Rating Your Book on Goodreads

Pearl · Oct 25, 2012

I don't know if this has been mentioned before, but I've been noticing some authors are giving their books 5 stars on Goodreads - some even before their book is released.

I can understand wanting to spread the word about your book, but doing that sounds desperate. I also wouldn't buy a book from an author who openly admits to giving their book glowing reviews. I mean, of course you think your book is awesome - you wrote it!

Goodreads shouldn't leave room for authors to openly give their book 5 stars. It's just another problem of authors promoting their books the wrong way, at least to me.

Torgo · Oct 25, 2012

Pearl said:
Goodreads shouldn't leave room for authors to openly give their book 5 stars. It's just another problem of authors promoting their books the wrong way, at least to me.

I don't really mind if authors rate their own books openly, as it's really easy to discount; what bothers me a lot more is sock-puppetry. I agree it's kind of pointless.

RemiJ · Oct 25, 2012

I wish that I could remember the book title. Anyway an author gave himself 5 stars and then wrote the comment, It's my book of course I liked it (paraphrasing). I thought that was cute.

It charmed so much that i almost bought his book. If it hadn't been in the steampunk genre I would have bought it. I'm too old for steampunk.

I guess it's all in how you present the review.

You know what I like on Goodreads? When authors like all their reviews, even the bad ones. Excellent perspective that I hope I'll have when I get to the publishing point.

*When I say bad review I'm not meaning the hateful ones, specifying the ones that offer constructive criticism.

fireluxlou · Oct 25, 2012

Does rating their own books affect the rating?

dolores haze · Oct 25, 2012

fireluxlou said:
Does rating their own books affect the rating?

Yes, it does.

In the excitement of my own first book release I rated and reviewed my own book. Gave it four stars and critiqued the ending, which I had decided was too rushed. Um, yeah. Not always the sharpest tool in the shed, me. Anyway, I thought about it, then deleted it. I still rate and sometimes review other people's books, but stay the hell away from my own.

leahzero · Oct 25, 2012

Pearl said:
Goodreads shouldn't leave room for authors to openly give their book 5 stars. It's just another problem of authors promoting their books the wrong way, at least to me.

Yeah, I complained to them about this before, and they defended their decision to allow it.

No idea what they expect readers to gain from an author rating and reviewing their own work. It's asinine.

But this is Goodreads, which still refuses to give us a Hide Images option, and where the latest YA book is a clusterfuck of hyperactive flashing GIFs. Meh.

fireluxlou · Oct 25, 2012

leahzero said:
Yeah, I complained to them about this before, and they defended their decision to allow it.

No idea what they expect readers to gain from an author rating and reviewing their own work. It's asinine.

But this is Goodreads, which still refuses to give us a Hide Images option, and where the latest YA book is a clusterfuck of hyperactive flashing GIFs. Meh.

Oh I liked it to begin with but the gif reviews got old fast.

Gilroy Cullen · Oct 25, 2012

I think Librarything is working on a header that states the review is written by the author. Most times, regular users there flag reviews by the author.

Plus no gif reviews.

Deleted member 42 · Oct 25, 2012

Don't rate or review your own books even under a nym.

Old Hack · Oct 25, 2012

Medievalist said:
Don't rate or review your own books even under a nym.

This. I cringe every time I see a writer reviewing their own books. Once when I suggested it was a poor strategy to follow I was told that Goodreads encourages writers to do it. I'm not so sure it does, but even if that's true it's still a foolish thing to do.

BenPanced · Oct 25, 2012

I wrote the damn things, so it's a given everybody knows how much I love my books. To go on Goodreads and rate myself can only backfire.

GeekTells · Oct 26, 2012

Wait, how are people going to know how awesome my writing is if I don't tell them?

::ducks Medievalist's blow::

Anna L. · Oct 26, 2012

Rating your own book is a terrible idea. If you give yourself five stars you look like an egomaniac, and if you give yourself fewer stars you look insecure.

It really bothers me when authors do that.

Polenth · Oct 26, 2012

I find rating your own book odd (though once I did it by accident and it took me time to figure out how to switch the rating back to nothing, so that can happen), but it's very transparent when done from the author's account. Goodreads flags it as being from the author. So I'd still buy the books, as it's odd and a waste of time, but not deceptive.

Creating sockpuppets and accounts that aren't listed as being the author is deceptive, and that would be a no-buy for me once it came out.

aikigypsy · Oct 26, 2012

I saw one review by the author on Goodreads that I approved of, it read something like this:

"It's my book, so I think it's great."

