When I review a book, it reads more like a book report. I break down the plot and characters and talk about the book’s strengths. I also do point out weaknesses, and at the end I recommend the book to whatever type of reader I think will most enjoy it.
Laura Smith – 17 June 2020
About Reviewing
How did you get started?
In 2014, I signed up as a blogger for HubPages. There, I could write posts about any topic. I wrote about a variety of topics, mostly entertainment-themed posts, and that included book reviews or book lists. I also reached out to indie authors to interview them and help them promote their books.
In 2017, I joined LitPick as a review editor and then began to read and write book reviews myself. When I started my own blog in 2019, I reintroduced the author interviews as part of my blog post schedule, and authors began to ask me if I would read and review the books that I was interviewing them about. So, I put out a call for more books to read, and the writing community has been very responsive in sending me their books to read and review. They also often participate in author interviews and host book giveaways for my readers.
I also review horror novels for Horrorscreams Videovault and have done so for the past year.
How do you review a book? Is it a read first, and then make notes, or do you make notes as you go along?
I often read first and then make notes, but if the book is complex or contains a number of characters and places, I start to jot down names and recap scenes as I go.
What are you looking for?
As a middle grade author myself, I seek out middle grade and YA novels first and foremost. I also go for picture books, adult memoirs, and horror/paranormal.
If a book has a great plot, great characters, but the grammar is less than perfect, how do you deal with that?
This actually happened to me last year. I read a middle grade book that was self-published by the author. It had a really interesting and unique story and characters, but the writing needed some work.
At the end of the book, she encouraged feedback from the readers. So, once I finished, I went back through it and took detailed notes. Then, I actually wrote the author a long email telling her that I liked the book, but I found a lot of areas that needed to be cleaned up. I then went on to point out specific examples on specific pages.
She wrote back and said she was very grateful for the feedback and went through and polished her manuscript. I never did reread it with the changes, but I have seen the book advertised online since, and she had even updated the title.
I had been apprehensive about being so detailed in my critique, but it’s a relief when authors can take constructive criticism well. That’s not to say all of my suggestions would have been the best fixes, and had she not written the note in the book asking for feedback, I doubt I would have been that thorough, but it all worked out.
How long does it take you to get through, say, an eighty thousand-word book?
If I’m reviewing for LitPick or Horrorscreams Videovault, I try to finish a book in two weeks, regardless of its length. The same goes for books or audio books that I check out of the library. If I’m given a deadline, I hit that deadline.
When I’m reading for fun, the better the book, the quicker I read it. If it’s really good, I can finish an 80,000 word book in a week or so. That time frame can be stretched to a few months, the less interesting it is.
How did you come up with your rating system, and could you explain more about the rating system?
I actually don’t have a rating system for my blog reviews. I try to only accept books to review if I think I’m going to like it. If I start reading and I don’t like it, I let the author know that I can’t review it. My philosophy is that readers don’t get much value from a bad review. It actually discourages them from reading, and I don’t want to drive potential readers away from a book that they may actually like, even if I don’t.
When I review a book, it reads more like a book report. I break down the plot and characters and talk about the book’s strengths. I also do point out weaknesses, and at the end I recommend the book to whatever type of reader I think will most enjoy it.
Aside from posting my review, though, I will go on Amazon and Goodreads and rate and review the books there too to help give the authors a boost on these larger platforms. Both of those sites have a star rating system, as does LitPick. So, I try to be as generous as I can with my ratings while still being truthful.
What advice could you give to authors looking to get their books reviewed?
My advice would be to utilize bloggers as much as possible, but make sure they review regularly and can promise to read your book if they decide to take it on. Also, definitely look into LitPick as well because they offer affordable packages with guaranteed reviews and book promotions. This is especially helpful for authors of younger titles because LitPick has student reviewers on staff, and you actually get feedback from your target audience.
Do you get readers emailing you and thanking you for a review?
They do, mostly because I reach out to them the morning that the review posts, and I send them a link to the review along with a link to the Pinterest pin I made linking to the review. And since all of my reviews are positive, they are usually pretty happy with the results along with my willingness to give them a good rating on Amazon and Goodreads as well.
My advice to authors on getting a ‘bad’ review (hasten to add that might mean a perfectly honest, well written, fair review – just bad from the author’s point of view) is to take what you can from it and move on. Under no circumstances to ‘argue’ with the reviewer – would you agree with that?
