The Author’s Big Mistake: Responding to Reviews
Most authors know that it’s a mistake to attack reviewers. Some call it the Author’s Big Mistake. Sadly, not all authors grasp this.
Authors are often told not to respond to reviews. Yet they still keep doing it, so much so that some authors are better known for their attacks than for their books.
A recent brouhaha on Twitter brought this to light.
The Latest Author Versus Reviewer Scandal
I knew something was wrong when several reviewers I follow posted on Twitter about feeling upset and betrayed. Including Ginger Nuts of Horror; Bark at the Ghouls; Divination Hollow; Char’s Horror Corner; and Ghost Orchid Press.
What was the cause? I looked around. And I found the post! Out of the blue, an author suddenly tweeted about her great new idea. A podcast where people interviewed authors and read their worst Goodreads reviews to them.
Uhm… No. Nope. Nopety nope.
The post got several hundred likes. Yeesh! But it also got 73 quote tweets, including many people pushing back on the idea.
Reviewers were upset because so many of them work their butts off to review books, often at their own expense, only to get attacked by authors. There are even cases of authors physically attacking reviewers.
