Building a SciFi/Fantasy Library discussion

Well, I have my first 1 star review. That means I'm legit, right? It's a fair review, no bashing, so I'm cool. It all boiled down to personal opinion that the book wasn't the reviewers style.

It just goes to show how each individual is so very unique. That our opinions/beliefs/understandings are completely subjective, while the rating system wants blanket objectivity.

When I choose books to buy, I look at the overall star rating, but I refuse to read reviews themselves. Everyone is different and reviews telling people that "xyz book sux, don't buy it" just isn't fair. So many people miss out on so many books that could be simply perfect for them, even if abc reviewer can’t stand it.

And yes, some critical reviews can be valid, fair, honest. Those are the reviews authors can look at (overall) and see if there is a pattern that could be a valid issue...but I would definitely wait for a very large pool of reviews before looking for one.

Either way, as an Author and a reader/reviewer, I am not perfect. My book is not perfect. My reviews are not perfect...and I am 100% okay with being a mere mortal human being in that regard.

As an author, I have to be thick skinned and follow Elsa’s lead...let it go. So I do and I applaud reviewers who are honest, but fair, and not unnecessarily cruel or pushy with their subjective opinions.

You can see the review for yourself if you want xD : http://amazon.com/dp/B00K1EL76Q

What do you do when you get a poor review? Do you respond or let it go?

yes...respond!! have your own website where "all" reviews of your books are written.and should anyone have a dislike of your books,you have the power to nix the review and reviewer.therefore ensuring 100% positive reviews.

Never respond to a review. It comes off as petty. I read the review, and I think readers will see it for what it is, a matter of the reader's preference. I doubt that it will adversely affect your book.

It's best not to respond to any review, really. Just let them be. Fan engagement is best managed on your website or in a Facebook or Goodreads group where you can chat and respond and get to know your readers. Reviews are a more formal/removed thing and generally it looks better if the author stays away — I don't think a "thanks, you lovely reader" comment on a 5-star review does anything positive for you either.

Well, I'm glad to hear from an author! I do reviews of a lot of books, many of which are given out free by the author or his/her publisher in exchange for honest reviews. I try to honor that trust. However I must add that I respect any author willing to put themselves "out there" with no financial recompense. Even in my negative reviews I try to be helpful. Thanks to all for your input.

As authors, naturally our first instinct is to defend ourselves and our precious works when we receive a less than stellar review, or to thank a reader profusely for a four or five star review. But, as others have advised, it's probably not a good idea to respond in either case, or you risk annoying your readers or, worse yet, becoming an "author behaving badly".

When I received my first one-star review, I was devastated to say the least, but I refused to let that one person's opinion of my book cloud my better judgment by responding to it. As you said, Cheryl (love that name!), readers are entitled to their opinions, which are unique to the individual and very subjective.

I am also a reader who doesn't look at any reviews of a book before I buy it. If the premise and synopsis grab my attention, I'll get it. I want to form my own impressions and opinions of the book as I read it and not be influenced by someone else's perspective. Otherwise, I might very well miss out on a great read just because someone else didn't like it.

Not only do we share the same first name, Cheryl, but we also seem to share very similar opinions on reviews and how to react to them (or, in this case, not react to them). :)

Once you get up to a certain point what's going on with a book you wrote 20 books ago just isn't really important.

They sting, there is no way around it. Some have valid points for not liking a book and then there are jerks out there. Ignore the jerks. If something can be learned and improved from a critical review, then use it. But the good reviews feel great.

As a rule for myself I try to only check reviews once a week. I've heard of other writers who don't check at all.

I can sympathize. For my second series I had 3 reviewers, 1 loved it, 1 wanted me to expand it and the other thought it was boring.

Ray wrote: "I can sympathize. For my second series I had 3 reviewers, 1 loved it, 1 wanted me to expand it and the other thought it was boring."

Probably the worst is getting a 1-star right out the gate and then nothing else for...forever. That's when a blog tour or promo or giveaway might be a strategy. Even asking Aunt Betsy for help might do.

