***
by Anne R. Allen (@annerallen) June 21, 2020
What about you, scriveners? Have you had your first bad review? Or a critique that was unnecessarily harsh and unhelpful? What was your most ridiculous review? This would be a good place to share it. We can all use the laughs.
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Featured Image: John Everett Millais (1829-1896) “A Wife”
Terrific encouragement for something that really truly does hurt.
I think one other thing that makes us feel bad is the notion that somehow, one awful review outweighs ten good ones. There’s a bias out there, that five-stars and “loved it” must be from your sister, whereas anyone who pounds you with an insult and a single-star must be keeping it real.
And anyone can do the math on the average. Overcoming a single one-star review takes a truckload of 5s. Like you said, the Zon keeps them there almost all the time.
But you got it exactly right. Focus on finding the audience and you’ll be fine.
Will–Isn’t it silly the way we’re oppressed by that math? Get one bad review and we desperately try to find more reviewers who will bring up the star count. Even if that one bad review just says “horibble.”
Anne—The book the author writes isn’t the one the reader reads. I don’t recall who said this, but it’s true. We’re in totally subjective territory when it comes to reviews. Readers — like authors — have baggage and they bring that baggage to their reviews.
Anne is right: Congratulations!
Ruth–That is such a great quote! It’s so true that the reader brings his own baggage, and that baggage is usually what sparks reviews.
This bit: “I learned to stop saying, ‘Is it good or is it bad?’ and switched to, ‘What is the market for this? Who would like this kind of work?'”
What a brilliant mindset switch. So much more internal breathing room created with that question and with the whole post. Thanks, Anne!!!
Christine–When I first heard Catherine say that, it really turned my thinking around. I love your phrase “internal breathing room.” That’s just what it provides.
Many years ago, after self-publishing an audiobook collection of knitting themed short stories, I received my first bad review. To summarize: these stories are too short. My husband said something like, “Of course, they’re short they are short stories.” But I believed the reviewer. And it pushed me to write longer–short stories became novellas became novels. I was a little ashamed of my short stories. Every author can write them but few publish them, I thought. Until I attended an author reading and the author told his audience, “I don’t write short stories.” And I thought the reason why was that ‘real’ authors didn’t write short stories–short stories were like mud on your shoes. And I was a little more ashamed. Until one day I realized that short stories appeal to people like me–‘challenged readers’. My goal is to promote reading. And too many years later, I am now proud to say, I write short stories. So I say, “Read that bad review. Allow it to challenge you, but don’t allow it to crush you.”
Leanne–That’s a perfect example of the kind of review we need to ignore. It had nothing to do with your audiobook, and everything to do with the reviewers dislike of short stories.
Short stories can be gold mines. You can sell the over and over again, and they’re great for getting into anthologies. You can also use them as a “reader magnet” for your mailing list.
I’ve had several one star reviews and most of them are rather amusing. Not got the one about cereal boxes though. I must be slacking. But, I’ve not changed anything in the books, just worked to make the next one better.
Alex–I did like the cereal box one. 🙂 Never change your book because of a review. Unless the review hits on something you have already had misgivings about. And then, as you say, change the next book, not this one.
Oh yeah! I try to tell my Crafting a Novel students that they WILL get one star reviews, and to tell themselves: they weren’t my audience. Maybe they bought the book because it sounded interesting, but it really wasn’t their thing after all, and they’re mad they spent the money. So they take it out on a review. We can’t write to make everyone happy. But this is why I stress it is so important to make sure your blurb description matches the book. Don’t EVER try to stretch the truth and fool people in order to get more sales. Make sure you fulfill your promise to the reader.
Melodie–You bring up an important point. The way to guarantee bad reviews is to have a cover or a blurb that don’t match your content. Don’t call it a domestic thriller if it’s a family drama. Or a cozy if there’s blood and guts. And NEVER call it romance unless there’s a HEA.
