Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

THIS THREAD WAS FOR THOSE WHO JOINED OUR FIRST REVIEW SESSION.

It is now closed. The material below is for information only.


Welcome to our first ever Christian Speculative Fiction Review Session!

Here are a few necessary guidelines. Some of you will be familiar with these from participating in other GR review groups; but please read them anyway, as there are a few differences!

1. As stated above, this is not a discussion thread. It is simply for organising and co-ordinating our review work together. After the reviews have been done, you are more than welcome to open a discussion thread, or threads, to talk about any of the books we’ve been reading.

2. So, what are we aiming to achieve by reviewing one another’s books? Well, first, let’s be clear that we’re not here to pat one another’s backs! This is not a mutual admiration society. Yes, we hope that being reviewed by our fellow Christian spec. fic. fans will reduce the likelihood of low ratings due to the reviewer not being on the same wavelength. But that does not mean that we avoid telling it like it is. We’re looking for sympathetic but honest reviews that will not only increase our review totals (and hopefully our average ratings), but will also help hone our writing skills by making us aware of areas for improvement.
But while being honest, we don’t want to go to the other extreme of only pointing out the faults in a book. Remember that for each author among us, their book is a much-loved act of sub-creation on which they have lavished days, weeks, months of painstaking care. A simple rule of thumb is: For every negative comment you make, include a positive one as well.

3. I trust everyone understands that joining this group does involve a commitment to write two reviews within the required period (a month each). Failing to do so will not only let the authors down, but will also undermine what we as a group are trying to achieve. If you find yourself unable to complete one or other of your reviews, please be aware that it is your responsibility to find a replacement reviewer—and to inform us in this thread of the change, including the GR profile link of your replacement.

4. The way the session will basically work is as follows: There will be 2 rounds, one in April and one in May, with each author and reviewer doing one review in each round. We have 12 authors (so 12 books), and 6 reviewers who are not submitting books (I’ll call them ‘readers� for short). I will allocate books to reviewers in such a way that in round 1 (April) all the authors will review another author (without any two people reviewing each other, which is prohibited by GR)—resulting in 1 review per book; and each of the readers will review one of the books—resulting in 1 review for 6 of the 12 books. So at the end of round 1, 6 authors will have one review each and 6 authors will have 2 reviews each. Then in round 2 (May) the same will happen again with different author–author pairs, and with the readers covering the remaining 6 books. So at the end of round 2 every book will have received 3 reviews.

5. How will participants receive the books they are to review? Since there are wide discrepancies in cost between different books—and not everyone subscribes to KU—it will be the responsibility of the author to contact his or her reviewers and work out how to get them a free review copy. If the book is on KU and they can read it there, fine. Alternatively the author can ask for the reviewer’s email address and send them a file (mobi, epub or pdf), or provide a link for them to obtain a free Kindle version.

6. When a review is complete, the reviewer will post it to Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ and to Amazon (preferably both the US and UK sites); and will also post links to all 3 reviews in this thread to share them with the rest of the group. (There is one exception to this: see point â€�9 below.) Any practical difficulties en route can be brought up here.

7. Please understand that allocated reviewer–book pairs cannot easily be changed. For a detailed statement of the reasons, see my response to Stoney in the “Anyone interested in starting our own review group?� thread (/topic/show/..., second from the top). Briefly, allocating the pairs to avoid reciprocal reviews and making sure everyone ends up with the right number in the end is difficult enough without also trying to accommodate personal preferences. Everyone taking part in this session must be willing to accept that they may not get exactly the book they might have chosen to review. Part of the reviewing exercise is to be objective enough to give credit for good writing, even if the subject matter is not entirely to your taste.

8. Please note that the only acceptable response from an author to a reviewer is “Thank you.� Authors should never enter into a dispute with a reviewer about things they disagree with in their review. If they feel strongly that the review and rating are unfair, they should contact me as mod, not the reviewer.

9. Only reviews of 3 stars or more should be posted to GR and Amazon. If a reviewer truly feels a book is not worth more than 2 stars, he/she should complete the review, but send it as a private message to the author with a clear description of the areas where they feel the book falls short, and how these might be corrected. They should also send the review in a pm to me, so I’m aware they’ve done this.

