A Book Blogger's Life

I Want Your Honest Opinion, Just Don't Be Honest

If you ask me, honesty is one of the most trickiest words existing. Everyone I know wants honesty, but do they really want to hear the truth? Does my best friend want to hear that I think the dress she picked out is hideous? Of course, not! It hurts sometimes to hear an honest opinion. I know that sounds harsh, but it's a fact. You can't avoid hurting someone's feelings or disappointing them while telling the truth. BUT.....you can be respectful about it. There are ways to criticize something without being a total bitch. It's call being diplomatic. You point out the negative in a positive way. Or you just add all the positive aspects after you explain the negative ones. It's really simple. No one has to be rude, or use foul language to get the message over. But if you feel there is no way to sugar coat your feelings towards a book, you always have the option to contact the author and talk the negative points through before  ou publish a review. That's as nice as anyone can get, if anyone wants to be nice in the first place. I know that you can't be nice about everything all the time. Sometimes a book pisses me off so bad that I don't even contact the author and go straight for a review, rating the book with 1 – 2 stars. That's how it is. Either you do it one way, or the other.

Our blog used to get emails from authors, asking us to read their upcoming releases. It was a cool feeling that someone actually looked us up and wanted US to read / review their work. Unfortunately, alot of the authors who weren't showered with our praises were the rudest. It's hard to stay calm when someone is cussing you out through the computer ( which is, by the way, totally confusing) just because you didn't share the " love ". I didn't want anyone spreading word about our blog being pathetic because we didn'tagree with 50 other fanatics. So I tried to stay as calm as I could. That was in the beginning. After 3 years of blogging we gave up on trying to be nice to those who insulted us.

I'm not perfect, but I can judge a book cover and a story. I'm actually allowed to do that. Just like an author is allowed to write a book with what they believe is outstanding. What I'm apparently NOT allowed to be is be honest about my feelings when it comes to books. It dawned on me that certain authors can't handle respectful critique. Why is that? They write a story for the world to read and after that, they expect to be carried on a silver platter, being showered with praises for their story? Uuhm....Nope. If I didn't like the story, then I won't be kissing ass. Not going to happen.

The names we've been called by authors were most amusing. And not to forget the Oscar worthy lines some authors came up with just to emotionally ruin us for our " nice" honesty. Below is a list of names we've been called from a few, not so nice, authors (on and off Wattpad ). Mind you, I'm talking about people who claim to be professionals! Here we go:

Bitch ( aaaah, the classic )

mindless teenagers ( uuhm...Should I laugh, cry, yell? Should I feel flattered?)

Ignorant( Excusez moi? )

Fool( another classic. So, I'm a fool. I waited a long time for the author to send me a video with her taking her white gloves off and throwing them at the camera with her head held high, dramatically shouting „ You fool!" just because she didn't like what I wrote.)

Dumb ( Oh, the shame, the SHAME!! * faint * )

Of course, I'm making fun of the situation. If I wouldn't then I'd probably be depressed. No one should give those words more meaning.

I'm a strong believer of being honest in my reviews. What do I get out of lying to someone who needs the truth? Nothing. Lying will just give me a headache. The thing about lying about a book is:

If you lie alot in your reviews, your words lose their worth. Not for the readers...but for yourself. It gets old and you lose interest to get your thoughts „ out there" because you're shifting your focus on pleasing an author rather than helping others find a good book to read.

Another friendly reminder to all:

Not every blogger lies in their reviews. I'm not saying that at all. But alot of people forget that you can still keep a blogger-author friendship if you're honest.

No. Wait. That's not what some authors think.

I once met an unbelievable author who was about to release her very first novel. I swear to God, that woman was so crazy and confident that I had no other choice than to like her. Needless to say- we bonded and the author started spilling personal details about her life. You know....how many kids, what she did for a living and also her opinion on other authors. She seemed so down-to-earth and fun that I couldn't imagine her writing a „not so good" book. The release date came closer and she started talking about the her characters as if they were real people.

Author:„ I had dinner with my Hero last night."

Me:* choking on my coke * „ Excuse me?"

Author:„ Yeah, my book character and I had a small discussion over dinner."

Me:* thinking about throwing my laptop out the window * „ Do you often talk to your Hero?"

Author:" Oh yeah....all the time. He won't get out of my head. He's forcing me to write."

Ooooooo-kay.I kind of got that. I'm not saying it didn't spook me shitless, but I understood it a little.

Me: „I see. And what did he say?"

Author:„ I can't tell you. You're going to have to read it in the book."

Now, I get scared really fast. If my husband tells me he saw a shadow I'll panic and try to find an older lady who „ cleans" houses, just like the one from the movie Poltergeist.

If an author tells me she has frequent conversations with her fictional characters then I'm properly spooked. Or...my brain searches for a more rational explaination- like: the author has lost her marbles.

Aside from my fears and beliefs...it was obvious the author was trying to get me all excited over a story I didn't know much about. She wanted me to lust for the character, although I knew nothing about him.

And then I FINALLY got the book. I started reading...and reading...and reading. To make a long story short- I gave the book 3 stars. The minute I published the review the author told me I had disappointed her ( WHAT?) and that she would not keep my blog on her Blog List.

What in God's name happened there? Was she serious? Yes. She was. She even broke off any contact with us. Now, I know she wasn't THAT crispy in her brain. And all just because I didn't fall hard for her Hero. A perfect example for wanting an honest review and not liking it.

I don't know how many people have said this before, but I'm sick and tired of authors acting like genuine people until they receive a review rated with 3 or less stars. Because after 200 high ratings those authors will be pissed as hell once their precious perfect profile gets shattered.