Erik > Status Update
Erik
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I sometimes worry about the influence of a well-written review and to a lesser degree, 'liking.' For example, when I wrote my negative review for The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps, it had a rating of over 4, and 90% of the front page reviews were 4 or 5 five stars. I published my review and liked most of the negative reviews. Now the rating is down to 3.66 and there are many more negative reviews on the front page...
— Feb 28, 2017 07:59AM
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(last edited Feb 28, 2017 08:25AM)
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Feb 28, 2017 08:24AM
As long as the review in question was honest and more than just "this book SUX" I really do not see the problem.
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Well if the review was "this book SUX," I doubt it'd have much power.But actually that's one of the tricky parts. The better the review, the more it might discourage the author. I try to think of my review from the point of the view of the author. How would he/she feel about my negativity?
If it's a crap review, such as "this book SUX," the author can be like ummm well I'm glad this idiot didn't like it. But if I've truly grasped the author's intentions and their methodology and I *STILL* reject it, the author can have no such counter.
As a writer myself, I'm well aware what it feels like to reveal my most intimate philosophies and dreams in my writing and then for editors, critics, and readers to reject them, call them tepid and not worthy of their time. Even if my skin is thicker than a tank's armor, such responses always cut deep and the better the critics understand what I was trying to accomplish, the deeper their criticism cuts. Especially if their criticism/rejection encourages other people to NOT read what I've written, or - worse - prevents it entirely.
That's why I try to remind myself of the potential effects of a negative review and try, whenever possible, to 'pull a Miyazaki.' That is, accomplish what Hayao Mizayaki accomplishes in his various films - The Wind Also Rises, Princess Mononoke, etc - which end in tragedy and failure but somehow maintain an optimistic note.
