Reader,
Getting your first negative review is a rite of passage for an author. It's one of the ways you know you're getting your work "out there," beyond the safe, familiar circle of friends and family.
It also sucks.
I knew that it wasn't going to feel good when it finally happened to me, but that knowledge didn't keep me from feeling stung. Which is probably why it's taken me this long to talk about it here.
NOTE: This email is not a thinly-veiled plea for kind words and encouragement. (Though, if you've read my workbook and care to leave an honest review on Amazon, I'd be thrilled. I'm trying to reach the first milestone of 10 reviews, and I can use all the help I can get.)
With that out of the way, I'm going to share the review with you. Since it's an editorial review I paid for from Readers' Favorite — and they don't post any reviews that score less than 4/5 — you won't be able to find it anywhere else.
Embrace Your Writer’s Block takes an unconventional approach to overcoming writer's block. Its informal tone and unique structure are for those who prefer to bypass traditional writing norms. Its layout is in an elementary workbook format with plenty of lined pages for writing. This workbook is designed to help overcome writer's block by providing a structured, interactive 10-day process that encourages creativity, reflection, and consistent writing. Each day includes an encouraging reflection, a writing prompt, and exercises to complete.
While there is some helpful advice, the book could benefit from some revision. Book titles are underlined and should be in italics. The fonts used in some sections have spaces that make reading difficult. It’s also challenging to see the apostrophes, and underlining appears as if it were done with a crayon. Importantly, there are grammar and punctuation errors that don’t fare well in a book about writing, as well as redundancies. For example, “Capture the points I outlined in today’s reflection: A, Z, B, C, and D. (Preferably in that order.)” The phrase “Preferably in that order” is redundant since the order is already specified. In the Fraser Martens prompt, “whether or not” is not only redundant but grammatically incorrect. Whether is used when there is more than one option, e.g., “…it caught someone’s attention or earned you praise.” These are just a few examples of errors. There are some subject-verb disagreements, and some of the text seems too formal for a book written in a more casual style. For example. “To whom are you writing?” is antiquated and stiff. I teach college-level creative writing, and one of the first questions I ask my students is, “Who are you writing for?” I stress that it’s okay to write for oneself or a targeted audience. Rewording your phrase will give it clarity rather than implying that someone is writing to a single person. Knowing the audience can be beneficial for overcoming writer's block. There’s good advice, but it needs revising. I feel you can have a better impact by reducing the number of fonts and sticking to one or two. You might find some helpful information in "Save the Cat" by Jessica Brody. She addresses beat sheets and other writing tools that are valuable for overcoming writer's block.
You know that feeling when a pit slowly opens inside your stomach and swallows you from the inside? Yeah, that's how I felt as I read this review for the first time.
Honestly, I was shocked. Before this, I'd only had good feedback from readers and writers who went through the workbook. It was uncomfortably grounding to learn that my work wasn't going to be universally acclaimed.
I was also mortified. "[G]rammar and punctuation errors"? Really?? In my book??? Say it ain't so!!!! As an editor, I pride myself on having an eagle eye. Her declaration that she found "some subject-verb disagreements" particularly cut me to the quick. (Why hello, perfectionism!)
Dazed, I decided to process by doing some yard work. Partly because I've learned that movement is a great way to release my anxiety. But also because I knew that weed eating and mowing the lawn would make me feel better about myself. See, I know how to make beautiful things!
As you can probably tell, my initial reaction was to doubt both myself and my workbook. I wondered how hard it would be to fix it. I wondered if I should regret ordering another box of books to send out to people. I doubted I could even give them away with a clear conscience.
That said, I didn't stay in that place. After processing and reflecting for a few weeks, I ended up drawing some very different conclusions. Which is why I'm writing and sending this lengthy email to y'all.
Some of the reviewer's comments were fair. During the production process, I complained to my designer about the "handwriting" font he selected for some components. If I could do it over again, I'd probably choose a different font altogether.
That said, as I read and reread (and reread, etc.) the review, the word that kept coming to mind was "pedantic." For instance, I'm well aware that it's standard practice to italicize book titles. However, one of the limitations of the "handwriting" font is that it couldn't be italicized. I thus chose to underline titles instead, and you know what? I actually like that decision. That's exactly what I do when I capture things in my commonplace book.
Then there were the non sequiturs. Take her ending comment, for example: "You might find some helpful information in "Save the Cat" by Jessica Brody. She addresses beat sheets and other writing tools that are valuable for overcoming writer's block." What, exactly, am I supposed to do with this information? Is she subtly contradicting her original statement that my workbook offers "some helpful advice," or is she trying to be friendly and commiserate, one writer to another? (Also, why did she put the book title in quotation marks instead of italics? 🤪)
This all leads to the biggest lesson I learned from this review: my workbook is not for everyone. And that's okay. I don't know what exactly what her expectations were, but I clearly delivered a different book than what she was looking for.
My gut feeling is that even if I changed the troublesome font and fixed all of the typos, she wouldn't care for this workbook. At no point does she engage with the heart of what I'm trying to do: offer a hands-on, counterintuitive approach to the topic of writer's block. I would have loved to get her take on my provocative question, "What if writer's block is actually a gift?"
I'm actually quite confident in the quality of Embrace Your Writer's Block. Does it have flaws and imperfections? For sure. But the value in this workbook does not come from its stylistic flairs or pristine prose. The value comes when writers invest themselves in the process, when they show up and complete the exercises — especially the ones they don't want to do.
Based on this experience, I've decided to stop sending the book out for review at random review sites. Not because I'm worried about getting more negative or tepid reviews, but because that kind of feedback doesn't serve me or the book. Instead, I'm sending it out to writers who have interest in this topic. Their feedback means a lot more to me. It'll also mean a lot more to stuck writers who are desperate to break through their writer's block.
If you haven't read the workbook yet but would like to engage with it, I'll send you the digital version for free. All I ask is that you engage with the exercises and post an honest review to Amazon and/or GoodReads when you're done — whether you loved the book or thought it was meh.
If you're interested, just hit reply and let me know.
And hey, thanks for making it to the bottom of this long email. This hasn't been an easy one to write, so thanks for holding space for me. I hope you got something out of it too.
Keep your stick on the ice.
Frank.
PS — If you want a hard copy of Embrace Your Writer's Block, you can get it from Amazon. No review is obligated there, but I'd still love one!