Goodreads Authors/Readers discussion
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It appears the rating for my book is being targeted by low rater trolls
I don’t get what people get out of doing this? Writing books is often our life’s work and just to have someone 1-star it because they’re feeling terrible about their own life is pathetic.
Jordan wrote: "I don’t get what people get out of doing this? Writing books is often our life’s work and just to have someone 1-star it because they’re feeling terrible about their own life is pathetic."
Unfortunately, some people are mean by nature and take pleasure in hurting others whatever way they can. They do it because they are too mediocre to produce good things by themselves. No amount of moralizing or discussion will change the behavior of such people. Only forcing them out and cutting them off will work. Believe me: I lived and worked in active war zones in the past and there is no shortage of such mean people. Thankfully, they are still in the minority.
Unfortunately, some people are mean by nature and take pleasure in hurting others whatever way they can. They do it because they are too mediocre to produce good things by themselves. No amount of moralizing or discussion will change the behavior of such people. Only forcing them out and cutting them off will work. Believe me: I lived and worked in active war zones in the past and there is no shortage of such mean people. Thankfully, they are still in the minority.
Truly sorry to hear this. There are absolute terrible people in the world that have no clue that they're a villain.I have not had this particular problem yet, but I did have another villainous person problem. Unknown entities pirated 2 of my books from a site I use for Beta testing and published them on Amazon. In my name, oddly, but I receive nothing from it. I'm a nobody, and I don't make enough from book sales to fund a trip to Taco Bell. Why do this? What possible benefit is accomplished other than to ruin someone's life?
Not trying to change the subject, just trying to say I sympathize with good reason. :)
Jordan wrote: "I don’t get what people get out of doing this? Writing books is often our life’s work and just to have someone 1-star it because they’re feeling terrible about their own life is pathetic."I honestly don't know. I don't usually talk about my depression, but seeing/experiencing this problem with trolls on Goodreads has made it worse during the last few days.
I gave away about 70 free copies a few weeks ago with the hopes people would leave an honest review but so far, only one person seems to have actually left an honest review/rating.
Michel wrote: "Jordan wrote: "I don’t get what people get out of doing this? Writing books is often our life’s work and just to have someone 1-star it because they’re feeling terrible about their own life is path..."I hope that's just the case. But sighs. It's appearing that the bad ones are outweighing the good ones, at least for now. I put a ton of work and countless nights editing the story. I even include a mention to my Twitter page asking people to contact me if there's something seriously wrong with the story.
Jeff wrote: "Truly sorry to hear this. There are absolute terrible people in the world that have no clue that they're a villain.I have not had this particular problem yet, but I did have another villainous per..."
I actually started on Wattpad, and while I haven't experienced this problem yet, I did hear about it happening to other authors on there. I had to leave the site because of bullying and spam. Though I did make some good friends on there.
Daniel wrote: "I asked Vincet to remove my previous post about this topic because someone thought they were being nice by countering the troll negative rating. I would like to continue talking about the topic of ..."Hi there!
Wow, and here I thought I was the only person I knew of on this web-site which this highly-annoying problem was happening to. No offense to anyone, but I'm so glad I'm not alone in this regard. So, without detracting attention away from the OP, let me share my personal experiences with such trolls.
The first guy to 1-star spam 1 of my books did it about a couple of months ago if my memory serves me. It was just...A blank rating. 1-star. No review...Nothing. The mistake I made was in confronting him over his rating via the comment section of the reviews portion of my book's page.
Then, I reported his not sorry ass to the GoodReads administration team, per the rather strong suggestion of a woman who sent me a message, chewing me out for breaking this rule.
Seriously, why is it even against the rules to confront these troll-spammers in the first place!? It's obvious they have to much time on their hands. Oh, but the trouble didn't stop there.
Ohh no!! Over the next month or my first 3 to 4 books received 1-star spam-ratings from two different accounts!! Both women, apparently. Well, I reported the first troll-spammer, but not the second one. I wanna see if the Admin-Team will notice this extreme and remove it, along with said troll.
