Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

Username:
Password:
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
Did you miss your activation email?

There aren't any users online.

[Steve]

I've been wondering lately if book critics still matter today. After all, we have online forums such as these, while big newspapers like the L.A. Times and others are slashing their review pages and staff. I personally believe critics still play a vital role in our digital age, primarily by steering us toward new talent. But I decided to pose this and other questions to a pro - - longtime San Jose Mercury News book reviewer and mystery enthusiast John Orr. John provided some interesting insights into how he sees his role and also addressed questions about nasty reviews, his thoughts on JK Rowling and more. Check out the full interview on my blog: http://stevepipe.blogspot.com/

Would love to get your thoughts on whether critics matter to you.

[Ingrid]

I doubt very much that the average reader seeks out the blogs.  But they read the paper every weekend. Writers, of course, go to blogs.  We like to talk shop. And writers buy books also.  But the numbers just aren't there. We need TV coverage.

As for myself: I need print reviews desperately.  Not because of sales.  They don't necessarily follow an excellent review.  Mainly I need them because someone who knows books confirms that I can write.  The book buyers certainly don't. If I waited for them to show their approval, I'd cut my throat.

[B L McAllister]

Would love to get your thoughts on whether critics matter to you.

Bits from favorable critical reviews can be used as cover blurbs for next printings or next books.   I suppose so can bits from unfavorable critical reviews, provided judicious use is made of ellipses.

 (Actually, some judgment is called for when citing favorable reviews, also.  For example, one reviewer of the e-edition if Undercover Nudist asserted that she nailed the culprit "right along with Uncle Ned."  In citing it for the print edition we had to leave this out, both because she made it sound like a reader-solution might be too easy (could be true, perhaps) and because she attributed the solving to Tim's Uncle Ned, which is incorrect.  But there were still quotable portions.)