General Discussion > Likes and Comments

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Right, so do you lot want to have books assigned to the threads or should we start with a blank slate and go for it?

I'd like to give first listings to those of us who lost out when RCfIB closed, where possible.

This group has been helpful but it's difficult to get reviews from readers who would never, ever, ever read my type of book. Have you all considered doing this based on genre?

L.A. wrote: "This group has been helpful but it's difficult to get reviews from readers who would never, ever, ever read my type of book. Have you all considered doing this based on genre?"

Yes, indeed. The old group was originally set up by genre. We did polls, discussion groups etc about it. As expected, it was hard to find a consensus. Threads by price gave members more choice. I don't know if we'll ever find the right answer to this one.

David wrote: "I'd like to give first listings to those of us who lost out when RCfIB closed, where possible."

Me too. There are three authors we can compensate if they join this group.

EDIT: I'm compensating them anyway. All chains are now open.

I wonder how the group feels about genre threads rather than price threads, if we were to cap the cost of an ebook at, say, $7.00?
Personally, I'd rather review in the genre I'd favour without worrying too much about a price match (at least, in this group!).

David wrote: "I wonder how the group feels about genre threads rather than price threads..."

David, my finger is hovering above the 'make moderator' button and I'm not afraid to push it.

TBH, this is a private group. We don't need lots of rules and moderation. If you'd all prefer - as in I see an overwhelming consensus for genre based threads - I'll change 'em over.

One caveat to that tho. If we change to genre based threads, we aren't changing back.

Go forth and voice opinions.

I'll add that if we have genre based threads, they will be in broad groups until there are enough people to warrant having more niche threads.

So price vs genre. Here's how I'd suggest having genre based threads.

Short stories, novellas, anything 20,000 words or less with a $3 USD price cap.

Novel Threads, all with a $5 USD price cap.

5 genre groups:
Science fiction and fantasy
Romance, chick lit and erotica
General fiction, contemporary fiction, lit fiction
Crime, thriller and mystery
Action, adventure and Westerns

A second caveat, because I can. Having enough active members was always the issue in the old group. You're all here because you were active, but there aren't that many of you, so we need more people to see regular movement in the threads. Invite trusted people to join.

*lurker alert*

Genre threads are like giving kids chocolate milk because they refuse to drink any other kind. It's fine when they're four-years-old, but is anyone posting here a 4-year-old? No, because most 4-year-olds like hearing more than one genre of story.

P.S. Dyrwolf (the book in the $2.99 slot that is owed a review) is free right now. Pick it up today, leave a review and pay it forward.

*lurker alert over*

Third caveat. I'll stop here. Maybe.

Threads get locked until this is decided. I don't need the admin. So voice your opinion or we go forth as is. Plus, those members owed a review from Reviews Community still get first spot in the appropriate thread. I realise that's a fourth caveat, but what the hey.

I will review more genres than I write in, so I'm not really disposed towards the genre division. But I also understand the frustration of waiting for someone else to bite the bullet on the book at the end of the queue. (You really don't want me reviewing romance novels anyway.)

Price: 2
Genre: 0

Robert wrote: "(You really don't want me reviewing romance novels anyway.)"

:D

Michael wrote: "Having enough active members was always the issue in the old group. You're all here because you were active, but there aren't that many of you, so we need more people to see regular movement in the threads. Invite trusted people to join."

Since I agree with Kathy's view that our average age is, probably, above four years old, I'd suggest that we're also old enough to be patient when we have to wait for a thread to move.

And, Mike, take your finger off that button. Please. I'll be good, I promise.

Okay, let's go then. If there's demand for genre based threads in the future, we'll look at putting them in. We're now open.

I think keeping as it is (by price) will move much faster than having categories by genres as there are so many genres and we would need a huge amount of active members. Personally I read more genres than I write in and often times I am willing to try something new if the blurb gets my attention.
In conclusion, I'm not against genre division but I give my vote to Price (hoping that one will always purchase a book by taste in order to avoid an unnecessary bad review).


I will use this opportunity to check if the review should be post both, on Goodreads and Amazon? In the previous group I had two people buying my book but the review was published only on Goodreads......and we all know how important it is to have reviews on Amazon too....

Just as a thought, I wonder how people would feel if there were slightly fewer chains, like maybe one for novels and one for novellas (of all genres)? Because if someone can only review in the thread that happens to coincide with their book's price point, it effectively narrows the size of the group and number of people who you may have reciprocal review clashes with, if that makes sense.

Like if there are 50 group members, but only 10 are in my 2.00-2.99 price point, I could be waiting for a while, or someone could want to review but not be able to because they'd already read my book or whatever. The drawback would be of course price variations. I wonder how people would feel about the $5 novel and $3 novella suggestions from above? Or has this been tried before and I just don't know because I'm new? Just throwing it out there!

Kat, the simple answer is there is no easy answer. Some people want more choice, others want less. I'm inclined to agree that we start with fewer threads. We can add more later on.

