When my first story went out for reviews, I was not only terribly nervous and slightly afraid, I was curious to see what someone objective would think of my writing. Sure my editor liked it, she bought it. And my critique partners liked it, but then they like me, so that might have a lot to do with it. But a reviewer wouldn’t (and shouldn’t) care about my feelings and just give their straight up opinion about what they read.
The first review I ever received was glowing, which was such a HUGE relief. However, I messed that up pretty good by saying on my blog that I thought the review was a “little too muchâ€, which offended the reviewer (and boy, did I feel terrible about that. *cringing*) Why did I say that? Because the maximum rating was a five, and the reviewer gave me a four, but didn’t say what it was about the story that lowered it from perfect. Was it too short? The plot unbelievable? The characters unsympathetic? I don’t know, but I wish I did. I wish more reviewers would state the reasons why a review didn’t receive the highest mark possible. Something lowered its value in their eyes, and I think it’s a great service to the author, and readers, to say what that was.
I’ve also received one crushing review. (only one, thank God!) In that case, the rating was “averageâ€, and yet the review said nothing good thing about the story. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Not one kind word to explain why the book was at least average, and not a total wall-banger. Something saved it. What was it? Again, I don’t know. Tempering the bad with the good, and the good with the bad should be the goal of every review, in my humble opinion.
I think it’s because of these often (not always) incomplete views that so many readers say reviews don’t impact their buying decisions either way. I personally only read reviews of books I’ve already read, just to see what another person thought of the same story. I’m often surprised by how their view differs.
So what are reviewers for, if we’re not paying attention to their reviews?
As the title suggests, I discovered something about the give and take of reviews that I wasn’t expecting. (And I should have, it makes sense.) Some of the reviewers who reviewed my stories became fans. (Bless them.) They visit my site, they sign up for my mailing list, they e-mail me about my upcoming releases, and they post their affection for my writing on message boards and loops, which is the best advertising a writer can get—word of mouth. Online reviewers are internet savvy, they are true romance lovers who participate in a variety of online romance community discussions, they keep on top of the latest trends, and they freely share their excitement for new authors and old favorites.
So while I anticipated appreciating reviews for their feedback value and found them somewhat lacking in that respect (again, not always), I’ve learned to appreciate the reviewers themselves for their love and dedication to the romance genre. Like all of us, they’re not infallible, but their intentions are good, their time spent is a gift, and their support is invaluable. Romance is a genre that has plenty of detractors. It’s wonderful to see these vocal readers promoting it as they do. Some chastise, some praise—whatever their strengths or weaknesses, they care about the genre, and because of that, I’m grateful to every one of them.
No related posts.
As someone who has no personal experience with reviewers, I read this post slowly, taking in the experience vicariously. I admit that at the beginning of your post I heard myself thinking, *Well if they can’t be specific maybe they shouldn’t be reviewers.” By the end I realized how *young* that thinking was. Thank you for that.
I’m lucky enough to get my hands on lots of ARCs as they come through my doors to be redistributed to other Romance Divas reviewers and I can honestly say, I have added some new authors to my “Must Buy” list. (Ronda Thompson is one of them.)
Being a reviewer is a double-edged sword. I’ve reviewed books by authors I know personally and love but the book didn’t light my fire. That’s a tough review to write, let me tell you. Sometimes, I review a book and love it so much I have to email the author and end up making a new connection with a great writer.
As a writer myself, I like to think I review with a little more sensitivity than someone who only reads. I guess I know the day will come when I’m the one being reviewed. Do unto others and all that.
Of course, it goes without saying that I am eagerly awaiting Bad Boys Ahoy – I just know I’m gonna love it!
wish more reviewers would state the reasons why a review didn’t receive the highest mark possible.
I am not a book reviewer, however, I was a food reviewer for many years, and I think the error here is assuming that the reviewers begin from “5″ and count down for “problems.” I viewed “5″ as the “perfect ten” — something that I didn’t often give out because it would cheapen the ones that I did. If I gave a five merely to every restaurant that didn’t screw up, what would I have for the restaurants that gave me a new level of culinary delight? I started every review with the idea that, if I was perfectly happy, they would get a 4, if it was extra special, a 4.5, and if they knocked my socks off and made me think about that meal once a week for the rest of my life, they could have a five.
You didn’t necessarily do something wrong, Sylvia. Five point reviews have a very sharp curve by necessity — we don’t have sixes.