By the way, the second troll, as the OP noted above, actually seems to have spent his or her time rating tons and tons of books, leaving blank 1-stars on most of them. On this note, I feel GoodReads ought to implement some time and/or account-based requirements before letting their users post all this unwanted spam. For instance, if you want to rate a book, you should be required to either have spent at least a week reading said book or at the very least, write a 25-word-minimum review on said book. Only then should a star-rating of any kind be allowed. Or, the user should either be registered on GoodReads for at least a week before being allowed to rate and review others' works.
And such reviews ought to be noteworthy for their quality; in other words, NO SPAM!!!! No random characters or nonsense words, and no-nonsense at all. Catch my drift? Every time someone 1-stars a book, it makes us hard-working authors look like ****-head cattle, who don't know what we're doing!! And I don't know about any other authors here (Except for Jeff, who noted how many books he sells, which is not many at all), but I myself couldn't afford a trip to the fuel station or even my local Wendy's if I was relying on book sales alone!
I have a promotion for the first volume in my YA epic fantasy, the Milward Chronicles. When I first published it, almost 20 years ago, typos and all, it became the #1 fantasy bestseller on the old Fictionwise site for about 7 weeks, and a very nice royalty check that was. It also got mostly 5 star reviews with a few 4 and a scattering of 3's. I have re-released it, thoroughly edited and revised with typos, plot holes etc removed. I'm using Voracious Readers to promote it and so far have about 300 new readers over a couple of months, plus a few new 4 & 5 star reviews. On to the troll...I got a GR message from this... fellow... informing me I should take their "blunt and honest" review to heart. In reading it, I could tell this... fellow... hadn't read the book at all but simply wanted to appear as an expert while failing completely in the effort. I never replied to the message, and frankly, ignoring them is the best thing to do. Some ...fellows... are incapable of learning.
Love your story, Robert, and your book sounds fantastic. You better than most of us could spot an un-genuine...fellow:)
Thanks Gail. And you read the subtext. Nice.
At least some people will downrate books that contain topics or information they find politically unpalatable or uncomfortable and there's really no way around that.The people that annoy me a lot are the ones that downrate books because they don't like that genre of books. Well for crying out loud, that doesn't make the book BAD, it just means its not your cup of tea.
However, its important to keep something in mind. Low star ratings can help sell your book. Not only does "more ratings the better" apply, but folks like me read low star reviews. If its just a star and no comment, then its disregarded. If its got comments that are idiotic or clearly not by someone serious who understands or read the book, then that actually makes me more interested.
I personally feel that the book rating needs to be removed on a permanent basis. I think Goodreads could introduce a new way of showing how many people have read the book but no rating. Having a rating does not reflect the quality of the book. Please put an end to this troll activity. Writers work for years to produce books and this behavior is not acceptable.
Christopher wrote: "At least some people will downrate books that contain topics or information they find politically unpalatable or uncomfortable and there's really no way around that.The people that annoy me a lot..."
I guess I'm just disappointed that Goodreads isn't doing more to protect authors from people who intentionally rate low just because they can. It's now been about a week and a half since my original inquiry and the half part after they replied to me. Rating is still up.
I gave away about 60 copies while it was free on Amazon and it's a bit disheartening to see nothing has really transferred over to reviews.
That was a few weeks ago for the promotion.
For whatever reason, the vast majority of avid readers choose to never post a rating or review. Those that do are merely expressing their personal, and therefore subjective, opinion. One reader's Best book ever! may very well be another reader's Worst book ever! which is why most astute readers do not allow a rating and/or review to influence their choice of reading material one way or the other.Novice writers are better served by focusing upon striving to continuously improve upon their basic writing skills along with promotional and marketing technique than obsessing over ratings and reviews.
Very few novice writers ever achieve commercial success within this extremely competitive field. That said; some have. There is no reason why you might not eventually become one of them. I wish you success.
Daniel wrote: "I guess I'm just disappointed that Goodreads isn't doing more to protect authors from people who intentionally rate low just because they can."Goodreads is for readers, so it’s not their job to protect authors from low ratings. I understand it is no fun getting a low rating, I’ve sometimes got reviews that I thought weren’t fair, but it’s really not something to obsess over. It happens. Sometimes one gets good reviews. That feels better, I understand that, but one bad review or rating isn’t the end of the world. Think of it this way, this rating means you’re one rating closer to hundred ratings. One rating is just that, one rating.
