Reviews and Rain

"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms; the great devotions; and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat." - Theodore Roosevelt

I've been worried about reviews lately. I actually went out to some reviews sites and requested them. Don't know if they'll do it, but GAH! it's made me sick to my stomach. I try to remember that it's all relative. There are many widely acclaimed novels out there that I thought were absolute garbage. And much panned as worthless that I enjoyed. Still, having someone take jabs at your baby is never easy. But when you put your work out there, you're asking for it and have to develop a thick skin. More about reviews at the end of this post. For now, a bit of rambling...

It warmed up here yesterday... I think it was in the high forties! Woo! Of course, I spent a few hours at my SIL's house using her washing machine since mine is broken. First the dryer went a few weeks back and DH, ever handy (I think I'll keep him around) fixed it. Now the washer. UGH. Still, it could be worse!

It rained (RAINED!) last night, so much of the snow in our yard is melted. I'm thrilled. I am so ready for spring (well, except for the black flies... New Hampshire really knows how to rain on my parade). I often wonder how the first folks over here ever survived. It's beautiful here, but harsh. Hot summers, cold winters, short growing season, and lots of bugs that love to eat your blood and your crops. The folks back then must have been incredibly hardy. Last year, every crop in my garden failed except the tomatoes, and even those didn't do so well.

Yup, I'm rambling a bit. I took the day off of writing yesterday. DH was home, my BIL was here, DD was bored and clingy and the weather was good. I took a walk (the dogs were thrilled).

Today, though, I'm hoping to get back to work on my latest (and greatest?) piece.

Here's the question for the day -- swiped from one of the ladies in my writing group. I haven't answered her yet because I've been pondering this something fierce, but decided to let y'all help as well:

How would you handle it if a writing buddy asked you to write a review and, after reading the book, you thought maybe 3/5 stars at best being generous, but every other review was a 5 star one? Would you:

a. Write an honest review, but send it to her first to ask if she wanted you to publish it or not.

b. Get real. We all have read glowing reviews about books where we couldn’t find the merit. IT’S ALL A GAME. You’ll want her to write you a glowing review someday. Get with the program.

c. Find an excuse—the kids have the flu, my mom’s going to have bypass surgery and I really can’t write anything right now. Did I mention my husband’s being transferred to Japan?

d. Don’t say anything. Nada. If you can’t say anything really nice, better to say nothing and hope she doesn’t notice.

Comments?