As a writer who’s going to be published next year, this post bought out all the goosebumps. I think I still need to adjust to the idea of lots of people being able to read my books, let alone write reviews on them
The thing I find most valuable about reviews is that they’ll point to the same strengths, strengths I didn’t necessarily realize I had. This is really invaluable feedback. Not all reviews and reviewers have a consensus, but I find so many of them in agreement on the same points that it’s helped me see my strengths as a writer and areas I can capitalize on. I appreciate the time and trouble each and every reviewer has taken, regardless of the final score.
Noticed that negative reviewers tend to be more specific about what they didn’t like in a book than positive reviewers are about what they enjoy – which is disappointing, but human.
Sometimes the quality of a review tells us much more about the reviewer than about the title, but that too is human.
“This was a fab read” is sweet, but really doesn’t attract other readers to the title. There are a lot of “fab reads” out there. Lots and lots.
If a reviewer really wants to spread the joy about a favourite author, they might comment a little more on the unique and engaging qualities they loved. Those reviewers that do so are a delight to read, and accomplished mini-authors in their own right.
Nevertheless, a reviewer who is balancing a job and a sick baby ( pick any combination of life crises) who somehow squeezes out the time to gasp “it was a fab read,” is still adding her voice to the chorus and a kind of 100% support that humbles writers.
As someone who is still waiting to read the first review of her romance novels, I really appreciated the things you had to say. I have published a non-fiction book and so far the reviews have been good. Like you, I tend to only read reviews for books that I have read, just to see if the reviewer had a similar response to my own. I will write reviews on Amazon for books I really liked alot. But as a writer I tend not to write reviews if I didn’t like a book. I don’t want to send bad karma out into the universe. Thanks for a great article!
Thank you, Kristen!
I hope you do.
Thank you, Diana, for sharing that. I didn’t think of it that way, but that does make sense. You would want to count upward to save that high ranking for something that blew you away. I know I did that when I used to judge contests. Silly that I didn’t realize reviewers would do the same.
I rarely pay attention to reviews unless I’m looking for somebody to agree with my assessment of a book, and if they don’t, I just assume that they either have no taste, or wouldn’t know a brilliant book if it smacked them in the face.
I’m not a reviewer by any stretch of the imagination, but I’m a reader, so every now and again I will do a book review on my blog.
If I love a book, I’ll say so, and if I hate a book, I’m equally as honest about my feelings.
I have had several instances where authors in the act of google searching, themselves have come across my blog to find that I’ve literally torn their work to pieces.
Some deal with it ok, but others are a little more sensitive, and indeed, I understand their reactions, but as far as I’m concerned, as an author, you should be prepared for the possibility that not everybody is going to like what you write. The fact is, you’re not going to please all of the people, all of the time.
Will the possibility of offending authors stop me from being honest? I think not. Some review sites would do a lot better if they learned to show the same honesty in my opinion, instead of extolling the virtues of every flipping book they come across.
Surely, they aren’t all brilliant?
I’ve been fortunate that the reviews for my first two books have been positive. Some were outright raves which does wonderful things for this author’s spirit. I like hearing what aspect of my book resonated most with the reviewer. If someone isn’t crazy about my story, I’d like to hear why as well.
When I read a review I want to know what the story is about, without giving everything away. I want to know if its an easy read or one that I might struggle with, but its worth reading. There are some reviewers I trust their taste. Their reviews help me decide if I want to pick up a book or not.
I don’t feel its my job to critique the writer’s writing abilities. Who am I to say how a writer should write. Writing a book is hard and with each one you going to have someone who likes it or doesn’t. That’s their opinion. I believe you should write the best book you can and it will show in the book. I don’t feel we should tell you how to improve your work.
For SORMAG I asked our reviewers to give a short summary of the book and tell us how the book made them feel. The review should never be a personal attack against the author.
However I don’t think the reviewer should explain why they chose a rating. Its their opinion. My 3 star might be someone else’s 4 stars. We all read differently. As a reviewer it is our duty to critique the story for plot, setting, tell how the characters grabbed you, etc.
I use to tell my reviewers, I stop reviewing my favorite authors books because they were all 5s to me. Did it mean they deserved a 5, no. It meant I couldn’t be bias when it came to their stories and I knew this, which is why I no longer reviewed their books.
In the five years I published reviews for SORMAG. I had only one writer who disagreed with the reviewer. She wanted to write to the reviewer and explain why she disagreed. I explained to her the review is one person’s opinion. NEVER TAKE IT PERSONAL.