I will post the reviewer–book allocations as soon as everyone has added their links in this thread. Looking forward to a great session!


How to Write a Review

For some of you this may be the first time you’ve written a review on Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ. So for a start, if you’re not familiar with the mechanics of how this is done, have a look at this page: /help/show/2....

Others may know the mechanics, but be unsure about what to write . Here are some tips:

First, Justin posted a good outline in the “Anyone interested in starting our own review group?� thread. I’ll repeat it here for convenience:

1) General Impression - "How did you feel before reading it? How did you feel after? Lasting feelings? (Sad it's over, happy it's done, bittersweet, etc)."

2) Characters - "Favorite one, least favorite, most interesting, most unpredictable, etc."

3) Plot - "Favorite twists, was it generic? Was it unique? Did you enjoy where it went? What would you have done instead?"

4) Themes - "What themes were obvious? What themes did you THINK you felt the author was going for? Favorite themes? Least favorite?"

5) World Building - "Was the universe memorable? Forgettable? What was your favorite part of the world building (weapons, architecture, people, races, societal structure, languages, etc). Would you want to see more? What more are you excited to see?"

And a couple of points of my own:
6) First, as I said earlier, we need to have a certain amount of objectivity in recognising good writing. There’s a balance to be found here: a review is about how you responded to the book; but it should not simply ignore good writing and give a 2-star rating because you personally didn’t like some elements of the story.

7) As a general rule, avoid spoilers! To quote from the link below about review writing: If you knew who the killer was on page 2, fine, say, “I knew who the killer was by page two.� But do NOT say, “I knew by page two that the butler was the killer.� If you feel your review will be seriously hampered if you can’t talk about the solution to certain mystery, or reveal an unexpected plot twist, then put a large notice at the beginning saying “SPOILER ALERT�.

Of course there are many pages of advice about reviewing online. Just Google “how to review a book�! But among the ones I found, I thought this was particularly useful: .

And remember: For every negative comment you make, include a positive one as well!

Above all, enjoy! In writing these reviews we are really helping our (fellow-)authors, as well as enjoying some great stories in the genre we love.

Justin Coogle

Here is my link and my book.

Okay that didn't work. I don't know how to do both in one post. So ... here's my book

Info from Guy:

Guy L. Pace, .

C.S. wrote: "Okay that didn't work. I don't know how to do both in one post�

We have the most important info—thanks, C.S.! (To get both in the same post, just do one and then switch tabs at the top of the entry box, from Book to Author, or vice versa.)

My info:

Steve Pillinger, .

Steve wrote: "C.S. wrote: "Okay that didn't work. I don't know how to do both in one post�

Thanks. I thought I did that, but I must not have. Like you said, you have the information and that's the important thing.

Info from David:

David Bergsland, .

The Key of Solomon Glen Robinson

Lara Lee

Info from Kenyon:

Kenyon Henry .

Lauren H. Salisbury

Sean Elliot Russell

/user/show/5...

Nice to meet everyone!

will this be where and how we are assigned our books?

Kenyon wrote: "Nice to meet everyone!"

Ann wrote: "will this be where and how we are assigned our books?"

Hi, Kenyon and Ann! Good to have you here. Yes, this is where the assignments and practical arrangements will be made. Keep watching the top post!

I’ll be traveling so I may not get to my book for a bit but I willl keep checking back here.

No probs, Stoney.

Information and guidelines have been added in the top post.

Please keep referring to the top post for review pairings and general info.

(And could someone tell me if they received a separate notification about my current additions to the top post? I don't know if GR sends a notification when a post is edited, or only when it's first added.)

Yes, I got notice that you updated the info at top. Sounds good.

Awesome update!

No, I got no notification.

To clarify to Steve. NO, we are NOT getting notifications on POST UPDATES.

We ARE getting notifications for NEW POSTS.

Thanks for letting me know. So I'll throw in a quick post like the one above whenever I add anything to the top post.

Just in case there's still room in this round :) Happy to participate in the group - looking for reviews of

Thanks :)

Thanks, Jeanette, we're glad to have you. As I commented in the other thread, we're sorry you've missed this session, but I've put you down for the next one.

