Author Support Group discussion

I got my first negative review here on goodreads. It's left me feeling a bit bruised.

It was for Betrayal. It was two stars, which according to goodreads' star ranking system means "it was ok" but she said there were a lot of inconsistencies in the characterization. Is there? (If so, I need some tough love (constructive criticism) here, people.) Or is this just one of those examples of someone who just doesn't like my writing? Sheesh, I'm always second-guessing myself.

I should take comfort in the fact that I've had many, many lovely compliments from many lovely "goodread"ers. Four days ago, Betrayal got a 5-star rating from a complete stranger which was a shocking and wonderful surprise. (It's always nice when you know someone is reading your work and they update along the way as they read and you know you will be receiving a positive rating/review from them. When one comes out of the blue, however, it's indescribable.)

When my full manuscript for "In The Eye of The Beholder" was rejected by one publisher after a very enthusiastic request following my sample submission, I was miserable. I felt like someone had called my dog ugly or something, LOL.

I can tell you that, after reading four complete chapters of your book, I'm not confused at all.

Honestly, I would take it with the proverbial grain of salt. (That's easy for me to say, isn't it, LOL?) Everyone likes different things; otherwise, we would only need two works of art and five books in all the world.

After complaining to my hubby about it, he told me it was impossible to please some people and just focus on the good comments I've gotten. I'll pay close attention to the characterization in my WIPs, however--that's about all I can do at this point.

Sharon wrote: "I can tell you that, after reading four complete chapters of your book, I'm not confused at all."

Did you see the anonymous review I got for Heartless on Amazon? They claimed there were too many characters and not enough interaction between the main characters. I will admit that there are a LOT of characters. I had hoped I did well with them, though.

Oh, just FYI: My husband pointed out a historical inaccuracy in Heartless. I used the word "handicap" in reference to people with disabilities. That word was only used back then in regard to racing. Oops. :o)

LOL ... oops indeed. It could be much worse, I suppose; I read a novel once in which the main character was listening to a seashell that she picked up on the beach -- of a landlocked Welsh town. Not one that she had found and brought home, mind you. Egad.

Yeah, wow. That would be a huge oops, wouldn't it? I recently discovered the word "hallway" wasn't used in Regency England either. Never even occurred to me to look that one up. Heck, it never occurred to me to look up "handicap" for some reason. I'm a little in awe of myself for thinking the term was that old...

Jaimey wrote: "I got my first negative review here on goodreads. It's left me feeling a bit bruised.

It was for Betrayal. It was two stars, which according to goodreads' star ranking system means "it was ok" ..."

I agree with everything said so far. What I would add is that I am not sure if everyone is into your genre. Keep that in mind. If I would have picked up your book with traditional fiction in mind, I might not have enjoyed it as much. I had to prepare my mind for it and when I did, I really liked it. Remember how I said I detest romance novels. Well thanks to you, I am so much more open to. That is to your credit. I think that is what is happening with your work. You are going to have to see yourself as a trailblazer who is reintroducing a very classic genre to a generation that is not as appreciative of the craft.

I agree with Madison - I think your novels will appeal to a wide readership, not just those who are into romances. Your characters and historical fiction aspect is what appeals to me - and I'm on Chapter 10 of Betrayal now and loving it! (a little ice for your bruise?)

Bernadette wrote: "I'm on Chapter 10 of Betrayal now and loving it! (a little ice for your bruise?)"

Thank you, Bernadette. That helps. :o)

Jaimey wrote: "I got my first negative review here on goodreads. It's left me feeling a bit bruised.

It was for Betrayal. It was two stars, which according to goodreads' star ranking system means "it was ok" ..."

Jaimey, you can't worry about the negative comments. A website posted the first chapter of my upcoming release, Rise of the Ancients - Annuna, and the very first comment, "This is the worst piece of **** I've ever read in my entire life."

WOW! I was stunned...I have never had anyone say that about my writing in all my life. I felt a little better when other comments were extremely positive. I've had nothing but positive feedback since (although I did have someone from I think goodreads - can't remember - say that they "just couldn't get into the book. The writing was good, seemed to have an interesting plot, just couldn't get into it.").

My first book, the first seven reviews I received from reviews were 5-star highly recommendeds. Then I received one review from SFReader where the reviewer seemed to be preoccupied by my description of the main character's...uh organ...I had a total of one sex scene in the book that lasted a half a page but that was the scene he focused on. Not the plot, not the action, my description of that...attribute.

What I try to do is take the criticism, try to understand it and learn from it. There's some times there's nothing of value you can get out of it. Other times, you can see their point of view and try to better yourself from it.

All in all, you can't get to high with good reviews or to low with bad ones. For every "You're great", there's always going to be "It's the worst pile ever."

I agree. Some people just won't like your work. It's a fact. If we all had the same likes a dislikes, what a boring world this would be. Take it for what it's worth. (In the case of the pile of sh** guy, not worth a thing.) There are ways to give constructive critcism and that isn't one of them.

For what it's worth, some people hate Lolita. One of the best books ever written.