101 Writing Tips from an Exhausted Reviewer

Facing Harsh Reviews

First of all, it's not nice to downgrade other people's work. It's setting up a rather toxic pattern, really. Second of all, it does not help anyone if you read stories with the intention of shaming them. In fact, you should read other stories to see what you like about those stories -- then, you learn from those stories.

2. Thou shalt not delete your story straight away.

If you feel like you want to unpublish it, sure. But do not delete your precious, precious words. For one, reviewers on Wattpad are just human, too. We are not perfect. Our advice is not perfect. This is a subjective industry, and you should never delete a story because the review put you down. You may come to regret it.

Additionally, it's always beneficial to have copies of the first draft to look over. You can pinpoint your errors, you can work out exactly how to fix it up, and at the end of the day, those drafts are almost like your stepping stones to greatness. Cherish them.

3. Thou shalt not take it as a personal attack.

Unless your reviewer is a sadistic little snot, they literally gain nothing out of hurting people's feelings. So, contrary to popular belief, if your reviewer gives you a harsh review, it probably has nothing to do with them not liking you. They just want you to improve. They just want to help you.

Of course, there may be the rare reviewer who does take pleasure in crushing other people. If this is the case, please tag me (Sunshine) in their review of your story so I can have a word with them.

4. Thou shalt not ask for the review to be removed.

Unless, of course, it is rude, unprofessional, or contains intense spoilers. Reviewers work really hard on their reviews -- with most being easily over 1000+ words from my review store. It's honestly quite hurtful when we're told that our reviews will be deleted.

But that's not the only reason why you shouldn't delete it.

Let's say that the review was harsh, but it had some very valid points. It is incredibly beneficial to keep the review there so you can refer back to it one day. Additionally, if you disagree with the review and want a second opinion, it is a good idea to keep it there so that friends -- or anyone who is giving you that second opinion -- can look over it and see whether they agree or not.

5. Thou shalt not disrespect/ghost the reviewer.

A very personal pet peeve of mine is uploading a review, knowing that the author has seen it (maybe they drop a vote, or maybe they're active after you post and tag them in the review), and having them not say a single word to you. Even a short 'thanks' or 'hi' or 'hey, I like asparagus' would be great. Do not leave us hanging like that, please! It's so incredibly frustrating. We don't know how you've taken the review, we don't know whether it was helpful, we don't even know if we've accidentally reviewed the wrong story or something.

So, please, don't ghost us. Don't be that third corner of the love triangle after the other two get together.

Additionally, don't disrespect the reviewer. Don't insult them -- after all, you asked for the review. Why would you insult them for it? Also, don't publicly shame them on your profile page. That's just mean. Do we deserve it for giving you a blunt review? No. Because no one deserves to deal with toxic behaviour.

Now, I know what you're thinking: surely, these are all exaggerated points. No one really disrespects other people like this. No one really degrades other people's stories.

Well, let me tell you a story that happened only a few months ago. I clearly remember running to Painite -- both laughing and sobbing -- about it. The funny thing? My 'review' had been exceptionally polite. I'm not called ray of sunshine for nothing.