I’ve been an avid Amazon shopper since the mid-90s. It started with books, but as we moved into the 21st century it’s come to where I now buy everything from groceries to musical instruments from this Seattle-based behemoth. From the start, one of the biggest differentiating features Amazon offered was its user reviews. I have found those reviews absolutely invaluable in making informed purchasing decisions, and I’m not aware of any other online retailer with a more comprehensive or helpful body of user reviews.
I like to think of myself as a give-something-back guy (in addition to being ruggedly handsome, of course), so I’ve made an effort to post reviews of products about which I had passionate opinions – either positive or negative. The vast majority of reviews I’ve posted have been positive, because I want to champion products that I think more people should be aware of. But over the years I’ll admit there have been a handful of products I’ve felt the need to publicly slam. Today’s post is about one such slamming.
Half a dozen years ago (which sounds nowhere as cool as “four score and seven years ago,” but I wasn’t around back then, and neither was Amazon; nor were Presidents tweeting about women’s clothing lines – but I digress…), I became aware of a new book that was making a lot of waves. It approached a popular topic by using an extended metaphor in what appeared to be a very clever way. Most of its reviews were positive, and I was intrigued enough to want to read it. So, being a lifelong cheapskate, I did what I usually do when I am interested in a book by an author whose work I’ve never read: I looked for it at my public library. They had it, I checked it out, and we were off to the races.
The book started strong. Really strong. I was digging it, and loving the metaphoric architecture the author had created. (And, truth be told, starting to feel the pangs of envy I inevitably experience whenever I encounter a writer who seems to have more game than me.)
But then something happened. The book started to fall apart. The story became tedious and petty, the architecture more and more contrived and gimmicky (which I wasn’t sure was actually a word, but my spellchecker isn’t raising any eyebrows over it. If spellcheckers have eyebrows, that is. Which would mean they’d also need to have eyes. Possibly even noses, for sniffing out grammatical stinkiness – a word over which my spellchecker *did* raise an eyebrow. But I digress again…).
In short, the book turned into a major disappointment. Yet it was selling like hotcakes, with mostly positive reviews. So I did what I felt needed to be done, out of my duty to the clientele of the store from which I buy all my books (and all my ukulele strings, and all my smoked oysters, and all my toothpaste, and, and, and…) – I logged into Amazon and reviewed the book, sharing my candid opinion of the author’s work.
More succinctly, I trashed it.
To be fair, I did point out the book’s positive attributes, and lauded the author’s undeniable talent. But I pulled no punches in systematically identifying all the flaws I perceived in the book, and let people know why I could not recommend it.
And then I went on about my life.
Fast forward a few months, to a time when something pretty unusual happened: my debut novel was published. A small press had bought my book, and after what seemed like an eternity, the thing finally went up for sale. Which meant my book was now available on Amazon.
Here’s the thing
There’s something you may or may not know about Amazon reviews. When a product has multiple reviews, usually the one that is shown first is the one that has been deemed most useful by other Amazon users, as determined by the voting function Amazon provides. What often happens is that one of the very first reviews the product receives will end up getting the most “useful” votes, simply because it has been seen more often than other reviews that were posted later. But sometimes another review will manage to catch more readers’ eyes, and that review might end up in the lead-off position.
You may see where I’m going with this.
Let’s fast forward again to the present day. We’ve got a new President who is likely to restrict his next Executive Order to 140 characters, Prince and Mary Tyler Moore are dead but Keith Richards is alive, and I happened to think of that book I trashed so many years ago. So I looked for it on Amazon…
…and saw that my review was the first one listed. Apparently more than 70 people have found my review useful, so now the very first thing you see under this book’s description is a pretty well-written (if I say so myself) treatise on why you shouldn’t buy the thing.
Seeing that has caused me some seriously mixed feelings. I mean, when I posted that review, I was still unpublished. Since then, I’ve learned firsthand what it feels like to see a big stinky review of something it took me freaking YEARS to write, and to have no control over whether other people see that big stinky review, too.
With that in mind, now that I’m a published author I’ve stopped posting any negative book reviews. If I love a book, I’ll review it. If I hate it, I bite my lip and keep mum. Fueling that approach is the fact that since I became published, my circle of author friends and acquaintances has continued to expand. Although I don’t know this author, from checking around on Facebook, I’ve figured out that I know other authors who do.
Actually, *here* is the thing
Given how fortunate I am to be a published author, and even more fortunate to know so many other much better writers than me, I’m torn over whether I should take that review down. Always one to be analytical, I’ve broken it down to some pros and cons.
PROS for deleting the review:
- As a fellow author, it’s the nice thing to do – and after all, shouldn’t we all support each other?
- Over the years I’ve made it a point to devote a lot of time and effort to helping and supporting other writers, and have been vocal in exhorting other writers to do the same. So publicly criticizing a fellow writer – even one I don’t know, who writes in a completely different genre – seems both ungracious and counter to my stated objective.
- The reality is that Amazon reviews matter, and knowing that if this author ever looks on their Amazon page for that book, they’ll see my big stinky review, first and foremost.
- I don’t know the author, but I have some author friends who do, so it’s not out of the realm of possibility that we may eventually meet. If that happens, I would definitely feel awkward about what I posted. Note: my Amazon reviews are posted anonymously, so the author wouldn’t be aware that I was the BSRW (Big Stinky Review Writer.)
- I didn’t actually buy the book. I read the whole thing, but it was a copy borrowed from the library. So do I have a right to influence the buying decisions of others when I myself have not purchased the book?
CONS for deleting the review:
- I still stand by my review. It’s an honest assessment, and I still don’t like what the author did – it generated a very negative emotional response, leaving me frustrated and even a little angry toward the author. That’s why I felt strongly enough to post the review in the first place.
- People really did find my review helpful. I may have saved a lot of people from wasting money on a book they wouldn’t enjoy. As an avid (okay, addicted) Amazon shopper, I’ve posted more than 50 reviews over the years, and only two have generated large numbers of “helpful” votes – and this is one of them. So I’d be deleting what other consumers have found to be the second most useful review I’ve written.
