Aric Mitchell's Blog - Posts Tagged "aric-mitchell"
Anticipating Bad Reviews
It hasn't happened yet, but it's bound to. And when it does, that feeling of dread will have its day.
My book The Congregation has been reviewed more than a dozen times across the Internet, and so far, it hasn't received anything less than four stars. But the day of the dreaded one-star review is coming, I'm sure.
How do I know? Because reading is largely subjective, for starters. Also, Stephen King has some one-star reviews, so it's bound to happen to me. I've never pretended to be King and never will. I've never actually read an entire King novel, but I've seen some of the movies, and when they're done well, with an obvious affection for the source material, they are quite good in my opinion.
Yet some people, albeit the minority, look to King--a guy, who's succeeded in marrying commercial fiction and literature together across multiple genres--and thought, "He sucks, worst novel everrrrrrr!!"
Obviously, King doesn't suck, but the reviews are out there, so it must be true, right?
What chance does a guy like me have?
The sooner a writer can make peace with the fact that sometimes his work just isn't going to do it for people, the better.
Writer Scott Nicholson has a fantastic way of looking at reviews. This is not an exact quote, but essentially, he states that in either case, the reviewer is always right.
Your book can be the best thing ever written, or not worth the paper it's printed on. You've just got to allow for that as a writer.
Make peace with it. Move on.
While The Congregation hasn't been trashed yet, there are around 5,000 people, who have it on their Kindles/Nooks/iPads right now. Some have read it, loved it, reviewed it. Others have started it, gotten sidetracked and forgotten. Still others began reading and found out quickly it was not for them. And of course, others started reading and found the words I'd written so obnoxious they abandoned ship. Some of these people may come back and lay waste to me. I hope not, but it happens. Will happen. And the sooner I'm aware of this, the better off I'll be.
I know enough about the writing/editing process to know The Congregation is not a turd. I make my living with words, for Pete's sake. In fact, I would dare say writing in general is the only thing I've ever been able to do well. The book, on its technical and storytelling merits, is fine. I know this. On the other hand, you may not feel a connection to my characters or like them particularly much. (At times, I don't either.) But the book itself is competently, professionally put-together. It's not "part of the problem," in other words.
You know the kind. Indie writer thinks that since he can write an email, he can write a book, and puts out a horrible piece of crap that angers the average reader to the point said reader will never try another indie writer again?
But it's not going to land for everyone, and if it doesn't land for you, my sincere and most humble apologies. You are correct. But if you loved it/liked it, and you're ready for the next book, I am thrilled you're along for the ride. I'll try to give you more of what you want in a horror thriller. Never hesitate to share your thoughts. My email address is aric dot mitchell at gmail dot com, and I respond to every email. I look forward to hearing from you.
My book The Congregation has been reviewed more than a dozen times across the Internet, and so far, it hasn't received anything less than four stars. But the day of the dreaded one-star review is coming, I'm sure.
How do I know? Because reading is largely subjective, for starters. Also, Stephen King has some one-star reviews, so it's bound to happen to me. I've never pretended to be King and never will. I've never actually read an entire King novel, but I've seen some of the movies, and when they're done well, with an obvious affection for the source material, they are quite good in my opinion.
Yet some people, albeit the minority, look to King--a guy, who's succeeded in marrying commercial fiction and literature together across multiple genres--and thought, "He sucks, worst novel everrrrrrr!!"
Obviously, King doesn't suck, but the reviews are out there, so it must be true, right?
What chance does a guy like me have?
The sooner a writer can make peace with the fact that sometimes his work just isn't going to do it for people, the better.
Writer Scott Nicholson has a fantastic way of looking at reviews. This is not an exact quote, but essentially, he states that in either case, the reviewer is always right.
Your book can be the best thing ever written, or not worth the paper it's printed on. You've just got to allow for that as a writer.
Make peace with it. Move on.
While The Congregation hasn't been trashed yet, there are around 5,000 people, who have it on their Kindles/Nooks/iPads right now. Some have read it, loved it, reviewed it. Others have started it, gotten sidetracked and forgotten. Still others began reading and found out quickly it was not for them. And of course, others started reading and found the words I'd written so obnoxious they abandoned ship. Some of these people may come back and lay waste to me. I hope not, but it happens. Will happen. And the sooner I'm aware of this, the better off I'll be.
I know enough about the writing/editing process to know The Congregation is not a turd. I make my living with words, for Pete's sake. In fact, I would dare say writing in general is the only thing I've ever been able to do well. The book, on its technical and storytelling merits, is fine. I know this. On the other hand, you may not feel a connection to my characters or like them particularly much. (At times, I don't either.) But the book itself is competently, professionally put-together. It's not "part of the problem," in other words.
You know the kind. Indie writer thinks that since he can write an email, he can write a book, and puts out a horrible piece of crap that angers the average reader to the point said reader will never try another indie writer again?
But it's not going to land for everyone, and if it doesn't land for you, my sincere and most humble apologies. You are correct. But if you loved it/liked it, and you're ready for the next book, I am thrilled you're along for the ride. I'll try to give you more of what you want in a horror thriller. Never hesitate to share your thoughts. My email address is aric dot mitchell at gmail dot com, and I respond to every email. I look forward to hearing from you.
