Today, we've got a guest post by YA writer Phoebe North! Phoebe has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Florida and is currently working on a book about a merman. Feel free to laugh--she does! Follow her reviews -- sometimes gushing, always honest -- on Goodreads, and her blog at phoebeeating.com.
I write reviews. I also write YA fiction. In a community where well-known authors have taken a stand against anything that could possibly be seen as "author bashing," I’ve placed myself in a pretty precarious position by doing both. Because, you know, I want people to read my fiction and crow about how much they love it.But I also want to be honest.
Don’t get me wrong—I love Justine Larbalestier, and I don’t fault her for declining to participate in this kind of critique. After all, YA writers form a very real community. We promote one another, support one another, and share community blogs. The expression of negative sentiments about our colleagues’ books risks degrading the warm fuzziness.
I get that objection. But I also come from a very different place. I spent my early twenties in the world of MFA poetry. And, though it was sometimes difficult to go out for beers with my colleagues after a particularly harsh
And so I’d like to offer an alternate perspective: I want to propose that the whole community might benefit when writers review, and do so honestly.
- Writers know books. They’ve edited their own clunky prose. They’ve worked out problems of pacing. To do so well, they’ve had to get some distance between themselves and their words. And so it’s easy for them to regard a book critically. In fact, these days I can’t read a novel without my internal editor whispering in my ear: "That character is stiff" or "That description was awesome!"
When it comes down to it we already look to authors to steer our tastes. That’s why a blurb by a NY Times bestselling author is so valuable. We expect writers who write stuff we like to read stuff we like, too.
Why not only write positive reviews, then?
- Highly critical reviews are more useful than those that offer flat praise. As writers, we might think that only positive reviews will sell our books, but I’m not sure that’s the case. Did Harold Bloom’s evisceration of JK Rowling keep her off the best seller lists? How many people picked up Twilight thanks to Cleolinda’s snark?
These critical responses necessitated a certain attention to detail. It’s much easier to sing a book’s praises—praise needs little justification. But for this reason it also tells a potential reader little about the book in question. If my review is breathless, it also risks being vague.
Of course, I’m not advocating being an ass. You should always be kind to authors in your reviews, even if the books they write are flawed. But you should still be honest--for yourself, if not your audience. Why?
Because when someone pens one positive review after another, it’s less meaningful. It’s hard to trust reviewers when they’re overflowing with praise. There are a lot of books out there that are flawed, if good—but far fewer that are remarkable. If you’re a writer, you’re speaking from a position of authority; readers trust your judgment. I prefer not to violate that trust even through omission. Yes, Virginia, bad books do exist.
- Finally, I believe that writers who review critically are better writers for it. Back when I taught poetry to undergrads my students not only read poems, but also critiqued them. My goal was to teach them to better recognize effective writing. It’s the same deal with reviews. Get yourself used to spotting bad writing and articulating what’s so bad about it and I promise you that you’ll disabuse yourself of the same habits in your own books.
And I don't know about you, but I'm all for writers writing better!
But won't this ruin the community, you might ask? This is where I want to stop for a minute and address this from the perspective of a writer, not a reviewer.
Criticism sucks. But for published writers, there’s always bound to be an unhappy reader. It’s the inevitable result of sharing our writing with the world. Remember, though, that reviews are not responses to you-as-a-person, but to your work. Remember that you can potentially learn from reviews, no matter how much they hurt. And remember, too, that gushy, false praise isn’t necessarily doing you any favors in terms of sales, either.
So even though a part of me—like any writer—would love nothing but admiration for my writing, I realize that it’s inevitably a false hope, and one that does none of us favors. So instead, I say: speak your mind, and do so thoroughly. Bash away. It’s for the best.
Even if—gulp!—you’re bashing me.
~Phoebe North
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