- Many of the other negative reviews slam the book for not being what they had expected. So my review might help set expectations.
- It’s not just a hit piece. I also called out the author’s skill, and described how the book first grabbed, then disappointed me.
- I’m a writer, dammit, and I don’t like having something I wrote taken away from me – even if I’m the one taking it away.
One last point, from which I draw some consolation: I don’t think my review hurt the author’s career. The book became a national bestseller, and the author continues to publish articles – and, interestingly enough, reviews – in some top-tier magazines and newspapers.
So I’m going to put this in YOUR hands. I invite you to use the poll below to tell me what to do, and I will abide by your decision without argument. But in exchange, I hope you will share your rationale for your vote in the Comments section.
So what’s it gonna be?
Should my review stay or should it go? Why or why not? Should writers post negative reviews of other writers’ work? If we are published writers (or aspiring to be), should we review other writers at all? After you take the poll, please chime in, and as always, thanks for reading!
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About Keith Cronin
Author of the novels ME AGAIN, published by Five Star/Gale; and TONY PARTLY CLOUDY (published under his pen name Nick Rollins), Keith Cronin is a corporate speechwriter and professional rock drummer who has performed and recorded with artists including Bruce Springsteen, Clarence Clemons, and Pat Travers. Keith's fiction has appeared in Carve Magazine, Amarillo Bay, The Scruffy Dog Review, Zinos, and a University of Phoenix management course. A native of South Florida, Keith spends his free time serenading local ducks and squirrels with his ukulele.
How does it actually help anyone but the book’s author (and your own guilty conscience) if you take the review down?
That’s a fair point, jeffo, and a big part of why I’m struggling with this. Thanks for chiming in!
While I certainly know how negative reviews can sting (and sometimes announce themselves word for word at 3 am), I’ve also learned from them and (I hope) improved as a result.
As a reviewer, I usually go with the good first. When I get to the negative, I try to present it with sympathy rather than glee or disappointment. Leaving the negative out seems unfair to those using my review to make a decision whether to read the book.
After perhaps my most negative review (still mostly positive, though), I received an email from the author graciously thanking me for reading and reviewing his book. That’s class!
I was also once blasted on an author’s FB page for a review that ecstatically praised the book but had one sentence about something I found confusing and distracting. I understand. It’s that one sentence you remember, especially at 3 am. I still love that author’s books and review them.
Sounds like we have a similar “go with the good first” mindset, Barbara. I definitely led off this review with the positive aspects of the book before I started criticizing it.
Thanks for participating!
I no longer review books either. And I am an Amazon Vine reviewer – often offered free books. Nope, don’t go there.
But I used to do book reveiws, and in fact, I was a book reviewer for Rose & Thorn before Angie Ledbetter and I took over as publishing editors. I always told the truth – and while I never “trashed” a novel, I told the truth.
I don’t want to tell those truths now. Just as with you, once my own books were published, it changed how I felt about the entire process, the whole thang of it. I just coudln’t do it. I’m asked all the time to review, even friend’s books, and I refuse. I just won’t.
As for you taking that down, if it’s bothering you and nudging you and poking at you, something to think about: taking it down won’t change anything for anyone else, but it will change something for you – you’ll be free of it, and it won’t be nudging and poking you any longer. If you leave it up, live with it and stand by it and go on. Weigh the poky nudges and see where they lead you.
Good input, Kat – thanks. Yeah, the fact that this is bothering me *does* tell me something.
Also, Amazon has a sporadic policy of taking down reviews if they know they’re posted by a published author (which is pretty lame on one hand, but is intended to help prevent authors from gaming the review system). All of which make me less inclined to review books.
Anyhoo, I buy so many other items on Amazon, I’ve still got plenty of stuff I could review! :)
So many book reviews are poorly stated. If 70 people found yours helpful, you must have ascended beyond the norm in being true to the purpose of reviews. I wish more reviewers could and would articulate the problems in a book. We are inundated with gazillions of books by writers of varying incompetence. The service you have done in this case was appreciated. Stet.
Thanks, Dan – you make some good points.
Currently the voting is overwhelmingly in favor of keeping the review up, which frankly surprises me. We’ll see if that continues throughout the day.
As long as you stated your honest opinion, I’d say let the review remain. Other people, many, have agreed with your assessment of the book – they, not you, made it the first review to see. Would you have felt better if your review was on page 35 of reviews?
I assume you left disclosures such as, “I normally don’t read this kind of book – I read___.’ You’ve given readers advice, and background on you who gave the advice. That should be good enough.
If it IS in a genre you like to read, and possibly write, consider how a reader would feel. I look at the top negative reviews before I buy a book to determine whether the reviewer and I have the same pet peeves which are appearing in the book. If, for example, the pov in the book is headhopping pov, it isn’t for me. Others prefer headhopping – they will buy the book because of their taste, and your review.
You help people – they like your review. If an author is embarrassed by a flaw you point out, the author can change the book. If they don’t care about your review, they won’t.
Rule: ‘Don’t review in the genres you write,’ because you know you are prejudiced.
I have one of those reviews, written by someone in the literary genre, and it is a devastating ‘faint praise’ review. The person who wrote it violated that rule, and writes well enough to load it with negativity masquerading as objectivity. Ouch!
Alicia, you make a great point about identifying pet peeves. For one of my books, I got numerous negative reviews for my use of profanity. But once I got over my annoyance, I noticed that several people were marking those reviews as “helpful,” and commenting that they appreciated being warned about language that would have disturbed them.
So that probably actually saved me getting even *more* negative reviews, because these people knew not to buy my book in the first place, based on the warning they’d received.
Food for thought. Thanks for voting/commenting!
You can’t write realistic fiction – and be clean enough for every reader. Can’t be done.
