Write Now Editing

Copy and Paste Book Reviews

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Authors love book reviews. Not because we want to hear how great we are but because review numbers help us (and others) see how many people are reading our books. They let us know if (and how) we’re connecting with our readers. In some cases, they even help us promote our books by tipping the algorithms in our favor. If every person who bought a book left a review, it could possibly change the course of an author’s career!

But a lot of people don’t leave reviews for a lot of reasons:

  • They don’t know what to say.
  • They want the review to be perfect.
  • They’re afraid of saying something wrong or hurtful.
  • They’re not great writers and the thought of writing even a few words for a review terrifies them.

If you fall into any of these categories, can I offer some comfort?

  1. A book review is an opinion, and you’re entitled to your opinion regardless of whether or not anyone else agrees with it.
  2. All book reviews help.
  3. You’re not responsible for the author’s feelings. If you didn’t like the book, be honest. If the author can’t take criticism, he/she shouldn’t be publishing books.
  4. Reviews don’t have to be long or perfect. Two words (loved it/hated it) work.

And now, the reason for this post—I want to help readers stop worrying so much about reviews and actually post them! Here’s how this works: below are reviews divided into three categories (loved it, liked it, hated it). Feel free to copy and paste as your book review anytime you want to help an author out but you don’t want to worry about what to write:

Loved It

Great story—couldn’t put it down! Can’t wait for the next book.

Loved it!

Loved the characters. Loved the plot. Love this author.

Another great book by a great author. I can’t wait to read the next book.

So good I’ll probably read it again!

Liked It

A fun read.

Good story.

Not my favorite book by this author, but I still enjoyed it.

Not my favorite type of story, but I still enjoyed it.

A little unbelievable in some places, but I still liked it.

A fun way to spend the weekend.

Hated It

I really wanted to like this book, but I didn’t. It’s just not my style.

I tried to like this book, but I couldn’t get into it.

I know a lot of people liked this book, but it’s not for me.

Owner of Write Now Editing, Karin Beery is an active member of American Christian Fiction Writers and the Christian Editor Network, where she teaches several editing classes through the PEN Institute and serves as the coordinator for the Christian Editor Connection. She is the Managing Editor of Guiding Light Women’s Fiction, an imprint of Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas. Her sophomore novel, Practically Married, is a 2020 Serious Writer Book of the Year finalist.

Troubleshooting Your Novel: 100 Incredibly Practical Ways to Fix Your Fiction by Steven James (book review)

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Take your story to the next level of excellence!

You’ve completed the first draft of your novel–now what? Chances are, it’s not perfect…at least not yet. In order to increase your chances of getting a literary agent, selling your manuscript to a publisher, or garnering an audience for your self-published work, you need targeted, practical instruction on tackling the problem areas and weak spots in your story. You need Troubleshooting Your Novel.

In this hand-on, easy-to-use guide, award-winning author Steven James provides helpful techniques and checklists, timesaving tricks of the trade, and hundreds of questions for manuscript analysis and revision. You’ll learn how to:
ADJUST elements of story progression, from causality, tension, and setbacks to plot twists, climaxes, and endings.
DEVELOP authentic, riveting characters by exploring their attitudes, desires, beliefs, and more.
LEARN narrative techniques for elements such as dialogue, flashbacks, suspense, voice, subtext, and flow.
ENSURE reader engagement by aligning with their expectations, fulfilling promises, and instilling trust.
CHECK issues with context and continuity.
You owe your book more than just a polish and a proofread. Strengthen your story, prepare it for the marketplace, and make it the best it can be with Troubleshooting Your Novel.

Wow — there is a LOT of information in this book. In fact, it’s a bit overwhelming. I sat down to read it thinking it would be a quick read to reinforce what I already know about writing fiction, but it’s anything but quick. There’s a lot to read and digest.

Two things really stood out to me: one that I like and one that I wasn’t so crazy about.

What I liked: the chapters are short and topical, so you can pretty much search for whatever’s bothering you/whatever you’re struggling with and quickly find the chapter.

What I wasn’t so crazy about: there’s some great info, but no examples. I’m the type of learner who needs an example of what’s wrong and what’s right so I can see how to correct it, but there are no examples. For people like me, this book might not be the most helpful resource: you need to know how to identify bad writing before you pick up this book, otherwise you won’t know what to look for. That will be hard to do for some people; however, if you have someone to tell you your weaknesses, you can find the right topic for what you need.

Overall, though, it’s full of excellent information; it just may not be easily accessible for everyone. Get your copy here!

Writer to Writer: Lessons from a Lifetime of Learning by Cecil Murphy (book review)

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If you want to become the best writer you can be, Writer to Writer is for you. This isn’t a grammar book. It isn’t a rulebook for writers. It’s the “in the trenches” companion for you along your writing journey, whether you’re just starting out or have been writing for years.

In Writer to Writer, award-winning author and beloved mentor Cecil Murphey shares the lessons he’s learned from a lifetime of writing. Read one of the bite-sized entries a day, a chapter a week, or the entire book at once. Jump into the book any place you like. It’s also a handy discussion tool for writing groups. Topics include:



*how to look like a professional (even if you’re an amateur)
*writing basics you need to know
*fine-tuning your fiction
*how to keep your reader intrigued
*what annoys and pleases publishers
*dealing with writers’ block and rejections
*tips for writers groups
*literary agents and contracts
*making a living as a writer, and much more.

