Adverse Reviews - how do you cope?

To date  "A Ripple in Time" has received only positive feedback - at least in its present edition. In the early days bursting with pride I invited comments and some very kind very patient readers opened my eyes and sent me scuttling back to the re-editing desk. We all recognise constructive criticism helps us grow and of course what we take on board from helpful well meaning advice is up to us. When the majority of your test readers report that a paragraph or character does nothing for them, it's probably time for a major rethink - although this is entirely your decision and depends on how mainstream an audience you want - some authors thrive on cult readership and may decide their book is perfect in their opinion and that's really all that matters. Most of us would be wise though to consider our work carefully from another's point of view, which is why each new review is eagerly persued as soon as it's posted by the person we're really writing for: The reader. Our reader. My reader.
So although your heart may sink when you notice the average star rating on your 'product page' at Amazon has gone down this is your call to be brave and honest. Hopefully the reviewer has been generous enough to explain why they've given a three or even two star posting. If you're really lucky they might be kind enough to offer a sticking plaster along the lines of 'this is just my opinion' or 'others might disagree'. So swallow your medicine like a big boy then go and browse the best sellers' ratings and cheer yourself up by noting that even the greats can't please everyone.
To read an extract from "A Ripple in Time" Click here & yes if you're moved to comment I'd welcome your thoughts and opinions!