A Publishers Weekly Review.
And it didn't disappoint.
Don't get me wrong. Part of me hoped for a miracle, that the PW reviewer would say my novel was "best seller" material and that I was the next Jodi Picoult. But the rational part of me knew that my novel still needed work. I just didn't know exactly where.
Now I do.
I won't bore you with the details. I'm sure you've seen PW reviews before.
When you click on a book at Amazon.com and scroll down, you'll likely find an Amazon.com review and a Publisher's Weekly review. And, believe me, the PW reviewers don't hold back their punches. If you check the PW review for Jodi Picoult's House Rules, for instance, you'll get a taste of how tough they are.
"...Picoult has a rough time in this Picoult-esque blend of medical and courtroom drama that lacks her usual storytelling finesse."
"The whodunit is stretched sit-com thin and handled poorly..."
"...the wobbly plotting is a massive detriment..."
And this about a master!
Guess my review wasn't so bad after all.
Anyway, it's not a PW reviewer's job to line-edit or nitpick about sentence structure, but to give an overall impression of the work. They'll overlook a few spelling and punctuation errors, but they won't tolerate a bad story. And the things my reviewer mentioned are ones I can--and will--fix before querying an agent.
Thank goodness I found out on time.
If you go to www.Amazon.com/abna and scroll down to the Discussion Board, you'll see some of the quarter-finalist's reactions to their PW reviews.
What some of the them overlook is that handling criticism is part of the process. Getting a PW review is huge. Nasty or not. It's best to put it aside for a few days and then go back and re-read it later. I'm grateful that a PW reviewer pinpointed exactly where my novel needs work. I'm letting the information ferment for awhile and hope my subconscious will come up with some solutions.
And will I enter the contest again next year? You betcha. But with a different novel this time. This contest gave me hope and a mission during the three months I was a contender. And I learned a lot. I have a good pitch. I have two good opening chapters. And I need to get back to work.
Someday I look forward to another Publisher Weekly Review and hope it will come closer to declaring my novel a darn good read.
How good is that?
