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David Powell
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Can reviews be spite motivated?
Here are two reviews of one of my books. Naturally I would like to thank the reviewers for their generosity. There are other reviews, mostly good, but maybe not so enthusiastic. Well that's partly what this site is about isn't it?
"Thoughtful and moving.
This is a beautifully and elegantly written piece of work.
The atmosphere is perfect. I was deeply and genuinely moved by your descriptions of Peter's illness, and was almost thankful when the story moved to a happier period in his life.
Your descriptions of Paris are sparse but hugely evocative - an apt comparison would be an impressionist painting. The characters were similarly credible, and the relationships between them seemed complex and intriguing.
I really can't fault this. It's not my usual genre, but I was gripped from start to finish. I only worry slightly if so much bleak emotional drama right at the very start might put some people off. It didn't spoil my own appreciation of the story, but it may be something to consider.
Anyway, I think this is fantastic, powerful writing and have marked it accordingly. It's the third story of yours I've had the pleasure of reviewing, and my favourite so far. I greatly look forward to reading more.
"Hello David, you have a smooth and controlled piece of writing here, which suited the character portrayal of Peter very well. I enjoyed reading this, even considering the subject matter of his impending death, particularly the heightened observation and senses he experienced directly after being told about the condition – this made it all feel very true."
When I review I do it as honestly as I can and latterly have made a habit of giving my ratings at the end. This is done out of respect to other writers.
However, one reviewer has been very dismissive and given me straight '1's
Slightly puzzled I wondered why until I remembered I had given his book a review, which certainly had no '1's in it but were I did suggest certain changes might help.
Which makes me think that spite was the motive for such a bad review.
He has removed my review from his page and thus it has disappeared from mine as well.
If the precondition of a good review is that you have given a good review to the reviewer then the whole thing becomes meaningless, does it not?
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jpl001
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I think it's pretty harsh to award someone all 1s. Thank goodness we're able to remove reviews! As the YWO blurb says, there is usually always something that can be complimented when reviewing an assignment. I guess it all comes down to how we react when given not-so-favourable comments. To be honest, there have been times when all I've wanted to do when getting a negative review is to get on the messageboard and slate every word of it, but I usually calm down after ten minutes, and I still thank the reviewer for their time! To hold a grudge for so long is utterly pointless, and silly. The positive thing is that the majority of us are honest, constructive reviewers. I'm fairly new to the site and still have a lot to learn about detailed critiques, but most of my reviews have highlighted the good bits to my work, and in turn helped me when giving out my own.
This Time Around. A book about losing everything. Dark, desperate, hilarious, and published in, erm, dunno exactly, by YouWriteOn. SPROUTS, SPROUTS, SPROUTS. Click here to indulge in someone else's sproutsTRAILER full of sprouty goodness
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panurge
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Hello David, Recognised my review among those quoted and, seeing as it was the latest given, worried that you thought I'd dished out the straight 1's. I don't believe you've ever reviewed my stories, so I'm sure that's not the case, but just thought I'd better check. As I recall, I gave you all 4's and 5's - I thought it was a beautiful piece of writing. It is a worry that some people give bad reviews out of spite, and I suppose there's nothing much that can be done about it. At least with straight 1's you should be able to complain and get the review removed. It obviously doesn't represent a genuine opinion.
The Tower of Clavius Boon
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David Powell
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Quote: panurge, Tuesday, 25 Nov 2008 17:29Hello David, Recognised my review among those quoted and, seeing as it was the latest given, worried that you thought I'd dished out the straight 1's. I don't believe you've ever reviewed my stories, so I'm sure that's not the case, but just thought I'd better check. As I recall, I gave you all 4's and 5's - I thought it was a beautiful piece of writing. It is a worry that some people give bad reviews out of spite, and I suppose there's nothing much that can be done about it. At least with straight 1's you should be able to complain and get the review removed. It obviously doesn't represent a genuine opinion. No and thank you. I know it wasn't you because when I removed the review all the '1's disappeared. And they were the only '1's there. QED. In fact I know precisely who it is but I am eager to avoid a tit for tat slanging match have not mentioned his name/book
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panurge
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You're an example to us all! All the best with the book - it deserves to do very well.
The Tower of Clavius Boon
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PaulySpooner
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Quote: David Powell, Tuesday, 25 Nov 2008 16:48Can reviews be spite motivated? The same thing happened to me two weeks ago, and when I brought it up on the message board suggesting, as you have, that it was payback from a disgruntled reviewer, I got a mauling...I emailed Ted, but alas to no avail.... The crux of the problem is that people are incredibly sensitive about their writing and you should bare this in mind when reviewing. I do. The first two crits I wrote were far too critical. I re-read them recently and was moved to email the writers and apologise. It’s all about finding your voice as a reviewer. Sometimes this takes time. Maybe the person who reviewed your story is new and just finding his voice as it were...maybe his next review will be better... The moral of the story...there is no difference between the people here and the people in the ‘real’ world. Most people on YWO are helpful, supportive and generally good natured, some are not...we just have to live with it. Good luck...
