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Author REALLY overreacts to a negative review of his work (honeyboomslang.blogspot.com)

submitted by iblogalot

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[–]flame7926 25 ポイント26 ポイント

This is the review. http://honeyboomslang.blogspot.com/2014/07/legend-crapper-book-review_3.html

I would say it was too cruel, but then you look at the author and the other stuff he's written. His actions seem to almost be designed to invite this kind of criticism, and his responses to them add to that.

[–]leftyhugey 12 ポイント13 ポイント

Do the people who write these kind of blogs not realise how fucking difficult it is to read words surrounded by animated gifs? That muppet one almost made me carsick.

[–]Deefry 5 ポイント6 ポイント

Here are the Amazon reviews.

[–]Quouar 3 ポイント4 ポイント

...I don't understand the summary. I don't think those are real sentences.

[–]thatgirludontknow 0 ポイント1 ポイント

It almost looks like it was written in a different language and then ran through Google Translator.

[–]JellyCream 0 ポイント1 ポイント

I'm glad I'm not the only one. I thought I had had a stroke while trying to read that.

[–]gerwer 67 ポイント68 ポイント

I've recently learned that one should not respond to negative reviews, no matter how tempting. I think this is proof positive of that.

Having said that ... I really don't like reading a review where the reviewer relishes bashing a book mercilessly. No matter how bad the book, you still come off like a turd-eating troglodyte.

[–]AuthorSAHuntAuthor & Cover Artist 38 ポイント39 ポイント

Yeah. There's a difference between a thoughtfully critical review and a reviewer just pulling down his pants, spreading his cheeks, and dropping a hateful, mean-spirited log on your Amazon page. Especially when they haven't even read the damn book.

[–]TopicCreator 42 ポイント43 ポイント

Even then, that is a really pathetic and atrocious way of defending your book. I mean, what's the expected result of his rant? His book is suddenly going to look better because he called you a cunt?

[–]carters_here 28 ポイント29 ポイント

Both the writer and the reviewer are awful in this situation. The writer is, well...just a terrible writer. The reviewer seems to relish in mocking the fact that he's bad. There's no point in that. Introduce me to a good writer. If the sole reason for writing the review is to make fun of how awful a writer is...I don't get the point?

There are so many great, undiscovered authors out there, it's your job as a reviewer to find those gems. So, yeah. They're both douchebags.

[–]nationalmaverick 5 ポイント6 ポイント

Sensationalism, page views, add dollars, fame, notoriety, infamy. The point is very clear

[–]blndcavefsh 2 ポイント3 ポイント

You can be joyfully evil whilst also giving encouragement and thoughtful critique. Read Death Of 1000 Cuts if you don't believe me, It's a fantastic blog.

[–]sethescope 1 ポイント2 ポイント

Of course it's a terrible way to defend your book. But there author and the blogger are clearly coming from different places. The author has (well documented, easily Googled) mental and emotional problems. The blogger is just being cruel by singling out-by her own admission-a troubled self published author with one star reviews on Goodreads.

I'll always take the side of a crazy person being inappropriate over a bully baiting a crazy person into being inappropriate for the sake of page views. Any day of the week.

[–]Anzat 12 ポイント13 ポイント

Have you looked at the actual book being reviewed though? Holy shit. This was no ordinary bad writing. It's likely the author needs to be medicated for one or more psychological conditions.

It was cruel of the reviewer to single out an ill, self-published weirdo for merciless criticism. It would have been tasteful and possibly safer to have said nothing at all. However, given that she chose to say something, I don't think a "thoughtfully critical review" was really possible. Even the kindest, most seasoned teacher of dumb children would lack the words to critique this author gently.

[–]kinyutaka 4 ポイント5 ポイント

Well, if he didn't need to be medicated over the book, he does over the comments.

Calling the reviewer, and by proxy anyone with criticism of his book, a cunt and threatening to rape her husband... crazy.

[–]AuthorSAHuntAuthor & Cover Artist 1 ポイント2 ポイント

Oh, no doubt. I hadn't looked at the book, I was just speaking generally.

And woof, at Legend Keeper. Wow. Even just the summary tells you beware the dog.

[–]CatCobra 13 ポイント14 ポイント

Did you just review the review?

[–]DallasTruther 6 ポイント7 ポイント

There've been times when I've read Cracked comment threads to the bottom of the page, forgotten what the article was about, and prepared myself to type a comment critiquing the comments, instead of the article itself.

I've often wondered about a comment page ABOUT comments...

[–]OfficiallyRelevant 3 ポイント4 ポイント

I think that just counts as an argument.

[–]kikuchiyoali 10 ポイント11 ポイント

Having said that ... I really don't like reading a review where the reviewer relishes bashing a book mercilessly. No matter how bad the book, you still come off like a turd-eating troglodyte.

You shouldn't respond. The reviewer will look like a tool all by themselves; a smart reader will figure out what is legitimate criticism and what is bashing, and you look classy (unlike this guy).

[–]kinyutaka 2 ポイント3 ポイント

You could try "Thank you for the heartfelt, insightful criticism of my work."