Nico, me too. I read just about anything. As for posting reviews, that's why we're here. I'll need people to post on Amazon to check it's a verified review.

Thank you both for adding your thoughts.

That makes sense. I'm also cool reading just about anything. 😊

I'd be happy to buy either of the other two books owed a review if we consolidated and review them. Also if we did consolidate threads, it's fine to remove my book from the list of "owed" reviews. I was reviewed once in the chain, and then David bought my book just because he thought it looked cool and wrote it its very first review (the werewolves thank you!) so I'm not really owed anything from the group.

Okay, there's a free spot up for grabs as soon as I finish typing this.

Kat, I grabbed a copy of your book, so you'll get a review from me when it reaches the top of my reading pile.

Great discussion, all. And thanks to Mike (and others?) for making something happen.

I fall in the middle of the genre/price issue. Price seemed to work less well for higher priced books, but overall, I thought it was pretty good. Genre may limit choices in any given thread, but it might be interesting to take the pricing out of it and see what happens.

My only currently published book is nonfiction, not in any of the genre options. Could be considered adventure. So I might suggest squeezing one of the five categories enough to allow for nonfiction titles if we ever go that way.

Awesome, thanks!

I purchased the book in the slot 0.99$ -1.99$ and I added mine.

The spot 2-2.99$ is free. I posted another book of mine and will purchase one from the shelf if that's ok with you. Otherwise I will delete my second entry :)

Nico wrote: "I purchased the book in the slot 0.99$ -1.99$ and I added mine.

The spot 2-2.99$ is free. I posted another book of mine and will purchase one from the shelf if that's ok with you. Otherwise I wil..."

Go for it. Your enthusiasm is highly infectious :)

Ron wrote: "Great discussion, all..."

Welcome, Ron. Good to see you here. Yes, good points on genre. Very hard to find a one-genre-fits-all category while we have only a few threads. How's the next book coming along?

Honestly, when the process of submitting got too cumbersome, I had moved on.

Now that this is open, I might jump in again. Always happy to get reviews and check out new indie works!

Kyle wrote: "Honestly, when the process of submitting got too cumbersome, I had moved on..."

We know. We had too many trolls taking advantage of the system. The only way to deal with them was to lock it down and that made it hard for all our good, active members. Hopefully, this private format will keep the trolls away and make life easy for everyone.

Good to see you here!

What's the group view (or rule) on reciprocal reviewing on Amazon, where the other person has reviewed one of my books, but which was published under a pseudonym?
(In my case the link is fairly clear as all books are under the 'Two Moons Books' imprint.)
Unless the group feels otherwise I'm taking the cautious route and avoiding even this kind of reciprocal review.

David wrote: "What's the group view (or rule) on reciprocal reviewing on Amazon..."

Bear with... bit of a story...

Some of you may know Kathy Ferguson. In her day job she's a technical writer. One job she worked on was for the Amazon research team who look into what they feel are misleading reviews. They have a fairly sophisticated series of algorithms running, cross referencing address details, credit cards, IP addresses, social media and so forth. Anything with a red light gets automatically taken down.

Here's an example: I reviewed Ginger Bensman's most excellent book To Swim Beneath the Earth (get a copy and read it, then thank me). I recommended it to my wife who also read it, thanked me and wrote a review. Even though we live half a world away (as in from Ginger, not me and my wife), Amazon saw this as a breach of their guidelines and removed both our reviews. It happened in minutes.

My view is that we don't have any kind of reciprocal reviews at all with Amazon - including pseudonyms, additional Amazon accounts and our immediate family.

I don't agree with their guidelines - reciprocity is as old as the printing press - but we have to play by their rules to protect the integrity of the reviews we generate here.

I guess the moral of the story is if you're posting a book written under a pseudonym, you'll have to declare your other names to avoid a conflict.

I know... I know... I could've just said: Yes, take the cautious approach.

Ron wrote: "Great discussion, all. And thanks to Mike (and others?) for making something happen..."

The truth is we've just continued the work of the person who started a wonderful group that we all miss very much. She has joined us which makes me feel very blessed. Marise... cyber hug incoming.

Michael wrote: "Nico wrote: "I purchased the book in the slot 0.99$ -1.99$ and I added mine.

The spot 2-2.99$ is free. I posted another book of mine and will purchase one from the shelf if that's ok with you. Ot..."

Thank you, Michael. Glad to see things moving forward already :) The book I purchased to pay forward is "Goddammit, Larry!" and added it to my TBR list. :)

Nico wrote: "The book I purchased to pay forward is "Goddammit, Larry!" and added it to my TBR list. :) ..."

Much appreciated considering that's mine. Up to you if you post a review on Amazon or not. Means we keep our options open. I'm most grateful :)

Of course I will post my review, Michael :)

Michael wrote: "Ron wrote: "Great discussion, all. And thanks to Mike (and others?) for making something happen..."