I like to think that my negative reviews do the same thing: warn some people that this book is not for them because:
it is long,
it is NOT a Romance,
it is literary,
it uses big words occasionally,
there is minor swearing (‘minor’ being my definition),
minor violence,
no actual sex (again, my definition – some would find it steamy),
PG-13 by my estimate,
and it has ethical principles which for one character have a basis in religion.
Clearly stated in the description, and reinforced by the negative reviews. Really, there is nothing more to say to warn a reader. I’m not hiding anything, but I cannot make a prospective reader actually read any of the above.
“If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything”–but what happens if most of the space is taken by other people saying nice things? Reviews become inflated and worthless.
Also, negative reviews have a negative reputation, because so many are written by trolls or people that had a bad experience and no patience to say anything useful. (I don’t blame the latter; a helpful review takes effort to write, and that’s all the harder for a book that didn’t work for you.) So every well-thought-out criticism is a reminder that rants and laziness aren’t our only option.
I suppose it comes down to where your loyalty is. Not reviewing something you don’t care much about either way protects your own time. Not writing any negative review protects the writer and the writing community, at least by reducing conflict… and chances to learn. And writing a balanced review with an honest star rating protects the reading world and the craft… at the cost of some ugliness.
Now that I wrote out my rationale (further down in the comments), I think Ken makes some great points here. Haha—I am no use at all.
Ken, that’s a good point. When I see a product with NO bad reviews, it makes me question how valid all the positive reviews are, because we all know: you can’t please everybody.
Thanks for weighing in!
Hmm…this is a hard one, Keith.
My first thought is to always play nice. Don’t treat others as you’d dislike being treated yourself. Sounds like this is the gut feeling nagging you, and listening to it might be a good idea. For you.
That said, if your review was honest and clean, meaning you weren’t out of line, your conscience should be clear. Only you can feel if that’s the case or not.
Good luck with this, man. Not an easy choice.
Dee Willson
Author of A Keeper’s Truth and GOT (Gift of Travel)
Thanks, Dee – glad to see I’m not the only person who finds this a challenging scenario to navigate!
Wow, what a conundrum, Keith! This is a stimulating post. I skipped past other comments so I could write my rationale “clean”—especially since I do not own the prevailing attitude.
I would take it down for one main reason: It is still gnawing at you, and you do not need to waste one more moment of energy on this title.
Supporting cast of reasons:
You stated that others mirror your opinion, so the word will still be out there. Yours may have been the most thorough critique, but since it was anonymous, no one will laud you for this, other than with equally anonymous thumbs up. You have been amply rewarded. I suspect that reading the book and then writing it helped you as an author very much, since it offered you the chance to think through what you do and don’t like, but your situation has changed. Now, making a public display of this unsettles you.
The time when your review made its biggest impact has come and gone. What purchases are made now will be made despite the number of negative reviews, because reading is so subjective, and does not hinge upon the analysis you found so intriguing.
I say be well with your soul. Since it is within your power to do so, I vote to take it down.
Great points, Kathryn, and you’ve pinpointed why I’m troubled by this. Thanks for your input!
I would take it down. As an author, I never leave bad reviews. I just don’t say anything and I don’t rate on Goodreads either. To me it’s a case of do unto others…and seriously, you’re discouraging people from buying a book, not saving the world, so how important is it to keep your review up there?
And seriously, do authors “learn” from bad reviews? Too many times it’s a matter of taste. And another thing, there are agents and editors involved, what if they see your bad review and you submit to them?
By that same logic, the review is only discouraging people from buying a book, not destroying the world. How important is it to take it down?
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you…” As an author, are you really adverse to receiving objective criticism of your work? Do you think everyone should heap empty praises on your stories, and anyone who disagrees should keep their mouths shut?
As a writer, I bristle at negative reviews only when they’re malicious. Otherwise, there’s nothing wrong with people sharing their honest opinions. If nobody ever pointed out the flaws in my stories, how could I learn how to write better ones? I think this culture of “not saying anything” is more harmful than helpful to the writing community, because everyone is too afraid of being “mean” to have frank discussions.
Thanks Liz and T.K., for showing two sides of how this isn’t a world-ending decision. You both make great points.
I’m a book reviewer, and I seldom post negative reviews anymore. If I don’t like a book, I simply decline to review it. BUT… I used to occasionally write reviews for books that stimulated a strong negative reaction, and I haven’t taken them down.
Negative reviews serve a valid purpose in letting potential readers know the possible flaws in a book. When I’m interested in a book, I always read the negative reviews first. Although they may not always be helpful, I’d rather know what others found offensive so I can decide if those things are important to me.
Sometimes I question the wisdom in only writing positive reviews, but I prefer to limit drama in my life, and avoiding the negatives allows me to stay away from controversy on Amazon. My negative reviews always received nasty comments.
Your review is old, the author has already seen it, and Amazon users have deemed it useful, so I’d leave it alone. Taking it down now would serve no real purpose, other than to ease your own conscience.
Thanks, Alice – this is an interesting observation:
“When I’m interested in a book, I always read the negative reviews first”
I tend to do the same, for the same reasons.
One more point to consider: If a book has no critical reviews, I’m less likely to trust it. Even my favorite novels have 2 and 3 star critical reviews. And one of my favorite (I’m not being sarcastic!) reviews my work has received is a 2 star rant about DERELICT because the things the reviewer hated were the very things others gravitated to the books for.
I think it’s a brave thing to be that honest in a review. It’s likely a good thing that you have an anonymous ID, given how vindictive some readers and writers can be if they perceive their favorite writer being attacked. Like you, I used to review books when I was unpublished. Now, I don’t. It feels too much like there’s an inherent conflict of interest, especially in reviewing books in the genre I also write.
I vote to keep the review up. It felt true to you when you wrote it and you haven’t changed your mind about it. Certainly, the author has already seen it and it hasn’t destroyed their career.
Oh, so that was you! Er, wait…I haven’t written a national best seller so the author can’t have been me. Too bad. I was looking for somebody to hate today for my life condition. Oh, well.
