TGIF is a new(ish) feature at one of my absolute favourite blogs, GReads!, hosted by the lovely Ginger. It's a way to celebrate the impending weekend, and answer fun questions. Most of all though, you get to know a wee bit more about all those awesome bloggers you meet. So, what are you waiting for? Do your own post and head on over to link up!
What's your process for writing book reviews? Any tips or suggestions you would recommend to other bloggers?
First off, I think it's important for me to say that I truly don't believe that there is a right or a wrong way to review a book. Honestly, the only thing you need is an open mind and a true, honest and just opinion. That, however, you can only garner from actually reading, or truly attempted to read a book. It's taken me almost two years to develop my reviewing process, but I've finally nailed it, I believe, and I've made it a true and accurate portrayal of my opinions regarding books. Here's how I review.
1. I read the book. No matter if I struggle or not, I read the book. If I can't finish it, I won't review it.
2. I take brief notes on what did and didn't work for me.
3. I write my own synopsis for the book. Doing so allows me to convey to the reader how I read the book and what I saw going in.
4. I talk about the writing. There are some styles of writing that work well for me. Others miss the mark. Usually, however, there is something about the prose that speaks to me, and I try to highlight that.
5. I ponder characterization and plot points. This is all-inclusive, meaning anything regarding those has to be worked into the review for it to be coherent.
6. I give it a rating on a five-scale. Without doing so, I'm unable to quantify both for myself and for my followers exactly how this book differed from others.
What about you? Do you review books in a specific way?
That is a great way to write a review. I have gotten bogged down this week. Ugh.
ReplyDeleteNew Follower!
My Follow Friday.
~Kristin
Hi! Happy follow Friday. I'm a new follower.
ReplyDeletehttp://readinginthemountains.blogspot.com/
Thanks for sharing your tips. I am a new follower. Looking forward to your posts.
ReplyDeleteI think we review books fairly similarly. I don't do my own synopses. I should b/c I often don't like the official blurbs, but it already takes forever to write each review.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. I find writing reviews difficult sometimes but it's a learning experience and I hope to get better the more I do. Thanks for sharing your process.
ReplyDeleteAhh it's cool that you take notes. I wish I did. Sometimes I just find it hard to actually stray away from the page I'm reading to jot down something. Maybe I'll try that with my next book!
ReplyDeleteI love note-taking when I'm reviewing. It makes the process way easier and much more fun. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm alll about notes and thoughts that come to me while reading too.
ReplyDeleteI love that you have a very specific method when it comes to reviewing books. *takes down notes* I think I should start taking notes so I can write better, more cohesive reviews than I do at the moment.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I've really given that much though to how I write my reviews. I guess I kind of approach them like those 3.5 essays we had to write in high school (did you do those?). I guess mine are more like 2.4 essays though. I just do an intro paragraph with my overall thoughts, usually 2 paragraphs on characters/plot, and then a small concluding paragraph. I don't take notes usually while reading, I probably should though because I forget a lot of stuff. Well done Jenny. And now that I've made this entire comment all about me and have said nothing about what you wrote, I'm going to go ;-)
ReplyDeleteYour reviews consistently blow me away, but you already know that.
In my year & a few months of blogging, I still consider your reviews to be the most well-written. I know I say that a lot, but it's true. You inspire me to be better, so thank you for that.
ReplyDeleteNew Follower! I don't summarize the book, I think my feelings and opinions from reading the book are really more important, and when reading reviews, I always skim the summary. :)But, I like your idea of jotting notes--I do that too!
ReplyDeleteI like to take notes too - so helpful for when it comes time to review :)
ReplyDeleteI'm an on-the-fly kinda reviewer. My best reviews are those that I write immediately after finishing the book. In a perfect world I'd always do that. I find reading other people's reviews help refresh my memory when I delay for too long.
ReplyDeleteI'm an old follower. :)
Holiday Foreplay Giveaway
I follow pretty much the same routine: read the book, scribble down a few things, and then write the review. :) My only quirk is writing the review immediately after I finish reading. I don't let myself start another book until the review is written (that way I don't forget! Haha).
ReplyDeleteWe have a fairly similar process Melissa. I have to take notes or I'm afraid I won't remember when I get to the end, what I thought was important enough about the book to say in the review.
ReplyDeleteI sure do ;)
ReplyDelete1. I read the book
2. I write the review
3. Done
I think that is why my reviews are like I talk to someone. I do not like to think, I just need to write
I just tell what I like and didn't like about the book. I also write down some notes in reading a book that I way I can remember it.
ReplyDeleteI try to think of my favorite parts of the book and the parts I didn't like. Then I categorize them into sections. While I'm reading, I use my ereader to highlight sections and take notes. I love my Kindle for this reason! Sometimes I use post its when I'm reading a physical book so I remember what to hit on later. Mostly I go for my head and let the writing of the book influence my emotions. In my head I start off with my out of 5 rating and use it to influence my post.
ReplyDeleteI do about the same. I definitely write notes while I'm reading. But sometimes I get so lost in a book I forget. I like the idea of writing your own synopsis. I try to do that too!
ReplyDeleteI'm always impressed by bloggers who write their own synopses of books—I've tried doing so in the past, but I get bogged down in, Am I saying too much? Not enough? What if this is completely wrong!, and then I have less time for the actual review.
ReplyDeleteYour reviews are lovely, by the way. I'm always a fan of bloggers who aren't afraid to rack up the word count. Happy Friday!
I used to take notes when I first started,now I tend to write notes right after if I have specific feelings right then I need to express, or have a particular phrase in my mind at that moment I want to write before I forget.
ReplyDeleteI'm finding I spend time writing a lot about what I love and the things I dislike are like afterthoughts - I think that's because I'm always a glass half full type person.
Very interesting to read all these unique processes!
April @ My Shelf Confessions
I follow this sort of pattern, too, I just never quantified it like this. Great post! Very helpful!
ReplyDeleteExcellent advice? Not sure what to call it, but thanks for sharing how you review your books. I'm with you, if I can't finish it, I don't review it. That's in my review policy.
ReplyDeleteHeather
Sometimes I warn my readers if I cannot finish a book. I suppose they deserve it. I always state my reasons.
ReplyDeleteThese are fabulous tips. I love when people give a star rating... it really helps me understand if the reviewer liked the book or not!
ReplyDeleteAnd point 1: this is a fantastic point. I'm reading a book now that I seriously struggled with. If I had have stopped halfway through and written a review, 1. it would be unfair, 2. it would have been very different. I'm enjoying the last third a lot more than the rest.
TY!
I usually focus on characters, plot and writing style. My goal of each review is to point out three things I liked and one thing that maybe I didn't (if it happens). That way I feel like it was a balanced and well-thought out critique. I use a 5 point scale too. Just simpler!
ReplyDeleteit's interesting that this was the TGIF question posted for friday. on my blog - friday - i just wrote a random little piece about reading bad books and writing negative reviews, completely unaffiliated with TGIF. we have some similarities to our thought processes, although i didn't really outline my process out in my blog post.
ReplyDeletei did, however, spend some time talking about reading 'bad books' and writing negative reviews. i found through comments and tweets and even emails that everyone has their own opinions - a very broad spectrum of opinions - that i can truly appreciate. and everyone also has their own thought process for following through or not with bad books.
always love reading your thoughts, melissa! thanks for sharing. :)
Your assessment sounds perfect. No wonder why I enjoy reading your review so much. One element, which I read about on another blog was about the importance of putting words with the rating. I've started doing that because a rating of 3 stars means so many different things to different people.
ReplyDelete