Reviews: Good and Bad

Reviews, how exciting! That is, the good ones. The bad ones? Can ruin your day, if you let them.
I'll start with the good ones. I don't know if readers realize this or not, but authors absolutely check their reviews. Amazon, Nook, iTunes, Kobo, wherever. Especially us Indies who count on our readers to get the word out.

I've had some that simply make my day, cheer me up, or encourage me to write on. When someone takes the time to write to say how much they enjoyed my book or books, I mentally send out a warm hug and a big Thank You!
I've read where writers should not answer good reviews, just like they should not respond to bad ones. The thought is that the reader may feel as though they are being stalked. Nope, don't want to make any of my readers feel that way. So here in my blog, I can say thank you very much to all of you. You know who you are! Lol

Now the bad reviews. Yes, they hurt your feelings, you rant and yell, "they don't know what they're talking about." Then you walk away. Read those bad reviews later, once you've calmed down. And surprise, surprise. They were right. Sigh. The ones that point out obvious flaws are a great learning curve. That is, stay away from that curve and get straight. Fix your grammar problems. Work on showing your story instead of telling. Yup, that one has been difficult for me. Comes from being a mom, I think. I'm always 'telling' my kids what to do instead of 'showing'. But I am thankful for the reviewers that pointed out my errors. Ignoring them and making the same mistakes over and over, isn't that a sign of arrogance? So, I will say thank you also to the ones that gave me, quote, bad reviews. You were my teacher and didn't know it.

I found Brenda Hiatt's blog and enjoyed reading her post.  I appreciate anyone who takes the time to do the legwork and freely share with others her results.

Traditional Publisher Survey

Show Me the Money!

http://brendahiatt.com/show-me-the-money/

Her post on indie earnings is worth reading too!

Books by Jo Ellen

Lisa is surprised to learn that she is a witch and has a werewolf for a mate. Fighting against a dark fae who wants to steal her magic, she will quickly learn how to use her newfound abilities. With the help from Melissa, the cougar clans seer, they will confront Ciar, the dark fae. Lisa does not easily accept Rafe as her mate, even though she is irresistibly drawn to him. His job as alpha to his pack is to guard the magical pond that sits in front of his home, while trying to keep his new mate safe. Rafe receives help from the Faeiry Queen in the form of her personal guard, Robert. Rafe and his brothers, Ian and Devlin will protect Lisa with their lives as she learns of worlds she never knew existed.

She is a confident woman that does not blindly go along with Rafe when he tells her she belongs to him. She uses humor to cover her fears and believes sarcasm to be a great tool to get her point across. Rafe knows he'll have a difficult time telling her that he's a werewolf without making her run from him.

http://amzn.com/B008H5W90O

                    iTunes              Wolf Creek Alpha (Texas Pack, #1) - Jo Ellen  

Melanie hitchhikes across New Mexico looking for this 'thing' that is pulling at her. As a druid who travels through time helping lost souls, she knows that this feeling is different. On the side of the highway, she meets Ian when he stops to give her a ride. He recognizes her as his mate immediately, furious that she would travel alone on the deserted road. Melanie is quite comfortable with the big, bad, wolf. Being a carefree and untroubled woman, her spontaneity will challenge Ian's rigid self-discipline. 

When called into service to rescue someone lost in time, her brother David lends his help, along with Ian and his brother, Devlin. Finding an evil wizard bent on using her for her abilities, they are furious when she is taken. Ian will let nothing stand in his way of finding his mate and killing the wizard.  

Ian and Melanie will journey through time to Scotland, see the land of Faeiry, and meet the Faeiry Queen on their travels.

http://amzn.com/B00DOZ8PT6

                                     iTunes         Wolf Creek Enforcer (Texas Pack, #2) - Jo Ellen