I definitely think a reviewer needs to explain. If I ask a friend, “Hey, you went to that new restaurant. How was the food?”
And she replies, “It was okay.”
I’m going to ask why was it only okay. Was the food too salty? Or bland? Was the crispy bread soggy? The salad wilted?
If she can’t tell me any more than “It was okay”, her opinion isn’t really any help at all. Maybe I like wilted salad and soggy bread, and would think the restaurant was fabulous.
Same thing with books. Were the secondary characters obtrusive? Silly? Distracting? The heroine a shrew? The hero a wimp? I believe reviews should say what a reviewer did and didn’t like about a story, or else it’s not helpful. And I know this view is shared by all the readers who say they don’t rely on reviews to buy a book.
This goes with everything, BTW. If I watch the news and the anchorperson says, “Don’t vote for Bush” I certainly expect to hear why they’re saying that.
But then with that, you start to second-guess and talk yourself out of your writing because it’s been over-analyzed by a reviewer or reviewers. I read reviews, but mainly to a) agree or b) disagree with the reviewer’s opinion. But as a writer, I don’t think I would pay attention to them because a reviewer is only one person, and while their tastes may be similar to a group of regular site visitors, it doesn’t mean they are THE END when it comes to the book. Yeah I think that it’s a big PLUS to garner positive reviews all around(esp from well-respected reviewers/sites), but if you deliver what you know your readers want, time and time again, a negative review or a positive review doesn’t effect anything.
As a reviewer and soon to be published author, I’ve read this feature with interest and share Sylvia’s views on the role of the reviewer.
Yes, reviewing is only the opinion of one reader, but I believe that for reviews to be meaningful they need to do much more that the 3/4 summary of the book and a short paragraph at the end which briefly sums the reviewer’s opinion of the book in a generic way. i.e. “Ms. Romance Writer’s laters release is a wonderful blend of mystery with complex characters. Run, don’t walk to the bookstores!”
I believe that there is a vast difference between a “genuine” reviewer and readers who likes to review and many of the online sites that surface daily work with readers who like to review, but lack the skills to be a good reviewer.
As a reviewer with, and the Editor-in-Chief of an online review site, Romance in Color, which focuses on romance and maninstream fiction featuring black characters, our guidelines for reviews are clear.
Reviewers should comment on as many of the following after a short one paragraph summary of the story.
Characterisation
Conflict
Plot
Setting
Pacing
Any other aspect of the author’s craft that is important to an understand of the story’s message.
Strange enough, our guidelines which are given to reviewers on the start have deterred many from joining our staff who see reviewing as a change to ger books early and free!
I also encourage my reviews support their reviews. Say what worked for you and what did. And yes, I strongly believe that if you give a reviewer a 3 or 2 star rating, you own them the courtesy to say what didn’t work. I’ve seen glowing review with 3 star rating and wondered what the reader found wrong with the book.
A few years ago I was the member (Vice-President at one time) of a wonderful organization, Reviewers International Organization. The goal of this group was to help create a professional image for reviewers. Unfortunately, the battle is a difficult one since I don’t believe that this will change anytime soon.
I’m not one to promote individual website site, but The Romance Readers has always been the site that I use as the benchmark for good reviews. The reviewers there look for the story’s strenght and weakness and when I see a rating, I know exactly why that book was thus rated.
I’ll end here before I continue to rant and rage since this is a topic I feel very passionate about!
Now, I’ll hold my own breath waiting for my 3, 4, or 5 star rating when my debut novel is released in November. Hopefully, the reviewers will be courteous and kind enought to let me know what I did wrong or, better, what I did right!
Wayne
This is true, which is my only negative/”average” review lost some weight, since it was the only one out of many, many good ones. However, if you get a dozen reviews that say dialogue was stilted, it’s not one opinion, it’s a general concensus, and should be addressed in the future.
I can see why there might be some frustration. I do read reviews as input when deciding on book purchases and am very often frustrated that reivews are so often vague or simply do not offer a straight critque. What makes a book receive an A vs B vs C? What rates 4 vs 3 stars? It really frustrates me when I read a review that sounds glowing only to see the rating is a 4/3 star review. What kept it from a higher rating? As a consumer, I want to know! Is it personal taste, poor writing, plot problems, poor grammar? I do occasionally write reviews on Amazon and I try to, along with a plot synopsis, provide some reasons why I rated it as I did. I think that’s only fair. Otherwise why bother?