Agent’s Comments (group member since Nov 09, 2011)

Agent’s comments from the Authors Lounge group.

Hi Keith--I'm not terribly good at giving writing advice, but I think Chuck Wendig's blog has some good posts about things like this. Maybe take a look at this one first. Good luck!

Richard wrote: "I think that Goodreads should eliminate the un-commented star-only reviews. They really don't mean much at all, and the possibility of flagrant misuse is a real temptation to those of the troll per..."

The only problem with that is, the one-star review saying "Insulted by the language! Didn't read it!" wouldn't be deleted in that case, because it would be commented on. It's ridiculous though, and reviews like that should be spammed. The person reviewing it didn't even READ it so they have no right to say that.

What helps me deal with the idea of negative criticism is knowing that it happens to every author. Now, some reviewers are just trolls, and they should be ignored entirely because it's just wrong. But for many other readers, it comes down to personal taste. For every book written there will be people who love it and people who hate it. And the way I look at ratings is not that the person rating my book is the judge of how many stars I get for the quality of my work--they're just rating what they personally thought of it. That's not to say that you should ignore all reviews, if the majority of reviews you receive are low-rated or there's a similar criticism in most of them, that's something to think about. But when there are just a few negative reviews in the mix, I think the criticism should be taken with a grain of salt.

Hi!

I just started a new website: http://forthosewholovebooks.wordpress... and I'm looking for more authors who want their books reviewed. I'd love to host interviews, guest posts, and giveaways as well.

(Also, if anyone else has a WordPress account and would be interested in blogging with me, send me a message!)

Thanks,
Sarah

Thanks Pletcha, it's getting better!

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to apologize for my VERY long absence. Life was really rough on me last year, and this just wasn't my top priority. Anyway, I'm going to try to be more active now, and I hope everyone here is doing well. :)

Welcome, Annalisa and Jedidiah!

Welcome G.A. and E.B.!

Congratulations, Carroll! :D

Welcome Pletcha! I've found some good reviewers through several book blog directories... I suggest searching for "[insert genre] book blog directory" and seeing what comes up. Here are two for many different genres: http://indiebookreviewer.wordpress.com/ http://www.stepbystepselfpublishing.n...

Helen wrote: "Something dark, please. And sweet."

Georgina wrote: "Yes please, one sugar, milk frothed. ;)"

They're ready, six hours late, because I'm a horrible person... ;)

And best of luck on your writing, Georgina!

That infuriates me so much... I can't believe anyone would do this! Makes me sick.

Welcome, Helen!

*magical virtual couch pops up*

I'm going to make some coffee for both of us... It's been a crazy past few days for me. How is everyone?

Welcome Dianna!

Congrats, Stephen. :)

Things have been going well. I've been busier than usual lately, and struggling to keep up with my writing. There were a few days where I had no idea where I was going with my current story, but now I'm trying to get back to a regular writing schedule. And cursing the Internet for helping me procrastinate. ;) How are you?

Welcome, Debbie and Laura! And yay for 800 members!

Welcome, L.T.!

Hi Babette, welcome!

Welcome, Ann!

Hi Melanie--welcome!

Olga wrote: "Hi, fellow writers. I just found a joke on the net - the website http://iwl.me/
You go there, copy and paste a piece of your writing in the box provided, and it tells you what famous writer you wr..."

That's fun! I have Ray Bradbury, Dan Brown, Douglas Adams, David Foster Wallace, James Joyce, Mary Shelley, H.P. Lovecraft, and Vladimir Nabokov.