Tim wrote: "Well, I'm glad to hear from an author! I do reviews of a lot of books, many of which are given out free by the author or his/her publisher in exchange for honest reviews. I try to honor that trust...."

Tim, thank you for posting that you try to be helpful when reviewing. I wish more readers shared your attitude. If you'd like to review my latest SF, please reply privately & I'll send you a copy. Www.judyggill.com

Bad reviews are always painful (even when the reviewer has a valid point). Our books are like our children. A critical review is like a stranger going up to a parent and telling them that they have an ugly baby. It's hard not to get defensive. On the other hand, honest thoughtful critiques are learning opportunities which allow us to become better at our craft. I guess the trick is to never read reviews until you've turned off "protective parent mode" -- a feat that is always easier said than done.

In spite of my earlier comment, I'm not sure good reviews attract a lot of attention, either. They just don't hurt. I've been getting some pretty decent and honest reviews lately on my books, but that hasn't translated into sales. Maybe readers actually want to believe all those fake 5-star reviews that some authors buy.

I am a futuristic scifi author who buys books and reviews them, so I have a foot in each camp (and am running out of legs!) I read reviews before buying, but I only read reviews that show signs of competence by the reviewer. I tend to ignore the star rating (because too many early reviews are by Aunt Betsy) and when I write reviews I try to help the reader, and sometimes the author as well. I think reviews are important, as long as the writer of them makes useful comments on the book, and does not resort to "I like it" sort of thing. Good reviews are important because they get you up the browsing list. No review is any good if the book is never going to be found, e.g. on page 127 of the browsing list.

Yes, there are trolls, and also people who are irresponsible. Also, some people do not like some of the things others want, as Thomas notes. We just have to live with these problems, but if the reviewer describes clearly what they like and do not like, now the reader has a useful guide.

If the description doesn't match the star rating, there might be a mistake in the rating. It's so easy for a wrong number of stars to get clicked on, and it's even possible that some people are misunderstanding the ratings system and thinking 1 is the highest rating! Especially if it's not a regular reviewer.

I think the descriptions given by Goodreads are not how would I break it down. They say "It was ok" for 2 stars. I would say 5 stars would be exceptional, 4 very good, 3 ok/average, 2 would be mediocre to poor and 1 would be awful. Readers really vary in how they rate as well. I usually give only a few 5 star awards in a year, a lot of 4s and 3s, just a few 2's. Some reader seem to give everything a 5 or a 1.

I agree more or less with Robin, except I may be more generous with the 5 stars. For me, five stars means well-written, no significantly obvious flaws, and if you like that sort of thing, you should really like this example. Four stars means should be reasonably interesting, and no more than one significant flaw; three stars is either mediocre, OR could be good, but too many serious flaws; 2 is really, stay away, and one star (and I have only ever given one of these) is thoroughly abysmal. Do not try to read! For exceptional, I say so in the text, and I really ask the reader to go more by the text than the stars.

I agree the star rating can be misinterpreted by some readers who might think 1 is better than 5, but all they need to do is investigate a bit and see how it's done. The reviewers I'd call trolls are those who say something like "I'm only giving this book a 1 star rating because I don't like that genre, so I didn't bother reading it." Those are reviews I think should be immediately removed by both Goodreads and Amazon. Personally, I seldom give a 5, though I read and review a lot of books. I like to reserve 5 stars for books I've found exceptional. I mostly stick with 4 stars and sometimes 3. I've given a few 1 or 2 star ratings, but when I do, I make sure my comments show why I have. I've seen people react badly to poor reviews, and as an author, I understand. The writer has put heart, soul, blood, sweat and tears into the work and obviously believed it to be good, to be something everyone will enjoy. They're hurt when strangers point out holes in the plot, mention poor grammar in narrative, bad formatting (especially in dialogue). If the author had never been taught (or observed) the right way, he can't understand why anyone would care whether the quotation mark comes before or after the punctuation. After all, Mom read it and said it's wonderful, so why can't everyone see it as such? A couple of times, if I've really liked a story's concept yet found the writing very bad, I've offered a free edit (that's my other hat), and have had the offer accepted. When I edit, I also explain why I'm suggesting each change. I know many long-published authors who refuse to review a book if they can't give it higher than a 4, but I disagree with that attitude, especially when it comes to self-published ebooks. If I choose to review a poorly written self-published book, I clearly state it's books of that caliber which contribute to the bad reputation that hangs unfairly over all self-published ebooks. As for reviews of my own novels, I ignore them, good or bad, and remind myself that review is the opinion of one person, and one person alone.