Seriously, to get to your point, negative Amazon reviews come two ways: thoughtful and constructive or personal and reactive. The latter are often one star or worse. The former are three and four stars. Those are useful. Personal rants tell me nothing of value.
So don’t worry. If your review was constructive, if harsh, then there is a reason seventy people found it useful. And maybe the author too. Honest criticism is a good; personal and unfair attacks can be dismissed, and are by thinking consumers.
Amazon reviews are word of mouth online, meaning public and mostly permanent but still the same. And anyway, opinion is opinion and you are entitled to yours.
Donald, I was hoping you’d weigh in. I definitely found resonance in this remark:
“Amazon reviews are word of mouth online, meaning public and mostly permanent but still the same.”
Thanks for your insights.
So glad to have voted (so far) with the majority.
To me, your most compelling reason for retaining the review is that you still stand by it. Also, as has already been pointed out, reviews that are well reasoned and well written are exceptionally valuable.
Possibly OT, but it comes to mind nevertheless, is that a while back I read a novel (from the library, thank goodness) that had won the National Book Award a few years earlier. Despite some engaging characters and the author’s conspicuous skill with language, I found that the plot fizzled and the characters did likewise. Over to the Amazon reviews I went, and saw dozens that praised the book as though it had been dictated by an angel from Heaven. Down in the one-star category were a few comments that supported my view. I was interested enough to search elsewhere for reviews and was rewarded by a review in a highly respected academic journal that panned the book on exactly the same points that had disappointed me.
This long-winded tale, Keith, is in support of your keeping the review up. Sound reviews are necessary.
I agree with all you said. I have found, as a book reviewer, and an author, that many people who are not “in the biz” read a book differently from the way we do. Becoming an author and a reviewer spoiled my enjoyment of some books, I might have relished, had my literary eyes stayed in blissful ignorance..
I recently picked up a novel that I adored when I read it decades ago, before my experience had been marred by knowledge. I found myself constantly being pulled away from immersion in the story by plot points out of place, a page littered with the word “was,”, weasel words, passive voice and point-of-view violations.
As a reader with no knowledge of the “art of writing,” the book dazzled and enthralled me. With the latest read, my experience was sadly tarnished.
Anita, you bring up a GREAT point: getting serious about writing can really ruin you as a reader, making you far more aware of a book’s weaknesses.
I find it VERY interesting to re-read a book that read and loved before I took up writing myself. Some have aged well; others, not so much.
Thanks, Anna. I do the same as you: when my opinion of a book (or movie, or other product) differs from “the masses,” I tend to look for negative reviews that corroborate my own findings.
It’s a good reality check for addressing the “am I crazy for not liking this?” conundrum.
Like many of the comments here, I used to review books. Most of the books I reviewed were both fiction and non-fiction New Age, Metaphysical, Self-Help, and Inspirational. Many were self-published or traditionally published by British houses. So, I came across a wide expanse of downright horrific to great.
I always tried to offer constructive criticism, encouraging the author to examine certain aspects of their writing. My goal was to be honest but helpful at the same time–especially on the self-published that had obviously never seen and editor or been through spellchecker.
Keep the review up. If it helped potential buyers, maybe it also helped the author. If, however, it is the book I suspect it to be, the author doesn’t care whether the reviews are good or bad. I heard that author say as much to an interviewer. It seemed the author was of the mind that “I’ll cry all the way to the bank.”
Keep giving honest reviews. As a published author myself, I always appreciate them. The good reviews feel great, the bad ones, if honestly given, help me examine my writing to improve it.
I trashed a book on my blog once. I’d been looking forward to reading and reviewing it. A best selling Christian author who turned in a first draft and it was published. In fairness to her, I trashed her editor too. The editor didn’t do HER job. So, I can identify with you. I know EXACTLY how you feel. And I’ve had my share of rotten reviews.
In your case, I’d say take the review down because you didn’t purchase the book. However, this is a lesson you won’t forget. You’ll always remember this feeling so do what you feel you need to do. We’ve both learned valuable lessons. :)
Good input – thanks, Jess!
I’ve struggled with this myself. I always operated by “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” But then, the more I read and wrote, the more I found myself really annoyed with poorly written books and even more annoyed at the money and time I spent reading something that wasn’t good, especially when it had a bunch of positive reviews that led me to buy it in the first place. I think you need the honest negative reviews. So long as they’re honest and respectful (“This books SUX” isn’t all that helpful) I would rather they be there than not.
So in short, I tend to review books honestly on Goodreads, Amazon, Litsy, etc. But I keep the reviews of the books I didn’t like short and respectful. And then on my blog, where I review books from time to time, I generally reserve book blog posts for books I love. I don’t think dedicating an entire post to why I didn’t like a book is helpful to me or my readers. Plus it’s way more fun to gush about things I loved than complain about things I hated.
All that being said, I’m an unpublished writer with super thin skin so we’ll see how I feel once I’m published and those negative reviews start rolling in :) I hope I’ll find them constructive rather than soul-destroying — but I’m pretty sure I’ll still value honesty over silence.
Good feedback, Mary Kate – you’re definitely looking at both sides of the coin in making your judgment on this. Thanks!
This is a tough call, and probably the reason I only review books I love.
The possibility of meeting the author involved complicates the decision and my conscience says “Play nice, take it down.” But after reading all the brilliant arguments above, I’m also on the side of “Leave it up,” especially since you also included praise points in your review. It wasn’t a one-sided rant trashing the novel.
Final decision: if it’s bothering you, take it down but know that you didn’t do anything wrong in the first place. (How’s that for straddling the fence?)
And bravo for writing a post that has everyone commenting and debating. Full marks for engaging the writing community at WU!
Thanks, Rita – I was hoping to stir up a good discussion, and the WU community is rising to the occasion!
I voted to take it down. There’s enough negativity in the world and, oh so hard to actually put something into the world that brings some joy to others — even if it’s a so-so book. I liken it to Facebook posts in recent times.
1. I post about something that I like, say Michelle Obama.
2. Many Like or Love it and move on.
3. About five people write a treatise about how ignorant I am, how the media is lying to me, and how I need to watch Fox News.
