One of the things I did not realise until I became a published author is how much letters/emails from readers mean to an author.
Unlike Olivia, I did not cold write my writing heroes or indeed just authors whose work I had enjoyed. Then in 2006 shortly after it was published, I received this letter from a woman who worked in a casino in L…
One of the things I did not realise until I became a published author is how much letters/emails from readers mean to an author.
Unlike Olivia, I did not cold write my writing heroes or indeed just authors whose work I had enjoyed. Then in 2006 shortly after it was published, I received this letter from a woman who worked in a casino in Las Vegas and who had read my debut Harlequin-- The Gladiator's Honour and wrote to say that it gave her hope. I burst into tears. I still have that email (printed out and in my scrapbook which I use to chase the Crows of Doubt away).
The Crows of Doubt are real and can cause Writer's Block through their incessant cawing and carping and knowing that others have appreciated your work does assist.
Since then, I do write to authors and explain how much their work means to me and how grateful I am that they took the time to write it.
After all writers ultimately write for the people who get their work and it is always gratifying to hear that someone else enjoyed something which came from your imagination.
Thank you for that insight.... I have a question... are writers equally interested in criticism? Is only editorial criticism or writing style criticism more difficult to bear??
It depends on the author. And sometimes, a bad or even a meh review can hit very hard. You need to remember that no one is born published. Most authors have suffered many rejections before becoming published. Rule of thumb -- a bad review or rejection can ruin morning coffee but should never ruin supper as well.
An editor or agent's comments are the most important and are generally geared towards making the manuscript better. You have to learn to work with both and understand what they are actually saying. It can be a case of concentrating on the doughnut and not the hole -- if that makes any sense.
And sometimes with readers -- it depends on their insight. For example, if you write a story with a short, blonde hair heroine who has lots of curves and a past a reader writes wondering why you didn't choose a tall dark haired slender virgin -- there is very little you can take from that.
But it is always good that they cared enough to write...
Thanks to you and Celia M for responding. The reason I asked was that I read new authors on my kindle and Amazon will often ask for feedback or a review. I have yet to receive any comments from the authors. I cannot determine if its because they didn't agree with my feedback, or it wasn't instructive. The vast majority of any criticism I have given is due to typographical errors or editing errors like inconsistencies within the plot. Is this because my comments are not helpful? I always give good feedback on the merits of the stories or the characters they build.
Publishers generally instruct authors not to respond to any review. They can read them and sometimes take them to heart, but generally it does not help anyone if they respond, particularly to a harsh review. I have seen too many flame wars etc in my time and so know this to be sound advice. It is also best if an author doesn't get her dedicated readers to respond either. I don't know if you have read this new report from PEN America but it does describe some of the problems writers have had with social media including some of the trouble with online reviews: https://pen.org/report/booklash/ and if you haven't signed the Freedom to Read statement, please consider doing so.
Writing directly to an author should get a response. I always try to respond if a reader writes directly to me ...particularly when the reader has questions etc. But there have been times when I have written to authors because I have particularly enjoyed a book and haven't had responses so I guess all authors are different.
There are many times when I can't even read reviews on Amazon or Good Reads as it can mess with my process. I finally had to come to the conclusion that I write for my readers who enjoy my books and if I make mistakes, I can try harder the next time.
PD James used to tell stories about the mistakes she accidentally made including sending characters by the wrong train or having the wrong engine in a motorcycle etc. so I figure I am in good company. And as an author, I am always sorry if my mistakes are such that a reader is drawn out of the story as that is never my intention. My intention is always to create a story which grips and allows the reader to escape for the time they are reading it.
Comments on typographical or editing errors wouldn't normally require a response, unless clarification is needed. But many authors, once a book is actually published, can't do much about such errors. Constructive criticism is typically only useful BEFORE publication, except as general advice for future books.
If you're posting reviews on Amazon, it's worth noting that an author *responding* to a review on their work is generally considered bad form.
I'm not Michelle, but I'm a writer. Constructive criticism is always interesting and often useful, even if it makes me groan or wince. But constructive criticism is rare as hen's teeth.
I have found that most criticism from strangers is more a reflection of the criticizer than a commentary on my work. It's criticism from people who love me that hurts the most.
Celia, I understand “It’s criticism from people who love me that hurts the most” but it goes hand in hand with “is more a reflection of the criticizer”.
In the mid 1990s, while going thru a very difficult time, I began writing poetry. I’ve always loved poetry, but I am not, nor ever aspired to be a poet.
Sometime between midnight and dawn I would wake with an urgency to write. I’d leave my bed and sit in the family room furiously scribbling down my thoughts / feelings. After a couple hours I’d go back to bed exhausted. Next morning I was both shocked & unsettled reading what I’d written that I had no memory of.
The poems were haunting, dark and some were painful to read. They seemed to flow up & out of some deep, hidden place inside me. This continued night after night for a year.
Because of the crisis I was going through, I was fearful I might be writing my “swan song” and was headed for major life changes, or perhaps death. I was very sick at that time.
I began seeing a therapist and learned what I was experiencing was not uncommon. He suggested I not fear it, but embrace it as both cathartic and healing.
I wrote over 300 poems, but didn’t share them for a very long time. I felt they were elementary and too revealing. When I finally decided I had nothing to hide and read a couple to my mother + significant others in my circle, I was overwhelmed with their response of tears and praise and love!
All of this was to prompt me to finally feel comfortable enough to share the experience with my older sister. After allowing her to read a few of my poems, her criticism cut like a knife to the heart! She couldn’t believe MY memories of our childhood were so distorted and inaccurate. She literally scolded me!
I attempted to explain my poems weren’t consciously written, but rather came flowing out in a dreamlike state, and they were, according to my therapist, designed to help me cope & heal. Well, let me just say, my sister was apparently more astute than my therapist. She told me that until I wrote something “light, fun and inspiring” I should absolutely keep them to myself.
