Amazon Cracks Down on All Fake Reviews

flash fiction contest gavelI get it. It does feel like Amazon’s review policy makes our indie-author lives harder. This review is okay, but this one is not, so poof! Out it goes, with very little recourse. We work really hard for each and every one of our reviews. We need them all. Why is the Zon picking on us?

They’re not, of course. Fake reviews are a problem for any retailer that allows reviews of the products it sells – which is pretty much every e-retailer out there – and for every product imaginable, not just for books. Everybody who has a product for sale at Amazon is trying to get eyeballs on their product, and favorable reviews will push the product higher in the rankings. Continue reading “Amazon Cracks Down on All Fake Reviews”

Artistic Snobbery

"Hell is the other." Jean-Paul Sartre
“Hell is the other.” Jean-Paul Sartre

When I read a post from an author I respect that I strongly disagree with I often like to sit back and think about it. I have a passionate nature, well suited to writing murder mysteries where I can cut off people’s heads when annoyed. It is better for me to contemplate the error of the article, in my opinion, than to shoot from the hip. I like that expression and I couldn’t care less that it is a cliché. I was confronted recently with this type of situation in a post bemoaning the uselessness of the Amazon review system. Continue reading “Artistic Snobbery”

A few personal editing peeves.

editingI have a touch of OCD, not debilitating, just annoying. One of the milder rules it makes for my life is the necessity to finish one book before I’m ‘allowed’ to start another. I suffer terrible guilt if I leave a book unfinished but it does happen, usually because I’m reading a first draft, not a finished product. I sometimes read reviews on Amazon that say there were some editing/writing/grammar (pick your poison) problems with a book but the story drew the reviewer in anyway…which might be fine for that reader but it won’t work for me.

It amazes me that some authors seem content to appeal to a minority of readers. One more edit or a bit of advice-taking and I might go on to read everything else they’ve written, instead of moving on. I know criticism is rough, so here’s how I learned to take mine on the chin. Continue reading “A few personal editing peeves.”

Reviewing 101 – Part 4

BookglassesIn previous installments of this series I covered how to enter an Amazon customer review, how to write a short, yet useful review, followed by ideas to beef up your reviews to give potential readers additional information to assist their purchasing decision. In this final installment I’m going to throw out tips, hints, and other ideas to help refine your reviews to be even better and to help you get more out of reviewing. Continue reading “Reviewing 101 – Part 4”