Even if the story is good, if I can’t love (or hate) the characters, I can’t totally love the book.

Heather Barksdale – 26 September 2020

About Reviewing

How did you get started?

I self-published my debut book, Arriving Through Time, in June.  I found it extremely challenging to get the word out about my book and noticed that a lot of other writers were experiencing the same frustrations as me.  While I was already an avid reader, I was not writing reviews and realized that I was part of the problem that was frustrating me.  Therefore, I decided to do something about it and started writing reviews.  I was already running my blog, The Secret to Writer’s Block, so book reviews were a welcome addition!

How do you review a book? Is it a read first, and then make notes, or do you make notes as you go along?

I always start reading a book first.  I generally know if I am going to enjoy a book within the first twenty pages and then I begin making notes.  I enjoy pulling interesting quotes for my reviews, so I jot them down as I come across them as well.

What are you looking for?

My ideal book is a historical fiction with some steamy romance, a mystery, and fantastic characters.  Even if the story is good, if I can’t love (or hate) the characters, I can’t totally love the book.

If a book has a great plot, great characters, but the grammar is less than perfect, how do you deal with that?

The actual story and the characters are why I read a book.  I am not an English teacher and also understand how hard it is to put your work out there.  Therefore, I may give you feedback if there is a blatant issue, but that will be behind the scenes and not in the actual review.  Having said that, I have encountered an occasional novel where the grammar/spelling is so bad that I can not make it through a novel.  I just let the author know that unfortunately I will not be able to finish the review and why.

How long does it take you to get through, say, an eighty thousand-word book?

Most books take me between two and three weeks to get through.  I work full time, so the only time I have to read is at night and on weekends.  However, it’s pretty rare that I don’t read at least twenty pages a night.

How did you come up with your rating system, and could you explain more about the rating system?

The decorative theme of my website (colors/images) revolves around the peacock.  I find peacocks to be proud, beautiful, and majestic while also showing off a little bit.  I love that combination and the correlation that it has to really good writing.  So, my rating system is a typical out of 5 scale – just using peacock feathers.  I do not post reviews if they are not at least a 3 out of 5.  I started writing reviews to support other authors, not to bash them.  Sometimes I am just not a match for a book, it doesn’t mean it’s not good, just not a match for me.

What advice could you give to authors looking to get their books reviewed?

Stick with it!  It never hurts to ask.   If you know other authors in your genre, ask them for advice and leads on reviewers.

Do you get readers emailing you and thanking you for a review?

Yes, I mostly get responses on social media.  People reach out to let me know that they looked into a book because of my review or read something that they normally wouldn’t (different genre).

My advice to authors on getting a ‘bad’ review (hasten to add that might mean a perfectly honest, well written, fair review – just bad from the author’s point of view) is to take what you can from it and move on. Under no circumstances to ‘argue’ with the reviewer – would you agree with that?

Yes.  Everyone has their preferences and likes, otherwise we would just all read the same twenty books and call it.  Sometimes you just need to find a reviewer match for your book.  It’s the reason that reviewers will list their genre preferences and also why we tend to be choosy about what books we review.  It’s also an opportunity to learn for the future.  Take the review as advice and learn from it what you can.

About Reading

We talk a lot about writing here on the blog, and possibly not enough about reading, which is after all why we’re all here. Why do you think people love reading? We’re seeing lots of statistics that say reading as a pastime is dying – do you think that’s the case?

I think that people love reading because it gives us the opportunity to transport ourselves to different worlds.  I don’t think that reading is dying, I think the art is just changing.  Everyone is busy now, so we are very selective about what we read and when.  I think that’s why social media is so important for authors.  It’s a way to get a quick image or word out there to a large number of people.

About Writing

What are the most common mistakes that you see authors making?

Not sticking with it.  It is amazing to me how many authors, bloggers, or reviewers try to write for a short period of time (less than a year) and then they just give up.  Like any other skill, it takes time to develop and learn.  So, stick with it and give it time!

We’re told that the first page, paragraph, chapter, is absolutely key in making or breaking a book. Agents typically request only the first five pages of a novel; what do you think about that? If a book hasn’t grabbed you by the first five pages, do you put it down?

I think only five pages is a little absurd, especially if it is a stand alone novel or a first book of a series.  However, I will say that generally I am either interested or not within 20 pages.  I have never not finished a book unless the grammar/spelling essentialy make it unreadable.

Is there anything you will not review?

Yes, I will not review anything discriminatory or erotica.

About Publishing

What do you think of the oft-quoted comment that the “slush-pile has moved online”?

I have read some really great traditionally published and some really great self-published works. I have also read some not-so-great published works (sometimes from well-known writers who will remain nameless here).  So, to say the “slush-pile” has moved online I think is a little ridiculous and biased.

Do you think attitudes are changing with respect to indie or self-published titles?

I think that a lot of avid readers are a lot more open to self-published titles.  However, I think the majority of casual readers continue to rely on big publishers and media to guide their decisions on what to read.  I think that is too bad and continues to limit “good” works from becoming discovered.

Do you have any ideas or comments on how the industry can ‘filter’ good from bad, aside from reviews?

I think that this is a really hard question.  I think that just like any other art form, books are only as good as what the readers perceive them to be.  Therefore, who are we to determine what is good from bad?  I think all we can do is give the readers information, access, and ideas – the rest is up to them.

End of Interview:

To read Heather’s reviews, visit Heather’s Bookshelf.