Hákon wrote: "Daniel wrote: "I guess I'm just disappointed that Goodreads isn't doing more to protect authors from people who intentionally rate low just because they can."Goodreads is for readers, so it’s not..."
Daniel, are you on Twitter?
#writerscommunity
Very supportive and lots of interaction
Virginia wrote: "I personally feel that the book rating needs to be removed on a permanent basis."Personally I wish GR would remove the ability for authors to rate their own books with 5-stars. When a book only has a few ratings, it manipulates the average.
These discussions are always interesting to see how many authors think any critical rating must be from "trolls". But those authors remain silent about the fake 5-stars on their books from people who never cracked it open.
No book is worthy of only 4/5 stars. Reading is a personal experience, every reader takes something different from a book. What inspires someone and is a 4/5 might have the opposite effect on another reader and only be a 1/2. Any book that is selling widely, will have the range of ratings.
AWE what? wrote: "Virginia wrote: "I personally feel that the book rating needs to be removed on a permanent basis."Personally I wish GR would remove the ability for authors to rate their own books with 5-stars. W..."
I'd never dream of manipulating the rating. Family and friends haven't had any issues with the story so far so I'm hoping they're being honest with me about that. If not, then well, I guess it shows who is actually a friend.
Cphe wrote: "Daniel wrote: "Jordan wrote: "I don’t get what people get out of doing this? Writing books is often our life’s work and just to have someone 1-star it because they’re feeling terrible about their o..."My issue is more that I leave my contact info for Twitter in the back of the story and ask that readers message me if they find anything wrong with the story.
In my opinion Goodreads needs to make it so that anything less than 3 stars should include text. It's too easy to just give a book a negative rating "just because".
Daniel wrote: "Cphe wrote: "Daniel wrote: "Jordan wrote: "I don’t get what people get out of doing this? Writing books is often our life’s work and just to have someone 1-star it because they’re feeling terrible ..."I would never put my real email twitter or other contact in a book I wrote. I would have a separate special for that books feedback which I can check safely.
Some of the on=line booksellers only allow reviews by those that can be verified to have purchased the book. Perhaps Goodreads could have a computer routine (partnering) connecting with Amazon, BAM, B&N, et cetera, to verify the person bought the book, but that would exclude the very minor number of Library check-outs. Then too, a book borrower would not be able to verify purchase. On second thought, perhaps Goodreads could require a cell-phone photo of the book title page to verify the reviewer. But overall, reviews are so few that restrictions would only make for fewer reviews.
It's a racket, a money racket. Some authors and their publishers pay people to read books months before they are released and place them for sale by "pre-order." They also pay the on-line book sellers for top billings. For B&N examples, "Midnight Sun" won't release until August and it already has 18 reviews at 4.7 average. "Unlocked" won't be released until November and it has two reviews already at 5.0. "Violet Bent Backwards" won't release until September 29 and it has three reviews already at 5.0. I've seen popular writers' books with more than 1,000 reviews, always above 4 if not above 4.5, many weeks before release.
Wmba wrote: "Daniel wrote: "Cphe wrote: "Daniel wrote: "Jordan wrote: "I don’t get what people get out of doing this? Writing books is often our life’s work and just to have someone 1-star it because they’re fe..."I'm fairly active in the Writing Community on Twitter, and I'd like to connect with my readers if they decide to reach out to me. I have another Twitter account for personal use that's private.
H. wrote: "It's a racket, a money racket. Some authors and their publishers pay people to read books months before they are released and place them for sale by "pre-order." They also pay the on-line book sell..."Yeah. Unfortunately, I don't really have the resources to do mass marketing like you've described. I did try the Amazon sponsored product for a few days on the weekend, but there was absolutely nothing in return.
Daniel,I notice that you have created a Reader's Profile, but no Author's Profile. The fact that you are a published author might be more apparent to Goodreads members if you created an Author's Profile which included specific information and vendors featuring your books.
Most public libraries dedicate entire sections to books and periodicals that provide specific technical, procedural, and contact information pertaining to writing, editing, promotion, and marketing written by authors and other professionals who have already established significant commercial success within the literary field. Community colleges, book clubs, and lectures provide similar information at little or no cost.
