Use Those Negative Reviews

ACFWAdvice, Authors and writing, Book Reviews, Encouragement, Reviews 2 Comments

By B.D. Lawrence @BDLawrence3 We’ve all received less than positive reviews. For me, when I published my first book, An Angel and a One-Armed Man, I started seeing four and five-star reviews with the occasional three-star review. But then it happened. I received a two-star review. It wasn’t the star count that gave me the pit in my stomach, it …

5 Considerations When Receiving One-Star Reviews

ACFWAuthors and writing, Book Reviews, Reviews, writing Leave a Comment

By Lisa Jordan After one of my first books had released, I made the mistake of reading Amazon reviews. I was caught off guard by a single one-start review. As I read the reviewer’s words, my breath caught and heat scalded my cheeks. How could she write such things? Didn’t she realize the struggle and tears that went into meeting …

The Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow, and the Lion

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By Julia Kay Being a women’s fiction writer, I’m a big fan of spiritual leaders who teach and champion other women. Specifically, Lisa Bevere is one of my favorites. I recently read a comment on social media from someone saying that her hand motions were annoying in one of her videos. As writers, we’ve been there, right? Rude comments. Random …

Let It Go!

ACFWAdvice, Authors and writing, Encouragement, Friends of ACFW, Reviews, tips, writing 3 Comments

By Darlene L. Turner Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:4 (NIV)  Can’t you hear Elsa singing, “Let it go, let it go…”? Throughout my writing journey there were many times I found it hard to live those words let alone say them. I’d made the mistake and clung …

Bad Reviews Aren’t Fatal

ACFWAdvice, Authors and writing, Book Reviews, Encouragement, Friends of ACFW, Reviews, writing 1 Comment

By Suzanne Woods Fisher A few weeks before my first novel was due to release, I received an advance review from Publisher’s Weekly. That moment is seared in my mind: I remember the time of day it was when I received the email, where I stood in my house, how it felt as I read it. Because it was terrible. …

Finding Acceptance in a Tough Writing Industry

ACFWAdvice, Authors and writing, Encouragement, Friends of ACFW, Rejection, Reviews, writing 14 Comments

By Emily Conrad When responses to my debut novel started to come in from my launch team, a friend asked if the positive feedback encouraged me. Though, yes, the praise was a momentary boost, and no, I don’t want to consider what might’ve happened in my heart if the initial response had been the opposite, I had to confess that …

Writing for an Audience of One

ACFWAdvice, Encouragement, Friends of ACFW, Reviews, writing 5 Comments

By Kim Vogel Sawyer If you’re old enough, you’ll probably remember Ricky Nelson crooning, “You see, you can’t please everyone, so you got to please yourself.” (That’s grammatically incorrect, by the way, but it’s how it was sung, so….) It’s a rather self-serving statement, but there’s some truth to it. There really is no way for any decision to please …

Reviews

ACFWBooks, Friends of ACFW, Reviews 3 Comments

by Nora St. Laurent Authors want them, readers struggle to write them. When an author asks for an honest review what are they expecting? When a reader writes an honest review, what does that look like? First off, I know this can be a touchy subject on many fronts. Reviewers and authors realize that the FTC is cracking down on …

Reviewing the Mindset of Reviews

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By C. Kevin Thompson As many authors know, good, critical, honest reviews are important. Future readers often base their purchases on them. Therefore, reviews are gold when talking bottom lines. Because Amazon uses the review system as one of its major marketing arms, keeping reviews as pure as possible is paramount to good customer service. To prevent others from manipulating …