Absolutely. I once had one of my books reviewed by a team of reviewers who did not typically read or enjoy middle grade books, and they tore my story apart and left me with a terrible rating on Amazon. I was mortified, but it taught me that not everyone is going to be a fan. Later, I read a post from an author online saying that a few poor reviews help to strengthen the validity of your positive reviews and shows that you’re not just getting your friends and family to review your work. So, that has made me more comfortable with those bad reviews tarnishing my Amazon page.
About Reading
We talk a lot about writing here on the blog, and possibly not enough about reading, which is after all why we’re all here. Why do you think people love reading? We’re seeing lots of statistics that say reading as a pastime is dying – do you think that’s the case?
I think the people who love to read have been doing it their whole lives. They love stories, and they love this format of storytelling, the same way that one person gravitates toward sports, another to video games, another to jogging. It’s just in their blood.
I don’t think that reading as a pastime is dying. My local libraries are still popular, and my local bookstores are swamped when they’re having a sale. When the right book comes out, people preorder and flock to the stores in droves to get their hands on a copy. It may not be for everyone, but reading is still very popular for those who love to do it.
About Writing
What are the most common mistakes that you see authors making?
My number one pet peeve with self-published authors is when they disregard the editing process saying, “It’s not my strong suit. So, just ignore it if there are mistakes.” They don’t take the mechanics seriously, and as a result, their work suffers.
Another weakness that takes me out of a story is unrealistic or corny dialogue. You have to learn to write the way people talk so that they come off sounding like real people.
For memoirs, I’ve read several books where the author shared their story but didn’t really know how to make it relatable or interesting. Sometimes they held old fashioned views that I couldn’t get behind, or they didn’t really know how to add the right details, dialogue, or suspense in the right places to make the story more interesting. So, while they may love hearing their life story, they may not be the best ones to tell it.
Is there anything you will not review?
The genres that I stay away from usually include fantasy, sci-fi, and steamy romance, but I have made exceptions for all of these. So, if a request to review a book comes through that is outside my preferred genres, I’ll still research it a little to see if I should give it a chance. If I do, there’s about a 50% chance that I’ll finish it and a 25% chance that I’ll really like it.
For instance, last year I read a book about a sword-wielding, dragon-slaying princess. The medieval era is one of my least favorite time periods, and I rarely like a story that contains a dragon, but this turned out to be one of my favorite books that I read last year. So, I always try to keep an open mind.
About Publishing
What do you think of the oft-quoted comment that the “slush-pile has moved online”?
There is some truth to that, but that takes away from the great self-published titles that are buried in that slush pile. As a self-published author, I’d have to think that my books aren’t good because they’re not traditionally published. There’s just not enough room in the traditional publishing world to publish them all. When you look at the statistics fir the number of manuscripts sent to agents and publishers each year, compared with the number of full manuscript requests that go out, compared with the number of books that are actually accepted for publication, and those that go on to become a success, the odds are astronomical.
Of course, allowing anyone to hit publish on Amazon means that there are a lot of terrible work out there. Believe me, I’ve seen it. But you can’t discount the entire self-publishing world. The majority of my reviews are by self-published authors, and I don’t judge them any easier or harder than a traditionally published book. Yet, you can see that I’ve read some truly great stories.
Do you think attitudes are changing with respect to indie or self-published titles?
Somewhat. I do see traditional publishers starting to consider previously published titles to see if they can mine for gold from great authors who just don’t have the resources or platform to properly market their books and make a profit. I mostly linger in the indie world so I’m part of a community that likes to cheer each other on and share our gratitude for living in an era where we can at least see our manuscripts become actual books, even if those books aren’t widely read.
As to what the traditionally published world thinks of self-published authors, it’s hard to say. But those of us who know what the self-publishing side of the industry is like can help turn any criticism around if they ever make it to the traditionally published world.
Do you have any ideas or comments on how the industry can ‘filter’ good from bad, aside from reviews?
A good start would be running all manuscripts through a program like Grammarly to point out glaring errors in an author’s writing to clean up before they hit the “publish” button. Make sure that sentences make sense and that the basic mechanics are covered.
It’s hard to get a manuscript just right. I even see errors in traditionally published books. So, I can’t expect perfection from self-published authors, but it at least needs to be 90% free of errors.
End of Interview:
Check out Laura’s reviews at Laura’s Books and Blogs.
