As some of those of you who attended the fabulous Un-conference last year know, I read all my Amazon reviews, positive and negative. And while this might sound like a bad idea—in fact, I’ve had many people tell me not to do it—there’s a method to my madness.
I admit, I began to do it because my scattergun approach to review reading wasn’t working. For instance, when my first novel, Spin, came out and I learned that my first major review was going to appear in The Globe and Mail, I had someone read it for me first to let me know if I should read it. I figuratively held my hands over my eyes until I got the thumbs up because if my book was going to be trashed in a national newspaper, I kind of didn’t want to know.
Then there were the reviews I read by accident. Well, not entirely by accident, but you read your Google alerts, don’t you? (Please, tell me I am not alone here.) Anywho, I got a couple of those, late at night it seems, when my capacity was diminished, and without thinking, clicked through to read them. And yeah, that didn’t always turn out so well. For instance, when a reviewer for the Montreal Gazette—my hometown newspaper—wrote that he thought my second novel, Arranged, was perfectly fine, “if you liked mindless pieces of fluff,” I was left pretty low, much more so than the praise the book had received from other quarters. It was like how a one-star rating needs a multiple of 5-star ratings to be overcome; the praise bounced off me, the negativity stuck.
So I felt like I had two choices: become a more disciplined person (fat chance), or find a way to deflect the bad reviews that I couldn’t help myself from looking at. And that’s when I started reading everything. Because if I read everything, I reasoned, no one review would have much of an effect. They would all cancel each other out, blunt their sharp edges by bumping against one another, and I would be immune.
[pullquote]If I read everything, I reasoned, no one review would have much of an effect. They would all cancel each other out, blunt their sharp edges by bumping against one another, and I would be immune.[/pullquote]
That’s the theory anyway, and it mostly works. But an added benefit was that I learned things from reading my negative reviews, much more than from the positive ones. Seriously, I did.
To take an easy example, my last novel, Hidden, is told from three points of view. As an exercise for myself, I’d refused to put the character names at the beginning of each chapter, to force myself to make their voices distinct enough that it wasn’t required. When the book was done, I suggested the names be put back in, but, interestingly, neither my agent nor my editor wanted to do that. And what’s the most common complaint in my negative reviews? People are confused by who’s narrating what and it would be so much easier if the names were there. Did I need to work harder at making my characters distinct? Probably. But could I make a simple change that would increase reader’s enjoyment. Of course I could. And so I have. My next novel, Smoke, which is releasing in October, has two points of view, and the names are there, right up front at the top of each chapter. (Plus, I also worked even harder at making their voices distinct.)
But I also think all this has a wider point to it, too. One that, having just spent time at the fantastic Jackson Hole Writers’ Conference, is clearly in my mind because part of that conference involves reading the participants work and giving them feedback. And what I’m reminded of every year, what I long to say to some of the participants who seem more in search of praise than suggestions for improvement is: if you put something out in the world, you’re going to get criticized. And that’s okay. Here’s why.
Book writing is a lonely undertaking (I am not the first one to say this). Depending on your process, you might be the only one to even know what you’re working on until you have a complete draft. And while I’m sure it all makes sense in your head (that’s why I tell myself, anyway), that doesn’t mean it makes sense to someone who doesn’t live in your head. Or that it can’t be improved by another perspective. In fact, in my opinion, every book can be improved by outside input. Haven’t we all read books by “big” authors who just aren’t being edited as well anymore? How does that happen? Are people afraid to criticize someone who’s sold millions of books? Do they no longer want the criticism? A combination of both?
I hope I never find out. Because praise is great, but praise doesn’t push you. Praise doesn’t take you to new places. Praise doesn’t get your creative juices flowing, trying to find solutions, trying to make your work better. Unfortunately, only a critical eye can do that, whether it’s your own and/or someone further away from your work than your immediate family.
So if you want to be your best writer self, then you need to accept criticism. You need to seek it out. You need to embrace it.
Even if it comes in the form a one-star review.
Wish you could buy this author a cup of joe?
Now, thanks to tinyCoffee and PayPal, you can!
About Catherine McKenzie
A graduate of McGill University in History and Law, Catherine McKenzie practices law in Montreal, where she was born and raised. An avid skier and runner, Catherine’s novels, SPIN, ARRANGED, FORGOTTEN, HIDDEN, and FRACTURED, were all international bestsellers and have been translated into multiple languages. HIDDEN was a #1 Amazon bestseller, and a Digital World Bestseller for five weeks. Her fifth novel, SMOKE, was an Amazon bestseller, picked as a Best Book of October 2015 by Goodreads and one of the Top 100 Books of 2015 by Amazon. Her latest release, THE GOOD LIAR, released on April 3rd.
Artist or anyone who creates something, no matter what you do and how much you believe what you have created is your best, and is very good. Realise that you can’t please everyone, there are people who will criticise what you have done. Take something from all critical reviews and develop on what you are doing. http://www.mindprocess.co.uk/newsletter/
Totally agree!
