Thursday, April 12, 2012

Drama: My Message to Authors


The Drama Llamas, don't feed them. Do not even have tea with them. And most of all, do not be one.



I like writing reviews. Reviewing not only gives me space to express my opinion about a certain book, but it also makes the memory of the book last longer. I used to be the kind of reader that reads a book within a day or two, and then completely forget about it (plot, characters, etc) the following week. My line of thinking was: Phew! Finally finished, now on to the next book! There are exceptions, of course. I guess, what I'm trying to point out is that reviewing changed my perspective about reading.

The main reason (at least for me) of reading is to ENJOY it. I love getting lost in a world weaved by a capable author. I get frustrated sometimes. I get sad and afraid. I get extremely happy. But those are feelings that makes my reading experience more memorable. When I feel indifferent about a certain book, there is a big possibility that I will forget about it easily, or worse, will not finish it. I also want a story to teach me something. I do not want to waste my time reading a thick book full of empty words.

So reviewing a book is something that I also enjoy doing.

I enjoy doing it because it gives me freedom to express myself. I enjoy doing it because I like sharing my opinions. I enjoy doing it because I like helping other people to make up their minds (on whether to read a book or not). I enjoy doing it simply because I ENJOY DOING IT.

Getting comments about a certain review I wrote makes me happy. I feel good whenever a fellow reader reads a book because of my recommendation. When Julie Kagawa left a "Thank You" comment on my review of The Immortal Rules, I felt positively giddy.

However, there are certain comments that I do not like receiving. There are comments that make me feel bad and miserable. I do not receive them often, so to that I am thankful. But whenever I received a discouraging comment on my blog, I just delete it. End of drama.

This. Is. My. Own. Space.

I am not obliged to engage with people who contradict me. Especially rude people.


I can say whatever the hell I want because this is MY BLOG. MY REVIEW SPACE. MINE.


MINE

If you do not like what you are reading here, then please feel free to leave. Do not bother on commenting because you WILL OFFEND me and my readers. I do not care about your contradicting opinions. It's either you keep it to yourself or get your own space to vent out.


NEGATIVE REVIEWS...

are not for authors. THEY ARE NOT FOR AUTHORS. As a reviewer, I do not believe in constructive criticism. It's not my job. You, as an author, do not pay me to edit your work. Constructive criticism comes from a professional, preferably your editor. Do not expect me to sugarcoat my words if I do not like your book. I am not your FAMILY, I am not your FRIEND. I am a consumer and a reader, I will say what I feel with my own words.

When I feel strongly about a topic, I will blog about it. When I feel wronged, I will let people know. When I do not like a book, I will review it. I will be straight, humorous and honest. Please, do not forget that.


RESPECT...

are given to those who deserves it. Do not cry "foul!" when people are telling you to shut up. Attacking reviewers (especially in their own reviews) is a guaranteed disaster for you. DO NOT make yourself look bad. You are not fooling anybody. The best weapon you have at hand is SILENCE. I am not asking you to be meek and submissive. Go ahead and tell your loved ones, no one is stopping you. You are human, you need emotional support. I understand that. But you have NO RIGHT to bully/intimidate a reviewer simply because s/he didn't like your book.


BULLYING...

happens when you and your fans gang up on a reviewer. This is not high shool, get over it. Bullying are for sissies. Bullying is not cool. Any form of intimidation on a reviewer (passive or not) is considered bullying.

GET. OVER. IT.



GOODREADS...

are for readers who enjoy interacting with other readers (and sometimes authors). It is called GoodReads for a reason. It is not called GoodWrites. This is where people placed their reviews other than their blog or when they do not have a blog.


SHELVING...

books are personal. You as an author, do not have a say on where I would place your book. It is MY shelf and you do not have the right to MESS WITH IT. Although it is YOUR BOOK, it is also mine. You wrote it, I owned it. And I can do or say whatever I want about the things I own.


RATINGS...

are for books. We do not rate your personality (unless you give us reasons to do so). They are for BOOKS. How many times do we have to say this? Ratings are subjective so do not form a conspiracy theory if you get a one-star rating, despite having ten 5 stars. And please please please, do not mess with the system. Rating your own book and having friends/family to rate it is DISHONESTY. If you do not know why, then there is something very wrong with you as a person.


I wrote this post because some people just don't get it. Some people thinks it's a-ok to react to a negative review and take it personally. It is not. There are no exceptions. So I hope my message got to you. Don't start drama, nobody likes them.

Remember, reviewing should be an enjoyable experience to READERS. Don't spoil it.




DISCLAIMER: ALL RUDE and INAPPROPRIATE comments will be DELETED. So don't bother.


UPDATE:
Comments are now CLOSED.

16 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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    1. Rachelle, I do not think you GET THE MESSAGE of this post. Please try to read and understand the ENTIRE thing before commenting. It makes you look, sorry for the word, STUPID. If it's too tedious for you to read, then I strongly suggest to shut up.