As per Judy: "I'm only giving this book a 1 star rating because I don't like that genre, so I didn't bother reading it."
Nothing, and I mean nothing, will move me to click no on the "Was this helpful" tag. If someone did not finish the book, how can they then go on to offer a comprehensive review? I don't post reviews for books I don't finish, and those I do finish deserve at least three stars for holding my interest. Cheryl, I just bought your book, and I will read it, in order, from my 'to read' list.

I always think about book reviews in terms of the people I meet every day. Some people and I just click, and some people and I simply do not understand each other. Likewise, some people like my books, and some people really don't. I'm okay with that.

Consider times when you've written a bad review. It probably wasn't a personal slight against the author. I know I've written terrible reviews for authors I LOVE! And no author had ever commented about those bad reviews. The professional thing is to ignore ALL reviews.

I think coming on a thread like this and posting to other authors that DO understand you is exactly the way to respond to a negative review.

Thank you Aiden! I'm loving the open minded commentary! keep it up everyone!

I was thinking about this last night. Perhaps the reason some readers (me) give more 4-5* reviews is, they spend more time looking, before thet buy. Even where free books are concerned, I spend the time to read a few bad reviews and a few good ones. The reviews that start "this is not my preffered genre" make me crazy. Why did you buy it, duffus? I have bought books that I simply put down after a chapter or two. Why would I find a need to slam the author. My choice, my mistake, my failure!
I read at over 400 words per minute so I do not see the things the grammar police whine about. A missed or doubled word do not bother me; I am not grading college finals. The substance, the heart, the meat of the story; if these are good all else means nothing to me.
OK, I have a couple of pet peevs, but the author might be just like me, "if you don't like it, put it down."

Aidan wrote: The reviews that start "this is not my preffered genre" make me crazy. Why did you buy it, duffus?

This raises an interesting question, because I have done that, really at the request of someone who wanted a review. In my opinion, the job of a reviewer is not dependent on liking it (an opinion I have picked up from a professional reviewer). I will state the quote, but then go on to present the potential reader with what the book is about, how well it is written, and try to imagine what sort of reader is likely to want it. I have read such books and given them 4 stars. True, it may be unlikely that a 5 star review is coming from such a book, but a 5 star review does require me to perhaps be more familiar with the genre. I would never give a bad review because it was not my type of book, unless it was a bad book.

It has become apparent that there are two types of people responding to this question. My comments were offered as a reader, N O T as a professional reviewer. I was not aware so many prfessional reviewers were involved in this conversation. If you are a professional reviewer, please forgive my iganerant reponseses. I think I'll go search out the perfect political candidate now.

Rob, just a little satire in that last comment. Profesionalble read-viewers are a ness-a-scary evil. My books receive very few reviews, (I refuse to purchase them) and I seem to have been lucky so far. As in my past comment: maybe people are shelving them without finishing. Who knows what truly happens to their books once they are bought? I have had several sales on Smashwords, but no reviews. It makes me wonder! Don't take me too seriously at times; I may be pulling your leg.
I know, ...this response was full of 'passive voice' and other grammar errors. It's just the way I talk! lol

Just to put things in context I would not call myself a professional reviewer. I am an author who desires reviews for my ebooks, so I started reviewing in the hope that others might review mine. Once it becomes known you review, you get asked, and occasionally I am a soft touch for indie authors like myself. As an aside, this is not an invitation for more people to ask me to review, but if someone wants to review mine, go ahead please.