One of the things I did not realise until I became a published author is how much letters/emails from readers mean to an author.
Unlike Olivia, I did not cold write my writing heroes or indeed just authors whose work I had enjoyed. Then in 2006 shortly after it was published, I received this letter from a woman who worked in a casino in Las Vegas and who had read my debut Harlequin-- The Gladiator's Honour and wrote to say that it gave her hope. I burst into tears. I still have that email (printed out and in my scrapbook which I use to chase the Crows of Doubt away).
The Crows of Doubt are real and can cause Writer's Block through their incessant cawing and carping and knowing that others have appreciated your work does assist.
Since then, I do write to authors and explain how much their work means to me and how grateful I am that they took the time to write it.
After all writers ultimately write for the people who get their work and it is always gratifying to hear that someone else enjoyed something which came from your imagination.
Thank you for that insight.... I have a question... are writers equally interested in criticism? Is only editorial criticism or writing style criticism more difficult to bear??
It depends on the author. And sometimes, a bad or even a meh review can hit very hard. You need to remember that no one is born published. Most authors have suffered many rejections before becoming published. Rule of thumb -- a bad review or rejection can ruin morning coffee but should never ruin supper as well.
An editor or agent's comments are the most important and are generally geared towards making the manuscript better. You have to learn to work with both and understand what they are actually saying. It can be a case of concentrating on the doughnut and not the hole -- if that makes any sense.
And sometimes with readers -- it depends on their insight. For example, if you write a story with a short, blonde hair heroine who has lots of curves and a past a reader writes wondering why you didn't choose a tall dark haired slender virgin -- there is very little you can take from that.
But it is always good that they cared enough to write...
Thanks to you and Celia M for responding. The reason I asked was that I read new authors on my kindle and Amazon will often ask for feedback or a review. I have yet to receive any comments from the authors. I cannot determine if its because they didn't agree with my feedback, or it wasn't instructive. The vast majority of any criticism I have given is due to typographical errors or editing errors like inconsistencies within the plot. Is this because my comments are not helpful? I always give good feedback on the merits of the stories or the characters they build.
Publishers generally instruct authors not to respond to any review. They can read them and sometimes take them to heart, but generally it does not help anyone if they respond, particularly to a harsh review. I have seen too many flame wars etc in my time and so know this to be sound advice. It is also best if an author doesn't get her dedicated readers to respond either. I don't know if you have read this new report from PEN America but it does describe some of the problems writers have had with social media including some of the trouble with online reviews: https://pen.org/report/booklash/ and if you haven't signed the Freedom to Read statement, please consider doing so.
Writing directly to an author should get a response. I always try to respond if a reader writes directly to me ...particularly when the reader has questions etc. But there have been times when I have written to authors because I have particularly enjoyed a book and haven't had responses so I guess all authors are different.
There are many times when I can't even read reviews on Amazon or Good Reads as it can mess with my process. I finally had to come to the conclusion that I write for my readers who enjoy my books and if I make mistakes, I can try harder the next time.
PD James used to tell stories about the mistakes she accidentally made including sending characters by the wrong train or having the wrong engine in a motorcycle etc. so I figure I am in good company. And as an author, I am always sorry if my mistakes are such that a reader is drawn out of the story as that is never my intention. My intention is always to create a story which grips and allows the reader to escape for the time they are reading it.
Comments on typographical or editing errors wouldn't normally require a response, unless clarification is needed. But many authors, once a book is actually published, can't do much about such errors. Constructive criticism is typically only useful BEFORE publication, except as general advice for future books.
If you're posting reviews on Amazon, it's worth noting that an author *responding* to a review on their work is generally considered bad form.
I'm not Michelle, but I'm a writer. Constructive criticism is always interesting and often useful, even if it makes me groan or wince. But constructive criticism is rare as hen's teeth.
I have found that most criticism from strangers is more a reflection of the criticizer than a commentary on my work. It's criticism from people who love me that hurts the most.
Celia, I understand “It’s criticism from people who love me that hurts the most” but it goes hand in hand with “is more a reflection of the criticizer”.
In the mid 1990s, while going thru a very difficult time, I began writing poetry. I’ve always loved poetry, but I am not, nor ever aspired to be a poet.
Sometime between midnight and dawn I would wake with an urgency to write. I’d leave my bed and sit in the family room furiously scribbling down my thoughts / feelings. After a couple hours I’d go back to bed exhausted. Next morning I was both shocked & unsettled reading what I’d written that I had no memory of.
The poems were haunting, dark and some were painful to read. They seemed to flow up & out of some deep, hidden place inside me. This continued night after night for a year.
Because of the crisis I was going through, I was fearful I might be writing my “swan song” and was headed for major life changes, or perhaps death. I was very sick at that time.
I began seeing a therapist and learned what I was experiencing was not uncommon. He suggested I not fear it, but embrace it as both cathartic and healing.
I wrote over 300 poems, but didn’t share them for a very long time. I felt they were elementary and too revealing. When I finally decided I had nothing to hide and read a couple to my mother + significant others in my circle, I was overwhelmed with their response of tears and praise and love!
All of this was to prompt me to finally feel comfortable enough to share the experience with my older sister. After allowing her to read a few of my poems, her criticism cut like a knife to the heart! She couldn’t believe MY memories of our childhood were so distorted and inaccurate. She literally scolded me!
I attempted to explain my poems weren’t consciously written, but rather came flowing out in a dreamlike state, and they were, according to my therapist, designed to help me cope & heal. Well, let me just say, my sister was apparently more astute than my therapist. She told me that until I wrote something “light, fun and inspiring” I should absolutely keep them to myself.
Sorry your sister was so unkind!