That last you say is so true, Anne. A lot of people think Casablanca is a romance. It may be romantic, but it’s NOT a romance, because there is no happy ending for the lovers.
And this is why I only review books I enjoy. What’s the point in spreading misery when the book simply wasn’t a good fit for me! I’d rather review the ones I love!
Jemi–I’m the same way!
As am I! I’ve also found that writing reviews of books outside my customary reading zone has made me a better reader.
Never got a bad written review, only face-to-face (TL:DR I write porn!). I have, however, been raked over the coals for a two star review I gave, which got to be so bad that Amazon yanked one of the other person’s comments.
Taking your advice, even back than (this was back when you could leave book reviews w/o actually purchasing it. i used to leave book reviews for books that I had borrowed from my local library), I didn’t even respond to his comments, and he ultimately met his match with another lawyer who happened across my review of the book in question.
G.B. The author you reviewed apparently hadn’t heard the rule that authors should NEVER respond to reviews. What a Bozo. You can still review books you get from the library, but if it’s on Amazon, you have to have bought $50 worth of merchandise at Amazon in that calendar year.
Wasn’t even the author. Was a person who was politically very left of center and took exception that I didn’t like a non-fiction book written by a person born into money who was now trying to virtue signal (many decades before virtue signaling was a thing) his way into forgiveness for having money and being white.
Believe or not, that $50 per year threshold might be a difficult for me to reach. But I’ll keep that advice in mind.
I got kneed in the groin on my first go around with a self-pubbed novel, It went like this – (1-Star) “The worst book I have ever read, I tried to like it but could not get past the first few chapters. This is the only book (in my life) I could not finish.”
Now I’ve got thick hide, but it smacked. I figured this was a bridge-dwelling troll from how it was worded so I sent AZ a few messages asking to have it removed. I don’t really care about the words but the 1-Star affected my overall rating. AZ ignored me which they seem to be good at.
Then I found out that another writer friend of mine – also a retired detective – got the exact same review. It was word-for-word like a copy & paste. We put 2 & 2 together and think this is someone who hates cops. There’s a few of those out there. Thanks for the post, Anne. It’s a great dose of reality 🙂
Garry–That “review” is one I’ve seen before. A high profile sci fi author I know got a bunch of them. Turned out they came from a troll farm. Authors used to be able to buy bad reviews for their competitor’s books. If not a cop-hater, your “reviewer” might have been a paid troll. Doesn’t make it hurt any less when you first see the thing on your page.
It took me seven years and umpteen books but I finally got my first one star review last week. Not that I haven’t tried hard. I’ve been asked for refunds on paperbacks before, but never anything this bad in writing. Now that I have got one, I feel that I belong. That I’m a legitimate writer. Will I change anything? NO! Thanks for another great post, all new writers should read this for encouragement. I will be reblogging this in the week.
Richard–Seven years! Wow. I got my first in about seven days. Well, congratulations! Thanks for reblogging!
You’re welcome.
Great article as usual! I can remember the horror of my first bad review. And second… A troll once devoted an entire article to my literary malfeasance and personal perfidy. That hurt! I did a variant of the stuff in your post to get over it.
BUT! BUT! That was not the most useful part of the bad review! If you ever experience slander or vicious personal abuse, having survived bad reviews can be comforting. Yes. Have you heard of organizational or personal hierarchies? The subdivision where I live has an ironbound in-group/out-group/personal-worth calculus. That means folks are arrayed (unconsciously) from top dog to really bottom dog. This is cemented with gossip and lies.
Somehow, we ended up in that bottom spot, my husband and I. This started early on, before we’d lived here long enough for people know know how really bad we are. It started with a celebrity screaming at my husband in the middle of the street when we’d been here mere days. And kept on.
Recently, we were in a situation I won’t describe, and the perpetrator of the actual evil wrote a letter about us that was probably legally actionable. He/she circulated it anonymously to our Homeowners’ Association Board. One of whom sent me a copy. It was so bad that it stunned me–lies and completely meant to hurt and damage us financially and personally.
