The ethics of reviewing

[BWFoster78]

I kinda put myself in a bad position.

A good friend, one who has helped me out a lot in my writing, self published a book on Amazon. I told him I'd buy it, read it, and give him a review.

His style and mine differ a bit, so I wasn't expecting the book to be great. I have read a decent amount of his stuff in the past, however, and it's not terrible.

This book, while not complete excrement, did not exactly inspire me to write a great review. Do I:

1) Neglect to write the review (ignore a problem and it will go away)
2) Write an honest review (honesty is the best policy, and an honest review, in the long run, does the most good)
3) Write a glowing review (friendship trumps the suckers I lead to buy the book)
4) Find a middle ground with the review, being positive but also noting the weak points (not sure how to even do this)

What say you?

 

[Ireth]

I think you should be honest about it, personally. Do point out its weaknesses politely, but find its strengths as well.

 

[nlough]

I have to agree with Ireth. It's better to be honest about it. Talk about the good and the bad. When I want a friend to review something I write, I want their honest opinion so I can learn from my mistakes and figure out what I need to fix and work on.

 

[Steerpike]

Tell your friend how you feel about it and ask him whether he prefers that you write an honest review or forego the review.

 

[Ankari]

I would review his book and send him the notes of your review to him. Let me have a chance to measure your words, weigh their effect on his story, and accept or dismiss them accordingly. Every writer would rather have bad criticism reach them first, to be given a chance or correction, before the the criticism becomes public.

 

[psychotick]

Hi,

I'd agree with Ankari. Do an honest review, show it to him, and then ask him if he thinks its fair or not, or if he wants you to post it. He may agree with your points, or not. He may revise the book or not. That's all up to him. The best you can do is give him your honest opinion and then give him the choice.

Cheers, Greg.

 

[Ghost]

Tell your friend how you feel about it and ask him whether he prefers that you write an honest review or forego the review.

Yeah, I'd go with something like this as well. I'd like a heads up if I was on the other side of the situation.

 

[Penpilot]

I agree, be honest, but give your friend the choice of whether the review goes up or not.

 

[BWFoster78]

There seems to be a consensus. It's a good way to handle it. That's what I'll do.

 

[Shockley]

My personal strategy on this would be to give a high numeric review (assuming Amazon allows this) while letting him know my concerns in private.

 

[BeigePalladin]

be honest its better in the end. lying hurts everyone involved, and giving him a review will actually help him improve

 

[JonSnow]

All good advice above, so I'm not going to add to it... instead, I'm going to say this is why its a bad idea for friends and/or relatives to be used for reviews and editing. I used to have my girlfriend(s) read my reading, and for some reason they always "liked" it, but I never did. Eventually I figured out they just didn't want to criticize it. Whether you are the writer or the reader, its a no win situation if the writing isn't good. You are left with the choice of writing a falsely good review, or hurting someone's feelings.

 

[Devor]

Depending on how good or bad it actually is, you might give him a mostly positive review that still acknowledges the main criticisms, even if you're approaching him first.

Another thing to consider, before you talk to him, is whether your opinion is being clouded by anything. If your expectations were too high, it is possible the book is better than you think it is. Not sure the chances of that.

 

[BWFoster78]

Depending on how good or bad it actually is, you might give him a mostly positive review that still acknowledges the main criticisms, even if you're approaching him first.

Another thing to consider, before you talk to him, is whether your opinion is being clouded by anything. If your expectations were too high, it is possible the book is better than you think it is. Not sure the chances of that.

I didn't have high expectations going in.

It wasn't horrible; it just wasn't that good. The book did draw me in a couple of times, but I found myself just wanting to get through a lot of the chapters.

 

[Chilari]

All good advice above, so I'm not going to add to it... instead, I'm going to say this is why its a bad idea for friends and/or relatives to be used for reviews and editing. I used to have my girlfriend(s) read my reading, and for some reason they always "liked" it, but I never did. Eventually I figured out they just didn't want to criticize it. Whether you are the writer or the reader, its a no win situation if the writing isn't good. You are left with the choice of writing a falsely good review, or hurting someone's feelings.

Generally I'd agree with you. But my mum is a writer too and always manages to hit the nail on the head with feedback; and my fiancé is a critical thinker who is very good at fairly and logically pointing out problems with my storylines and helps me think about what story I'm telling before I've got all the bits worked out. So it depends on their experience of writing and the dynamics of the relationship. Additionally when people you know are involved you know what they're like as reviewers/critiquers. Having said that as a writer it's sometimes all to easy to take valid criticism from someone you know more personally, and see it more objectively from a relative stranger.

In a situation like that BW is in, I would not show the review to the author. I don't see the integrity in that, because a review that is approved by the author is a review that can potentially be censored by the author, which gives the potential readers a biased/author-approved set of reviews. In this situation I would write a generally positive review which nevertheless mentions the two or three largest concerns and post it without talking to the author, but at the same time talk to the author going into the main problems in a little more detail.

 

[Ankari]

You're right, Chilari. That is why I suggest giving the aithor a full critique of his book so he has the chance ro adjust the story. If he decides to keep it the same, then it's not BWFoster78's fault when he leaves a review o the Amazon that is unflattering.

 

[Kit]

I would do the same thing I do with anything I'm asked to review: find some good things and some bad things to say. No matter how good it is, there is always room for improvement; no matter how bad it is, I can find *something* to like.

No one wants their creative ego squashed cruelly. Furthermore, we are often more open to hearing (and employing) the "improvement opportunities" suggestions if they are served with a spoonful of sugar. When someone has *nothing* good to say, I for one tend to feel a little defensive. There are some people who just get off on being nasty, and some of those people are just not worth listening to.

 

[Zophos]

Hammer him. Sugar coating it will only mean you'll have to read more tripe later.

Let's face it, there are very few books on the SP market that are worth a shit. I have the opinion that many of those are the result of candy striped reviews that don't really address the real weaknesses of those authors.

$0.02

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

Hammer him. Sugar coating it will only mean you'll have to read more tripe later.

Let's face it, there are very few books on the SP market that are worth a shit. I have the opinion that many of those are the result of candy striped reviews that don't really address the real weaknesses of those authors.

$0.02

I have to agree. A tender hearted review, although well-intentioned, is of little value. When I go to critique groups I want people to shred my work. Seeing flaws, regardless of how many or how harsh the delivery, improves the work & helps me grow as a writer.

Another thing a fully honest review does is help an author grow a thick skin. If they can't take a harsh critique then they probably shouldn't be a writer.

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

Sorry, hit enter too early..... Continuing:

I say give him both barrels. The other aspect to this is that this person is a friend. The only thing worse than asking a friend to do a review is asking your mother to review your work. She's gonna love it no matter what.