I’ve been at this writing game for a while. And I’ve had a number of books published before I finally released Biloxi Sunrise.  So, I’m no stranger the reviews both good and bad.  Good reviews can make you sing.  Bad reviews can make you cry. And both types can give you a little insight that might help you touch your readers in a better, deeper way.

I learned a long time ago that I really shouldn’t let reviews bug me too much.  I’ve seen both the good and the bad, and all that really tells me is that readers have read the book.  Some liked it. Some did not.  And everyone knows that you can’t please all of the people all of the time. But some reviews contain valuable information that can help me, as an author, do a better job.

However, I do have a pet peeve when it comes to reviews.  It annoys me to no end when someone posts a one word review, whether it’s good or bad. In this case, I’m speaking specifically of a one word review of my novel, Biloxi Sunrise. It was awful. And I can’t help but think that the person who posted it did it with malicious intent.

The review was a one star review, titled “Worst Book Ever Written” and the review read, “Awful!!!” Okay.  I understand the reader didn’t like the book.  I’m okay with that.  I’ve actually had some longer reviews that were much more hurtful than this single word review.  I’m okay with that.  While I would love to please everyone and have every person that ever picks up my book think it’s the best piece of fiction ever written, I know that’s not going to happen.

What really bugs me about these kind of reviews, though, is that they are not helpful.  This review does nothing but blast the book.  It doesn’t tell review-readers WHY the reviewer thinks the book is awful. It doesn’t offer any information other than general nastiness.  So, why would a person write a review like this? Even worse, the review was written by “Anonymous,” so the mystery poster isn’t even willing to put their own name on their opinion.

I don’t know why people would write reviews like this.  But I also don’t know why someone would write a review titles “Best Book Ever Written” with the review “Amazing!!!” It doesn’t make sense to me.  I much prefer (and try to write) reviews that have reasoning behind them.

It’s true. Not everyone is going to like or dislike any given book.  But if you’re so inclined to write a review, it would be a nice touch if you would include some information in the review on why you hold that opinion.  As an author, it helps me to know what I should do differently, if anything. Both good and bad reviews can provide valuable information that will help an author improve their craft.

So, for me, I love book reviews.  But I love them even more if they contain some information that will give me an idea of what I might (or might not) need to do differently in my writing.