On Reviews and Responses

Yet another broohaha in Romancelandia over reviews and the author’s response to said reviews has prompted me to examine my own responses to the reviews I’ve gotten on my book. I would prefer not to be stupid as I pick my way through the minefield which is publishing.

Sometimes it’s hard to know the right thing to do. You’ve written this thing, you’ve poured your heart into it, given it your time. Then you release it into the wild and not everyone sees it the same way you do.

If you get a bad or lukewarm review, it might be that your first response is to take offense. Maybe all you want to do is defend the book. But you have to resist the impulse, and that’s really hard.

When I read some of the less-than-kind reviews I’ve gotten, I wanted to defend myself. That would have been a mistake. The reviewer is entitled to his or her opinion. And they usually made some good points that let me see my work from a different perspective.

Obviously I want everyone to love my book, and I’ve been fortunate that most people seem to like it. But a few (hopefully very few) bad or lukewarm reviews or ratings are only to be expected. They’re part of the price of admission.

So when I see kerfluffles where authors attack reviewers for their opinions, I shake my head. I mean, we want reviewers to post about our books, right? How does attacking them help anything?

I admit, it’s easier for me to shake my head because I’m new. I don’t have the community (yet) to generate a lot of attention. It’s probably easier for me to take a deep breath and move on.

When I read my own reviews, I try to remember that, whether it be a good review or bad, the reviewer is not writing for me. The reviewer’s job is not to prop up the ego of the author. That’s my mother’s job and my sister’s job and the job my friends are supposed to do. The reviewer is writing for his or her own community of readers. The only thing the reviewer owes me is an honest opinion and the respect we all owe to other human beings.

As I continue to write and publish, I’m sure it will be harder to take the high road when faced with a bad review. The longer you’re out there, the more varied opinions you attract. I just hope that I will handle whatever comes halfway decently. And I hope I won’t be stupid.