Expend the time, effort, and available resources to continuously improve upon your knowledge, technique, and skill set and you may very well attain the success you seek to achieve. Good luck.
My publisher told me, “Bad reviews are better than no reviews.” I don’t mind if someone doesn’t like my book, at least they read it. But that’s just me.
Jim wrote: "Daniel,I notice that you have created a Reader's Profile, but no Author's Profile. The fact that you are a published author might be more apparent to Goodreads members if you created an Author's ..."
Thanks for the suggestion. I'll look into it. Didn't even realize there was an option to create an author's profile.
Carole “Lisa Lynn” wrote: "My publisher told me, “Bad reviews are better than no reviews.” I don’t mind if someone doesn’t like my book, at least they read it. But that’s just me."Having OCD certainly doesn't help lol.
Daniel wrote: "In my opinion Goodreads needs to make it so that anything less than 3 stars should include text. "But you don't hold the same opinion about 4 and 5 stars. Apparently it's fine to have friends/family drop a high rating star on a book they've never read with no accompanying text. Or my fav, the 5-star with "greatest book ever!" and its painfully obvious its from a person the author knows.
Some authors need to understand that ratings/reviews aren't "feedback" for them. Ratings/reviews are reader opinions (and on GR, some users allocate stars to indicate other things entirely, like a books place in their TBR pile). If you want critical feedback - hire an editor or use critique partners before you hit publish.
H. wrote: "It's a racket, a money racket. Some authors and their publishers pay people to read books months before they are released..."
ARC readers are not paid. Advance copies are distributed in exchange for a review (although that cannot be required now under Amazon's review guidelines). In fact those readers cannot be paid or remunerated in anyway - if they are, those reviews cannot be placed on Amazon, Goodreads or elsewere.
Offering ARCs is a very common practice, it's done by traditional publishers and indies alike. I'm not sure why you think it is a racket? Any author can do it and it works better if you have 3-6 months lead in time before a book is released. You set up the preorder and then authors offer advanced copies through their newsletter, groups, or sites like NetGalley.
AWE what? wrote: "Daniel wrote: "In my opinion Goodreads needs to make it so that anything less than 3 stars should include text. "But you don't hold the same opinion about 4 and 5 stars. Apparently it's fine to h..."
How about you take a look at the comment (or the "review" itself) I left on that "rating" instead of accusing me of things that aren't true?
Edit: I left a comment asking for the person to remove the fake 4 star review but Goodreads appears to have deleted it for some reason.
I think they must have deleted the comment or else someone in this thread must have flagged it and Goodreads was quicker to remove that one then the other ratings.
AWE what? wrote: "Daniel wrote: "In my opinion Goodreads needs to make it so that anything less than 3 stars should include text. "But you don't hold the same opinion about 4 and 5 stars. Apparently it's fine to h..."
And also, I did send a direct message to that person who left the fake 4 star rating asking them to remove it. As I'm not sure about the rules of posting screenshots from conversations on here, I'll have to wait and see if a mod steps in to say that's okay or not before posting.
ALL REVIEWS
I repeat ALL REVIEWs should be accompanied by text whenever it is allowed by the website you are using.
A review without explanation is like a done deaf person criticizing Beethoven's 9th symphony. (Yes I know the man was deaf when he wrote it)
As a long time engineer and project manager, you spell out your reasons; you give your examples when you critique anything. You at least let the people know why you liked it or disliked it. To do otherwise is not being fair to the author, the reading community, and yourself. If you do not want to take the time to do this, then keep your mouth shut!
Unfortunately this is why I post very few reviews because I need to take the time to review and try to understand through my lenses of experience how this book affects me. I ask myself why or why not I like this book. That takes time and frankly I do not have that time. I do even have time to read much.
The honest review is one of the few sources the author has to evaluate what he has written and make any correction on his next work. It also helps the readers make the decision of purchase or not. I consider the honest review to be the lifeblood of this business.
Sorry, did not mean to off on a rant, but this really bugs me.
I repeat ALL REVIEWs should be accompanied by text whenever it is allowed by the website you are using.
