Sci-Fi, fantasy and speculative Indie Authors Review discussion
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Bogus 5-star rating on my book--what would you do?
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Dec 31, 2014 05:41AM
I just discovered a new 5-star rating on my book. I don't know the person who rated it; she's the wife of a cousin of mine whom I've never met, but he is a Facebook friend of mine, and our last names are the same. I identified her on my family heritage chart (genealogy). She hasn't bought my book; she hasn't read my book. The 5-star rating is totally bogus, and I didn't ask for it, but I'm sure she thinks she did a good thing, and I don't want to hurt her feelings. However, to an outsider it looks like a puppet account that I might have created to give my own book a great rating. I didn't. As an author, what would you do?
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You could always ask her to delete it, citing what you just said about authors boosting their scores with dummy accounts but make sure to thank her for doing it. That or you could send her a copy and ask her for a real review (pros and cons with a fair score).
People are going to think what they think. You didn't do anything wrong, so I wouldn't worry about it. I think the same policy applies to any review, good or bad, you just move on. In this case, hopefully you will get lots of great legitimate five star reviews and it will get buried in the mix.
The book does have legitimate ratings and reviews on Goodreads, ranging from two to four stars, so maybe that will offset any suspicion. I also have another bogus-looking 5-star rating from a total stranger who didn't leave a review. Maybe these are just part of a system they're using to plan their reading priorities. Whatever they are, it's great for my ratings, bad for my rating credibility, but if I make them angry they might change the fives to ones so maybe it's best if I say nothing and enjoy the ratings boost. My cousin's wife has just joined Goodreads, according to her account, so maybe she'll figure it out.
I mean, I have just 4 and 5 star reviews with no critique attached to it. I don't think it's a big deal. I don't think most people stare at the names of the people who reviewed it.
Not long after my book was published someone gave it a one-star rating with no review, and that was the only rating it had for a long time. I know he didn't read it because I had had no sales up to that point, and eventually the rating disappeared. I think it was just a part of his system of prioritizing his reading, but I don't if he took it down or if Goodreads did. Either way, I was glad to see it go. But maybe it's not a problem, as long as it's restricted to Goodreads and doesn't find it's way to Amazon or Smashwords.
You're safe with Smashwords. Only one who downloaded your book (Paid, free, or free with coupon) can review it there. I'm with the others here. You can't control your family. I wouldn't sweat it. If you had a huge family, that might be different. ;)
Judging from the lack of sales of my books to family members, I'm just surprised that anyone in my family tree can read. On the other hand, she's related only by marriage.
Ken wrote: "Judging from the lack of sales of my books to family members, I'm just surprised that anyone in my family tree can read. On the other hand, she's related only by marriage."Lmao, that made my day. My family members bought my book, but none of them have cracked the spine.
Puppet accounts and fake ratings are pretty easy to spot. I’ve seen a bunch of books on Goodreads that have 50-60 ratings and crazy averages like 4.90-5.00, which puts them ahead of such humble writers as Dickens, Shakespeare, and Austen. If you look at the ratings closely you’ll see that they are all by the same author group that goes around rating each other 5 stars and pumping each other up on listopia. That’s poison, in my opinion, and destroys any chance there was of taking their work seriously.I don’t think that would be a problem for your account at all. It’s pretty clear that you have real people giving real opinions here. As such, for the sake of family relations, I would just ignore it. Because it doesn’t have a review it will eventually disappear down your list anyway.
Yeah, most readers are going to be able to spot the bogus ones and just ignore them. As long as you don't have tons of reviews like that then it's not worth bothering about.As for family member sales...Come to think of it I don't think I've even told my father that I've published eBooks. Not that he'd be against it; he simply has no interest whatsoever in SF. I wouldn't mind if he read them, but they're not something he'd ever choose to read otherwise. We have nothing at all in common when it comes to what we read, so I haven't bothered to tell him. **shrug**
I'm hoping my family doesn't read my second book. They weren't super interested in book one, but I'm hoping they won't pick up book two. I don't want to get asked any weird questions.