For days, I went around aching and numb. Then I got a great thought,
“Why, hell, I’ve gotten worse reviews on Amazon than this!”
Value those bad reviews. They’re benchmarks.
Sandy–Oh, how awful! My mom lived in a gated community with a homeowners association that was like that. Mean Girls meets Mussolini. They took a dislike to an artist who lived next door to my mom because he left his garage door open when he was painting so he wouldn’t be asphyxiated. They finally let him have the garage door half open, but not all the way open, or it would “offend”. So he responded by hanging a rubber chicken from the half open garage door. I came to visit a week later and the chicken had become a permanent fixture. I thought it was hilarious, but of course half the community was scandalized and refused to speak to the artist or his family.
I guess Amazon reviews would prepare you for that sort of thing. But I’m so sorry you’re going through that!
The same excellent advice applies to writing class critiques. When I was just just beginning to write novels, I took a class where a fellow participant took exception to my protagonist. I remember cringing in embarrassment as my character was described as a ‘lazy, self-centred whiner,’ as if these were my own character flaws on full display. (Full disclosure: I had no clue about the mechanics of story or character development, and have no doubt this showed.)
It got worse. Much worse. The participant revealed he’d written a mocking story about my character, which he read out in class. A character portrayal that had been merely unskilled now swelled to cartoonish proportions. I was not allowed to speak during this ‘critique’ – the real cartoon in my eyes – or the other critiques that followed, which were thankfully more useful.
Despite my profound discomfort, this experience taught me several things. First, I had a much thicker skin than I’d previously thought. Second, writing a mocking story seemed like overkill, a sign that the critique was more about him than my actual work. Most importantly, he’d spent an entire week writing and polishing a story based on one of my characters – in other words, responding to/ engaging with my work.
That confirmed for me that although I still had a lot to learn, I’d definitely done something right!
Linda Browne
http://www.lindabrowne.wordpress.com
Linda–Oh, that’s horrific! I’ve written several posts on bad critique groups, but I think yours gets a prize. If your group had a moderator, they sure fell down on the job. That guy violated pretty much all the rules of critiquing. I hope his karma came back with nasty Amazon reviews. If he ever actually wrote anything.
I’ll never forget the guy visiting our critique group who said my heroine “wasn’t in danger” when she’s pinned against the wall about to be molested by a rapist. “The guy doesn’t have a weapon, so what’s wrong?” he said. It never even occurred to him that rape might be a bad thing or that a large man might be a threat to a woman. I think your “critiquer” showed a similar kind of sexism. I doubt he would have done that to another man.
I agree, he wouldn’t. As a teacher myself, I was shocked that the moderator allowed the story to be read at all. I would have shut that down right away, given the class instruction on how to give honest, constructive criticism and made sure all subsequent criticism stayed that way.
The moderator prided himself on running a ‘tough, professional’ class, and I wasn’t the only one who was savaged. As writers, we already take enough of a beating. The time we spend with each other’s work can and should be different.
I’m getting off my soapbox now. 😉
Linda–For some reason those teachers can be the worst. I met one at a writers conference who was so savage, I murdered him in a novel. It happens in Ghostwriters in the Sky—first book in the collection that’s on sale this month. You might enjoy the fantasy. 🙂
So, we write a “review” BEFORE we read the book? The mind boggles . . . The other thing I would add (at the risk of sounding pedantic) is that there is a difference between a review of a book and a reader’s response to a book.
Liz–I think when people get that request to post a review, they think it means “right this minute, whether you’ve read it or not.” And yes, of course there is a big difference between a customer review on Amazon or another retailer and a real book review written by a professional reviewer. The professional reviews can be quoted in the Editorial Review section on Amazon. But I wish readers gave them more weight than the random reader who may not have the background to write a thoughtful review. The problem is that Amazon customer reviews are also used for buying software or mops or face cream or whatever.
