Reviews of My E-Book Are Critical

In a situation that’s more soul-destroying than stony silence about your e-book, you see reviews, but they’re critical — one or two stars, with nasty comments about your e-book or even about you as a person.

Follow these suggestions for handling negative reviews:

The first step is to consider whether the reviews contain the truth, even if it’s hard to take. Perhaps three people have rated your e-book at two stars, saying that though the content was helpful, it’s riddled with typos and factual errors. You might want to pull it off the shelves temporarily while you update it and find editors or advance readers.

If the reviews seem to indicate that readers had unrealistic expectations of your e-book, check whether you’ve inadvertently caused confusion with the category or description you chose. If you’ve written a vicious religious satire, for example, you might have created problems by categorizing it as religious fiction. Even though it’s about religion, it probably isn’t what most of the readers browsing that virtual shelf are expecting.

If a review seems completely unwarranted — such as a personal attack on you — contact the site in question, and ask for the review to be removed. If the reviewer clearly hasn’t even read the e-book (the reviewer believes that your topic or title is silly, for example, or has a vendetta against you), you have a good case for removing the review.

Avoid being drawn into an argument. You may be tempted to leave a response to a review that explains why the reviewer is wrong — but this strategy can all too quickly descend into a furious quarrel, and it won’t benefit your author brand in any way. All writers, however good, receive negative feedback. Find any book that you love on Amazon or Goodreads, and look at its one- and two-star reviews. The best thing to do is to hold your head high and continue writing.