“Good writing demands self-discipline and constant learning. I’m still learning. In the meanwhile, Writer to Writer is my legacy gift to you. I want to help you become a better writer.”-Cecil Murphey.

I really wish I’d discovered this book a decade ago when I was learning how to write blogs, web content, newsletters, and books. Not only is this book full of information, the short lessons (usually less than a page) are easy to study and digest. You could read one per day or one topic per day — there are plenty of ways to divide this book up.

I’m so impressed by the content and the ease of reading it that I’ve recommended it to my sister for her homeschooled children. They both want to be writers, and the practical advice in this book will help them develop those skills.

I will definitely start recommending this book to new writers regarldess of what they’re writing. You’re bound to find tips and information that will help, whether you’re writing an article or a novel.

Outlining Your Novel: Map Your Way to Success by K.M. Weiland (book review)

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Writers often look upon outlines with fear and trembling. But when properly understood and correctly wielded, the outline is one of the most powerful weapons in a writer’s arsenal. Outlining Your Novel: Map Your Way to Success will:

Help you choose the right type of outline for you
Guide you in brainstorming plot ideas
Aid you in discovering your characters
Show you how to structure your scenes
Explain how to format your finished outline
Instruct you in how to use your outline
Reveal the benefits:
Ensures cohesion and balance
Prevents dead-end ideas
Provides foreshadowing
Offers assurance and motivation
Dispel misconceptions:
Requires formal formatting
Limits creativity
Robs the joy of discovery
Takes too much time

Even if you’re certain outlining isn’t for you, the book offers all kinds of important tips on plot, structure, and character. Includes exclusive interviews with Larry Brooks, Elizabeth Spann Craig, Lisa Grace, Dan L. Hays, Jody Hedlund, Carolyn Kaufman, Becky Levine, Roz Morris, John Robinson, and Aggie Villanueva, answering important questions:

Can you describe your outlining process?
What is the greatest benefit of outlining?
What is the biggest potential pitfall of outlining?
Do you recommend “pantsing” for certain situations and outlining for others?
What’s the most important contributing factor to a successful outline?

Let me start by saying I am NOT an outliner. I’ve done it before, and I found it to be a complete waste of time — I spent weeks working on it, but after the first third of the novel I had abandoned the outline to follow a better story. Since then, I’ve worked from character sketches. I spend days (weeks) getting to know my characters. I know where they’re going to start and I know where I want them to end up. Using what I know about their personalities, I throw situations at them in order to guide them to the ending I want. That technique works for me.

Because of my previous bad experience with outlining (and my success with character building), I wasn’t really excited about reading this book. I’m not an outliner. After reading this book, however, I don’t think K.M. Weiland or any of the above mentioned authors are either.

The title of this book really should be Researching Your Novel or Before You Start Writing, Do This. By Weiland’s definition of outlining (which is essentially creating pages and pages of story notes and ideas before you start writing your book), anyone who preps before they start writing could essentially be considered an outliner.

The real emphasis here isn’t to outline your book, but to take time before you write to jot down some ideas and figure out plot holes and characters first so you don’t have to go back and fix things later. For that reason, I enjoyed this book because I believe in the power of prep work.

I would recommend this book to anyone either early in their writing career or struggling to put together new story ideas. There are some great tips and suggestions in this book that will help strengthen your characters and their stories.

Revision & Self-Editing by James Scott Bell (book review)

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Don’t let the revision process intimidate you any longer. Discover how to successfully transform your first draft into a polished final draft readers won’t be able to forget.

In Write Great Fiction: Revision & Self-Editing, James Scott Bell draws on his experience as a novelist and instructor to provide specific revision tips geared toward the first read-through, as well as targeted self-editing instruction focusing on the individual elements of a novel like plot, structure, characters, theme, voice, style, setting, and endings. You’ll learn how to:

•Write a cleaner first draft right out of the gate using Bell’s plotting principles
•Get the most out of revision and self-editing techniques by honing your skills with detailed exercises
•Systematically revise a completed draft using the ultimate revision checklist that talks you through the core story elements

Whether you’re in the process of writing a novel, have a finished draft you don’t know what to do with, or have a rejected manuscript you don’t know how to fix, Revision & Self-Editing gives you the guidance you need to write and revise like a pro.

It took a while to finish this book because I wasn’t expecting it to be so full of information — I tried reading a bit here and there but quickly discovered that I needed to give each chapter my full attention to really absorb the tips and suggestions. I think this book might be a little more right-brained than I am (some of the concepts seem too abstract for this left-brainer), but that doesn’t mean they aren’t worth trying. I’m looking forward to using some of these techniques on my next manuscript!

ABOUT ME

Editor. Teacher. Novelist.
A passionate lover of fiction, Karin doesn't just write novels, she helps others write their best stories! A certified substantive editor with the Christian Editor Connection, her goal is to help authors to put her out of business by equipping them with the tools they need to become better writers.

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Lover of all things fiction, I also love University of Michigan football, the Detroit Lions, Tigers, and Red Wings, kayaking, gluten-free cupcakes, and my husband.

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