The beauty of reading is that we all see different things in the story so to try and encompass everything would be a waste of time.

Martyn Coppack – 01 July 2014

About Reviewing

How did you get started?

I have been writing for a few years now and have been firmly placed in the music side of things such as album reviews, interviews etc. I’ve always had a love for reading though and wanted to branch out in that direction and start my own website. I saw a lot of sites that seemed to focus on just one genre and wanted to create something that would be a bit more open. I also wanted it to be a place where the smaller books could get a break rather than the big hitters that sit on our supermarket shelves so was determined to make it a mix of my influences which were postmodern, sci-fi, European and classics whilst retaining a distinct independent edge.

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

It depends on the book. Usually I will read it first and then make notes after. Whilst I’m reading I think of an angle on how to approach reviewing the book whether it be from a character point of view or a narrative. I look for the thing that stands out the most and go from there. The beauty of reading is that we all see different things in the story so to try and encompass everything would be a waste of time.

What are you looking for?

Themes are important and I love books that ask questions of the reader. Science Fiction is great for this but then another genre may not be. Sometimes the characters spring out at you and you just have to focus on them. A good plot helps although this is not essential (especially in post-modern works) and I love a well thought out ending. Too many books lose their head of steam towards the end unfortunately.

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

It can be very off putting at times but if the story is strong enough then it will always make up for it. A good way of thinking about this is when stories were passed down through word of mouth around a campfire. The narrator may not have the best voice in the world but if they are telling a good story then the audience will be gripped.

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

It varies. If the narrative is dense then it may take up to a week but if it is terse and flows quick then a couple of days

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

Kafka’s Cage doesn’t use a rating system as such. I like to let the reviews speak for themselves rather than giving a mark out of 5. It’s a situation where a reader of the review may want to quick idea of whether they may like the book but what if, say, the characterisation is superb and deserves a 5 where-as the plot is dire and deserves a 1. Does the book then get a 3? By focusing on the review itself then the reader can discover this.

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

Just keep plugging away. One of the most important things you can do is to make a good pitch. Make it stand out and don’t go overboard on it. Never compare yourself to another author or say fans of such and such will like it. A sense of humour helps too.

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

Sometimes. It’s nice when someone has read a review that you have written and then gone on to buy the book and enjoyed it themselves. It’s the literary equivalent of passing a book on. I would ask readers to then pass that book on to someone else to keep the chain going.

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?

I’ve been thinking about bad reviews a lot recently. Some people are of the mind that it can harm the author and it isn’t fair to do it. Personally I will write a “bad” review if I don’t like a book but will always try to temper it with the positive aspects. When a book gets passed to be reviewed it’s all part of the risk. The author is always going to be blinded by their book and so harsh judgment may anger them but I’ve found that they usually thank you and then move on. It can be friends or relatives of the author who will give you grief. The author has the right to debate your review but they don’t have the right to be rude and argue with you.

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?

Books offer an escape from the everyday mundanities of life. I know that sounds a bit pompous but it is true. There is nothing quite like turning the pages of a good book and seeing how a story develops. I think it’s all part of human nature. We are born with a love of stories, it’s part of what makes us creative and sets us apart from animals.

I don’t tend to believe stats about reading dying. Book sales may be down but that doesn’t mean people aren’t reading. Do the stats take into consideration the high turnover of books in charity shops or car boot sales? The cost of books can be inhibitive to people these days and so they will wait until they find it at a cheaper price.

About Writing

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

The worst kind of mistake is the one of coincidence. Dickens had this down to an artform in all his books (and I am a huge fan of his works). No matter where the book takes you when it opens up its world it still has to play by the rules of that world and keep the reader believing.

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 can understand why agents would only ask for the first five pages as they must receive hundreds of manuscripts. I personally can’t see how you can make up your mind about a book after five pages, at least not story wise which has got to be the most important part. You can tell if the style of writing is for you though and this can be a decisive factor in whether you continue. I have picked up books in the past and got through the first chapter and put it down as the writing was awful. I do try to get through at least a third of the book before casting any judgement though.

Is there anything you will not review?

Chick-lit, romance, 50 Shades style books and Young Adult. The first three because I don’t have any affinity with them and would not be able to judge a good one from a bad one. YA will be featured at some point on Kafka’s Cage once the site starts to grow but not as yet.

About Publishing

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

As with any artform there will always be good and bad and in the past we did have a sort of filter to take away some of this. Now, the internet has given free rein to everybody to upload there piece of work and it can be a minefield trying to get through it. One look at Amazon shows the amount of books that are on there that would never have been published in the pre-internet age.

This is not essentially a bad thing though as the good generally rises to the top be it through good reviews, word of mouth or a huge publicity campaign.

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

Yes, and I think a lot of it has been due to the success of 50 Shades. Before that book I don’t believe readers were aware of self-publishing but now they see something become a success they want to explore further. The barrier between the ordinary person on the street and the million selling author has come down and been replaced by a genuine respect for how much work goes into developing a book. I think the industry will be keeping a sharp eye on how self-publishing develops as they are going to want a slice of that pie before too long.

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

It’s going to be practically impossible to filter the good from the bad now as the flood has been started. I would like to see a good author rewarded for what they are doing and this means a bigger cut of their sales and more opportunities to progress. Whilst the industry quibbles over whether the end is nigh or print is dead or self-publishing is killing books they need to find a way to adapt to changing ways. Reward the good and ignore the bad…at the end of the day the public will make their own minds up now.

End of Interview:

Read Martyn’s reviews at Kafka’s Cage.