A review without explanation is like a done deaf person criticizing Beethoven's 9th symphony. (Yes I know the man was deaf when he wrote it)
As a long time engineer and project manager, you spell out your reasons; you give your examples when you critique anything. You at least let the people know why you liked it or disliked it. To do otherwise is not being fair to the author, the reading community, and yourself. If you do not want to take the time to do this, then keep your mouth shut!
Unfortunately this is why I post very few reviews because I need to take the time to review and try to understand through my lenses of experience how this book affects me. I ask myself why or why not I like this book. That takes time and frankly I do not have that time. I do even have time to read much.
The honest review is one of the few sources the author has to evaluate what he has written and make any correction on his next work. It also helps the readers make the decision of purchase or not. I consider the honest review to be the lifeblood of this business.
Sorry, did not mean to off on a rant, but this really bugs me.
A rating or review is the personal, and therefore subjective, opinion of the reader. One reader's Best book ever! may very well be another reader's Worst book ever!. For this reason, most astute readers do not allow a rating or review to influence their purchase choices one way or the other.Legitimate literary classes, books, and periodicals stress the fact that sales drive reviews, not the other way around. Note that a commercially successful writer is referred to as a 'Best Selling Author', not a 'Most Reviewed Author'.
I agree with you, Jim.
I guess I'm just disappointed that Goodreads isn't doing more to protect authors from people who intentionally rate low just because they can.There is not really much they can do about that without damaging the integrity of the review system. However being literate generally intelligent people, readers can typically discern between a genuinely earned low rating and one just done out of petulance or anger.
I mean, would you be fooled?
Wilbur wrote: "I repeat ALL REVIEWs should be accompanied by text ..."NO. Could not disagree more.
My ratings/reviews are for ME, not you. I often leave only a star only so that in the future, I can quickly see if I enjoyed a book to know whether to buy another from that author or not. If I didn't like a book, I'm not wasting time leaving a review and it will only get a star rating.
Also does that mean you will campaign to have all thoe 4/5-star ratings without reviews removed from your books?
Wilbur wrote: "The honest review is one of the few sources the author has to evaluate what he has written."
Rubbish. And again, a complete failure to understand that reviews are customer opinions and NOT feedback for the author. You shold be using an editor and beta readers to evaluate a book BEFORE you publish, not hovering over the review space expecting paying customers to polish your work.
There have been dozens of threads like this over the years. New authors outraged that their "book baby" has a critical review or rating. They start a thread like this demanding no rating without a review, or (more common now) let's remove the ability to rate anything below a 3 (and they then complain about 3-stars).
Interesting those authors are SILENT on the subject of fake 4/5 stars. They have no issue with 4/5 ratings with no review. No probem with author jerk circles where they all 5-star each other's (unread) books as "support". Not a one will campaign to have their suspicious 4/5 stars removed while they complain about critical reviews/ratings.
I've found one commonality in these sorts of threads - the complaints tend to come from authors who didn't have sufficient independant eyes on their work before they published. Most of them didn't hire an editor. Most of them never used critique partners. Most of them only sold a few books to friends who (most likely) never read the book but gushed how its marvellous.
Hire an editor. Sell books. Leave the review space to readers.
AWE what? wrote: "Wilbur wrote: "I repeat ALL REVIEWs should be accompanied by text ..."NO. Could not disagree more.
My ratings/reviews are for ME, not you. I often leave only a star only so that in the future, I..."
You seem pretty determined to ignore what I said about messaging the person who left that fake 4 star. Wonder why?
Daniel wrote: "You seem pretty determined to ignore what I said about messaging the person who left that fake 4 star"Did you not read this thread? You are not the only author saying low star ratings shouldn't be allowed. In fact as I STATED above (if you had read my response) it happens repeatedly and I've seen various iterations of this thread dozens of time. I was addressing a general "you" in my reply about authors remaining silent on fake 4/5 stars. Interesting that you feel personally called out though.... also wondering if you would be this antagonistic to any reader who dared to leave a critical review of your book...
Daniel wrote: "AWE what? wrote: "Wilbur wrote: "I repeat ALL REVIEWs should be accompanied by text ..."NO. Could not disagree more.
My ratings/reviews are for ME, not you. I often leave only a star only so tha..."
With all due respect, and regardless of the above poster, what would you expect to happen if you messaged someone who left a fake review? Leaving a fake review gives you a good summation of their character, surely?
