Criticising a book - to the author

As long as you are honest and respectful in your crit, I don't see the problem. The people that bash and author and it takes on a personal note, they are going way too far.

I once had a conversation with an author on her site. I love her books, but one of them had some errors. She was writing about a profession that I actually had, so I felt the need to say something to her. I was very nice to her, and made sure to list all the wonderful things I loved as well. She wrote back to me, and it was cery gracious and appreciative. We talk every once in awhile now.

As for LKH, don't get me started on her. I loved her AB books when they first started. It was the first UF I had ever read, and got me into the genre. Don't like her books anymore, don't like her attitude (she once wrote in an article how she pretty much invented the vampire genre how it is today, and claimed SMeyer stole ideas from her), and I don't think I would like her as a person.

jana13k said:

I hired a maid a long time ago or things would have gotten dire.

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I can't afford to hire a maid. I'm marrying one instead

I would seriously consider moving to a smaller flat if I didn't have so many books, so I'd have a smaller 'territory' to keep clean.

My husband's a screenwriter. His books dominate the ground floor, mine the first. Funny enough, we ordered two additional bookcases only yesterday...

To be honest, I love having books lying around all over the place. It's indicative of who we are.

My idea of cleaning a room is sweeping it with a glance. ~Anonymous ( I think)
C

One of the best things about e-readers is you only have one object to dust, not thousands. And if you read on it enough, the dust doesn't get a chance to accumulate.

Of course, I'm still buying paper and keeping the thousands I already have.

I have absolutely no problem criticising work (did used to be a teacher, mind ). I am a fair bit more polite to the unpublished authors, though. If I pay for a book, I expect quality -- and if I don't get it then I speak up. It's a shame you can't send a book back in the same way you can a badly cooked steak...of course writing is subjective, but there'd still be a lot less drivel on the market. I think the one bad thing about the growth of epublishing is that on the whole, the smaller publishers are setting the bar rather low. I'm surprised such drivel could ever be approved.

seun said:

I recently read a book which I thought was pretty poor due to it obviously not being proofed properly and some generally weak writing. I posted a review on Amazon and someone who I now know to be the author commented regarding the proof read issue. They were polite, as was I, and I didn't think any more of it until I clicked their name and discovered they're the author.

Just for a second, I felt bad, but then figured there was nothing to feel bad about. I read the book, didn't like it and said so. Just because the author read my thoughts doesn't change anything and nor should it.

So, would you think twice about criticising a published book when you know the author has read your review?

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I can't think on anything more useless than criticising a book on Amazon, or pretty much anywhere else, no matter who reads the review.

A book I love may be worth commenting on, but my time is far too valuable to waste any of it commenting on a book I don't like.

Jamesaritchie said:

I can't think on anything more useless than criticising a book on Amazon, or pretty much anywhere else, no matter who reads the review.

A book I love may be worth commenting on, but my time is far too valuable to waste any of it commenting on a book I don't like.

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Some of us (far less important personages than yourself, obviously) like to share our opinions with fellow readers, because a well-written opinion, positive or negative, may help us decide whether a book is worth checking out.

Jamesaritchie said:

I can't think on anything more useless than criticising a book on Amazon, or pretty much anywhere else, no matter who reads the review.

A book I love may be worth commenting on, but my time is far too valuable to waste any of it commenting on a book I don't like.

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If a bad review (the thought out and specific kind, not "this sux") keeps someone from blowing money on a sub-par novel, then it's not useless. If a book isn't up to professional standards, is unedited, has an unsatisfying conclusion (which is an opinion, but no less valid), or veers sharply from the perception of the book's plot, then why not spend a couple of minutes saying so? It's no less pointless than hanging out on a message board where people share information.