Thanks for the tip that READERS appreciate knowing which of your characters is speaking. I have never gotten that comment, and, like you, work hard to make it very clear who is speaking, but now you have me wondering if the guessing game isn’t a little too hard on the reader.
“Don’t confuse the reader” is the only hard and fast rule I want to abide by – and now, as I head into final edits, is the time to make sure I don’t.
Great piece today, Catherine. A best-selling author once told me that 1-star reviews mean you’re reaching beyond the cult. “Consider it a badge of honor,” she said. Maybe that’s just rationalization, I don’t know, but it did make me look deeper into the well-known authors I admire with 1-star reviews. And they all have a percentage of 1-stars, ranging from 2% to 10%. Does that mean they are faulty writers? Or are the readers faulty? I noticed many 1-star reviewers sound angry with lots of exclamation points and CAPS. I do agree that considering the criticisms of 1-star reviewers can be insightful, keeping in mind that some readers/reviewers just enjoy being negative. Sometimes I wonder if reviews are more about the reader than the author.
KB above makes a good point: you can’t please everyone.
Catherine-
Cup of coffee coming your way. Thanks for some fine advice.
What I might add is this: Gathering criticism early, before deal and definitely before publication, is a good idea. Solid critique and pro opinions won’t save one from all mistakes, but they will help get a better book out there.
Totally agree, Donald! And thanks so much for the coffee.
It’s that wretched sound, like Velcro ripping apart: yanking your ego from your work before you look at it critically and consider criticism. But a necessary step! Analyze your work as if you don’t own it. Take the criticism that makes sense, change your work accordingly, then take back your ego. You’ll love your work even more.
“Because praise is great, but praise doesn’t push you. Praise doesn’t take you to new places. Praise doesn’t get your creative juices flowing, trying to find solutions, trying to make your work better.”
It’s like that old Skin Bracer commercial – “Thanks, I needed that.” Seriously, I can’t be reminded of this often enough.
Thanks, Vaughn!
Thanks Catherine
Always good to read how others deal with negative reviews. As has been previously written, you just can’t please everyone. I received one-star and an awful review from a reviewer for an influential journal and because they pay amazon to be up front, it was the first thing anyone saw on amazon. Aargh! But as the reader reviews came in, which were mostly 5 and a few 4-star reviews, a wise person assured me that potential buyers were going to pay more attention to the bulk of the reader reviews than that one, single, bad review!
Sometimes it is the 3 and 4-star reviews that are helpful because they point out why the reader did not give it 5-stars. And the reviews from kids are often the best as they just tell it like it is, no hidden agenda, jargon, or fluff!
I always read the one star reviews first. I’ve found that many of the one star reviews deserve a one star review. We cast our pearls. Sometimes they end up in front of swine.
I’m with you. I read all my reviews, and while a one-star review is never pleasant — some are mean-spirited, or downright mean — I pay much more attention to the good reviews when it comes time to work on my current novel. Why? Because I write a mystery series and my readers now expect and look forward to certain aspects of my novels, and I want to make sure that I keep them happy.
A bad review from a reader who has come across my book through a BookBub promotion and downloaded it from Amazon or Barnes & Noble expecting an action-packed thriller is going to be disappointed, and I don’t care. That’s not who I write for. Same applies to the reader of cozies who hates seeing the f-word in dialog, or the romance reader who wants my hero to fall in love. I write for those readers who like the same kind of mysteries I do.
So I look for what my readers DO like, and try to make sure I don’t disappoint with my next book. That’s an easy road to follow, since my readers tend to like what I like in a book anyway. Part of what they – we – like is making sure that there is something fresh and unique about each story, so it helps that my hero encounters murders in different settings, from bush Alaska to Southern California and points in-between.
I’m happy to buy a coffee for a fellow Canadian author. Tim Horton’s, Catherine? Or are you like me and prefer to brew your own?
Thanks for posting!
Thank you so much, Ruth! Timmies is the best!
I forgot to mention, in response to your question:
you read your Google alerts, don’t you? (Please, tell me I am not alone here.)
Yes, I do. My Google alert is set for R.E. Donald, but 99 times out of 100, the alert starts out like this “RE: Donald Trump”! (I wonder if he reads his Google alerts?)
Learning from criticism is great, but I haven’t found much to learn from in one-star reviews. The one stars are usually…
– People being cruel because they think it makes them look clever.
– People being cruel without bothering to be clever.
– People talking about how much they hate the genre and belittling anyone who does (e.g., that “mindless pieces of fluff” guy).
– People complaining that the publisher sets prices too high, that they had technical problems downloading the e-book from Amazon, or that the copyeditor needs to be smacked in the head with a Merriam-Webster.
Sometimes I skim reviews to look for patterns. If most people across the whole range of stars say something similar, it’s worth noting. But from my experience reading many reviews of many books, the people who write the one-stars are usually people who hate the genre and shouldn’t have read the book in the first place, people who didn’t read the book but are reviewing it anyway, or people who are just plain mean.
Thanks for the great article!
It’s really hard for me to learn from criticism, but I’m trying badly. Because it’s essential when somebody points on your mistake so you can pay attention to it.