Indie and Self-Pub Book Corner discussion
Would you want to know?
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I agree wholehearted. As a self-publishing author, I'm amazed at how little effort so many other authors put into making their books as good as they can be. It can be as simple as asking friends or family to proof-read your manuscript, or shell out the cash to have it professionally edited. I had three people proof-read my "final" draft, and then I used an editing service offered by the self-publishing platform CreateSpace. I worked too hard on my first novel not to. Self-publishing doesn't have to mean amateurish.
The best way to let authors know what you think is to write a review of their book on sites like Goodreads. I received some very positive critiques on my writing here. At the same time, I got more than one dis on my book's cover. "Don't judge this book by its cover" kind of remarks. I took them to heart and have been working with a designer to create a new, improved cover. I greatly appreciate those comments, and I will take better care in the future with that aspect of the process.
Hope this helps, Brian.
Gordon,The problem with a review is that it is completely public and can impact sales. I'd feel really crappy about saying, "Hey, everyone, this book is completely unreadable for these reasons. Don't. Buy. It."
A good point, and very considerate of you. I would say, to answer the topic of this discussion, as an author I would like to know of typos, editorial or aesthetic discrepancies, etc. A lot of writers can be reached through Goodreads (if they're a member, of course) or through their personal email addresses. You've shown you can be tactful in such matters, so I don't think it would be a problem. Any indie writer should appreciate whatever feedback they could get. If not, they're probably in the wrong business.
Criticisms and comments like that can sting, even when they're said nicely, but I'd rather know and correct the mistake then have it continue to influence future readers.I agree with Gordon that indie writers should appreciate all the feedback they can get.
Lauryn,Perhaps "should" is the operative word in that statement :)
I doubt that any author who's serious about his writing would find a symphatetic but critical msg offensive. Not only it's unprofessional but I'd also like to assume (perhaps naively) that those who self-publish their novels have any kind of experience with writing and editing. After all, even articles to local newspaper or copywriting texts often come back heavily edited (and not always for the better) - and you have to live with that. Here at least you still have a choice.
Open Books wrote: "I doubt that any author who's serious about his writing would find a symphatetic but critical msg offensive. Not only it's unprofessional but I'd also like to assume (perhaps naively) that those wh..."I've actually tried this a couple of times since the original post, sending private messages to a couple of authors and trying to be as polite as possible.
The most common response?
No reply.
That's better than being cursed at :)
Perhaps your critique got to them after some time and anyway, even if only a small percentage of authors will take such advice to heart it's a success. After all, giving them feedback doesn't cost you much and it can have an impact on someone's career :)
Your consideration is so heart-warming! Most people pass judgement on books without really thinking bout it that hard. As a relatively young, new, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed self-published author, I can tell you that getting overlooked sucks, but not knowing WHY you're getting overlooked sucks SO much more. Many of us reread and edit our own books (or have friends/family help) and vigorous as we may be, we will miss things, and parts of the book may need improvement. Part of the perils of being a self-published author without professional editors on hand. However, for myself at least, I would continue to write even if everybody hated my books, it's a work of passion. And getting critiques is the only way to improve. Though harsh reviews do hurt, anyone who doesn't recognize that they are more helpful than "Great book! Loved it!" is not serious about their passion or their craft. Although "this book sucked, I hated it" is not helpful, saying WHY you didn't like the book IS! If you don't want to read the book for ABC reason, or you didn't like it, do tell us. Personally, I've read and reread my books thousands of times--I'm blind to their suck points by now. But I do WANT wholeheartedly to make them better, and I wish more people would tell me "A; it's too long B; what's with this dialogue? C; people don't act like this." It's the only way to improve!
Then, I discovered that there was a reason for the price difference. I couldn't even finish some of the books I bought.
I changed my philosophy a bit - basically, I decided that if anything at all bothered me about the description or opening, I simply would move on to the next book.
Now, I'm much happier with my purchases. Ironically, the last book I couldn't finish was written by John Scalzi.
I am, however, left with a bit of a conundrum. As someone who hopes to finish a novel and self publish one day (a goal that I'd be better served pursuing now instead of wasting my time posting in forums, sigh), I think I'd really appreciate it if anyone took the time to offer me feedback as to why they decided not to buy my book.
On the practical side, though, I just can't figure out a way to word that kind of a message to an author without feeling like a complete jerk. "Hey! Came across your book on Amazon. It sucked because a), b), and c)."
Okay. I wouldn't really put it that way, but that's how I feel I'd come across no matter how "gently" I put the criticism.
For example, a book popped up on my recommended list just yesterday. Read the description and found a typo.
Sorry, but, if the author doesn't care enough to proof the 100-word description, I don't have a lot of hope for the book in general.
On the other hand, I can't help but thinking, "What if that were my book? What if, despite all the time and effort I put into making sure it was perfect, I missed one stinking typo in a very visible place?" I'd be so, so thankful if someone pointed it out to me.
Have you received any emails like that? How did you react?
If not, would you want an email like that? What if the email went into more "writerly" concerns like, "Maybe starting your book with ten pages of infodump isn't the best bet?"