My Book Got a One-Star Review on Amazon and Something Amazing Happened

I knew I would get a bad review. Whenever you put art out into the world, it’s guaranteed to happen.

That’s the risk you take as a writer. You follow your intuition, start writing, put it out into the world, and see what happens. People will love it. People will hate it. That’s how it works.

I wrote a novel about an on-again, off-again relationship that was romantic and messy. When you write a book, you spend months alone with it. When it was ready for people to read, I could not wait to hear what people thought.

Readers connected with the story in a way I couldn’t have anticipated

Because I built a following while I was writing the book, it found its way into the hands of readers who wanted it.

They left incredible reviews for me and shared the book with their friends and followers on social media. One reader told me that she and her cousin were talking about the book at a wedding. Many readers told me that they saw themselves in the story.

One of my favorite reviews said, “Bravo crafted a cast of characters that felt like meeting up with old friends.”

Another was from a man who wrote, “Guys aren’t supposed to like this, right? Well, I did… loved it, in fact.”

The first one-star review that I received

The first one-star review that I received on Amazon was titled, “Disappointed in the South.” This was a bit of an interesting title. While my book is set in the South, it is not trying to represent the South as a whole.

Here’s the review:

I was so excited to read this book based on the other reviews, but so disappointed when I did. I felt like I was reading a book for Tweens instead of adults with poorly developed characters. Wendy and Simon keep breaking up and getting back together, but you never truly find out the root of their problem. They just kiss and make up, even as adults no talks about issues. Very disappointed.

Overall, a pretty fair opinion. I don’t know if that warrants a one star, but I understand where the writer is coming from.

Here’s the cool part. The story does not end here.

Readers who loved my book commented on the bad review

If someone reads my book, that is an incredible gift. If someone takes the time to review, that’s a step above expectation. Seeing someone coming to my defense over my book? That’s beyond words.

Here is what one of my readers, who had not even read my book yet, responded:

I haven’t read it but I think it’s downright mean-spirited to give someone’s first novel one star. Do you realize that there are books on here that don’t have a complete sentence without a grammatical mistake in it? THAT’S what constitutes one star. Having read her blog, I find it hard to believe that this book is not at least formatted and grammatically correct, and that’s at least worth 2 stars in itself.

The star system is used for judging the overall quality of books on Amazon, not the quality of books as it exists solely in what you imagine SHOULD be. You’ve never inquired about proper Amazon ettiqette have you? Jenny Bravo helps writers get their start through her blog and her work with Nanowrimo. I’d like to see what Bookerchic could produce in the month of November, whether or not it could get published, and how many stars it would get.

I could not believe it. A complete stranger came to my defense against another complete stranger. Is this what it feels like to be a celebrity? (On a very minor scale.)

This person went out of their way to write something positive about me, without even reading the book. Based solely on my blog and my helping other writers, this person wanted to respond in my defense.

Your people are all that really matter

I don’t read reviews anymore. Not because I am afraid of getting my feelings hurt, but because I do not want to distract myself from the actual work.

The bad review debacle was a reminder to me that my writing will find its way into the right hands. It’s not going to be for everyone. But I want to take care of the readers that keep returning to my work. It’s theirs just as much as it is mine.

Write for the readers who love your work. Don’t worry about anyone else.