This post was last edited by PaulySpooner, 25 Nov 2008, 19:00
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joben
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All 1s does sound like spite. However I think some reviews that seem to be tit for tat are more likely to be merely a lack of connection. I had an indifferent review from someone; all 3s so it was by no means done in the wrong spirit, but it was obvious from the review that the reviewer hadn't connected with my efforts. Some time later I reviewed a piece that I just didn't get and gave it poor marks in some areas; not all 1s but there were some 2s as well as 3s etc. I couldn't connect and didn't care for it. I saw things in it that I thought not so good. It was only then that I realised that it was the same writer who had reviewed me!! If you get two writers who have completely different styles and don't connect with the other you are going to get what might seem to be tit for tat reviews, but aren't.
This post was last edited by joben, 26 Nov 2008, 07:36
I also talk bollocks on; awriteblog.com
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Joe 90
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Quote: joben, Wednesday, 26 Nov 2008 07:34All 1s does sound like spite. However I think some reviews that seem to be tit for tat are more likely to be merely a lack of connection. I had an indifferent review from someone; all 3s so it was by no means done in the wrong spirit, but it was obvious from the review that the reviewer hadn't connected with my efforts. Some time later I reviewed a piece that I just didn't get and gave it poor marks in some areas; not all 1s but there were some 2s as well as 3s etc. I couldn't connect and didn't care for it. I saw things in it that I thought not so good. It was only then that I realised that it was the same writer who had reviewed me!! If you get two writers who have completely different styles and don't connect with the other you are going to get what might seem to be tit for tat reviews, but aren't. From my experience, I have been astonished by the good natured reaction to some of the, shall we say, incisive reviews I have dished out. There's an amazing equanimity amongst many of the regular contributors to YWO. Reviews must be diplomatic, but let them not become circumspect or the whole exercise descends to back-slapping. A good writer will learn. A bad one might retaliate, sulk, slam doors but in the end will get the message.
my website
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joben
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Quote: Joe 90, Wednesday, 26 Nov 2008 08:44Quote: joben, Wednesday, 26 Nov 2008 07:34All 1s does sound like spite. However I think some reviews that seem to be tit for tat are more likely to be merely a lack of connection. I had an indifferent review from someone; all 3s so it was by no means done in the wrong spirit, but it was obvious from the review that the reviewer hadn't connected with my efforts. Some time later I reviewed a piece that I just didn't get and gave it poor marks in some areas; not all 1s but there were some 2s as well as 3s etc. I couldn't connect and didn't care for it. I saw things in it that I thought not so good. It was only then that I realised that it was the same writer who had reviewed me!! If you get two writers who have completely different styles and don't connect with the other you are going to get what might seem to be tit for tat reviews, but aren't. From my experience, I have been astonished by the good natured reaction to some of the, shall we say, incisive reviews I have dished out. There's an amazing equanimity amongst many of the regular contributors to YWO. Reviews must be diplomatic, but let them not become circumspect or the whole exercise descends to back-slapping. A good writer will learn. A bad one might retaliate, sulk, slam doors but in the end will get the message. Spot on Joe; sometimes I think we get a little "precious" when we get a bad review and assume motives that aren't there.
I also talk bollocks on; awriteblog.com
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David Powell
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Quote: joben, Wednesday, 26 Nov 2008 09:09Quote: Joe 90, Wednesday, 26 Nov 2008 08:44Quote: joben, Wednesday, 26 Nov 2008 07:34All 1s does sound like spite. However I think some reviews that seem to be tit for tat are more likely to be merely a lack of connection. I had an indifferent review from someone; all 3s so it was by no means done in the wrong spirit, but it was obvious from the review that the reviewer hadn't connected with my efforts. Some time later I reviewed a piece that I just didn't get and gave it poor marks in some areas; not all 1s but there were some 2s as well as 3s etc. I couldn't connect and didn't care for it. I saw things in it that I thought not so good. It was only then that I realised that it was the same writer who had reviewed me!! If you get two writers who have completely different styles and don't connect with the other you are going to get what might seem to be tit for tat reviews, but aren't. From my experience, I have been astonished by the good natured reaction to some of the, shall we say, incisive reviews I have dished out. There's an amazing equanimity amongst many of the regular contributors to YWO. Reviews must be diplomatic, but let them not become circumspect or the whole exercise descends to back-slapping. A good writer will learn. A bad one might retaliate, sulk, slam doors but in the end will get the message. Spot on Joe; sometimes I think we get a little "precious" when we get a bad review and assume motives that aren't there. Maybe I should just have put up some of the distinctly less-than-good reviews that the piece had. These I can live with and indeed have often learnt from and changed my writing accordingly. I have 4 pieces up, and naturally get lots of different opinions; but never all '1's and neither have I ever given all '1's. So I don't accept the word 'precious' here.
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Could reviews be motivated by spite?
25 Nov 2008, 16:48