You make a good point that the average reader may not be able to recognize customer reviews written by people who failed Critical Analysis 101–and sometimes the Common Sense Test as well. I just assign those reviews an F and move on.
I’m in the process of publishing my first book. During the Beta Reader process I had one person really not like a section of the book. She said to delete it, in no uncertain terms. That it was “repulsive.” But as I was writing that section I had a good reason why I included it and I said too bad. It may not be her taste but it stayed. I’m hoping that when I come up with the inevitable bad review I will be able to see it for what it really is.
Thanks for the dose of reality, and for the support!
Jody–Beta readers are a wonderful resource for authors, but sometimes they can get things so wrong. One beta reader told me to cut a scene where a woman anxiously expecting an explosion at a family gathering keeps eating bits of a cake she’s supposed to be icing. This woman told me that “nobody who is anxious would want to eat.” Hahaha. Need I mention that the woman was very thin and I am not? I left the scene in and people loved it.
Advice to consider for the future. I’ll try not to take criticism to heart.
Traci–Just remember it’s about them, not you. That makes it easier to take.
I’ve had short stories & articles published, & such things generally aren’t reviewed, so I’ll share one of my favorite Dorothy Parker snarky review lines. “This novel should not be set aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force.”
CS–Nobody did snark like La Dorothy. 🙂
A superb article that should give encouragement to even the most hardened writer. And, please, Mr. or Mrs. reviewer take no notice of the writer, keep them coming good or bad.
Daniel–Thanks for the reminder that we should be thankful for all reviews, good or bad. When somebody takes the time to review our work, that’s a gift.
What an excellent post, Anne. The thing that really annoys me about my bad reviews is that I give them more weight than the many good reviews. And that is my fault. I love your collection of reviews on the classics, and have to say that the one about The Great Gatsby is hauntingly accurate. 😉
Belinda–I think we all do that. Not smart, but human nature. And as Will Hahn commented, Amazon plays into that, because of the star system. It seems to take more good reviews to get a star than it takes bad reviews to remove them
I’d always imagined getting my first book reviewed in a big newspaper, but I wasn’t prepared for a negative review. For a couple of days I pulled it out of the cabinet and read it over and over, as if memorizing it could take the sting out of it. Which didn’t work. I sobbed. When my husband ran out of patience I turned to my seven-year-old daughter — but she was unmoved, as well. “You think that’s bad?” she snapped. “A girl in my class said the snacks you made taste like laundry soap. And she’s tasted laundry soap so she knows!” The child was punished: no snack privileges for a week. Ironically, my husband soothed this time, wishing he could take away the reviewer’s snack privileges, too.
Maureen–How awful! It would have been better to burn the review. Have a little ceremony. I hope your daughter learned a little bit about empathy. And bad timing.
She did learn a little bit about empathy, Anne…and a lot about resilience! The reviewer didn’t like the book, but I was flooded with correspondence from people who loved it. That’s when it hit me, what I’d learned in sales training: SWSWSW. Some people will like what you offer, some won’t, so what. My newfound detachment has served me well in every pitch I’ve made since. 🙂
I’d settle for a bad review. It would mean someone has read the book! Actually, I have two reviews each on my fantasy novels; one 4-star and three five-stars total. But my two-book Romance (it was written as mainstream fiction, but published as Romance) has no reviews. I did get one sterling rave review on Facebook, which I have re-posted (it was about a year ago, so I should re-post again) but zilch on Amazon.
Fred–It does get more and more difficult to get Amazon reviews. The system has been so abused, that Amazon had to crack down. But as I’ve written before, they often get draconian and throw out the baby with the bathwater.
Anne, a great perspective as always. For what it’s worth, many 1-star reviews I’ve seen on Amazon are eerily similar: a boilerplate and unspecific comment that could be about any book. Is it a cut-and-paste? Then there’s the review about a software program on a collection of short stories that Amazon won’t take down. Bottom line, take such reviews with a grain of salt, along with Catherine’s excellent advice.
