Here Today, Blog Tomorrow #26

Some people say that writing a book is the hardest part. Others say it's just the beginning. I would say that the ladder is true. Because the hardest part about writing, in my opinion, are the reviews. Yes, there are good reviews but there can also be bad reviews. I've heard of some books getting nothing but one star ratings while others just get demolished by criticism left and write. I have been no stranger to criticism. But now I learn from it. Why? Because as a writer, you have to give the people what they want.

A long time ago, I decided to do an audio book of Mr. Dead Eyes. There were no reviews for months. The first thing that people said was that they had a hard time downloading the episodes. But, after a while, they began showing their opinions.

Eventually, the book made it on to iTunes. I just wanted to share some of the bad reviews it has gotten and a bit of commentary on that, so that you, as an aspiring writer, know what to do in situations such as these: take it in stride.

Reviews for Mr. Dead Eyes -

What?

by clw615

I kept hoping this book was going

somewhere, it had potential but very disjointed plot if there even was one.

(Thanks. I'll try to make the plot more fluid in the future.)

It just kept getting worse . . .

by connievc

Suffered through the first 24 episodes - who knows why? And then, Chapter 25 was messed up - like 2 different episodes playing at once. Pass over this one unless you like to be really aggravated.

(Sorry to hear that your experience was interrupted by whether or not the episodes would play. I can't control if the episode will load properly but I do hope this doesn't putt him off to my books in the future.)

Not that good

by Jessiepk

I just finished listening to this podcast novel. The characters are not consistent and there are some holes in the plot. It seemed like everyone's agenda and personality just kept changing to give it another "twist." Part way through you will realize that there is some religious propaganda at the root of the story as well. It's just not all the way there, the author needs to revise and do a few more drafts, nothing about this novel seemed complete.

(Well, I can't say that the twists weren't intended. They were. I like stories with lots of twists. It keeps it from being predictable. Oh well.)

Terrible

by Lori Fisher

Sound quality is annoying. Jumpy plot line. Couldn't get through 3 episodes.

Great story

by Roguz

I hope he comes out with the second book. I am looking forward to hearing more.

(That phrase is one I've been hearing a lot lately. That encourages me to write more.)

But this one I absolutely love:

Tedious is a good place to start-

By Mr. Dead Ears. Oct 2nd, 2010

I honestly gave it a shot. Then suffering through 12 chapters I finally had to pull the plug. Usually I don't bail after investing that much time in a story, waiting for it to get going, but this one showed no signs of life, so I finally called it off: Official time of death for Mr. Dead Eyes...Chapter 12. Should have been chapter 3. Where was Dr. Kavorkian when I needed him?

(Y'see, this is why I write. If you're gonna set a flame to my work, I would rather you did it in style with a certain amount of dry wit. When I first read this comment I started busting up laughing. Yes, I need to work on writing future projects but I just loved his take on it. This guy, whoever he is, I have a lot of respect for him. I'm being serious too. I only wish that he'll comment on more of my work in the future and that one of these days I will be able to write something he likes. Some readers may be tough nuts to crack but so was I when it came to liking the works of George Orwell.)