Indie authors sweat bullets over getting reviews and worrying about bad reviews. It turns out we’ve been going about this all wrong.
Studies show that bad reviews on books by unknown authors actually result in a spike in sales. Who can argue with studies?
Add to this the number of indie author elites bemoaning the state of indie writing. Now look at Amazon and its scorched-earth policy on obliterating suspect favorable reviews while ignoring suspect bad reviews. Amazon is in the process of eliminating ALL author to author reviews.
It’s going to be all right, folks. Even in these trying times, one man has the vision and courage to come to the rescue of the indie community—and that man is me.
It is clear that what indies need to move their books is BAD reviews and a LOT of them. Rising to meet this emerging need, I have developed a new service called BookScather.
That’s right, now you are no longer at the mercy of readers too timid to leave a review or authors who won’t leave a review at all if they didn’t like your book. For a nominal fee, BookScather will kick the living crap right out of your book with a package of scorchingly brutal one-star reviews that would make Chuck Norris go running home to mamma crying like a little girl.
I know this cuts against the grain of everything you think you know, but it all makes perfect sense. When you stop to think about it, nobody watched the Gong Show to see the good acts. People are going to be more interested in your book if they have reason to suspect it’s a real stinker.
But it’s not enough to have bad reviews. Emerging research (which I am just now writing) shows the bad reviews have to be of a particular type to pique a prospective buyer’s interest. Sure, you could try it on your own. Go ahead and see if you can get your friends and family to give you some bad reviews. You couldn’t get them to give you good reviews. Not only that, but there’s a good chance you’d end up with a bunch of amateurish bad reviews like:
“I did not like this book.”
“I was seriously disappointed in this author.”
“This book sucks.”
Be honest—do any of those make YOU want to read the book? Of course not. BookScather uses a patented Simon Cowell-level critique engine that is guaranteed to generate interest in your book. With BookScather, you’ll get reviews that include proven interest-generating phrases like:
“…made me regret ever learning how to read.”
“…written by a brain-damaged chimpanzee on crack, and not on his best day.”
“…Threw my sleeping pills away after the first page of this snoozer.”
“…my two-year-old could eat Alphabits and crap a better story than this.”
“…to say the plot moved forward at a glacial pace is an insult to glaciers.”
“…only thing with which I could not find fault was the central premise of the book, but that is only because the author appears not to have included one.”
“…with characters that can only aspire to be two-dimensional.”
Yes, with the right kind of bad reviews, you can cry all the way to the bank. I’m proud to make BookScather available for a limited time at the introductory price of just $19.99. For that price, you get twenty hideous one-star reviews that will pay for themselves in no time at all. That’s less than a dollar per review!
You’ve seen what good reviews can do for your book sales—jack squat. It’s time to take a different tack. Doesn’t your book deserve the very worst that money can buy? Call now. Our operators are standing by.
Ah, small problem. You forgot the phone number. Guess that’s why I’m still on hold. You do have a valid point. Some bad reviews can be so disturbing that readers will read the book just out of curiosity.
Sorry you were on hold for so long, Jeff. After I took down your credit card number, I had to call in to the home shopping network – on an unrelated matter, of course. (Ahem)
Are those sample lines copyrighted, Evil Mastermind? I’d like to borrow them. 😀
Actually, I may have stolen those from you. Help yourself. 🙂
Well done, sir!
“Emerging research (which I am just now writing)” — I love it.
Thank you sir! 🙂
Thank goodness for BookScather! It’s been so much work eking reviews out of people lately, and not successful. This is just perfect! Since I have 13 books – can we work out a bulk discount?
For you, of course. 🙂
Thanks, EM – I knew you’d find the answer! Do bookScather reviews come with a money-back guarantee?
Of course you can give me your money back.
Right! Even if you’re gonna do a bad, do it right. lol
That’s the spirit!
If we all share this and create posts referring to it, we’ll have a new movement on our hands. People will create companies to compete with BookScather and prices for bad reviews will drop.
Muahahahahah
Oops, something just came over me.
Dang.
I think you can be sprayed for that…
You’re definitely undercharging for such a humanitarian service. I’ll just have to buy seven.
Sold! 🙂
Are you hiring?
Are you kidding? I was planning on outsourcing all these to you. 🙂
Okay, so I tried an experiment to see if people were more attracted to bad reviews. I posted on the Amazon Kindle FB page, like I do every week or so, but this time, I copied part of a one-star review instead of trying to make the book look good. I have bitly links, so I was going to see if it garnered more interest than normal. Well, at first, it had three quick clicks–but then people who had read the book and disagreed with the reviewer started posting. Can I say how muchI love my readers? They are awesome! Except, it wasn’t my intention to get them all fired up. lol. Anyway, only one more click since then. (It’s been about 50 minutes since I posted it.)
See? It’s science at work. 🙂
I am humbled by your awesome command of all things marketing. I only have $16 and change. Do I get a discount for shameless fawning?
Karla, you’d get a bigger discount for shameful fawning, but sure. I’m nothing if not flexible. 😉
Karla, for Raptor Jesus’ sake, don’t let him talk you into the Bunk Bed Backrub discount. It’s a lot more involved than you might think…
Hilarious!
🙂
No phone number. Hmmm…let’s try this. BookScather! BookScather! BookScather!
*Poof!* BookScather, at your service!
I’m interested. Would it cost extra if I wanted to pick my own zingers?
Actually, I’d recommend that. 😉
I’d suggest the purple coconut Zingers. Yummy!
Oh c’mon! No one else used to eat Dolly Madison?
No. Twinkies and Ring Dings.
You have completely changed my mind on bad reviews Sir! I see now that I have been denying good authors a necessary ingredient for success. I’m ashamed and humbled. Is there a Friends of BookScather I could join?
Of course there is a Friends of BookScather group you can join. Of course, there is a small application fee, processing fee, shipping and handling, just a little extra for the rustproofing undercoat – you do want that, right?
I’d also recommend the extended warranty. You just never know.
I’m sorry, but my review of your article is 5 stars. Even the logo is good. Better luck next time.
Thanks Susan. I wish I could say the same. I found it tiresome and predictable. As the author of the piece, I highly recommend no one read it. 😉
Do you think she meant, “Better suck next time.”?
Bwahahahaha! That’s all. …just uncontrollable snickering and laughing. LOL
My work here is done. 🙂
So, I may want to steal some of your lines…Am I stealing them from you or BigAl?
I guess it’s time everyone knew. I AM BigAl. Except for tax purposes, of course.
Evil Mastermind, do we have to pay extra for any ugly emotions if we want those to go with the reviews…they make them stand out so much better, don’t ya think?
Do you mean the ugly emotions expressed in the reviews, or the ugly emotions caused by the reviews? Either way, yes — that is extra! 😉
But WAIT…if you call in the next 30 years you can get TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE. You still get 20 free bad reviews, but you’ll have twice the program to do it. Go ahead…you know you want to…don’t wait, this offer won’t last forever!