4. I erase their post because no matter how eloquently they have written their point, I have discredited anything they have to say today and for all of time.
It’s a new era. We have to be supporters. I support you, Keith. I love this post. I love that you are getting us to weigh in on your dilemma and mostly, I love your voice. <3
That’s a REALLY good point, Janna, and you’ve vividly captured the negative poo-storm that social media can pull us into, particularly in recent months.
More importantly: awwwww – you just made my day! Thanks!
That’s a tough one, Keith. I never leave negative reviews. Silence is my review. That’s the author in me. But in an apparent contradiction, I appreciate well-thought out critical reviews. I leave the negatives mostly to non-writer readers. I’m not answering your question. That’s because I’m not sure if I would leave it up or not. Will be interested to see the results of your poll.
Nice to hear from you, Densie – I guess you can join me in constantly refreshing the poll results, to see whether or not my review gets voted off the island!
If you’ve written an honest review, you’re ahead of many who post reviews that make no valid point. You’ve given positive feedback as well as the negative.
As an author i know about negative reviews, and like you, I am uncomfortable if I can’t give 5 star review. I either just don’t write the review, or on occasion, have contacted the author with my reasons for a 3 or 4 star-er. less than 3 stars and I probably didn’t even finish reading…
That your review remains at the top and therefore sways the ratings, is not on you.
Personally I don’t get caught up in reviews – if they’re positive of course I’m walking on sunshine. If it’s less than pretty I take it for what’s it’s worth – sometimes it’s not worth the time to read it. If it is, as yours seems to be, at least a constructive criticism, then i take that criticism to heart.
I say leave it.
Thanks, Robin. Sounds like you have a very healthy and balanced view of reviews, as both a reader and a writer. I appreciate you sharing your perspective!
You mention that as a “lifelong cheapskate” you wanted to read the book, but didn’t want to pay for it so you got it at the library. I would hope that your review mentioned this aspect since as an author you probably want people to buy your books, yet don’t want to reciprocate, which says a lot about who you are as a person, and would impact how I would consider your review. I feel it is an integral part of your frame of reference in life, which I would find useful in putting your review into proper perspective. My opinion is that if the review adequately discloses this about you, then leave it, if not, take it down.
“You mention that as a ‘lifelong cheapskate’ you wanted to read the book, but didn’t want to pay for it so you got it at the library. I would hope that your review mentioned this aspect since as an author you probably want people to buy your books, yet don’t want to reciprocate, which says a lot about who you are as a person, and would impact how I would consider your review.”
Wow, April – it’s interesting to see the conclusions you’ve drawn from my post. Are you anti-library, per chance? I’m not – I love libraries, and I love it when I find one of my books on a library shelf (as do most authors). That means my book is available for people to read at no cost, and if they like it, they can tell others about it, which provides invaluable word-of-mouth support.
I also love libraries because I used to be a librarian, and will always have a soft spot for both the institution and the passionate (and always underpaid) people who work within that institution.
As far as what this says about me as a person, I offer this: Yes, I check out *unfamiliar* authors via the library system when possible. And then if I like the book, guess what happens? I buy a copy. And if I really like it? I buy more copies of it and give it as gifts.
So I submit that maybe – just maybe – my mention of how I use library system doesn’t actually give you the complete picture of the quality (or lack thereof) of my character. But I’ll leave that for you to decide. Thanks for weighing in.
While I abhor “troll” bad reviews, I value quite highly well-thought out negative reviews. I don’t have enough money to waste it on books I’m ultimately going to regret buying. It is possible to edit reviews on Amazon, even years after you’ve written them (I just was offered the chance to edit the 5 star review I gave Me Again several years ago!), so maybe you could try rephrasing some of your harshest points. I’m a writer as well, but I was prescient (and to some extent cowardly) when I first set up my Amazon account years before I dreamed of finishing a book, and I used “pen name” for my reviews.
Margaret, you and I see eye to eye on this point:
“I don’t have enough money to waste it on books I’m ultimately going to regret buying.”
Amen to that. Thanks for participating!
(And thanks for the good review!!!!)
At first I voted “yes,” then I remembered a bad book review I got. The reviewer said I did nothing but show how neurotic I was and he hated “all the whining.” At first I felt really awful; I mean, who wants to be known as a whiner? But then a strange thing happened: sales increased. I can only figure that there are more neurotic people out there than one might think, and they bought the book for that very reason.
Nancy, that’s interesting. Kinda drives home the “any publicity is good publicity” notion, doesn’t it?
Thanks for commenting, and happy whining! :)
I, too, read Amazon reviews, so exhaustively before making a purchase that my investment in selecting based on the reviews is highly disproportionate to the purchase itself. Anyone can write a nice review, give an item 3-5 stars and make some comments describing generic or specific positive attributes.
It takes guts and honesty to write a detailed, thoughtful non-positive review. As a buyer, I deeply appreciate reading them, and as a writer, I appreciate clearly articulated and considered points discussing my work. Of course, we all can live without rants, arm-waving, and name-calling. And one star without any substantive details speaks more to the limitations of the reviewer than the product.
So I say, leave the review up. Be brave, know that you may run into the person, be happy to have a shortish or lengthy chat over an adult beverage with the person about their work if they initiate the conversation. You might learn something about why they did what they did (not that it would change your mind at this late date, but it’s always interesting to hear what other writers puzzle through), and they might learn something more about what you meant by your review (and be less defensive of their work, if that was their prior condition).
I say, be proud that you spoke your mind in a respectful and honest way. We all need more of that, not less.
But not too proud. (:
Thanks for the support, Rebecca, and for articulating your thoughts in such a clear and compelling way. I’ll go easy on the pride, I promise.
Thanks for being honest. There are so many sides to this story! I tend not to review books I don’t like. Party because I’m a chicken and partly because a friend said you never know who you may sit next to at dinner sometime. But I appreciate your dilemma. I vote though for keeping it up. Particularly if you weren’t just ranting against the author and others found it helpful. Thanks for bringing this up.
