Have you ever reviewed a book you loved so much it took weeks to forget the characters? What about a story that let you down in so many ways and you couldn’t finish? Both are excellent reasons for logging on to Amazon, Goodreads, or BookBub.
A review doesn’t have to be a literary analysis. A line or two is enough, and remember to choose the number of stars- honestly. You might feel bad about giving 1-3 stars but it’s the real consumer opinion which counts. Yes, books are business. Amazon deletes reviews which it deems as attempts to tweak consumer experience. They’re serious about giving the reader what he/she paid for.
A few tips
Be constructive and courteous. Start with a compliment, continue with the faults of the story, characters, language, or continuity, description–whatever threw you out of the book. End with a higher note. Perhaps suggest a way to make the book better or promise to try another of that writer’s books: the benefit of a doubt.
Read more: https://reedsy.com/discovery/blog/how-to-write-a-book-review
Many authors use years to craft and rewrite their stories. They pay serious money to cover designers, editors, and advertisers. And each writer pours her heart and soul onto the pages. We often describe the story as our “book baby.” Definitely; a bad review stings! But we can’t expect just praise. My books aren’t for everyone, and I know it.
But the blade cuts both ways: for a reader, reading a full-length book is an investment of time and effort. Of course, an unedited poor attempt at English grammar makes a reader mad. Amazon has over 8 million books and one-third of them don’t sell a copy. Some writers believe in quantity, not quality. Even if a book is perfect by all professional standards, you could hate it. It’s just not for you.
What the author reads
I’m half-fish, half-bird: as an author, I read book business books and lots of them. But I also try to read outside my own genre which is post-apocalyptic dystopian. Hell, I even grab a romance or two each month.
Rebecka’s books