      Delete
    2. "And about GR shelves: publicly classifying a book as "authors-behaving-badly" or "not-to-read" is BULLYING! You are declaring a ban on the books."

      WRONG. By shelving a book as such a reviewer is in no way, shape or form telling others to not read that book. They are, more accurately, putting a reminder to them self that they do not wish to read that book and why.

      Let us define bullying shall we.

      bullying
      Verb:
      Use superior strength or influence to intimidate (someone), typically to force him or her to do what one wants.

      Shelving a book as "not to read" is not bullying.

      Delete
    3. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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    4. So by your definition, by posting in an "intimidating" manner atm you are bullying the blogger.

      As for shelving... It's not banning because no one is forced to not read it. The choice is still there.

      Delete
    5. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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    6. Congratulations,

      No-one gives a shit. And who are you to say you aren't intimidating to her? You are not her.

      Delete
  2. Wow I have an odd feeling that the people that commented before me are the VERY people you are talking about here, Vanessa. I am appalled that you had to go through something that made you have to write this post. Frankly, I agree 100% with everything that you said.

    Don't let these people get you down! I assure you that all the other book reviewers and bloggers out there are on your side. Reviewers are not getting paid to edit or are there to coddle authors and be their bffs. We are here to rate thier books HONESTLY. If we don't like their book, we have the right to let people know why we feel that way without being harassed.

    A perfect example of this problem is what happened to Wendy Darling on GoodReads for her review of The Selection. She gave it a 1 star review and the author proceeded to call her a "bitch" on Twitter among other things - and now many of Wendy's hundreds of followers have VOWED not to read this book. Authors, you are really doing yourself more harm than good by harassing reviewers. Not only are you making a fool of yourself, but you are actually lowering your sales. (If you want to see the review and author's comments go here to message #270: [link])

    I'm here for you Vanessa! :)

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    1. Thanks, Linny. The reason I put up this post is because I actually received a venomous comment about a review I wrote. I simply deleted that. I thought it wasn't a big deal, and I was glad that it didn't affect anybody. And then all these drama started happening at Goodreads. Trolls started attacking my friends and even me for defending a fellow reviewer. Heck, even one of my friends got into a heated discussion about plagiarism. The troll went as far as saying that author Jim Butcher (Dresden Files) is not famous and my friend is a nobody. Not only trolls, but authors joined in as well (on a different discussion). Talk about being classy. I mean, really?

      Disagreeing with one's opinion is one thing, but invading a reviewer's space is UNACCEPTABLE.

      I heard what happened to Wendy and I simply cannot believe the nerve of these people. Wendy Darling is a very nice lady, I have nothing but good things to say about her. She even recommended amazing books for me to read. Thanks for reminding me about The Selection, I just took it off my to read list. Somehow, I kept forgetting to do that.

      Thank you again, Linny. Your support means so much to me.

      Delete
  3. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  4. GUESS WHO?!

    LOL. Iknow, Iknow. U told me to gt my own acct? But im 2 lzy. Cn u make me 1?

    HAHAHA! U mad yet?

    OKOKOK, no more chat speak from now on. Yeah, yeah, it annoys the hell out of you! But I haz having so much fun. :)

    Van, you weren't kidding when you told me about this topic. I was too busy licking the ice cream dripping on my fingers when you were speaking, so the details were a little sketchy. But from what I recalled, some blah blah blah was blah blah blah-ing blah blah. No?

    After reading your blog, everything makes more sense now! Seriously, these authors need to get their shit together. If it weren't for US READERS they wouldn't have a career. And... and I can't believe that someone doesn't know JIM BUTCHER. THE Jim Butcher. I practically worship him, you know that! I didn't spend my Saturdays ransacking used bookstores for nothing, OK? Grrr!

    Don't mind these haters, Van. I'm sure they are just insecure that you have a very beautiful and fantastic blog. (You owe me a pack of JellyAce for saying that.)

    LoveLoveLove,
    Cousin J

    ReplyDelete
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    1. J, you know I hate people who type lyk dis! For that, you ain't getting your JellyAce! Muahahaha!

      And I appreciate that my rant the other day was overpowered by a measly ice cream. -_- How dare you! How dare that ice cream. Hmp. Okokok, kidding aside, you should really get a Google account. What are you? 80? Some days, I think you are just doing that to spite me! That's great. No JellyAce for you, young woman. *shakes head*

      Well, at least get a GR account because you are so missing out!

      Delete
  5. Wow... So not even blogs are safe now... Disgusting.

    Van, I'm sorry to see so much vehement hate to your opinion. Personally I think the people who disagree with you, whilst yes they're entitled to that opinion, need to grow the hell up and put on their big girl panties.

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    1. I'm really shocked with the reactions I'm getting. It's just so appalling to know that there is no longer a safe place for opinions.

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    2. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  6. This was really interestin post! And I agree with you!:)

    BTW, I'm new follower! Thnx for adding me on Twitter.

    glass @ I'm a reader, what about you?

    ReplyDelete