Why do People Write Such Bad Reviews?

[mr ploppy]

http://www.claudebouchardbooks.com/a...ch-bad-reviews

Sounds more like a lot of people are in denial to me. Assuming your book is any good, bad reviews are more a sign of attracting someone from outside your intended market than anything else.

[teh603]

Who was it whose law of the internet says that if you give an average person anonymnity, an audience, and the chance to destroy something beautiful; you get an internet troll?

I think that's what the blog is trying to point out, that people will troll just because they can.

[mr ploppy]

I know what you mean, but I'd be surprised if those type of reviews amount to more than a tiny fraction. I don't know about anywhere else, but on Amazon you need to have actually bought something before you can post a review (though not necessarily the item you are reviewing). That would stop people creating lots of throwaway accounts.

[JonathanH]

Originally Posted by teh603

Who was it whose law of the internet says that if you give an average person anonymnity, an audience, and the chance to destroy something beautiful; you get an internet troll?

I think that's what the blog is trying to point out, that people will troll just because they can.

That sounds like John Gabriel's "Greater Internet F**kwad Theory", from Penny Arcade (warning for the faint of heart: comic has swearing)

Also referenced from the Wikipedia article on "online disinhibition effect".

[ATDrake]

Perhaps people write such bad reviews because they've read such bad books.

In any case, I link you all to "Bad Review Bingo", which you can play along with that blogpost*.

* Also, from a reader perspective, seeing authors publicly express such disdain and contempt for people who presumably took time out of their lives to actually read said author's work, if not actually pay for it, even if they ended up seriously not liking it and said so on the internet, is kind of fun, but also ultimately a turn-off.

But hey, it saves me time and money by helpfully pointing out whom I never need read nor buy from.

[Synamon]

Originally Posted by mr ploppy

http://www.claudebouchardbooks.com/a...ch-bad-reviews

Sounds more like a lot of people are in denial to me. Assuming your book is any good, bad reviews are more a sign of attracting someone from outside your intended market than anything else.

When I read a review written by someone who is obviously not the target audience of the book it only reinforces my own interest in the book (assuming I am the intended audience). Swearing, sex, and violence often get one star reviews complaining about those characteristics, which might be exactly what I'm looking for in a gritty thriller.

As to the blog you linked, the kind of reviews I'm referring to above aren't written by basement dwelling trolls, but spinster Sunday school teachers. I'm kidding about the stereotypes, but there are many different tastes and a bad review is only one person's opinion. The real killer for me is an author who tells me how many cats they own, I'm clicking that back button faster than you can microwave a kitten.

[mr ploppy]

Originally Posted by Synamon

The real killer for me is an author who tells me how many cats they own, I'm clicking that back button faster than you can microwave a kitten.

I don't have any cats, but I did have a tortoise when I was young. It ran away.

[gmw]

Actually that blog sounded more like someone filling in a bit of slow time by writing some nonsense. No one was supposed to take it seriously were they?

If there was a moral to the blog, I read it as: It's easy to be unfairly critical - see how easy it is? - so that's why people often are.

[Indio777]

Originally Posted by mr ploppy

I don't have any cats, but I did have a tortoise when I was young. It ran away.

As did mine! Well, I'm not sure it actually "ran."

As did my horned lizards and my rats (they probably DID run).

I'm stuck on cats right now, but won't go into any more details .... I seriously doubt it is that interesting to MF members. Why should it be?

[Xanthe]

Originally Posted by Synamon

The real killer for me is an author who tells me how many cats they own, I'm clicking that back button faster than you can microwave a kitten.

LOL, so very true. Why authors think the majority readers care that their cat sat on their lap the entire time they wrote there book, I'll never understand. Or that they live out in the country with four dogs, six cats, two horses, seven rabbits, a goat and a ferret.

Why do people write such bad reviews? Because despite what the authors and their nearest and dearest think, sometimes their work is a piece of crap.

[Synamon]

Originally Posted by mr ploppy

I don't have any cats, but I did have a tortoise when I was young. It ran away.

Excellent story. The author didn't go overboard with mind-numbing detail and I especially liked the cliffhanger ending.

[VaporPunk]

Why do people write such bad books?

That said, the blog post was funny...and better written than 1/2 the SelfPub books I've tried so far.

[mr ploppy]

Originally Posted by Indio777

As did mine! Well, I'm not sure it actually "ran."

They can run when they want to, they're just lazy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znEbZGfBgxQ

[dadioflex]

So, that blog post was basically an ad hominem attack on the trolling community. Way to capture the moral high ground.

I've written troll reviews. Mainly for martial arts instruction guides, because they're primarily bought by and aimed at people who never go into a dojo or gym.

[QuantumIguana]

There are a lot of bad reviews, but I think people get too worried about them. When a potential buyer looks at 1-star reviews and sees things like "It had words I didn't understand" (this really isn't all that uncommon), they roll their eyes and ignore the review.