I read this article the other day. Almost every author knows you should never respond to a review of your work, especially with dialogue. We especially know we shouldn’t respond on Goodreads, a site that is heavily geared toward the reader.
But this left me with a question…what really happens when an author “misbehaves” in these scenarios? How bad is it?
Well, it’s been a few days so let’s take a look.
In the comments from the review argument, you can see a poster stated “Only 7% of your reviews are one star.” So that made me ask: What’s the percentage now?
On GR, the negative reviews skyrocketed. He is now sitting at 83% of his reviews at one star. Ouch!
But we all know GR doesn’t translate directly to sales. It’s a review platform, not a purchasing platform. Just the simple fact that somebody has to click more links to buy your book instead of the few it takes directly from the seller is enough to deter the majority of potential buys.
You want to know where this will hurt? On Amazon. I shuddered as I thought about the backlash. Can you imagine if you had 83% of your reviews on Amazon as 1 star each!? Your work would never be purchased again!
At first glance, you would think the backlash was none. The book is still at 3.9 stars in rating overall…but it is declining. The original problem started on June 5, 2015. Since then, 28 one-star reviews have been posted on Amazon, dropping the average. The book now has 21% of its reviews as 1 star on Amazon. Ouch.
In time, I would give it two more months, this book is going to see a 2.5 star rating if it’s lucky. A very unfortunate tale.
To give you a clear understanding, Goodreads warns authors never to respond to reviews. EVER. The vast majority of authors in this world also advise you to do the same. Some of us don’t listen.
When is an author permitted to respond to people’s remarks about their books?
In person. Verbally.