I agree with AWE what? that ratings are for the readers, not the authors. I am myself a self-published author but I have become quite irritated by the seeming avalanche of posts by new authors who keep asking for reviews or offer free books in exchange for reviews, all the while complaining about the lack of ratings for their books. You are making us all (meaning independent authors) sound like a bunch of entitled whiners. Stop asking for reviews and concentrate on your writing.
Cphe wrote: "Daniel wrote: "AWE what? wrote: "Daniel wrote: "In my opinion Goodreads needs to make it so that anything less than 3 stars should include text. "But you don't hold the same opinion about 4 and 5..."
Thanks for letting me know.
Just for the record, all authors: do not respond to reviews or critical comments. Do not retaliate, complain, argue, "clap back" or whatever you have in mind. Ignore it if you don't like it, and move on.
Cphe wrote: "I'd like to know why if a reader rates your novel 1-2 stars then they must automatically be a troll/hater but if the rating is 4-5 stars without review content then they must be legit.What makes ..."
Honestly, I was just curious about their rating history. If they had rated other books higher along with some reviews added, then I probably would have thought nothing of it. I'm used to harsh criticism since I originally came from Wattpad and got feedback by readers on that website.
But given the habitually low rating behavior by both accounts, especially the one that was able to rate 1,100 books since joining in July of 2020, that was what raised flags for me.
First, there will always be trolls. Always. There are those people who come out and low rate just because they want to. And there's plenty of authors who ask their army of family and friends to high rate them, or many authors who decide to create hundreds of fake accounts to give themselves reviews.But here's what it all boils down to. Ratings and reviews are for readers, not the author. It has nothing to do with the author at all. I have met people on Goodreads who use the stars to categorize their interest in a book that comes across their notice. I have seen people who use the stars to prioritize what they want to read first versus what can wait awhile. It has nothing to do with the author.
The very worst thing that any author can do is constantly complain about it, or worse, insist that readers must be required to leave an opinion or blah blah, whatever other nonsense has been said in this thread. Just yesterday I ran across a tweet from an author on twitter about how a review hurt their feelings, they're working on book two and such vitriol made that harder for them! I had never heard of this author or this book in my life, but I am also not going to spend my time or money on an author that might just take to bitching about me on Twitter if they don't like my review. So I found their book and put it on my "not interested' list. Just last month I had an author get rude and aggressive with me on Twitter for tagging them in my review. Um...isn't that sort of what Twitter is for? Tagging people in things? And it was a GOOD REVIEW to boot. I immediately returned all other ARCs I had received from her publisher with a note that I don't need her rudeness and would be declining any of her books in the future so please don't send them to me. I read well over 100 books a year, I don't need to be worrying about hurting the author's feelings. You created a product, you released it into the wild, the public's opinion of that is no longer your business.
It is difficult enough for competent, highly skilled novice authors to achieve commercial success within this extremely competitive field without having amateur writers who have not taken the time to learn the craft and become familiar with the ins and outs of the literary field create the impression, through their ridiculous actions and comments, that self-published authors are somehow inferior to traditionally published authors.Become familiar with the basic facts:
1. Ratings and reviews are posted by readers for other readers, not the author.
2. A professional writer focuses upon striving to continuously improve upon their writing. promotional, and marketing skill set rather than obsessing over ratings and reviews.
3. Sales drive reviews, not the other way around. Note: A commercially successful author is referred to as a Best-Selling Author, not a Most Reviewed Author.
4. Very few will ever achieve commercial success within this extremely competitive field; however, some have and others will.
5. If one does not succeed, it may be through no fault of their own. That said; it may also be due to the fact that an aspiring writer just doesn't have what it takes.
"Success is not final. Failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts."
Winston Churchill
1. Ratings and reviews are posted by readers for other readers, not the author.Please stop regurgitating this subjective opinion as 'fact'. Conversing with a friend, family member at home or colleague at work about X or Y is sharing a thought. This is not yet the world of 1984 and it is not presently a crime. Posting on the internet, Twitter, Facebook, Amazon or Goodreads is the equivalent of barking like a raving lunatic at random strangers on the high street. Passersby are apt to take offense, even if none was intended. A public declaration or opinion is subject to scrutiny, interpretation, dissent and legal adjudication. You may be held accountable, so it is not just some innocent comment, irrelevant tweet. Ask JK Rowling if you can make a statement on a subject these days without repercussions. Comments regarding racism, sexism, discrimination, bigotry and fraud will potentially see you banned from an open forum, loose you job or a knock on the door by law enforcement. The publication you seek to comment on is already subject to these constraints.
