# If you can't take critisism, don't go requesting reviews **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 19, 2019, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181 "2019-05-19T14:43:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/61 "2019-05-21T14:31:45Z")
Better than “Gil lifted Robin out of the car seat and chucked her in the ditch.” ---
**Author:** ![RobDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f07891/32.png) [@RobDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RobDog)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/62 "2019-05-21T14:55:17Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > In [“Editorial Reviews” “From the Author”](https://www.amazon.com/Amulet-Part-One-Dean-Klein-ebook/dp/B006MH4BRI), he asks that nobody buy used copies of his books or books by anyone else: Also from that link, in the “About the Author” section: > [@](#): > > Working in a variety of challenging markets including _specialty chemicals_… Hmmm. Might explain a few things? ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/63 "2019-05-21T14:58:32Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Better than “Gil lifted Robin out of the car seat and chucked her in the ditch.” Gil swiftly and with great haste absconded Robin from her secure perch in the automobile, that ubiquitous child of Gottlieb Daimler and Henry Ford, in a manner which bestowed upon her the energy required to leave his hands, in the manner of the cannonballs in Newton’s illustration of how ballistics and orbital mechanics are one and the same, in the way a brick does, and a bird doesn’t, unless it folds it’s wings in, or is dead, and in the fullness of time land on that piece of land beyond the shoulder of the road which one can never quite decide whether is part of the road or beyond it. ---
**Author:** ![Hellestal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3ab097/32.png) [@Hellestal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hellestal)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/64 "2019-05-21T15:19:36Z")
Reminds me of the screenplay advice from Rick&Morty’s [purge planet](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3cm-1-m1Z8). > [@](#): > > “You don’t have to mollycoddle me. I want to improve my writing. Tell me your real thoughts.” > > “Alright, well, um, I’m not a huge fan, personally, of the whole ‘Three weeks earlier’ teaser thing. I feel like, you know, we should start our stories where they begin, not start them where they get interestin–” > > “Get out.” ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/65 "2019-05-21T15:28:22Z")
I like, and agree with, what one commentator said on the _Sci Fi & Scary_ article: “By page three I was solidly rooting for the house.” ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/66 "2019-05-21T22:11:17Z")
> [@naita](#): > > Gil swiftly and with great haste absconded Robin from her secure perch in the automobile, that ubiquitous child of Gottlieb Daimler and Henry Ford, in a manner which bestowed upon her the energy required to leave his hands, in the manner of the cannonballs in Newton’s illustration of how ballistics and orbital mechanics are one and the same, in the way a brick does, and a bird doesn’t, unless it folds it’s wings in, or is dead, and in the fullness of time land on that piece of land beyond the shoulder of the road which one can never quite decide whether is part of the road or beyond it. Gads, I’m reminded of a anecdote about some classical author who wrote the same way (can’t remember who). Some other author of the time wrote a short bit about being in a cab with him, and he stops to ask directions. After a similar verbose question, the other author says to the confused pedestrian, “he wants to know where the Inn is.” Think it came up on this board somewhere in the last few months, if that rings any bells? ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2019, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/67 "2019-05-21T22:40:48Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > No, that’d explain why he’s publishing the first draft, but it still doesn’t account for why the first draft is so bad. And with how complicated those sentences are, I’d actually suspect the reverse: That he started simpler, and then went back with a thesaurus to embellish everything. > [@Dean Klein](#): > > I’ve gone through Hell’s Shadows _dozens_ of times, made numerous editorial and material enhancements, even additions, constantly making the story richer and better. So, yeah, that’s basically what he did. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2019, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/68 "2019-05-22T00:59:34Z")
My poor, bleeding eyes. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2019, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/69 "2019-05-22T01:11:51Z")
re the contest " its still going they have a website [https://www.bulwer-lytton.com/#](https://www.bulwer-lytton.com/#)! their motto is "where www means "wretched writers welcome " ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2019, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/70 "2019-05-22T03:50:00Z")
As a Friends of the Library volunteer, I know that one of the giveaways that a book is self-published is the presence of Papyrus font anywhere on or in the book. Yup, it’s there, on that “Amulet” cover. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2019, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/71 "2019-05-22T04:19:53Z")
> [@naita](#): > > Gil swiftly and with great haste absconded Robin from her secure perch in the automobile, that ubiquitous child of Gottlieb Daimler and Henry Ford, in a manner which bestowed upon her the energy required to leave his hands, in the manner of the cannonballs in Newton’s illustration of how ballistics and orbital mechanics are one and the same, in the way a brick does, and a bird doesn’t, unless it folds it’s wings in, or is dead, and in the fullness of time land on that piece of land beyond the shoulder of the road which one can never quite decide whether is part of the road or beyond it. Hahahaha, thank you for that. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2019, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/72 "2019-05-22T05:13:33Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Better than “Gil lifted Robin out of the car seat and chucked her in the ditch.” Is that what the kids are calling it these days? ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2019, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/73 "2019-05-22T15:15:18Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > Is that what the kids are calling it these days? Only if you have this friend Chuck from college, see? Who was known for … ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2019, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/74 "2019-05-24T01:48:15Z")
> [@Dobbs](#): > > Checking the reviewers on Amazon who gave him 5 stars shows several whose profiles make me think ‘astroturfing’ is involved. In particular ‘Angel Love’ submitted about 70 or 80 reviews on one day (I stopped counting at 40), all 5 star. All the book reviews ‘Angel’ wrote were mostly the same, ‘enjoyed the book with all the twists and turns’. > > I wonder what that job pays? While this does sound suspicious, a halfway competent “astroturfer” on Amazon would use a private setting for their profile, so you couldn’t see all their reviews in one place. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2019, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/75 "2019-05-24T02:50:48Z")
What has indicated to you that we’re dealing with competence here? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2019, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/76 "2019-05-24T14:35:57Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > ooooooooooo!, that’s a _long_ walk, and I’m not entirely sure where we’ve ended up. At the intersection of Bulwer Avenue and Lytton Road, I’d guess, just a short hop from the Dunning-Kruger expressway. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2019, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/77 "2019-05-24T14:54:57Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > At the intersection of Bulwer Avenue and Lytton Road, I’d guess, just a short hop from the Dunning-Kruger expressway. Where’s that damn “like” button?!? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2019, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/78 "2019-05-24T15:10:23Z")
Newspaper article (badly in need of editing) about the books: > **[Religion mixes with thrills in local authorÂs trio of books](https://www.heraldandtribune.com/living/religion-mixes-with-thrills-in-local-author-s-trio-of-books/article_3eab0352-81fc-5242-be58-d2c3ae940995.html)** > > Hoping to break into the niche writing market of Christian thrillers, local author Dean Klein has three books already under … ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2019, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/79 "2019-05-24T17:10:28Z")
> [@Infovore](#): > > Newspaper article (badly in need of editing)[URL=“[Religion mixes with thrills in local author’s trio of books](https://www.heraldandtribune.com/lifestyles/religion-mixes-with-thrills-in-local-author%C2%92s-trio-of-books/)”] Wow. You weren’t kidding–that is Primary School level writing. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2019, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181/80 "2019-05-24T17:45:59Z")
Most of that article is quotes from Klein. Just based on the writing, I’m willing to bet that Klein provided the entire copy for the article. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-cant-take-critisism-dont-go-requesting-reviews/834181.md?page=5)