What Not to Do...

Or, "How to Fail in Writing Without Even Trying"...
I noticed this referenced on Neil Gaiman's blog earlier this morning... I actually used most of my day reviewing the 250+ posts in the feedback column (finding two writers I might look into in the process, so it wasn't a total waste), amazed at how horribly wrong someone could take a "1-Star" review posted on Amazon.

While the author in question may have 20-30 published books to her credit (to my, currently, 0), in a genre that I don't even claim to have anything more than a passing familiarity with - knowing the names of a few high profile (read: significant big-publisher track record) authors - I just can't fathom why the individual would think that her reaction would be received as anything other than badly. I admit, I clicked through page after page (after page after page) of responses, like the flaming car wrekcs that you might crawl past while driving along the interstate. After a while, you feel sorry for those dealing with the wreckage, but feel compelled to keep watching, even when you know you shouldn't.

With that said, I can now shrug, chalk up the experience as something to learn from (aka, as the post title suggests, "what not to do" when faced with a negative review), and carry on with my life. But I make these notes here, so I can remind myself later (if I ever need it)...