Authors Lounge discussion

Hello Wordsmiths

What's the protocol with "liking" reviews of your own books?

I haven't done it so far but am now wondering if it's actually general practice.

Cheers, Cassian

I don't know what other authors do, but I "like" the reviews I get.

I've seen it happen a number of times and, honestly, I really don't see why not. There have been a lot of comments in other threads about how authors shouldn't respond whatsoever to reviews. But, I tend to disagree. Of course, the posters are usually referring to very negative, abusive author responses to a less than flattering review. In that case, I agree that the author should refrain from saying anything at all. But, I see no harm in "liking" a review of your books.

If a reader/reviewer takes the time to read one of my books, and document their remarks and comments in a positive manner, I typically "like" their review, thank them for their time and thoughts. I think it encourages them to do the same for other books and authors, and gives credence to their opinion and efforts.

I do it, and I can't see any harm in it.

I do it, too. If someone makes the effort to write and post a review, what's wrong with acknowledging it?

I've just started liking my reviews. Can't see a problem with it, so I wish I'd done it all along!

Margaret wrote: "I do it, too. If someone makes the effort to write and post a review, what's wrong with acknowledging it?"

Exactly. I can't see any way for it to be a bad thing.

Paul wrote: "Margaret wrote: "I do it, too. If someone makes the effort to write and post a review, what's wrong with acknowledging it?"

Exactly. I can't see any way for it to be a bad thing."
Agreed.:)

Denise wrote: "I agree with so many of you about wanting to thank a reviewer for reading and writing a review...BUT, I have read articles by well-known authors that say stay away from it. Don't respond to good or..."

To me, a simple 'like' is not an intrusion, just an acknowledgement. :)

There's a forum on this on the Amazon boards, started by readers. The overwhelming opinion there was all the readers were freaked out by the author responding to their reviews.

I think they consider the book "public" and some of them felt constrained to be nice if they felt the author was watching them review, as it were.

GR does have that simple "Like" option though, and I always click that, just to show I've read the review and appreciate it. I don't post comments on the review though. Perhaps I would if someone asked me a direct question, and I've responded with thanks for people who have highlighted my typos.

Tony wrote: "There's a forum on this on the Amazon boards, started by readers. The overwhelming opinion there was all the readers were freaked out by the author responding to their reviews.

I think they consi..."

I can readily see that it's highly inappropriate for an author to attempt to refute criticism, and the possibility of this happening would be daunting to those wishing to point out perceived failings in a work.

NO. Using search engine tagging to promote a review is pretty close to sock monkeying. Readers may appreciate a thank you message, but beyond that, nothing is best, IMHO.

Denise wrote: "Margaret wrote: "Denise wrote: "I agree with so many of you about wanting to thank a reviewer for reading and writing a review...BUT, I have read articles by well-known authors that say stay away f..."

True enough, Denise, but is it unthinkable that an author should agree with a positive review of their work, or even agree with any points of criticism made? Is it really wrong for an author to express such endorsement?

Let's say there is a real reason for in some way contacting/acknowledging a review. I would say send a PM, if that is possible, or if they are a known reviewer, send a personal email thank you, but the use of the social networks for this can be a problem of perception as a result of all the mis-use of FB and Twitter for masked self-promotion.

Here's a real-case example. My first book had a mix-up in the proofing due to not changing the filename. As a result, the version prior to my line copy editing was published and the book was full of typos, etc. The thing was, I didn't know it until a reviewer said she had issues with the editing. I hurried to thank the reviewer for the heads-up, then quickly revised the submitted manuscript name so that the edited version was published. I also replaced as many of the sold books as I could. It was a terrible embarrassment, but also a huge lesson. I now, never retain old version files at all, renaming each iteration after editing/rewriting. By the way, she also said she liked the story and read the whole book despite its issues, giving me a generally good review despite the errors. I am grateful to this day!

Denise wrote: "One thing I don't like as a reader and writer, and this is a bit off topic, are authors rating and writing their own reviews. I've seen it and feel it's extremely tacky. Of course you're going to think you're book is good or you wouldn't have published it."

I agree, Denise. This is not something I would personally do. Of course, I would give my book 5 stars and say it's the next best thing to sliced bread! The reviews and ratings from complete strangers will lend credibility and merit to my writing, not my own assessment of it.

Amazon, I keep quiet. That's a marketplace, and my voice is not needed or wanted. Goodreads is a community, and I do interact more with my readers here.

I usually "like" thorough reviews, good and bad. I want other readers to see the likes, and know that they're getting good information that may help them make an informed decision, even/especially if that information leads them to believe the book will be a bad fit for them. I know my work contains strong political themes, and adult content that many readers may choose not to expose themselves to.

I also send thank you messages to reviewers(regardless of whether the review was positive or negative) if we had corresponded prior to them reviewing the book. It's just common courtesy.

The only time I'll contact negative reviewers is if I'm concerned there's a larger problem, and I want to hear more of their issues, to resolve it. Whether it's correcting an issue with the item's presentation, recognizing the validity of their criticism, offering a refund, what have you. Some of that feedback has been the most useful.

No reader will like everything. It's not about changing their minds, defending myself, or anything of the sort. But to me, it perpetuates a cycle of negativity. Reviewers getting progressively more and more resentful with each book they dislike that they wasted their time on, while the authors ignore them and keep taking their money...

No writer should be reviewing their own work, though. Line up a few guest posts or interviews, if you feel you want to talk about it.

I never comment on reviews, but I usually "like" the ones that I appreciate.

It's rarely an issue though, after hundreds and hundreds of sales, I get almost no reviews at all. I don't know what the usual proportion of purchases to reviews is, but it looks like until I hit about 10,000 sales, the whole liking reviews isn't much of a consideration.