Love Hurts

CMSeter on SXC

Authors love their books, almost as much as they love their children. Our books are our babies, in a sense. But sometimes the love we hold for our stories, characters, books can hurt when other people don't love our work as much as we do.

Reviews are a part of being a writer. You're going to have people who love your work and happily tell the world about it. And then you'll have the people who for some odd reason think your work belongs in the recycle bin.

Reviews are opinions, plain and simple.  Everyone has an opinion and we're not always going to agree. Opposing opinions are what makes the world go 'round. What do you do when someone disagrees with you in the real world? Do you scream and holler and cry? Or do you try your hardest to respect their opinion, yet hold true to your own beliefs?

I would hope that you'd understand that others have opinions they feel as strongly about as you do.  The goal as a writer is to take the good with the bad, while staying true to yourself and your characters.  Keep writing, moving forward, taking on the world with your unique style and gusto. And always remember that the world would be a very boring place if we were all the same.

How do I handle bad reviews?
I bitch and moan to one author friend and my sister. I might even tell my husband if it's really, really bad.  And after a day or two of being pissed and talking it out with my peeps, I move on. I jump back into whatever it was I was working on when the notion to check my books' reviews hit me and ruined my mood. I talk to my characters, especially Liz Baker (she has great insights), and then I get back to work.

So what if Sue Pissy Pants hates my writing and thinks anything I would ever write will be utter trash.  "Hey, you, don't read it if you don't like it!" Even the bests of the bests have haters.  It's up to us, as authors, to let the haters be haters without allowing them to distract us for too long.

Sure, it's hard to look past someone telling the world they hate you and everything you stand for, even though they know nothing about you personally.  But stand tall, be brave, pull those thorns from you heart, and get back to work.  You must be doing something right, after all, to garner that much attention from a complete stranger.

Have a great day & keep writing!

Wanna Know Wednesday #8...

Morning all. How's it going this week? It's Hump Day, yet again. Why is it that the days seem to go by so much faster with each passing year?

It's April 1st, and April Fool's Day! Soooo, in today's entry I'm going to post one untruth and lets see how many people guess the right one. I'll let you know which it was tomorrow. ;-)

Here are this week's ten random things you may, or may not, have wanted to know about me. This marks two months of these, so it's getting more difficult to find something about myself that I haven't already shared with you.

1. I still have a blog stalker. Though they seem to come around less than before. And Tim's MySpace page seems to hold less interest these days. LOL! Could it be caused by his lack of regular updates? Hmmm...
2. I'm the kind of person who DOES hold a grudge. I don't believe in "forgive & forget". I might forgive (and that doesn't happen often), but I never forget.
3. I have a younger brother and sister. Don't have any idea where the brother is, but am so close to my little sister. I actually taught her to drive when she was 16. :-)
4. Tim is an only child. Though he was adopted and, from what we're told, does have biological siblings.
5. The NBC show ER aired in the same year that Tim & I married. Tomorrow is the last episode of the series--which ran for 15 years--and I plan to watch it.
6. I just watched the movie version of Twilight on Sunday, and well, I'll just say that I liked the book version much, much, MUCH better than the movie.
7. After I finish Time For Death, I'll be working on a full on erotica story. It'll be complete with lots of sex and words that'll make my mother blush. *Hi Mom!* LOL
8. I've decided that I don't want Tim to have a vasectomy, and I'd like one more child.
9. I'm looking forward to the kids being off for Spring Break next week.
10. My oldest daughter will be getting her bottom braces next Monday. Hopefully she'll fair well.

There you have it! Can you guess which one is a all out lie? Anyone who knows me well (or reads the blog regularly) will be able to pick it out right away. LOL!

Okay, that's it from me for this morning. My April newsletter goes out today, so if you missed it sign up today for next month's edition. Now I'm off to get some work done. I hope you have a fabulous day!

.