Bad Reviews--keep 'em to yourselves please

[frostokovich]

Preface: I wrote this in respone to a post on another site from a woman who'd sent her client a copy of a bad review of their work with the (to me, misdirected) idea that somehow the writer would be able to use the comments to advantage, gain some insight from it. Someone else in the group felt this deserved further blogging...and so, it's your

Comments

[realthog]

"I've seen them vengefully put particularly noxious critics into their books as (not making this up) the parasitic creatures who live inside the anus of dragons, sucking off the dragon's shit."

Dang! You mean other writers do this too?

[kylecassidy]

He must be talking about Dante!

I do like to hear my bad crits -- well, I hope there aren't any, but I'm prepared for them when they arrive. Some I realize are unfounded, and those bounce away. Some are rooted in truth and hopefully they make me better in the future. But it's all a balancing act , weighing the potential value with the source.

[realthog]

"Some I realize are unfounded, and those bounce away."

Actually, the unfounded ones really piss me off, because there the reviewer's guilty (unless simply an incompetent) of an abuse of power: he/she is taking advantage of the fact that the author has effectively no right of reply.

Legitimate criticism is pretty pissing off too, obviously, but there the pissed-offedness is directed at oneself!

[kylecassidy]

A lot of the "reviews" I get will be from j-random person on the Interwebz. And I'll get something that says "the lighting in Kyle Cassidy's photographs blow" and I'll look at their portfolio and it's a bunch of photos of babies and dogs so I'll be like "okay, file that one under 'pay it no mind'."

I think a lot of people just have a need to have an opinion especially people who want to be, developmentally, somewhere they're not. They want to be a writer, but they've never been published, and they find the quickest way to think of themselves in that fraternity is by having critical comments about others. If I can realize it as just being someone trying to prop themselves up I, can forgive a baseless criticism.

The ones that suck are the ones you realize are true, but hopefully they make you better next time.

[frostokovich]

That's not uncommon, I think. I have the power to drown out the positive and see only the negative, too. Hence, avoidance is my only safe haven.

[tcastleb]

On my first e-book, I got a couple very scathing reviews that made me mope for a week. I did learn what *not* to do from those, and I didn't do anything in retaliation. Though when my print story comes out next month I think I might borrow your filtering friend to sort reviews for it 'cause it's making me nervous . . .

And then there's Eddie

[frostokovich]

I've been tangentially involved in the Poe celebration going on here in Philadelphia (and Baltimore, Richmond, Boston, etc.), and as someone noted at opening ceremonies for new exhibits at the Poe House, while we remember him for his fiction, we forget that he was the most damning critic of his time, which only fueled his inability to make a living. He savaged the entire Boston literary world; while much of his fiction was a reaction to their work, he also desperately wanted to be part of their circle. He alienated so many figures, even friends, with his critical razors that Rufus Griswold had a pretty easy time assassinating his character after he died.
And if that's your idea of a good time...I still don't want to know about it.

Re: And then there's Eddie

[frostokovich]

Having a John Lennon moment, are we?

[jongibbs]

I like the idea about ignoring something rather than writing a bad review. Assuming it's not self-published, then someone, somewhere thought it was good.