If they are trolling, people will see who is the better man in the two posts.

[–]some_vacancy 27 ポイント28 ポイント

That guy has a long history of that sort of behavior. I recognized the name right away. He really goes after reviewers and harasses them.

[–]sheriw1965 4 ポイント5 ポイント

Writers, too. Especially horror writers.

[–]raspberrykrakenFreelance Writer 9 ポイント10 ポイント

Then publishers will know not to pick him up because he's a huge risk and pr timebomb.

[–]wolverstreets 19 ポイント20 ポイント

And, y'know, he's awful

[–]mouthwater 18 ポイント19 ポイント

Both these guys need to get out more

[–]Danuscript 2 ポイント3 ポイント

The reviewer is female.

[–]thatkindofhighguy 23 ポイント24 ポイント

Okay, firstly the author needs to take a lesson and not respond to negative reviews, especially ones by obvious trolls.

Second, speaking as someone who's actually worked as a paid reviewer... to call this a review is to call whatever it is when a dog eats it's diahrrea and vomits it back up a Michelin Star meal. This isn't a review, they just saw someone who was down and like a cowardly psychopath decided it was their chance to get some kicks in.

This offers no semblance of a review, it's paragraph way too fucking late before she pulls her head out of her own anus and gets to the point of making a mockery of attempting to address the act of reviewing. She could have skipped to paragraph 5 if she wanted to make this into a shit and overly wordy review with little substance. She should have skipped to paragraph 8 and then at least her review of little substance wouldn't have wasted everyone's time.

I don't need to know the history of how people acquired books from libraries dear, when you're incapable of even telling us what the books fucking discription was.

Gonzo journalism, which modern reviewing is a subset of, is as much about the authors experience as the item itself. This was just gone. This was 80% this woman masturbating her own ego because blogs (unfortunately) don't have word limits, 19% her vitriolic shit, and 1% her actually offering comment on the book she didn't read.

[–]chilari 9 ポイント10 ポイント

Thank you for your review of her review. I don't think I'll read the woman's review now.

[–]thatkindofhighguy 0 ポイント1 ポイント

You're welcome. I've had to clean up my analogous dog shit-vomit hybrid, which had baked in a hot apartment, and this might be hindsight fooling me, but it was a more preferable experience than reading her review.

I mean if someone's going to masturbate publicly, a post on /r/nsfw would at least be courteous.

[–]hegemonistic 6 ポイント7 ポイント

It's almost impressive how much effort she put into losing the higher ground in an exchange with an author that's apparently known for this kind of stuff. She was so grating (and at such unnecessary length!) it nearly made me forget about his insulting message entirely.

[–]thatkindofhighguy 5 ポイント6 ポイント

She went and found a 1 star reviewed book, saw that the author responds to people like this and decided "I'm going to be a troll" so she wrote the most vitriolic excrement she could to try to garner this exact response because based on her other posts she certainly seems to think highly of herself and like she deserves attention.

I don't like seeing authors act like arseholes and going after reviewers, but reviewers aren't supposed to be personally insulting individual creators - and we're especially not supposed to lay more criticism against the creator than the product itself. On top of that, I really don't get her purpose into delving into personal insults on bodily hygiene to someone she's never met.

There's one thing I agree with the author on; she's a cunt.

[–]lurking_my_ass_off 7 ポイント8 ポイント

I'll never understand why people lose their shit like this.

"You know what will surely turn their minds around and get them thinking like me? If I call em fucker, and threaten to beat someone up! That's a win/win plan if I ever heard one!"

Just... wow. Granted I haven't written a book so maybe once you give birth to some creative genius it flips a switch in your head that says "THIS IDEA IS AWESOME AND I WILL BRAIN RAPE ANYONE WHO SAYS OTHERWISE", I dunno. I'm kinda thinking this guy is just an asshat though.

[–]RandomMandarin 4 ポイント5 ポイント

Oh myyyyy.

What I don't understand is why anyone would review his work unfavorably. He is like a pearl of genius that gives rise to a literary oyster.

[–]nhainesFreelance Writer 21 ポイント22 ポイント

If by that, you mean it's like a scratchy irritation that lodges deep in your soul and can only be soothed by covering with layer after layer of calming mucus, then yes, it's just like that.

[–]Vault91 3 ポイント4 ポイント

calming mucus of the soul

I like it

[–]kikuchiyoali 2 ポイント3 ポイント

layer after layer of calming mucus

Sounds like I have a new band name.

[–]dmoonfireAuthor 2 ポイント3 ポイント

I'd just be happy that someone read it and took the effort to actually write about it.

[–]chakradiva 6 ポイント7 ポイント

I am genuinely disappointed I gave that website a pageview - that was poorly written, mean spirited and vile. There was no wit, no charm and certainly no insight. Just playground taunting. The author's reactions were in keeping with the level of the provocation.

