Wednesday, January 9, 2013
On the Subject of Reviews (or, Goodreads and Me)
Over the past couple of years, there's been a lot of online discussion about whether it's appropriate for writers to post negative reviews--or even positive ones!--of other writers' work. A lot of people seemed to feel that it was unprofessional for writers to criticize other writers--like an artist publishing a critique of somebody else's painting, or a musician panning someone else's song. Because I aspired to publication myself, I decided to play it safe, and posted all of my reviews under an anonymous nickname.
Now that the book is almost finished, I've been thinking a lot about building my platform, and have been trying to link up all my online content so that people who are interested can find me in a lot of places. I've regretted a number of times that I couldn't link to my "anonymous" Goodreads account, both because I put a lot of thought into my reviews, and because reading is basically my primary interest. A lot of my friends are on Goodreads, and I love talking about the books I read. I'd love to widen the discussion by engaging with other fellow readers.
A few days ago, I decided to set up a secondary, "public" Goodreads page, where I could link my name to Five Stories for the Dark Months and any other ebooks I happened to publish. In the process, I accidentally linked the two accounts, and convinced myself for a few horrifying seconds that I had deleted my original account forever. When I finally figured out how to separate them (it was just a matter of disconnecting Facebook from the new account), I really became aware of how important my book reviews are to me, and how much I would have missed the interaction here if I had lost it. For that reason--and because I've always felt it was a teeny bit cowardly to keep my reviews hidden--I've decided to get rid of the secondary account, make the first account more or less public, and continue posting under my own full name.
Honesty is really important to me. If I feel strongly about something, then of course I want to express those feelings, even if they're negative. Since of course no one likes every book they read, there will necessarily be some negative reviews here--as there always have been. My personal book review policy (not to be confused with my movie review policy, wherein anything goes) is to be as kind and considerate to authors I haven't met as I would be to writers I meet in my writing group every two weeks. This means that, while I will not sugarcoat critiques, I will always do my best to refrain from snark. I will also be sure to highlight the good points even of books I find seriously problematic.
If you find a negative review of your work here, I know you're not going to be happy, but please understand that it isn't a personal attack. I know how much work goes into writing and editing a book, and I know that I have my blind spots just as everyone else has theirs. If you'd like to respond with a scathing critique of one of my own stories, then by all means go ahead--I could certainly use the publicity. : ) But I hope that, in the end, there will be no hard feelings from anything I post here, and that if we ever meet in person we can do so as friends.
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I know one writer who won't post any negative reviews because she knows how much she hates getting them herself. As you've probably noticed, I've got no qualms that way.-Fraser
ReplyDeleteYou always highlight the good points, too, though. It's not like you're picking on anyone!
DeleteAs I see it, the only problem with authors writing negative reviews is that, in some ways, the author comes from a position of authority. (Imagine if J.K. Rowling posted a negative review of a mid-list book. Sure, she has a right to her opinion, but that's still kind of a dick move.)
ReplyDeleteIf I ever get published, I don't think I will stop writing negative reviews. But if I hit the best-seller list, then I will refrain from posting negative reviews of books that haven't made it that far. (Hell, even NOW I feel bad writing scathing reviews of books that haven't made it to the shelves of B&N.)
I'm not sure how much I agree. On the one hand, you're right: it does seem a bit unfair for a big-time author (Rowling's kind of an extreme example) to post critical reviews of someone who's not as far advanced. On the other hand, if an author has attained a position of authority, then presumably it's because people care about what s/he thinks. And if I care about what someone thinks,then I definitely want to know what s/he thinks about a book if we happen to have read the same one.
DeleteIt's true that most big-name authors don't post book reviews (I'm trying to think of one who does--anyone have an example?). But where should the cutoff be? It's sort of problematic to say that someone should change their behavior if they suddenly become successful. But I guess you could interpret your argument as saying that you shouldn't review someone who's on a lower "tier" than you--that is, as you said, bestsellers shouldn't review non-bestsellers, etc. You'd need a clearly defined system of tiers, though. Like, should we be saying that no one with a publishing contract should review anyone without one?
To a certain extent, I think very successful authors are unlikely to review unexceptional ones, anyway: presumably by the time you've reached that level of craft, you've figured out what you like and what you don't like, and you're going to avoid the books that you know are going to be... not good. Personally, I really only give bad reviews to the ones I find particularly disappointing--the ones I expect to really love, and end up not liking at all. (At this point, if I don't think I'm going to like it, I am seriously unlikely to pick it up. I've only read about half the books on my shelves as it is!)
And since a lot of my friends are writers, and like a lot of the same books I like, I'd definitely like them to tell me if they find books disappointing, so I can adjust my reading list accordingly. It sucks, but I have so many things to read--and so little time to read them--that I'm extremely selective about what stays on my shelves. I assume they want me to do them the same favor--otherwise they wouldn't read my reviews.
You could also take the "position of authority" argument further, and say that many book bloggers are in a much higher position of authority than some of the authors they review. Should a prominent book blogger refrain from criticizing a beginning author simply because the balance of power is unfair? In that case, they'd be doing their audience a disservice. I know that my favorite book bloggers are ones with similar tastes to mine, and that if they hate something I'm likely to hate it, too. The same goes for favorite authors--if I like what they write, in many cases I'm also to enjoy the same books they enjoy. I assume the same goes for other readers, too.
Anyway, I know this debate is going to be ongoing, but I know that I personally am every bit as much a reader as I am a writer. My favorite conversations are about books, and I often learn the most about people by seeing how they reacted to the books that particularly moved me. I feel like I'd be stifling a very important part of myself if I hid my book reviews, and I've never really felt right about being secretive. I don't know if I'll feel differently when my career's a little further advanced.
Sorry for the epic response! Thank you for your comment. It's an interesting topic to discuss!
Well considered and stated, Kate. My personal take is that if you're honest and open -- and of equal import, focussing your comments on the book itself so that it's not any kind of attack on the author, then your opinion is worthy of respect and consideration by any who care to read it. And I mean you specifically, and in the more general sense, too. I actually don't agree that successful authors shouldn't comment on other books. Why the hell not? That's like peer review! I think civility is called for, but I would like to hear what they like - and why - and what they don't like - and why! For many of the same reasons you stated here - primarily that if I like one author's writing, I may well like what they read, too, and that I have too limited time and an already overflowing bookshelf, so directed attempts to guide me are welcome!
ReplyDeleteAnd of course I hope my books will always earn your respect - in large part because I'll be counting on you to help me make them the best they can be *grin* But, in the event that you have anything less than positive to say, I trust you will do so in the same thoughtful manner. And even if I felt a twinge, knowing that, I would take it as seriously constructive commentary.
Thanks, Margaret! :D Of course I love your books. As I was saying to Fraser on FB, though, I don't think I'll end up writing any reviews at all for books by people I know personally--that's a bit TOO awkward.
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