Tuesday 13 October 2015

Amazon reviews

For some time, I have been reviewing books (and other things) as part of the Amazon Vine programme, and I've given the whole subject a lot of thought. I thought it might be helpful to other writers to share some of the things I have discovered.

1. Beware the one-off five-star review. If a review is (usually) an ecstatic, five star review, and the writer of that review has only written one or two (or no) reviews before, the odds are that this is a friend/famly member of the author. This may be fine, but it probably means that the writer is trying - with the  best intentions - to be kind, but the review will inevitably be biased.

2. It is better to have more reviews, with a wider range of ratings. After all, not everyone will enjoy our work, and it's fine for  readers to say so. It at least means someone has read the book, and taken the trouble to review it.

3. Especially beware the reviewer who tries to promote his/her own book through the review: ie "Review by  ANNE CLEVER-DICK,  author of  MY WONDERFUL NOVEL". I came across one of these yesterday. The review is not about you, Ms. Cleverdick. It's about someone else's book.

4. Never write a highly critical review using the name under which you write. Pay-back is only a matter of time, and you may well find your own book slammed by the author (and his friends).

5. If you can get a top reviewer to read and review your book, so much the better. All reviewers are rated by Amazon.

I have experienced all these things - including the ecstatic relatives - and you may already know all this. But I thought it was worth saying (forgive me if I'm stating the obvious in this post).

Cautionary tale: ages ago, I approached a publisher with a view to asking them to look at a book of mine. I received an amazingly forgiving email saying that "as I had just reviewed one of their novelists under the heading 'Where, oh where, was the editor?', she declined the opportunity to read my novel". Oops. I apologised profusely, and she was so gracious that I really wished I could have had her as my publisher. It was quite clever of her to trace me as I review under a different name.

20 comments:

  1. I must get at least one book a week from Amazon and have never felt qualified to review them.
    I am always being asked to review mail order stuff and it is very difficult. I just purchased a hundred AA batteries and was asked to write a review.
    " Wonderful they are full of electricity, arrived on time but were a bit heavy to carry from the farm yard to the van. I preferred the old colour scheme."

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    1. No qualifications are required for Amazon reviews, Adrian - just honest opinions by people who've read the book.

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    2. Adrian, Patsy answered for me. BTW are those stars or kisses...?

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    3. Ps Adrian, I love the battery review!

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    4. Stars.......but they look like kisses. Should have used a big * but it is too high up.

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  2. I quite enjoy reviewing books but we do have to write rather a lot of reviews these days - almost every time we buy something! I suppose it's useful.

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    1. Jenny, I like reviewing books as otherwise I forget what I've read and whether I liked it. Old age or something.....

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  3. My Mum is in the Vine programme, too, and she gets LOTS of stuff to review. She loves it, and she often gets really good things for us, not just books. For instance, I got a new hoover two weeks ago. I also have a t-shirt, new undies, shower gel, shampoo and other toiletries/cosmetics. Whenever I receive something like that, I use the product and write a review that my Mum will post under her name - but always saying "my daughter tried it for me and this is what she said".
    When it comes to books, I sometimes get negative comments from people who think that I am too harsh, for instance because I mention errors in translations, or bad editing.
    Your No. 3 on this post made me laugh - are people really that daft? Yes, I'm afraid they are.

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    1. Yes, the Vine programme is great fun. But they seem to think I'm a hirsute pet-owner who needs multiple toothbrushes, and a change would be nice!

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  4. Although I used to write reviews on my book blog and I was always completely honest as I saw things I don't do any now. When Meike writes a review on her blog I like it and take it on board because of the sort of review she writes and because I know it will be honest. I will or will not put a book on my list to be read based on her reviews. If I read your reviews I would do similarly. But reviews by people I don't know are less helpful to me unless they are telling me, for example, that the grammar is appalling.

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    1. If reviews are comprehensive and well written, I take notice. They can be useful especially when buying age-appropriate things. As for writing them, it's an excellent excuse for not doing Proper Writing...

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  5. I was (almost) pleased when I got my first 2 star review as I felt it made the others seem more convincing somehow.

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    1. I quite agree, Patsy. Two many five stars can look suspicious, especially if they're one-liners and the reviewer probably hasn't even read the book.

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  6. I do quite often glance through a few reviews if I'm thinking of buying a book on Amazon unknown to me. I always read one or two of the most critical reviews (1-2 stars) as well, as they sometimes contain valuable info like if the book is full of errors. I have published a few reviews myself on Amazon too (as well as on my own blog), but never on demand.

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    1. Vine members are given a choice of things to review, so fortunately there's no obligation. But before choosing one, I do look at reviews, as I don't enjoy lumbering myself with 500 pages of twaddle!

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  7. I rarely read book reviews. The blurb on the back is enough for me to know if I might like the book. If book reviews are anything like hotel reviews then they are personal points of views, and what pleases one, needn't please another. I'll take my chances.

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    1. Maggie, I mistrust blurb, as it is always written to tempt the reader. I do find looking up a reviewer's five star book ratings gives me an idea of whether we like the same things.

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  8. I'd never heard of anyone doing as you mention in number 3! And while I agree with most, I can categorically say that soemtimes 5* reviews are because readers we don't know have genuinely enjoyed the book that much!

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    1. I quite agree, Rosemary. It's just that I've found that if a writer has a lot of five star reviews by people who have never reviewed anything else, and no other reviews , it's a bit suspicious. But five star review in general are helpful. - and very welcome! But this is only my experience.

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