I gotta say, I’ve found there is WAY more truth to this statement than I ever would have expected as a younger man:
“…you never know who you may sit next to at dinner sometime”
Thanks, Carol!
I’m a book reviewer as well, and I make it my mission to review a book to increase its sales (but only if I believe in the book). So, I no longer post bad reviews.
I believe that it’s up to the reader to decide whether a book is good or bad. Why should I discourage someone from reading something because I think the book stinks? It’s just my opinion anyway, good or bad.
Back when I was reviewing books for BookList, I was sent a 400-plus page novel about a wealthy family and their piddly conflicts. I couldn’t have cared less about the characters, or their problems. I couldn’t relate to any of them. I begged my contact at BookList to give me a different book to review.
“This author is really popular,” she said. “I need you to read it.”
“Okay, but it’s going to get a bad review,” I said.
The review I wrote was a blistering one, with a final sentence something along the line of: But if you like long family sagas about well-to-do people who…blah, blah, blah…this author is queen of the genre.
And that’s what the publishers lifted for their marketing materials:
“…queen of the genre!” – BookList
I know this, because as a book buyer for an indie, I received their postcard in the mail.
What the publisher didn’t know is, when I finally finished reading that bloody tome I jumped up and down on the thing, then threw it in the recycling bin.
On GoodReads, I only review books I like. I want to spread positive vibes in this world, and that’s one small part of how I do so.
As writers, we can be vicious in reviewing someone’s work, yanking out the beating heart and stomping on it with heavy boots. I’m always a bit sickened by that in writing workshops and classes. Yes, it’s a learning process, but I believe, if we look hard enough, there’s something of value in every piece of writing. I may have said this before on this site: there are no writers who suck; there are writers, in various stages of process.
If a publisher wants to take a chance on a writer, so be it. Good for them both! If I buy the book and think it stinks, there’s still something I can learn from it. And truthfully, I won’t buy a book without first reading a page or two, to gauge whether I’m willing to spend time and money on the thing in the first place.
This is a long-winded answer to your short question. If you were able to highlight something of value in that book, something useful that may help the writer learn a bit more about their craft, then leave the review as is. If it’s a total trashing of the book, did you post it for yourself, or to save some future reader from wasting their time and money (which is theirs to waste)?
Booklist?! Wow, that’s some serious street cred for a reviewer! I’m really happy you’re involved in this conversation, Diane.
And I had to laugh out loud at the ““…queen of the genre!” reference. I’ve seen many authors surgically extract some seemingly positive words and phrases from some utterly brutal reviews. The results can be both completely deceptive and totally hilarious.
The Amazon star review system has been overly ‘gamed’. It’s compromised. It’s corrupted.
The ‘LOOK INSIDE’ feature is all that’s necessary to determine if a book is worth further investigation.
Following a crowd is lazy, and it won’t save a reader from bad books.
People’s opinions are as diverse as the number of books on offer.
Potato potahto let’s take down all the reviews and let an author’s work stand for itself.
I voted to take down that review.
Thanks for your perspective, Veronica.
I’ll agree that there’s a lot of gaming going on in Amazon’s reviews – particularly within self-published books, but I still find the reviews worth reading. A truly helpful review tends to stand out – whether it’s positive or negative. At least, that’s been my experience.
But I also agree that when it comes to books, the “look inside” feature is invaluable (and all the more reasons for authors to make their first pages SHINE.
It seems to me that, as humans, our most valuable resource is time. Time to live, time to enjoy. I firmly believe that reviews that point out serious and deep flaws and let me know that I will be wasting my time on a book are extremely valuable.
On my Flogging the Quill blog, I “flog” authors who give away books on BookBub, and frequently download the books so I can see what they’re truly like. Sure enough, the huge majority of those books end up being a waste of time because they are stories poorly told. Universally, they needed a good editor.
So, in your case, at least 70 people–and I’ll wager more–were saved from spending time doing something not worth the cost. I say cheers to honest reviews, both positive and negative.
Thanks, Ray – I was curious to see how WU’s own Flogger in Chief felt about this issue!
Thanks, Keith. Let me add that, as “Mr. First Page,” I second your saying that the first page really has to SHINE when it comes to looking inside.
On the review side of things, a reviewer of one of my novels took a satirical poke at fraudulent religious leaders as an attack on Christianity. While the reader/reviewer clearly didn’t get it, the review might have kept others who would have been equally offended from suffering.
Sadly, like your review, it ended up being the first one people see because of the “useful” votes. But there were a lot of 5-star reviews for contrast and balance, so I can’t really complain. Maybe whine a little, but not complain.
Keith, I can’t get past your willingness to abide by the group’s vote. Why would you give us the right to decide for you? I understand why you asked everyone’s view – it’s prompted a great discussion and lots of food for thought. My vote is for you to decide.
Carol, partly it’s to give me some arbitrary but final guidance on an issue that’s got me on the fence. A coin toss, if you will. I’ve devoted a lot of time and energy to supporting other writers, so it seems fair to listen to “the voice of the people” when it comes to making a decision like this, since they are the very people I’ve pledged to support. (But I promise, there will be no Electoral College involved. This is a truly democratic exercise.)
But I am also genuinely interested in how the writing community – of which the WU readership is an excellent cross-section – felt about not just my review, but about reviewing other authors’ books in general. So far I’m finding the responses very interesting and illuminating. Hope you are, too!
I am. And thank you for no electoral college involvement! Truth is, it makes my skin crawl to let anyone decide anything for me these days. No, it would be more accurate to say I want to put my fist through a wall at the thought of it, and I’m the non-violent type (I think)…
I voted yes, take it down, but not for the reason behind the yes button. I voted for you to take it down NOT because it is the decent thing to do. I think honest well-written reviews are a decent thing to do. Also, I think it is unlikely your review is hurting anyone and certainly not the book’s sales. Sometimes I buy books with poor reviews because what someone else hates is what I like. But I think you should take it down because you’ve changed since you wrote the review. And now its existence bothers you. It is noise in your head that you have the power to quiet.
