Getting criticized for the books that you write is never easy, no matter if it is your first book or your hundredth and first. Being upset is quite okay, but how you respond to criticism determines whether you protect your reputation or enhance your relationship with your readers and brands such as Critiqued help you get reviews for better brand building. To help you in this, this guide will look at proper ways to deal with critics so that they can be useful to you as a writer besides helping you promote your work.
1. Pause Before Reacting
After I give a review, it is very important to step back and think about what was said before making a follow-up response. Negative reviews are likely to stir some feelings if they look unfair or unjustified. Emotional reactions could cause the situation to become much worse than it already is or create scandal or misunderstanding.
Pro Tip: Do not reply to a review as soon as you read it. One should take a day or more away from the feedback to get a rational evaluation of it.
2. Understand the Criticism
It is important to bear in mind that not all the customer-issued negative remarks are the same. Some of them can contain advice that can help you in your further practice, while others are just the opinion of the person who did not appreciate your work or, quite the contrary, did not understand it. You will be able to determine how to respond depending on the type of review you have on your hands.
Action Step: Another feature is to distinguish between helpful and unhelpful feedback. Constructive criticism can focus on specific aspects of plots, such as structure or characterization, whereas complaints projected in general terms only recall a specific judge’s preferences.
3. Answer Politely and gratefully
Don’t act defensively when replying to negative feedback—keep it polite and formal instead. It is always helpful to read a review and hear another reader’s perspective on your work. This action is reasonable and courteous, which will help you leave a good impression on other readers.
Example Response:
I want to say thank you for taking the time to go through my book and for being so kind to offer your opinion about it. I always like to take something from the opposing view because it is useful when you are an author.
It is noble to acknowledge the kind of input that the reader presents without having to debate their response or ignore it.
4. Avoid Engaging in Arguments
Sometimes, a temptation arises to defend one’s work or to say that a reader got it wrong. But, generating conflicts with the reviewers or any other person or groups tends to worsen your reputation and discourage potential readers. Remember that we all are free to have a certain opinion, and not each person will find something interesting in any book.
Remember: Being aggressive and going for people’s throats kills the cause and audience in the long run; a professional approach always pays the audience as a reader.
5. Look for Patterns in Feedback
It would be advisable to note if one or several readers come up with similar questions or issues. Repetition of comments in other aspects of the story, for example, character creation, tempo, or dialogue, indicates potential for development in subsequent works. Employ these ideas as a chance to work at becoming a better writer.
Pro Tip: Writers need to sustain a journal in order to document patterns found in customer reviews. With such insights in mind, you can apply them when you are writing the next book.
6. Respond Selectively
It’s not necessary to reply to every negative review, even if they provide no sane constructive criticism or challenge. It is unwise to try elaborating with trolls or very picky clients since it is unacceptable and highly unlikely to get positive outcomes.
Action Tip: Concentrate your reactions on the reviews that provide value and that create a base for a valuable conversation.
7. Leverage Positive Reviews to Balance the Narrative
It is important not to react negatively to criticism but to foster positive feedback. Let your readers know by posting or forwarding positive comments on your official website, social networking sites, and newsletters to create awareness and encourage people to come up with reasons why they should read your book.
Idea: Collect short extracts from feedback received and use these extracts to develop posters that one could post on different social media.
8. Invite Dialogue and Encourage Reader Engagement
Think of transforming the critique you give someone into a dialogue. Some questions that you can engage the readers with include; ‘What would have made the story more interesting to you?’ This uncovers that you are willing to listen to people and take correction. Letting the readers—the satisfied ones and, especially, the unsatisfied ones—interact helps to trust.
9. Learn and Grow from the Experience
It is imperative always to remember that each complaint or positive comment that is received is an education. Feedback is a proven guide to the improvement of your writing and should be embraced and utilized. Thus, even if a particular piece of feedback seems very negative in the first instance, there may be some aspects that one failed to consider and that will assist in future work.
Final Thoughts
Any writer will tell you that you cannot escape negative reviews while writing, but these comments are not the end of the world. It is equally important to walk away from the comment, always try to make sense of the criticism without immediately going on the defensive, reply to the comment without being rude, and finally utilize the feedback to improve or you can take help from professionals like Critiqued. You should also know that every comment is an opportunity to learn, not to mention that professionalism will always attract the respect of many readers as well as fellow bloggers.
The advantage of engaging with your audience, even while getting a negative comment, is that you win their trust and credibility – a long recipe for a successful career in writing.