{EP. 9} How to Get Book Reviews & Handle the Bad Ones Like a Boss (and NOT React like Lauren Hough)

Last week, the literary world was shook by an author’s craptastic idea to publicly insult people who left 4-star reviews on her GoodReads book page. She was so horrible about it that BookTwitter unleashed the type of vengeance only avid book lovers could devise…they attacked this author’s GoodReads book page with 1-star reviews. 

That’s right. Before the book was even a few days old, Lauren Hough’s (let’s just say her name, we all know who we’re talking about, right?) book, which was a widely anticipated collection of personal essays, had over 1,500 1-star reviews, which means that her book rating is now essentially meaningless.

Wow, there is so much to learn from this. In today’s episode, Katrina and Genny explain why any writer, even a famous one, should never ever talk to reviewers like that (as if we really need to explain this one). We also talk about why giving a book a 1-star review simply because the author is an asshole misses the whole point and importance of these review sites. 

By the way, did we mention that getting a 4-star review on Goodreads is actually amazing? Many writers would swoon over a review that good, but we’d settle for any, ANY review at all. 

This is where Katrina’s personal experience with launching her YA novel, The Wise One, comes in handy. She tells us how to get reviews in really effective ways but warns that some of these methods are a lot of work (but totally worth it!).

Last week, we polled a few of our Facebook followers to get their advice on how to handle bad reviews, and their answers will definitely inspire you! 

Meanwhile, Genny’s hair gets caught a bunch of times in her headphones, and we manage to throw shade on a whole cast of Hollywood actors. All in a day’s work!

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Let us know what you thought of our episode! You can reach us on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or email writingthebroomstick@gmail.com.

Hey! Do you like Celtic folklore, YA urban fantasy, AND free stuff? Read the first three chapters of Katrina’s debut novel, “The Wise One”.

And, if you want to see what Genny’s reading lately, check out her Goodreads review page.