Readin’, Writin’ and Reviewin’

The following ramble is my opinion, hopefully we can agree to disagree.

There’s been a bit of chatter on the interwebs about writers and reviewing.

There are those out there who don’t trust reviews by writers. I can understand. There’s the whole peer pressure thing, If I give so and so a bad review, will they trash me just because I ripped on their baby? I don’t think of my stories as babies. I’ve always thought that was a silly correlation. I write my fluff and put it out there hoping someone will enjoy it, if they don’t, no biggie. I don’t have the need to protect them, they stand on their own, or they fall. That’s life. Not everyone is going to like every book.

There are those who think every shinning review done by an author is because we are friends. Nope, not always the case. Sure, I’ve written reviews for friends and acquaintances, but I’ve also written them for people who don’t know I exist.

There are those who have a problem with traded reviews. For those that don’t know what that is, it’s when two authors send each other their work in exchange for a review. Yes, I’ve done this and probably will continue to do so, if and when I have time. I always make it clear I don’t give five star ratings, and I will be honest with my thoughts on the work. I expect the other author to do the same, the honest part at least; they can rate books however they see fit. Personally, I don’t trust five stars, in my mind that means it’s perfect, and I don’t believe anything is perfect. I also try and remember to mention the book was given to me in the review. If I forget, I’m sorry. I’m nowhere near five stars.

There are those who believe in what’s been labeled professional courtesy. From what I’ve seen, it’s a fancy way of saying, I won’t trash your book, because I’m a fellow author. To me professional courtesy is I won’t trash YOU, but I will be honest about what I think of your book.

I believe writers are readers. They have as much right to review a book as other readers as long as the review is fair. By fair, I mean, don’t sugar coat it because you’re afraid of backlash, or trash it just because you can. Be honest, tell readers what you liked and didn’t like.

I’m trying to keep the posts short and sweet, but feel the need to say, there is no room for personal attacks by readers, reviewers, or authors. I know some people live for drama, but I get enough in my make believe worlds, I don’t need it in real life. There’s always the possibility this topic may come up in a future post.