For author read stalker
There is a great debate raging on the Goodreads author forums about whether authors should respond to reviewers.
As you may know, Goodreads policy is that authors should NOT contact reviewers (I think this is a strong recommendation, rather than a sackable offence).
The majority of authors agree with the policy – take the bouquets and brickbats with equal grace (and keep your mouth shut).
Personally, I read ALL reviews of my books, and think deeply about them. I don’t respond – and I do feel a little guilty about this. (So if you have taken the trouble to a) read my work and b) write a review – thank you, thank you, thank you!)
I saw some research (for all products, not just books) – it suggested that potential buyers look at the overall score or number of reviews to make sure the item is generally ‘okay’ – then they read the 1-star reviews to check out if the problems might relate to them.
I’m happy to have some 1-star reviews because most of them complain that I write in the present tense. This is not everyone’s cup of tea. If you have such a phobia, my 1-star reviews help you avoid this abomination. (And, in turn, improve my batting average.)
But it appears some authors harry their reviewers. Nothing less than 5 stars is acceptable. They demand an explanation – and a retraction.
Have they read ‘How to Win Friends & Influence People’?
As you may know, Goodreads policy is that authors should NOT contact reviewers (I think this is a strong recommendation, rather than a sackable offence).
The majority of authors agree with the policy – take the bouquets and brickbats with equal grace (and keep your mouth shut).
Personally, I read ALL reviews of my books, and think deeply about them. I don’t respond – and I do feel a little guilty about this. (So if you have taken the trouble to a) read my work and b) write a review – thank you, thank you, thank you!)
I saw some research (for all products, not just books) – it suggested that potential buyers look at the overall score or number of reviews to make sure the item is generally ‘okay’ – then they read the 1-star reviews to check out if the problems might relate to them.
I’m happy to have some 1-star reviews because most of them complain that I write in the present tense. This is not everyone’s cup of tea. If you have such a phobia, my 1-star reviews help you avoid this abomination. (And, in turn, improve my batting average.)
But it appears some authors harry their reviewers. Nothing less than 5 stars is acceptable. They demand an explanation – and a retraction.
Have they read ‘How to Win Friends & Influence People’?
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That's very kind of you to put up with me (I must write a blog post soon to explain why I do it).And I quite agree - we should be 100% honest with our reviews - they are for other readers, after all. If authors can learn from them too, then that's just a bonus.
ps. Nice play on words!
I would appreciate it if you wrote that blog post, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who would like to know.
Personally, I don't like the present tense at all, but fortunately your books are more than tense so I will keep reading them.
However, there are some 1-star books which really deserve it, and no one should be afraid of saying so.