Dealing with the Issue of Critical Reviews

Being an author means you have to constantly question and reevaluate your writing, especially when it is based on reader feedback and reviews. If you don’t, then you risk committing the same mistakes going forward. Acting on constructive criticism, even when it bruises your ego, can mean the difference between staying a mediocre author and becoming a great one.

Bad reviews are part of the game and you have to learn how to deal with them. The truth is your book will not be a perfect fit for every reader. I know I have read some books I considered a challenge to finish. The thought of leaving a bad review didn’t cross my mind because I felt that it was a personal thing. Just because I didn’t connect with the book, didn’t mean others wouldn’t. I look at James Patterson’s first Alex Cross novel, Along Came a Spider, which has more 1-star reviews than all reviews combined of my debut novel, Perfect Pawn.

I have had some scathing reviews in the past about my editing, or lack thereof, such as this one 1-star review:

‘The author has a message and a knack for plot. Unfortunately, what he doesn't have is an editor.’ 

I liked the first part, but inwardly cringed on the second. Interestingly enough, the aforementioned Patterson book also got slammed in a review for grammar and typos. Being compared to James Patterson wouldn’t be a bad thing, except in this case.

I will not lie, a bad review hurts; a lot. You can’t help but take it personally. It’s the literary equivalent of someone saying your child’s ugly.

I’d like to say they were wrong, but the reality is they were right. The problem with being an indie author is that the vast majority of the time you are it. This means, besides writing, you also wear a multitude of other publishing hats. I don’t believe the average reader understands the financial costs of publishing your books, not that this is an excuse, but it is a legitimate roadblock for many indie authors.

Consider the following:

A ballpark estimate for an editor will run an author about $1000 - $1500. They can expect to pay about $250 + for a book cover. If they lack the skill, formatting your e-book and print edition can run another $200 to $300 dollars. These are all ballpark estimates, but, as you can see, the numbers add up quickly. That does not count advertising, which is crucial if you want to reach an audience that will generate sales. Depending on genre, that can run anywhere from $500 to $1000 per month, per advertising outlet.

Realistically speaking, the average cost for an indie author to publish their novel will be in the $2k range, not including advertising. This also does not reflect the author’s writing time. I know that my first book took a year to write. How much value do you place on that?  How many people would be willing to dedicate a year or more of their life without the expectation to get paid? Apparently we writers are a masochistic lot.

In all likelihood, an author will have to sell nearly 1k e-books just to break even on the initial production costs. I can tell you from experience that, without the help of ads, that milestone will take years to achieve.

Indie authors have a much tougher slog to achieve their literary dreams than legacy house authors, but that doesn’t mean we cannot accomplish it. It just takes more time and creativity.

I recently took a hard look at my earlier works. After doing re-reads, I can tell you I was dismayed to find that many of the more critical reviews were accurate. While the stories themselves are great, the literary errors could dampen the reading experience, especially for critical readers. As a result, I went back and began to re-edit my catalog of books.

 At present, I have re-edited and re-published: Perfect Pawn and Queen’s Gambit, the first two books in the James Maguire series. I have also completed the re-edit of Small Town Secrets, book one in the Alex Taylor series, and I hope to have this book re-published next month, with an updated cover. I am almost finished with the re-edit of Bishop’s Gate. As I re-publish each book I will make an announcement when it is available.  

My goal for 2020 is to give the reader the best literary experience I can by re-editing all of my books in chronological order. It’s the best I can do, unless someone out there knows Henry Cavill, of Netflix’s Witcher fame, and can get him interested in playing the part of James Maguire (Yes, he was the inspiration from the beginning).

Once again, thank you for your continued support. If you love my books leave a review, if you have issues please let me know.

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