Question of the Week
Writing Reviews 101: What's your process for writing book reviews?
Any tips or suggestions you would recommend to other bloggers?
{ ++ } Ooh I love this question. I don't know that I have a hard and fast formula that I have to stick to, but I think I have a casual sort of pattern I usually fall into when I'm writing my reviews. Reviews, to me, are kind of a book bloggers way of putting their best foot forward to gain the trust of authors, to know - this person is going to accurately represent my book, my creation. So I think reviews are so important.
I write my reviews here on Blogger. Last week when I went through and pre-scheduled all my posts (it was amazing, I was SO productive) I wrote my reviews in my Word, which seemed to work really well, so I may start doing that. I have every Sunday off so my goal is to start writing up all my weekly posts that day. :D
I spend about a paragraph talking about the main character. For me, clicking or connecting with my main character is crucial. If that doesn't happen, I'm not going to love the book. I might like it, but I won't fall head over heels for it. So I talk about what I liked/disliked about the main character, if I sympathized with him/her and so forth.
Then I jump into the relationships in the book, either platonic or romantic. I try to keep this around a good sized paragraph. To me, how the characters interact is as essential as a fabulous plot. You can have a brilliant idea playing out across the pages but if you don't build solid relationships between your characters, I'm not going to be all that interested. And romance. A truly great romance will have me swooning; a mediocre one, or the dreaded insta-love will have me hissing in distaste.
Finally, I like to devote a paragraph or two to how I felt about the book in general. Was there something that I adored? Were there areas I felt could have used more development? Was I disappointed in the book? Am I salivating over the sequel already?
The order of these points may change, because like I said, I'm not too uptight about any one part having to come first or second. But for the most part, I do like to include all of this. I'll also sometimes talk about the cover, and I always include ways to find the author online for stalking purposes.
The only advice I would give is: be honest. If you're wondering if you should include a certain criticism, remember: it's about YOUR integrity. Just because you received that book for review, does not mean you have to alter your review in any way. Authors will appreciate honesty far more than they will a review padded by euphemisms. On the other hand, you don't have to be harsh. If you didn't like a part of the book, so so, and why, but with tact.
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{ ++ } Everyone have a wonderful, fabulous weekend, and I will see y'all next week!
