I hate giving bad reviews. As an author myself, I know they suck. If I don’t like a book, I’ll toss it three or four stars and move on with my life—unless it’s a total train wreck. Then maybe a one or two, but I still don’t go into detail. Everyone’s got opinions, and mine isn’t the law of literature.
But let’s talk about the book I’m reading right now. Don’t worry, I won’t name names—protecting the guilty and all that. I can tell it’s self-published, which I’m totally fine with (fellow indie here!). What I’m not fine with is skipping every single step of editing known to humankind.
Writers, listen up: you need beta readers, a developmental editor, a copy editor, and a proofreader. In that order. And no, your mom, your bestie, or your cousin who “reads a lot” doesn’t count. You need professionals. People who know their Oxford commas from their dangling modifiers.
Anyway, I’m only on chapter three and already contemplating whether I need a drink to finish it. The formatting’s a mess, the characters react to drama like cardboard cutouts, and the pacing… let’s just say I’ve had faster DMV visits.
Still, I’m gonna push through—because I believe in giving every book a fair shot. Even if it’s slowly killing me inside.
I love this! Some books are just not edited well!
ReplyDelete"Ive had faster DMV visits" HAHAH omgosh this cracks me up and is so true. So many editors today miss so many mistakes! For me, if the book doesn't grab my interest by chapter 3, back to the library it goes!
ReplyDeleteOk this definitely gave me a laugh. I however will leave a bad review (on my blog). of course my reviews are on the story and not the writing because I am not an editor and I do not know when to use commas most of the time. The book I’m reading right now was the 2024 book of the year and I’m still trying to figure out how. I’m praying for an amazing ending that makes all the time I’ve spent reading worthwhile
ReplyDelete