Oh let’s face it, the arena of life is filled with critics
regardless of what profession, or walk of life you are from. Everyone has a
say, which really belongs to the person who critiquing whatever it is they're
reading, working on, or just want to chime in on something other than their
own. Projecting evaluations of another’s
work isn’t the last say, it's only one person’s say! It doesn’t mean it’s a definitive,
or a means to sway others in any direction whatsoever. It's merely just input,
giving direction of sorts to either, better oneself in the area of expertise
of your work, or just trying to give a personal perspective on their very own
liking of whatever it is you're doing or have done.
It's a blessing in disguise really when you think of it, for
it lends the credence of you and in saying so; they're taking notice of you.
Good or bad, a critique is still “Good”, as it's the benchmark for you to work
at understanding the fact, not everyone will like, or achieve that same result
as many others who might agree, or even disagree with what's being evaluated.
Never walk away from a Critic’s view point, for remember, it’s
only one view point that actually is constructive criticism and you can draw
from that. Once again, no one critique will be the same as the other, thus, you,
as the subject of the inquisition, have an opportunity to utilize all aspects
of what's being said. A personal point of view has its merits and then again,
that's all it is, a personal point of view. Remember, the critic, is only as good as his/her
critique, which gives you the upper hand in the first place. Always look at it
through rose colored glasses, as well as a glass half full!
-Robbie Thomas
-Robbie Thomas
I agree with what you are saying Robbie. A review is great exposure for an author be it good, or not so good, it draws attention to your work.
ReplyDeleteHere's my two cents worth about how I feel a review should be written to give the prospective reader a solid basis on whether to lay out the money for the book.
Read only the genres you enjoy. If you don't like sci-fi don't agree to review the book as your opinion will be more about how you like the book personally, instead of the merits of the author’s writing. In other words, review the book you read -- not the book you wish the author had written.
In all fairness to the author, read the entire book. You cannot review a book fairly if you read just a few chapters.
Be clear and concise. Don’t talk in circles. Say what you mean. If you start out the review with a bang singing the virtues of the book, you can’t change your mind in the middle of the review. For example if you say the book is a grab you by the seat of your pants, holy crap it’s scary read, you can’t go on to say the book didn’t generate enough suspense to keep your attention. To do otherwise makes you look wishy-washy and will leave a person who wants to read the book no further ahead than if they purchased the book based only on the jacket synopsis. And, if you have nothing nice to say keep your opinions to yourself. A one star rating looks bad on both the reviewer and the author.