The truth is we've just continued the work of the person who started a wonderful group that we a..."

Awe! Now I'm having a moment... Snif!

Michael, you and David have done an amazing job building your own vision. I admire you both for all the effort you've selflessly put forth. You've done a wonderful job! All the reviews generated in RCFIB prove it. I know there may have been some struggles along the way - there always are - but the fact that you keep adapting and sticking with it has me truly impressed. On behalf of everyone here, thank you for everything you do! And a personal thank you for giving me a cozy little nook to lurk around in and keep up with old friends. I may have been quiet for the most part, but I was following the discussions in RCFIB. I came for Kathy's air-donuts, but I'll stick around for the great company.

Ann Girdharry has asked me if we can include beta reads as part of the review chain. I think it's a great idea which adds more variety and books available for review.

If you get a beta read, author will supply the book, so you'll get a 'free' review for yours. Please make the effort to give detailed feedback about the book you beta read. Send it direct to the author, don't post a review.

I'll put some brief instructions on the review chains.

Mike, I'm wondering if we can ask group members to add one of our books to a GR list or two. That would be awfully nice since we cannot review each other's books. If so, where to place such a request.
Thanks muchly.
Connie

Connie wrote: "Mike, I'm wondering if we can ask group members to add one of our books to a GR list or two..."

Indeed. We're here to share the love.

Listopia requests here...https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Social media networking... https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

By the way, if you haven't added your books to this thread, please do: Books for New Members to Review

Some of you might see numbers appearing next to your name. These are where I've been made aware you've had a sale or a review from a potential new member.

Michael wrote: "Connie wrote: "Mike, I'm wondering if we can ask group members to add one of our books to a GR list or two..."

Indeed. We're here to share the love.

Listopia requests here...https://www.goodreads..."

Thanks, Mike!

Connie wrote..."

The Going Back Portal is added to the lists. I am reading it and enjoying it very much. The obvious interruption of recent weeks has slowed me down, but I'm nearly there.

Wonderful! Thank you! And thanks to Kat!

Hi guys,

long time no blah from me but I've been stupidly busy trying to earn a living ( no, not with the written word, sillies!, with PAYING work) but it's nice to know you are all still there. I had a somewhat self-serving idea for a thread and just wanted to throw that out there. I've been making a stupid little video for facebook to promote a gig I'm going to in my my neck of the worldly woods (i.e. UK Southern Book Show in Worthing) soon. I've just uploaded it to youtube and my GR profile and I started wondering if we could have a thread of members' moving-image-promo material. You know, book trailers, readings, what not. I'd be interested to see what people are doing on that front, if anything at all. I have two videos out there, the new one is here https://www.goodreads.com/videos/1481... and then there is an older one https://www.goodreads.com/videos/1263.... I know they are very pedestrian (ohh, that could be my video company's name 'Pedestrian Productions'!) but the latest one has had nearly 1300 views on FB in two days already and that can't be a bad thing.
So, anyone else got something to watch?

Katharina wrote: "Hi guys,

long time no blah from me but I've been stupidly busy trying to earn a living ( no, not with the written word, sillies!, with PAYING work) but it's nice to know you are all still there. I..."

Hey, Katharina, I created a trailer for an anthology that a group of us contributed to (including our own Michael Gardner). The book is no longer available. (It was a short term promotional project.) The trailer is still available on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEv15...

Kathy

K.S. wrote: "Katharina wrote: "Hi guys,

long time no blah from me but I've been stupidly busy trying to earn a living ( no, not with the written word, sillies!, with PAYING work) but it's nice to know you are ..."

Very cool! How did you create the animations?

Great trailer - and someone has some serious talent in 3D modelling!

Katharina wrote: "K.S. wrote: "Katharina wrote: "Hi guys,

long time no blah from me but I've been stupidly busy trying to earn a living ( no, not with the written word, sillies!, with PAYING work) but it's nice to ..."

I use DAZ Studio. The software is free, but you need the models. I've been collecting them for about 4-5 years and have somewhere north of 10,000 now. The 2 minutes of animation took full-time for 7 weeks. It was my first animation attempt, and back then, I had a much slower computer. I learned a lot.

David wrote: "Great trailer - and someone has some serious talent in 3D modelling!"

I'm an amateur when it comes to modeling. Mostly I buy or get free models. I have a stack of tutorials I'm dying to dig into so I can learn more about modeling. And for the first time ever, I recently got to use my 3D graphics in a paid project to create certification training for animal-assisted disaster recovery therapy. It was a tremendously rewarding experience, probably the best I've had in my 20 years as a tech writer.

K.S. wrote: "David wrote: "Great trailer - and someone has some serious talent in 3D modelling!"

I'm an amateur when it comes to modeling. Mostly I buy or get free models. I have a stack of tutorials I'm dying..."

Wow, I'm seriously impressed.

Kathy is a rather talented individual. She writes really whacky mysteries too. I've read two and they're very good.