My first review was a 5-star, from the account of a young boy in Islamabad. He said 'nice, interesting' which was a bit uninformative. It's impossible to know if it's done me any harm, but it does look like a bogus review. After a while, you get more, and individual reviews seem less important. Personally I'd rather have a four-star review with thoughtful commentary, than a five-star rating with none.
I started writing in the '70s and even though I published stories in the '80s I told none of my family. I had two reasons: I wanted to see if I ever got famous enough that they'd hear about me and ask me about it (I didn't; they didn't), and I really didn't want them "looking over my shoulder" at everything I wrote. Now all of my family that I worried about offending have passed on except one--my sister--so I don't care who knows.
I've let my family know I'm writing from the start, and my daughters have even read one of my books. Neither would normally read something in my genre, so it was a gift. They were kind - one said it looked as if it was written by a 'real writer'.
Mod
If it's just a rating here on GR, I wouldn't worry. I think most people ignore them and go straight for the reviews.
I had ratings from 3 to 5 stars. Some readers just post stars without writing a word 'why'. I rate books mostly without writing reviews as well. I had one-star rating that disappeared a day after it appeared, from a person who just registered on GR. He obviously haven't bought or read my book. So it was weird. I have only one family member who reads in the language I write, but he had read the finished product as a reader, so he left his reviews. Personally, I'm not fond of those 5* raving ones from a family member -- I don't know if he is biased or honestly likes those (he reads SF) -- but I can't tell him to stop reading my books. I just wish he'd mention that he is my family in his reviews. He either forgets or leaves it as is on purpose. Husbands are weird creatures.
Ken wrote: "I just discovered a new 5-star rating on my book. I don't know the person who rated it; she's the wife of a cousin of mine whom I've never met, but he is a Facebook friend of mine, and our last na..."For my part, I would rejoice I received an unsolicited 5-star rating. I think Goodreads gives everyone the freedom to set their own rating standards and specifications (I know Goodreads has guidelines), including the information the reader needs to establish an opinion. For my part I give 4 and 5-stars if I would read the book again, 3-stars if it was a good (one read) book and 2-stars if I wish I had not read it. I reserve the 1-star rating for those rare situations where I feel I'm stupider for having read the book.
I think low ratings have a bigger reader impact than high ratings. Even for a bad book with few ratings, I hesitate to give it a low rating. I would rather wait until quite a few ratings are out there so I don't skew the results downward.
I think in the end I would need trust in the honesty of the reviewer and be grateful for the positive, encouraging feedback.
Mod
As for family, my wife is my first reader, my Mum is second, one sister likes my writing but reads slowly, one uncle might read some, and more than a few friends bought the first paper copies and some even finished it and gave me reviews. I always tell them to be honest, if they're saying anything at all.
Jamie wrote: "The simplest explanation for reviews appearing and disappearing is simple error. Especially on mobile it is VERY easy to accidentally click on the stars and leave a rating, then click out of it the..."I appreciated your post Jamie. I particularly liked your point about telling family and friends to be honest in their reviews. I think one can tell by the way a reviewer writes if they have found something of value in a book. The data and examples used show through.
I wouldn't worry too much about it. I've got a couple of star ratings without reviews. Not everyone leaves reviews so I don't think too many people will think anything of it.
I have the opposite problem. I have someone who left a 3 Star Review on all of my books about a year ago. No idea who this person is, and seeing as they all were done on the same day, I have my doubts this person actually read any of the books.
I got one of those, too--rating only, no review. Been there for months.
Could also be people too lazy to write an actual review.
When I first started out on here, I went through my bookshelves star-rating a couple of hundred books, straight off my bookshelves. I think it's a legitimate thing to do, provides a nice roadmap of one's preferences.
Mod
I did the same to begin with, I mostly rated books, but now I usually leave reviews for every book I rate here. I read a lot of indie books in 2014, and knowing how difficult it is to get reviews at all when you are an indie I figured I might as well review those that I read. It is only when I come across books that I find really bad that I don't leave a review.
Mod
