The question was raised: How do you handle a negative review?
This is my take on it:
My sister is a professional photographer and one of her mentors told her not to listen to the positive reviews. He said that it was easy to enjoy the people who love you. He advised reading the negative reviews, not to beat yourself up but to consider another point of view.
Consider the source: Is it credible? Have they brought up something you might want to consider in the future? Did they bring up something you may want to emphasize even more in the future? Just because they didn't like some element about your book doesn't mean you were wrong.
Remind yourself that this person was NOT your target audience. You want to please your target audience. If your target audience loves your special element, then develop and enhance it in future work. You're on the right track.
When I complain about how stupid a commercial is, my brother, who's in marketing, always reminds me: "You are not their target audience. They don't care about you. Did they reach their target audience?"
Keep writing to your target audience.
I love this advice. You're so right--writing is as much a marketing strategy as it is a creative outlet.
ReplyDeleteI was hurt, believe it or not, when my brother told me they didn't care about me. Then I got over myself. :-D I write for me, and for those who want to read what I like to read. I know there are those who won't like my books, but I'm not writing for them. There are other authors who are.
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