Thanks, Alice. I find it very interesting – and surprising – that many of the “take it down” votes are more about helping me find peace with this, rather than just goading me to do the nice thing.
What a fun way to learn how other people think and feel!
Yowza, Keith! This is one stimulating discussion! Thanks for getting us to slip into our thinking-heart hats. Your turmoil is palpable and hits us where we live, and where we write, so there is much to ponder. I feel like I’m all over the map on this one, but here goes.
First, here’s a bit of advice my wise-soul son uses. He reads a lot of non-fiction. When he’s deciding between several books on one topic, he chooses the book that has an equal number of positive and negative reviews. He says this way he feels he’s going to get a true picture of the material he wants to learn about— nothing sugar-coated or trashed; a fair discourse. There is no balance without both the good and the bad.
I’m still writing in the trenches on the road to publication, and although I daydream of rave reviews, I know it’s unrealistic. I also know, that I wouldn’t have grown as a writer and my stories wouldn’t have improved if the writers and authors reading my material hadn’t told me the truth. You can’t fix what you don’t know is broken.
I received feedback from my writing teacher yesterday and it was crushing. It left me deeply disappointed in my story and myself, and yet, because he told the truth about what he “got” from the page and asked questions that nudged me a lightbulb went off. I didn’t see the light until about an hour ago, but now I see exactly what I need to do to strengthen the story.
I’m reminded of Brunonia Barry’s session at UnCon when she spoke of using book clubs to get feedback on her drafts. I think its a brilliant approach because the readers are who we write for— otherwise, why publish, just keep it in a drawer. So, what readers say, good or bad is worth a look-see, in order to get a barometer on how well you’re messages are getting through. I also feel that any serious writer, and especially a published author knows how to listen to feedback. If it resonates, it’s something to pay attention to, if it is a random insensitive rant— fuggedaboudit!
I don’t think for one second that you wrote an insensitive review. It is not in your nature, Keith. You gave your opinion with supportive reasoning. This kind of feedback is educational for readers and the author.
When I write reviews I don’t say anything I wouldn’t say to a friend if they asked me about the book. I underscore what I loved and also do my best to explain where I was disappointed and why— the why is everything. It is the why, behind what you didn’t like, that educates, influences and promotes change.
Where does this leave me? My feeling is if you are still standing by your review, if you believe it is an honest assessment of the book, and you were fair in the delivery of the not so positive points, stand by yourself. Would you say the same things to someone you were speaking to in the flesh? If so, standby yourself.
That said, I think its interesting that even though the review was written a long time ago AND anonymously that you are today feeling sorrow over what you offered to the masses. This illuminates your enormous heart, the one you share in person, in your stories and on this page. Maybe you need to take it down for your own inner peace. We’re human, we change. If you no longer would write such a review, and do not want to be associated with it as you move forward, then take it down. Of course, maybe it’s presence is a good reminder of where you’ve been, where you are now, and how you wish to move forward.
Life is all about the learning curve. Listen to your heart and you’ll make the choice that’s best for you.
Jocosa, I love how I can always count on your posts to bring equal parts of brain and heart. That’s what makes you such a strong writer (and it’s no surprise your son would be so soulfully wise).
Thanks for chiming in, and continuing to make me weigh my thoughts and feelings.
Leave it. As a reader, I’d want to know your thoughts but, honestly, I’d also peek inside, read other reviews and so forth. Your word wouldn’t be final for me and just because you found those things to be true, doesn’t mean another reader won’t find something worthwhile in reading the book anyway.
As an author, I don’t leave bad reviews unless something is way out of line (for example a book I reviewed that involved a brutal rape scene that apparently turned a lesbian woman straight and had her falling for her rapist). I do contact the author if I can and voice my concerns if I feel they’ll be well received. Authors need to know about formatting issues and other similar matters. If the story is bad or the book just isn’t to my tastes, I let it go; no review and no contact.
Keith, you ruggedly handsome guy you, I’m of the “let your Rushmorian review remain cast in digital stone” crowd. If your review was open, probing and gave a layered, intelligent sense of the book’s shortfalls, like so many other commenters here, I think you are doing readers a service.
Of course, review readers know that reviews are just one person’s (even if ruggedly handsome) perspective; if that perspective is offered in a sense of inquiry and honesty, it’s valuable. And can still be disagreed with.
Also, authors sometimes get helpful info from reviewers who take the time to dig into what was off-putting or flaccid in a work. (While perhaps still considering those poking reviewers as hayseed stable-rakers.)
I write Goodreads reviews occasionally, and always try to give a balanced perspective on why—for me—a book brought delight or something else. And I never review books I truly dislike because I don’t want to share any real sourness; I might just be having a bad book hair day.
Thanks for the thoughtful piece.
Keith,
Thank you for kicking off this discussion. At first glance, I fully agreed with the title of your post (well, its implication). Then I started thinking about it, both from the point of view of a reader and (maybe some day) an author.
As I see it, the review process is nothing but word-of-mouth 2.0. Ideally, a review is one reader’s honest, cogently and respectfully stated opinion. (As an aside, it always irks me when reviewers present their opinions as The Truth, thereby negating the experience of those who disagree with them). Anyway, as a reviewer, all you’re doing is to help potential buyers make an informed decision.
Your review has obviously been helpful to many readers. You didn’t slam the author but instead cared enough to spend a chunk of your time to write a constructive piece of literary criticism. For free.
Your opinion hasn’t changed since you became a published author, and the book’s the same whether you bought it or took it out from the library. So I’d vote for letting your review stand.
I hope that if I ever do get published, I’ll have readers who care enough to write reasoned reviews as well as the wisdom to accept and learn from these reviews.
I’ll be honest, I didn’t vote in the poll – because I really don’t know. I suffer from similar indecision about books. I don’t want to hurt other writers but I don’t want to hurt other readers either.
