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    1. Thanks! I thought it needed to be said. Diana Gabaldon, herself, once told me that people who have absolute confidence in their work are usually pretty bad writers, that a sense of trepidation was necessary for the good stuff. Five words of positive feedback from her had me on cloud 9 for a week. Everyone needs a boost now and then, and readers need to be reminded that THEY matter.

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      1. Someone I know says, “I didn’t say there was anything wrong with it…” which means it is good. That type of “compliment” is devastating to me. I’m a creative. I need the praise! I feel bad that I do, though. But I think it is part of the creative spirit that we’re always pushing the boundaries and wondering if we’ve gone too far!!!

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        1. You just gave me flashbacks to when my sister was my boss. When I’d show her something to see if it was good, she always said, “Not bad.” I hated that. “Not bad” isn’t the same as saying something is good and it drove me crazy. I think when we’re talking about creative outlets like writing, art, music, etc., the praise is so important because what’s being produces is so personal, not autobiographical, but from the creator’s heart and soul. Art makes us vulnerable and nobody wants to be left hanging in the wind.

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          1. Exactly. I was talking with a writer who had been asked to evaluate a friend’s manuscript. I said, “Do you want to stay friends?” My next question was, “what have they asked you for?” Because if they just want your “opinion” they want to hear “it’s great” if you want to stay friends. LOL.

            If they’ve asked you for a detailed critique / beta read, then the actually want helpful feedback… and “it’s great” isn’t going to cut it.

            Like a woman asking if these clothes make her look fat. There’s no safe way out of that other than to say, “of course not! How could anything make you look fat???”

          2. Yep. I remember when I first started writing again in the forums. I felt like a fraud amongst so many writers who I thought were really good. I didn’t know what to say. But someone told me not everything needs to be specific. If you like it, say why, if only that it made you laugh. If something pops out as great (or awful), point that out. Be truthful. Lead with the positive and be kind. Reading to critique is different. People reading for pleasure, just need to say what they think. I liked it. I’m not a poetry lover, but there were things here that touched me. I didn’t like it, but someone who likes Romance probably would. Loved the characters. Whatever. Things like that are meaningful to the author.

  2. That’s funny to write a review on Reviews. You know I think you are a talented writer. Keep up the good work. I and I’m sure many others enjoy your poems. P.S. I’ll try to comment more often. 🥹

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    1. Hi Rosemary!
      You know I appreciate your support, and I guess it is a little funny to “write a review on reviews.” I didn’t think of it as a review as much as giving advice and encouragement to people who don’t think that they *can* write a review. The average person doesn’t realize how important those reviews can be to the author. If a book gets enough reviews, Amazon will start promoting it. (You know how they pop up with, People who bought this also bought this?) I remember when I was new to all this and posting comments on the work of other writers was really hard for me because I didn’t feel like I knew enough to say anything meaningful. That’s really why I posted this. I’m hoping that people who have read my books will go and write reviews. Word of mouth is the best advertising, especially for Indie writers. It’s one of the reasons I made all of my books free at Smashwords’ Read an Ebook sale this week. Leaving a review isn’t a lot to ask, but it is *hard* to ask.

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