Because it was done with a sense of humor, it came across OK.

Alessandra Kelley · Oct 26, 2012

Goodreads does NOT encourage authors to review their own books.

But neither does it do anything to discourage the practice.

My husband's books are on Goodreads. I have a sentence or two review of each one without a star rating, explaining my relation to him.

You can easily review books on Goodreads without giving them stars.

Goodreads is understaffed and has a general hands-off policy, which has led to a lot of spamming, a lot of flame wars, and a lot of cheezy manipulation of ranks and votes, in many ways worse than Amazon.

For an example, I went to test the accuracy of its lists of recommendations.

After the Hugo Awards were announced a month or two ago, I went to Goodreads' official "best science fiction of 2011" list, since that would be the pool for the 2012 awards.

I think maybe one of the Hugo nominees was actually on it, some way down. I don't recall that I spotted a single actual Hugo winner on it.

Mostly it seemed to be dominated by "Goodreads Author" self-published young-adult stuff I have never heard spoken of anywhere else.

Which tells me that, however good the Goodreads idea sounded initially, it's become a haven for hucksters and self-promoters and has probably become next to useless for getting accurate information about good books.

Hip-Hop-a-potamus · Oct 26, 2012

fireluxlou said:
Oh I liked it to begin with but the gif reviews got old fast.

The one flashy .gif one for Fifty Shades almost made me pee my pants I was laughing so hard.

I know. TMI, Lains.

Fallen · Oct 26, 2012

That's a damn shame to hear about Goodreads.

I'll willingly say I know nothing about promotions, in fact I'm still trying to figure out what exactly a domain name is so I can follow Med's thread on just getting the basics of a website up.

But I'm a member on goodreads as a reader and love rating. Kind of kills things to know authors are rating themselves *grumbles*.

Amadan · Oct 26, 2012

Meh. I rated all the game supplements for which I am listed as an author. (I didn't even give them all 5 stars.) But I made it clear I was an author/editor/contributor.

It's probably silly for an author to rate/review their own work, but as long as they're clearly identified as the author. I don't see that it's an issue Goodreads needs to "fix."

More moderation of lists and things would be nice.

I avoid seeing most of the self-published hucksters because I mostly read reviews of people on my friends list.

Polenth · Oct 26, 2012

Alessandra Kelley said:
Which tells me that, however good the Goodreads idea sounded initially, it's become a haven for hucksters and self-promoters and has probably become next to useless for getting accurate information about good books.

If you're relying on things that can be gamed with votes, it's not reliable... I don't bother with lists most of the time. But if you find some reviewers in the genres you like to read and friend/follow them, it is useful. I'm trying to get into the habit of adding reviews for things rather than just rating, as I think it's a lot more helpful for people.

TroyJackson · Oct 28, 2012

I have refused to rate or review my own book. I agree that it just sounds/looks desperate. My new book has been out a little over a week now, and naturally friends and family have bought it. The trick for me is ensuring that they don't all review my book in various places with all-glowing reviews when they may not have even read the book. Also, what I REALLY hope they don't do, is to not even mention they know me. I think that would shoot any credibility, because they now have attached themselves personally with the author and even though the author may not have asked them to, some might view it as asking friends/family to puff up their ratings.

ohthatmomagain · Oct 28, 2012

I didn't rate or review my own book on GR, but it was tempting lol.

thothguard51 · Oct 28, 2012

All the writer of any book should give me is the blurb.

If they can't sell me in the blurb, then a review is not going to matter. Writers reviewing their own books is tacky and would turn me off of that book, and maybe even the writer...

Chiquita Banana · Oct 29, 2012

Reviews - no, never. But I think you can rate your own book if you do it with a sense of humor. Helps if you already have a lot of other ratings too.

Just yesterday I was on the Goodreads page of a successful author friend of mine and saw she'd rated her book five stars along with a "well, of course I think my book is five stars" and possibly a smiley face. Can't remember. But she already had over 500 ratings and high stars, so I reckon no one would be offended or dismayed by her rating her own book.

As for me, I haven't rated my book and haven't considered it. I'm still in the low double digits as far as ratings.

Stacia Kane · Oct 29, 2012

Chiquita Banana said:
Just yesterday I was on the Goodreads page of a successful author friend of mine and saw she'd rated her book five stars along with a "well, of course I think my book is five stars" and possibly a smiley face. Can't remember. But she already had over 500 ratings and high stars, so I reckon no one would be offended or dismayed by her rating her own book.

I would.

I know a lot of other people who would be, too.

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