Personally, if I don’t have anything good to say about a book, I usually don’t say anything. However, there have been a few where I simply couldn’t not say anything and did. But I can’t say I felt good about it because no matter what, when you’re a writer, all other writers in some sense are part of your tribe. So, it’s kind of like slapping your sister, right?
I would agree though with other commenters who’ve brought up the point that if it’s bothering you, that you should consider the source of that bother and act according to your conscience, gut, intuition, etc.
I don’t think there is any question that as a reader of the book that you have a right to write a review whether negative or positive (it doesn’t matter that you borrowed it from the library, they pay for those books, so the author wasn’t cheated somehow)- but if keeping it up or taking it down violates your own core values then that’s where the rubber hits the road, right?
Personally, I don’t write negative reviews anymore. It just makes me feel bad to do so, no matter how justified the bad review might be. My rationale being that there is so much negativity in the world and people seem to thrive on hurting others so much, I simply don’t want to be part of it. But that’s just me.
I wish you luck.
Annie
Okay, the post has been up for nine hours so far, and we’re hanging in at a pretty steady ratio of 70/30, with the majority saying to leave the review up.
The DDJ (Dreaded Day Job) is currently interfering with my ability to individually reply to all comments, but I really, truly appreciate so many of you taking the time to share your thoughts and insights on this topic. I’ll keep checking in, and will probably “call the election” sometime tomorrow morning.
In the meantime, thanks for participating!
Just an FYI, Keith. Several weeks ago, I noticed that after years of having mostly positive reviews at the top of the Customer Reviews for one of my books on Amazon, there were suddenly several old 1 star reviews. I forget which book now, but my books are all 4.1 or more average with 300+ reviews. It was strange to see that, and I messaged Amazon about it and got a rather non-committal answer but a few days later the reviews were back to normal. That could possibly be the case with the book you reviewed and your 1 star review is no longer near the top.
I no longer review books either. I appreciate both good and bad reviews of my books, read them all but usually forget about them almost immediately. I get quite a few 1 star reviews from readers objecting to profanity. I seem to be using less profanity in my stories, partly due to that feedback, but also it’s totally dependent on the type of characters in the stories.
I didn’t participate in the poll, but whatever you decide, it probably won’t have much impact on the book or author, mainly on yourself, so do what feels right to you.
Best of luck!
Ruth
Frankly, I don’t get the hand wringing over this. If the review bugs you, take it down. End of story. All this talk of “doing readers and writers a service or disservice” is a bunch of bunk. Are we really so puffed up with self importance that we think our reviews make that much of a difference anyway? Life is short. Don’t spend your precious energy on what doesn’t bring you peace. Now, go have a drink on me.
I review books on Amazon and Goodreads, and I have three mystery novels on Amazon, so I’m on that two-way street. As an author I can appreciate a well-written and fair review even if it’s 1 star. As a reader, I try to be courteous and honest, even when I didn’t like the book or found problems with it; I tell all as gently as I can. Keep your review up if you think it’s fair and honest. If everybody only posted positive reviews and didn’t post the negative reviews, that would be so one-sided. We want the truth about a product, good or bad. Just play nice, right?
Reviews are – or should be – for the benefit of potential readers. Leave it there!
Every book we write should serve our readers in some way. Whether to inform, to entertain, to leave swimming in a sea of doubt about a lifetime of beliefs, or all of the above. Doing this with everything we write is the greatest service we can provide to anyone who reads. Deleting that review would be doing those readers a disservice.
(My answer would be different if it was a chop job rather than a reasoned treatise.)
I voted to keep it up, with the following assumptions.
I assumed that the review stated honestly what you liked and what disappointed you and why. I also assumed you did not get into personalities calling the author a second-rate hack with no talent or even grammatical competency.
Sometimes an unfavorable review will create a great deal of buzz. People will read the book to see if they agree with the reviewer or not. That may, indeed, be the reason your review was designated most helpful.
I, for one, would like to know the name of the book to see what was set up and not followed through. Not to castigate the author, but as a heads up on what not to do and how not to do it.
And your review might have been just the impetus the author needed to make his next work better. At least I hope so.
You were a reader when you posted that review, that’s all. I as a reader feel offended by the idea that an author should be protected by an author just because he’s an author. Readers come first. Leave your review where it is 😊 and bravely face the consequences.
Well, I think it’s time to “call the election.”
As of February 15, at 10:30 am EDT, we’ve got 118 votes, with 70% voting to keep the review up, and 30% voting to take it down. That gives us a pretty clear verdict.
Sooooo… the people have spoken, and the review stays up!
Thanks to all who participated – this was a VERY interesting exercise for me, and I hope it was for you, too!
I know I’m commenting on this too late for the voting, but I have to say that I find 1 star reviews very helpful — so long as the reviewer is clear about what they did not like. Sometimes, the things that irritate them would not bother me, and the premise sounds interesting, I buy the book.
I know many readers who aren’t fazed by spelling and grammar errors, but if I see that mentioned in a review, I know the book is not for me.
But I don’t think that reviews are written for authors or intended to help them. They are written to help other readers.
I am also an author and my opinion is based on the number of stars and how your review was written. Many years ago, I was in an elevator with my parents. My dad, looked over at another woman who was in the elevator and said, “You have beautiful eyes” And this woman beamed, and said, “Thank you.” My father didn’t know her, and upon exiting the elevator, my mom asked “Why did you say that?” And my father’s response was something like, “She was otherwise quite unattractive, I wanted to make her feel good.” When I write a review, I always find something nice to say. I never leave less than 3 Stars. Or I just don’t write the review. And, in my opinion a critical review or comment must be based on quality or something substantive. I think it unfair to give a negative review if you don’t like a character who is supposed to be unlikable. The Talented Mr. Ripley, or The Great Gatsby, or Gone Girl, for example. It isn’t a really valid judgement. No one is supposed to like them. If you have expectations of a happily-ever-after, and it isn’t given, does that make it a bad book. Call of the Wild… or Into the Wild… or Anna Karenina…