Jen Minkman - YA Paranormal and Dystopian Author: Nothing below 4 stars... really?

maandag 27 mei 2013

Nothing below 4 stars... really?

Some of you may not be aware of this, but in order to be allowed to promote your book on big sites like EReader News Today, BookBub and Pixel of Ink, you have to have an average of 4 stars and at least 20 reviews on Amazon. Anything below 4 stars is rejected. A lot of authors with books that don't appeal to the masses but have a smaller target audience will never be accepted on those big sites. But how fair is the 4-star rule?

When I look at some Goodreads rating for absolute classics, I have to come to the sad conclusion that many famous books would be rejected by the big book sites too:

* The Great Gatsby : 3.79 average
* Great Expectations: 3.69 average
* Romeo and Juliet: 3.72 average (in fact, most of Shakespeare's plays wouldn't make the grade)
* The Scarlet Letter: 3.30 average.

I could go on all night, but I think it should be clear that a 4-star rating shouldn't be the main thing those book promotors look at. Or is Goodreads just a particularly harsh site?

2 opmerkingen:

  1. You are very right. Bad ratings sometime just mean someone didn't particularly enjoy the book, not that the book isn't good. Some readers don't understand or relate to the story, others are forced to read the book (like in the case of Classics)... there are a great deal of reasons a book might be awesome, but still have low ratings. It seems unfair.

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    1. That's what I think too. It's not that I don't value people's opinion (and if you don't like a book, you're entitled to give it 1 or 2 stars) but I think it's sad that book promotion sites determine the quality of books based on ratings. It would make more sense to read an average of ten reviews and if all ten of them mention the book is full of spelling & grammar mistakes, to decide it isn't a good fit for the promo site...

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