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Although it's nice to receive and even better to give, praise isn't the point of workshopping a novel. At least, not for me. I'm looking for readers to spot problems that I can fix before the important people -- the paying readers -- see the book. Writing novels, I get so immersed in the story and the world of the novel that I can't see problems, big or small. It can't go out with problems. So if you review The Ghost at Beaverhead Rock, help me out. Tell me what works, and what doesn't. Saying something complimentary can be helpful, but if you don't really feel that way, skip it.
Tough? Yup. But with Bowker reporting 458,000 self-published ISBNs sold in 2013, the competition is ferocious and I -- and you -- can't afford to publish anything but my -- and our -- best work.
Thanks,
Carol
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Joined: 4/7/2014
Posts: 141
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Completely agree, Carol. Don't take critical feedback personally!
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Thank you, Janet!
I've now had 3 reviews on 2 drafts of The Ghost at Beaverhead Rock, and I'm totally delighted with them. Both reviewers are careful, considerate, and watchful. They've caught typos and anachronisms, and one led me to a historical inaccuracy that I've since fixed. They also tell me their impressions of larger issues such as pacing and the large number of characters.
Very helpful indeed!
Carol
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Joined: 6/7/2013
Posts: 1356
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Carol--I am so delighted to hear that your reviews have been helpful to you! So great. Book Country members rock at giving feedback!! 
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Joined: 6/7/2013
Posts: 1356
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Hi Jean Marie--I am not following. Did you get a particularly harsh review? I went over to your reviews but can't quite connect the dots without more context. Email me at Lucy@BookCountry.com or send me a PM about it, if you need help with anything!
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Jean Marie wrote:I agree w/ that, too, but don't...please don't say that you can't understand a character's motivation (personality) when you admit that you've only read a few pages! Seriously?
Who cares what the character is like later in the story? If, as it's read, the character's motivation makes no sense, a reader will stop reading right then. They're volunteers, not conscripts, so the moment you confuse them they are going to bail.
If a character does something that a reader finds not realistic, given the situation, like someone being reluctant to answer the phone in their own office, even to take a message, a reader who sees no sense in that will stop reading right then. And every word you typed after that was wasted.
A reader wants to live the story as the protagonist, emotionally, so the character's actions and attitudes need to make sense to the reader, in real time, because you're asking that reader to see the scene exactly as the protagonist does. And if they don't accept it as you hoped, because you haven't made them view it as the protagonist. It's not the reader's fault. And an acquiring editor would stop reading right there.
So when someone tell you of a problem, instead of finding fault with that reader because they don't view the story as you hoped they would, try to understand where you failed to make the action seem real and reasonable—and caused them to make the comment.
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Joined: 10/22/2014
Posts: 28
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Instead of replying, directly, I'll end w/ this-I overreacted. I took one person's pov out of an overall beta reading, which is my fault, and mine alone. Instead of focusing on the positive, I zeroed in on the one and only negative which was foolish on my part. I checked w/ my writer friends and got the necessary feedback to know I'm on the right path.
I do have the 2nd in the series in the works, and when some of the early chapters are ready for posting, they'll be up. I look forward to feedback on those. My first novel is beyond the line-editing stage, as the editor I worked w/ pointed out to me. She's the one I got in touch w/ to bounce this off of.
I apologize. Happy Thanksgiving to all. --edited by Jean Marie on 11/25/2014, 10:11 PM--
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Joined: 11/13/2014
Posts: 37
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Hi Jean Marie,
I don't want to fuel a debate which I've only seen bits of, but I was intrigued to read that your work is 'beyond the line editing stage'. To me, unless the whole structure is awry, that's pretty much the final stage (though one that may persist through many, many revisions). I think Jay Greenstein was actually echoing some of my own concerns (expressing them rather differently ) but if you say you're working with an editor who doesn't share those concerns, that's great!
So really my question is, if it's beyond the line editing stage, what do you still see that needs doing?
I'll continue reading - apart from the reservations expressed, I'm enjoying it so far.
Kind regards,
Curtis
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Joined: 10/22/2014
Posts: 28
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Thank you Curtis for continuing to read my book
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