tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10372032.post2529925963604063540..comments2020-10-04T19:10:21.249-04:00Comments on When the Muse Strikes . . .: Nancy Cohen on Reader Reviews: An Author's Best FriendJulie Comptonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11518352063650354325noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10372032.post-15434146918984978892013-01-06T17:15:26.416-05:002013-01-06T17:15:26.416-05:00Margaret, I don’t do too many reviews myself becau...Margaret, I don’t do too many reviews myself because I’m a picky reader and it takes a lot for me to want to give a book four or five stars, and yet I don’t want to hurt the author’s chances of reaching readers who may like the book. I think if I were only a reader (and not a writer, also), I wouldn’t hold back so much with my reviews. But I just can’t bring myself to give low reviews to my fellow authors, because although many authors would be reasonable about them, I think many might not be, and it’s not worth it to me to burn those bridges.<br /><br />Nancy, thanks so much for the post! It's really helpful.Julie Comptonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11518352063650354325noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10372032.post-12604736255212610182013-01-05T12:39:57.879-05:002013-01-05T12:39:57.879-05:00I'm with you, Margaret. If I can't find so...I'm with you, Margaret. If I can't find something good to say, I just won't write a review. And if it's someone I know, I will make an effort to be kind and find something worthy to admire in their writing.Nancy J. Cohenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14228901230896110347noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10372032.post-56019632918537206482013-01-05T10:11:11.079-05:002013-01-05T10:11:11.079-05:00Great post. I disagree on one point. If someone gi...Great post. I disagree on one point. If someone gives my book one star, I WANT them to list the reason why. <br /><br />It may be for a ridiculous reason, which would make another customer discount the one-starred review (e.g., The shipping box containing the cancer treatment that saved my life was damaged during shipping and since I prefer smooth boxes, I can only give one star to this product.) We’ve all seen those acts of idiocy on Amazon. <br /><br />A reader may have a valid gripe about my book, and that's something I can learn from. <br /><br />I do agree that there's never a good reason to trash the author. You can say you didn’t love something without making it a personal attack. <br /><br />With all that said, I most likely would not give an author one star. I appreciate brutal honesty. Many don't. If I didn't like a book, I just wouldn’t do a review.Margaret Reyes Dempseyhttp://www.margaretreyesdempsey.comnoreply@blogger.com