There seems to be a persistent delusion 'you' (generic) are permitted to pass judgement in anonymity and absent repercussions. This is simply not the case. When you choose to make your opinion known, to the world at large, it does impact the author and the business model, both positive and negative. So try to be circumspect and honest. If you cannot do this, then do not seek to share your thoughts with the wider public. No one was really asking for 'your' opinion anyway. The same holds for authors, they should not expect reviews, good, bad or any. Though they opened the door to critique, as did the commercial organizations who host and fund the supporting platforms.
Legislation is afoot both in the UK and US to bring Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, etc under the purview of publications. When this happens, and it will, lawyers will be rubbing their hands in glee.
The reason this topic returns with regularity is entirely due to the 'fact' it has never truly been addressed. The thread either dies out naturally when the same opinions are endlessly expounded or the moderators close the thing due to a descent into rancor.
Regards
CC
C.C. wrote: "1. Ratings and reviews are posted by readers for other readers, not the author.Please stop regurgitating this subjective opinion as 'fact'. Conversing with a friend, family member at home or coll..."
Thanks. Hopefully this thread won't die and we can all be respectful of each other and eventually Goodreads sees it.
It's now been nearly two weeks since my initial complaint to them was responded to and they haven't returned my follow up email which I sent a few days ago. I asked to escalate the case but doubt they'll do anything. Just very disappointed they don't seem to care.
Daniel wrote: "C.C. wrote: "1. Ratings and reviews are posted by readers for other readers, not the author.Please stop regurgitating this subjective opinion as 'fact'. Conversing with a friend, family member at..."
They don't care. Yesterday I had all my books gloriously reviewed at one star by the same account, even the two I haven't finished writing yet. You put your stuff or opinion out, this is what this lovely shiny world will offer to you sometimes.
You won't change Goodreads. Seriously, just move on.
Wilbur wrote: "ALL REVIEWSI repeat ALL REVIEWs should be accompanied by text whenever it is allowed by the website you are using.
A review without explanation is like a (sic) tone deaf person criticizing Beethoven's..."
This is precisely the point I've been trying to make in my initial post on this thread. I am not gunning for top-marks on all my works. This is not why I chose to pursue writing as a hobby...This is right. I said a hobby, not a career. So let me make two things clear...
1: If a reader posts a 1 or 2-star rating on one of my works and, as long as he or she states in 1 or 2 sentences why they didn't like my work, then to bad for me. They didn't like my work. But at least he or she took the time to explain why.
2: All ratings and reviews are visible to the public. Read: PUBLICLY-VISIBLE. This means EVERYONE who stops by the book's page or author's page can see the rating, even if it's blank. So, to leave a blank rating (Regardless of how many stars it is) doesn't tell the readers (Or authors) anything about it.
Not to necro-bump this thread or anything, but if you were a reader and you saw a bunch of blank ratings of 1-star on an author's books, what would you think? Would you be more or less willing to buy and read his or her books? Why?
Please let me know if you all agree on this or not and the reason why...Thanks.
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Goodreads Authors/Readers
Books mentioned in this topic
To Kill a Mockingbird (other topics)The Great Gatsby (other topics)
Well, received a second negative rating and this time the account joined in July of 2020 and has "rated" over 1,000 books since joining in July of this year. Doing the math and dividing it from the first of the month, that would come to just about 80 books per day they've supposedly rated and yet another low star rater.
The first negative rating was by someone who appears to regularly rate books no higher than 3 stars and for both instances, the accounts left no feedback and appear to have the same type of behavior with the rating's system.
This is absolutely disheartening to see that Goodreads isn't very quick about removing ratings like this. Though to their credit, I did hear back from Goodreads about the first dispute of the negative rating and I'm quickly considering taking action on the second in addition to the review that was left where someone hasn't read it and even admitted it in their review.
Why the heck are there people like this?