[–]iblogalot[S] 17 ポイント18 ポイント

Eh, I still think homophobic slurs and threatening physical violence is going a little overboard. He also posted her picture on his Facebook page and said he was going to track down her phone number and that he was "coming for" her and her husband (referring to a commenter on her blog whom he mistakenly assumed is her husband).

http://honeyboomslang.tumblr.com/post/90900968849/https-www-facebook-com-napacione

[–]chakradiva 3 ポイント4 ポイント

I didn't actually get that far - it was a hard slog. Needless to say, that is unwarranted in any situation.

[–]TsaraNoga_ 1 ポイント2 ポイント

The pseudointellectualism in her rewrites is cringeworthy.

[–]OfficiallyRelevant 1 ポイント2 ポイント

I think he just fell head first into a troll's trap.

[–]thatkindofhighguy 1 ポイント2 ポイント

Yeah she hunted this guy down and them wrote a review full of personal insults against him. She's an obvious troll.

[–]MrDynamitemthrfckrs 0 ポイント1 ポイント

By, the way, the author isn't real, it was a 10 year running joke. http://www.briankeene.com/2014/04/01/a-confession-from-a-forsaken-landscape/#more-16006 April fools.

[–]Mimos 0 ポイント1 ポイント

I'd expect nothing less from someone who hails from Glendale Heights.

[–]CYOA_With_Hitler 0 ポイント1 ポイント

Hot damn that's some terrible writing, makes me feel much better about my own work :).

[–]JessicaStemmer 0 ポイント1 ポイント

Nicky is a well known internet phenomenon. He always does this--he actually tends to stalk those who don't like his work and won't stop talking about them.

[–]PopPunkAndPizza 0 ポイント1 ポイント

I've got to ask, what did this guy think that this would achieve?

[–]The7thNomad 0 ポイント1 ポイント

I once had something similar happen to me. I held back on going into about why I didn't like it, but it was still a few paragraphs long.

The self proclaimed 'indie author' proceeded to launch so many insults at me, I'm apparently incredibly arrogant for criticising him, among other things.

I love to write, but I can't fathom what gets into their heads once they consider themselves an author. Maybe their view of literature and storytelling is quite narrow? I have no idea..

[–]Zachary_Lapintie 0 ポイント1 ポイント

I for one found the original rant (not a review, granted) hilarious. Shit writing deserves to get called out, and it's not necessary to read the entire work to recognize it as such. Exceptional writing merits attention, be it great or terrible.

[–]SandD0llar 0 ポイント1 ポイント

I wonder if this is a bit of a marketing ploy to get more people to look and/or buy the book(s). Shit stir up some drama, leak it to certain people in the publishing industry and ...profit?

[–]ErnestHemingwaysDad 0 ポイント1 ポイント

She could have summed up that entire review with just, " I have no idea what is going on. Where are we? Who's talking? Why do I care?" The author did nothing to convey those aspects in the excerpt she was critiquing and those points are entirely constructive.

Regardless, that guy is a moron for his replies. I also checked out his google page, he definitely has issues.

[–]JobanDawks -1 ポイント0 ポイント

I am far more appalled by the review than I am by the preview. Granted I got a few good chuckles out of all the "fucktard liberal cunt" stuff that the author was spewing in the comment section.

Still, what good does that review do for anyone? She's more than entitled to her opinion and can express as she pleases, but I hope she knows her writing is sharp and witty and she is going to lose potential readers (me for example) by using that wit as a weapon to shoot down people who already stand NO chance and pose no threat.

[–]iblogalot[S] 1 ポイント2 ポイント

The tagline, right at the top of her blog, does say: "Sex, Death and Venomous Reviews. Choke on it." So I'd say that's pretty clear of her particular writing style. Sure, it will turn off some readers, while others will find it funny (as we see both opinions in this very thread). I will note that if you were to just browse her blog, you'd see that not all of her posts are like that. For example, her most recent blog, posted yesterday, is a rather straightforward comparison of the original film "I Spit On Your Grave" and the modern remake, where she makes her case for why she thinks the original is better. Or there's this post from last month where she attacks a writer who criticizes adult who read YA fiction. While she does curse in it, and the title of the post could be seen as unnecessarily venomous, in the actual post she gives a spirited defense of YA fiction, including a list of recommendations:

http://honeyboomslang.blogspot.com/2014/06/fuck-you-ruth-graham.html

But with this particular review I guess she didn't feel like being too serious, and just wrote a mocking piece on it. Same as she did in response to his over-the-top attack on her.

[–]sethescope 0 ポイント1 ポイント

I couldn't agree more. He's troubled; she's just a nasty, hateful person I'll go to great lengths to steer clear of.

[–]sethescope -1 ポイント0 ポイント

It takes about 20 seconds of reading this guy's Twitter/Amazon/Goodreads/blog to realize he has real mental problems. For someone to take that as an opportunity to be genuinely cruel is beyond comprehension. I generally don't like name calling; suffice it to say I don't think his assessment of the blogger is too far off base.

[–]CYOA_With_Hitler -1 ポイント0 ポイント

I know my writings shit so I love negative reviews, usually they help point out my flaws so I try and better myself in the future.

[–]kirakun -1 ポイント0 ポイント

Just as the reviewer had euphemized the author's original response, I wonder how would the un-euphemized version of her own response be written?