I had someone message me on Facebook today and tell me they enjoyed Haunted Lake and that they were going to write a review. I was so happy that I had to hop on over to see it. Well, when I got there, it hadn’t come through yet, but I saw a review that was written yesterday. A review that made my heart feel good. Then the other review came through. I’m not going to quote the two reviews in their entirety because they are both long. And that sounds kind of, I don’t know, bragging or something. And I don’t usually list my reviews anywhere like many authors do. But I just wanted to share a little bit of what was said, simply because I’m SO deliriously happy about the reviews. This is what can sometimes jump start us as writers if we’re struggling.
The review by B.J. Robinson (the person who contacted me) says this: “I loved the characters John and Daniel and the heroine, Rachel.” and ” I loved the way the author wove in the theme of friendship and how powerful friendship is.” and ” If you want to be scared and love ghost stories and mystery, check out Haunted Lake. You might learn how to brave a few demons of your own.”
And the review, by Genevieve, that I didn’t know about that surprised me. See, I’ve often wondered whether or not readers could relate to my characters. I’ve had a couple of bad reviews that say they couldn’t relate. But when I read this…well, you can see why I feel good about the characters in Haunted Lake. “It had me in tears from the emotion that poured from the pages. Emotion is this author’s strongest quality in her writing. She conveys emotion so clearly and realistically that it is almost impossible to not act like an Empath and feel the emotions at the same time as the characters. Her writing, like a lot of great writers, makes you feel like you ARE the characters, but at the same time aren’t.”
/end of squee
I know we shouldn’t, as a general rule, read reviews. I used to get depressed over bad ones, but I know that reading tastes are subjective, and not everyone will like all books. I just hate the reviews that are kind of nasty. But when I know for sure I’m getting a good review because someone contacts me, I can’t help but go look. And what a surprise to find I got two good reviews two days in a row. So here’s a question for my fellow authors. Do you read your reviews and do you let them affect you?
lauralynnelliott.com 
I read reviews, but I only let the positive really seep in. If I get a less than positive review, I like to tease out what I can learn from it, but it often feels like my writing just didn’t click for that person. While there are lots of folks out there who will like it, we can’t ever produce a book everyone will like. It won’t happen. Good reviews, on the other hand, make me feel great, and there are days when I can use the motivation from reading positive feedback.
Good review are definitely good motivators. What bugs me is that most of my bad reviews are nasty and not anything can be learned from them. And I hate reviews where a reader will say “Don’t waste your money on this book”. How do they know someone else won’t like it? Or even worse, “Don’t waste you money on this book. Try a book by (insert name of another author) instead”. You KNOW this has to be written by either that other author or a friend of that other author. LOL.
*jumping up and down and sqeeeing with you*
So glad you got some awesome reviews!
Thanks, Anya. Maybe that’s what I needed.
Positive reader feedback…. priceless.
Very exited and happy for you!
It is, isn’t it? Thanks, Nadja!
Those should be printed out and put on the “I feel bummed” wall so you can remind yourself that you do have people who love your work. That’s what I have to do when I feel down in the dumps. Love your reviews! 😀
That’s not a bad idea, Ruth. Sometimes it can get discouraging. I’m thinking of doing a post with my BAD reviews so I can joke about them. Lol.
They are lovely reviews. I used to read every review of my stuff on Goodreads and Amazon – I don’t anymore. I learned my lesson 🙂
I’m smiling reading your last comment about doing a post with your bad reviews. A horror writer, Willie Meikle used to list a sample of his bad reviews on his website. I found it refreshing and it made me laugh.
There is definitely some humor found in some bad reviews. Especially when it’s a book that gets mostly good reviews, you can almost be sure something’s going on. Although, reading is subjective, so a 5 star for one person might be a 1 star for another. It’s hard to believe people are so far apart in their opinions, but there it is. I had two bad reviews on B & N that I’m almost sure were written by the same person, and they were kind of stupid and made me laugh. LOL.