On Negative Reviews

You put forth an incredible amount of effort and time. You poured your heart, mind and energy into the completion of this project. You agonized over various cover concepts and finally chose one that you feel best represents your message.

Then that day comes.

Your book finally arrives in an Amazon listing.

What a proud moment!

You send a link to everyone you know as much to share the moment as anything. Of course, you also hope that someone may actually buy the book. But even if they don't, a hearty "well done" or "congratulations" in response is a welcome reception.

Then, one day, the unthinkable happens.

Someone leaves a negative review of your book.

The warm bask of accomplishment is replaced by a cold shower of reality.

Someone didn't like that which represents hours of torment as you left pieces of yourself on the printed page. Someone didn't appreciate everything you had to do to get this creation birthed.

It can be shattering to receive a negative review. After all, the book is an extension of the writer, and if a reader doesn't like the book, he/she must not, by inference, like the writer. Right? It's all so very personal.

Anyone who puts their own creation out for sale in any venue has something of an ego. This isn't to say that they are egotistical, necessarily. But to think it important enough to record poems, thoughts or stories and make them available for others to read - well, let's just say that most people would not do that.

This isn't a bad thing, of course. Without ego, it would be a fairly bland world after all, wouldn't it. However, the ego of the creator can be a fragile thing. A negative review can cause a writer to wonder about his/her ability to write, to create a strong, compelling message, especially if the writer is trying to make a living from books.

There are a few things to keep in mind when faced with a negative review.

Oscar Wilde once said the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about. A negative review, however unpleasant, is still a response. It was inspired by the material being reviewed. Given that the majority of readers would never post a review about anything they read, the fact that someone took the time to do so means something. It may not mean what the writer wants, but it's a direct response.

If the review is a well-written, reasonable analysis, then the writer may actually learn something from it. Differing perspectives can give the writer a better understanding of the myriad ways his/her work may be interpreted.

On the other hand, the review may not be so well organized or rational. It could be vitriolic and insulting. It may actually be from someone who hasn't even read the book, but just enjoys doing such a thing. The internet has really spawned a lot of uncivil online behavior. A shame, but that's the world we live in. The writer has to really develop a skin of armor, a sense of apathy to situations like this, for the only recourse is to write a response to the trash review.

Know this, however, in the long term it won't mean anything. Really, it won't. Though the writer may fear for diminishing sales due to the negativity of a bad review, there's so much more to the story. If the writer relies on only Amazon reviews to sell his own work, then chances are he won't be seeing much in the way of sales anyway.

So take it for what it's worth. All the great writers of history had critics who excoriated their work in print. It's part of the ambiance of being a writer.

The flip side of this coin may be that the writer's work really is not so good, and all the praise they've received to date came from well-meaning family and friends. This can be as much a disservice as negativity because it creates as false an expectation.

The market should be able to sort it all out eventually.