For those new to my blog, I’m reposting a video from a blog post from 2018. It is a very short play (no more than 5-7 minutes) I wrote back in 2015 for my Introduction to Creative Writing class when I was still in college.
I was lucky enough to have a local theater’s actors perform my fun play on January 20, 2018. I’m a bit shy, so my husband introduced my play. Hope you enjoy and laugh just a little. 🙂
Today, I received a two-star rating on my debut novel, Passage of Promise. It was my first two-star review out of twenty that have been mostly five and four stars.
As a newly-published author, I expected to receive some ratings that judged my work mediocre. It is part of the life of an author.
Even top, best-selling authors get one-star and two-star reviews, some, unfortunately, with a few nasty remarks. It’s par for the course in the realm of the author’s world, as I said.
Experienced authors have always given the advice to newer authors that they must grow thick skins and not take reviews that aren’t spectacular to heart.
I found the two-star anonymous reviewer’s comments pretty fair. Not everyone is going to like my storyline or my writing style.
This is natural.
As a reader myself, I too, pick up books to read, and come to the same conclusions. Although, if I don’t like the writing style, I don’t buy the book, so I may be even more picky than my two-star reviewer!
The latest book I bought and am having a struggle getting through, I read the first few pages on Amazon and tended to like it because I thought the writing style was pretty good.
But I admit now that the storyline so far has been dragging, and I’m finding it easy to set down the book. The story just isn’t drawing me in to the point where I feel compelled to keep reading it.
Therefore, I understand everybody’s tastes are different, and that each author has her/his niche readers. And that’s good enough for me.
New writers out there and newly-published writers, don’t be discouraged if or when you may get a negative or lower-starred review. Count it as a good thing.
There are three things good about even two-star reviews that are somewhat negative, especially the one I received:
For someone who doesn’t really have a high self-esteem, I do know my writing is good, that my stories are worth sharing, and I appreciate the feedback.
Newly-published writers, keep writing and keep publishing your work. There are enough readers out there for each of us.
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Sorry, friends. I’ve not been posting much. My right shoulder started hurting in mid-May and hasn’t gone away. The pain at times is excruciating.
I was referred to a sports medicine doctor this past Monday. He diagnosed my right shoulder with rotator cuff injury with tendonitis, as well as bursitis and trapezius strain.
I don’t know how long it will take me to get better. He gave me anti-inflammatory gel to rub on four spots of my shoulder twice a day, and directions on how to move my right arm to allow for healing of the tissue and muscles in my shoulder.
I had an x-ray and CAT scan of my shoulder and neck last week. It didn’t show anything torn or pinched.
The sports medicine doctor said he does have injections he could give me via ultrasound guidance and that they aren’t cortisone shots. He does numb the area before putting in the needles. My course of treatment, I think, will last at least six weeks. He has the shots as the last resort, but I’m getting tired of the pain and may request them earlier. I’ve already called his nurse just a little while ago because of the pain.
If I try and calculate how many hours I’m able to sit up (only when eating) and stand and walk (up to 10 minutes), that would probably be around 45 minutes the whole day. 😦
So, basically, I’ve been miserable. Praying healing comes sometime in the near future.
I’m not sure when I’ll get another post out. Thank you for sticking with me.
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Modest Musings 