Carmen–Oh, yeah! Sometimes it seems as if half the reviews on Amazon come from the same template. I know that in the heyday of the troll farms, people would pay somebody on Fivrr to give one stars to all their competitors. And I think there are groups who compete for the most reviews and they’ll often leave the same review on hundreds of books. Amazon cracked down on some of them, but not all. I have some reviews on my book The Gatsby Game that are reviews of The Great Gatsby. I had another that said. “This was too small. Had to return it.” 🙂 I’m not sure if it’s still there.
Bubbles and chocolate are the best things to make us forget, but when sober, do it again.
The hardest thing for me has been that most of my bad reviews were for the book that was most personal for me. The others were just fun but that one meant something and I thought it would be received well. It wasn’t. It’s got the lowest ratings of all my books.
Lynne–I think that happens more often than not. People who have agendas are more likely to make personal attacks on authors. Maybe they want to write a memoir they’re sure would be better than others (because they’ll never write it) or they just can’t handle other people having emotions. They’re not well people, and you’ll see their illness on your page, alas.
Here’s a review I received on my memoir INTO AFRICA with 3 kids, 13 crates and a husband. (Of what became the first in a trilogy of three.)
“I.had to stop.reading…..she goes to.Africa and first.off the plane.was annoyed to.see.so many.black people! Then,has one child she finds floating.in a.pool face down,due.to.her negligence in thinking.she does.not.have to.have diligence with. Toddler in a pool…does she learn her lesson???no,she.is nit minding.a.second
child.of.hers,that child.actually drowns,due.to she is no.where in site.watching.her chil
dren again….I can learn nothing from this author.”
AP] Amazingly, another reader actually responded to that review, writing…
“I am not surprised you had to stop reading. You clearly have a problem reading and/or understanding English. The author did NOT say she was “annoyed” to see black people. Nor was she “minding a second child of hers, that child actually drowns”. NO child, either of the author or of anyone else, drowned and your suggestion that the author was negligent in allowing a child to do so is close on libellous.
Contrary to your final sentence, I would suggest that you can learn a lot from this author, such as correct grammar and spelling. Though it may be preferable that you learn to read properly first!”
AP] The review was removed, whether by Amazon or the original reviewer, I do not know, but I’m so glad I took a copy before it disappeared. 😀
Ann–What a shockingly stupid review. That gets some kind of prize. 🙂 Obviously this “reviewer” was one of those who just go online to vent anger. For some reason she chose your book, which went over her teeny tiny head. Very likely she only read the “look inside” on Amazon so she didn’t have a clue what really happened.
But yay for your wonderful reader who set the moron straight. It’s fantastic when that happens. We can’t respond to reviews, no matter how wrong, but our readers can. I suspect the “reviewer” herself removed it when she saw the reply (and maybe when she sobered up.) Sorry you had to go through that, though.
I had a 1 star review that simply said “Good idea. Poor execution.” What the heck does that mean? I know it wasn’t full of errors. My grammar is good and so is my spelling. (My last book came back from my publisher with nothing at all to correct.)
Did the reviewer mean the way I handled plot? Were the characters unbelievable or unlikeable? In what was was the execution poor.
However I’ve still to get a bad review that will stand up to those above. I’m waiting with bated breath.
VM–It probably means nothing. One thing you can do is check the reviewer’s other reviews. Often they’ll use the same phrase for dozens of books. They think they sound smart.
I cant remember the star rating, however one reviewer did not like several of the poems in a collection I published some years back. Her reason? because she disagreed with the viewpoint of my poem. Not the rhyme scheme or anything of that nature. The fact of the matter was that she held a differing opinion on the issue addressed in the poem than that held by me. As a poet I can (and do, I hope) learn from what reviewers say as regards my use of rhyme Etc. But I find it odd when reviewers pick up on the non-poetic aspects of a collection of poetry. Kevin
K Morris–That happens a lot. They disagree with the premise, so it’s a bad work of art. Not exactly helpful.