Blessings!

Here is my info. I will be happy to email reviewers a free copy of the novel.
Keeper of Shadows Bridgett Powers

Thanks, Bridgett, glad to have you with us!

Nod

Mine's posted...finally! :P Sorry about the delay, Steve.

No problem! Welcome to session 1.

I'm looking forward to reading, so let me know what you want me to read when you can :)

PARTICIPANTS, BOOKS, AND REVIEW PAIRINGS


Participants in the random order used for the review pairings below:
1. Lara Lee
2. C.S. Wachter
3. Kenyon Henry
4. Lauren H. Salisbury
5. Bridgett Powers
6. Sean Elliot Russell
7. Steve Pillinger
8. Glen Robinson
9. David Bergsland
10. Justin Coogle
11. Brannon Hollingsworth
12. Guy L. Pace
13. Stoney deGeyter
14. M.H. Elrich (/user/show/2...)
15. Cassie (/user/show/5...)
16. Cortez Law III
17. Ann (/user/show/7...)
18. Rondi Bauer Olson

Books (numbers correspond with authors above):
1. Gryphendale
2. The Sorcerer's Bane
3. Choice of the Mighty: Chronicles of Stephen
4. Courage
5. Keeper of Shadows
6. Shiloh's Rising
7. The Mindruler
8. The Key of Solomon
9. Invasion
10. Kingdom Come
11. Nod
12. Sudden Mission


REVIEW PAIRINGS for Round 1 (April 9th to May 8th)

A. Who reviews What:
1. Lara Lee reviews C.S. Wachter’s The Sorcerer’s Bane.
2. C.S. Wachter reviews Kenyon Henry’s Choice of the Mighty.
3. Kenyon Henry reviews Lauren Salisbury’s Courage.
4. Lauren Salisbury reviews Bridgett Powers� Keeper of Shadows.
5. Bridgett Powers reviews Sean Russell’s Shiloh’s Rising.
6. Sean Russell reviews Steve Pillinger’s The Mindruler.
7. Steve Pillinger reviews Glen Robinson’s The Key of Solomon.
8. Glen Robinson reviews David Bergsland’s Invasion.
9. David Bergsland reviews Brannon Hollingsworth’s Nod.
10. Justin Coogle reviews Guy L. Pace’s Sudden Mission.
11. Brannon Hollingsworth reviews Justin Coogle’s Kingdom Come.
12. Guy L. Pace reviews Lara Lee’s Gryphendale.
13. Stoney DeGeyter reviews Lara Lee’s Gryphendale.
14. M.H. Elrich reviews C.S. Wachter’s The Sorcerer’s Bane.
15. Cassie reviews Kenyon Henry’s Choice of the Mighty.
16. Cortez Law reviews Lauren Salisbury’s Courage.
17. Ann reviews Bridgett Powers� Keeper of Shadows.
18. Rondi Olson reviews Sean Russell’s Shiloh’s Rising.

B. Who is reviewed by Whom (for exchanging review copies):
1. Lara Lee is reviewed by Guy L. Pace and Stoney DeGeyter.
2. C.S. Wachter is reviewed by Lara Lee and M.H. Elrich.
3. Kenyon Henry is reviewed by C.S. Wachter and Cassie.
4. Lauren Salisbury is reviewed by Kenyon Henry and Cortez Law.
5. Bridgett Powers is reviewed by Lauren Salisbury and Ann.
6. Sean Russell is reviewed by Bridgett Powers and Rondi Olson.
7. Steve Pillinger is reviewed by Sean Russell.
8. Glen Robinson is reviewed by Steve Pillinger.
9. David Bergsland is reviewed by Glen Robinson.
10. Justin Coogle is reviewed by Brannon Hollingsworth.
11. Brannon Hollingsworth is reviewed by David Bergsland.
12. Guy L. Pace is reviewed by Justin Coogle.


REVIEW PAIRINGS for Round 2 (May 9th to June 8th)

A. Who reviews What:
1. Lara Lee reviews Kenyon Henry’s Choice of the Mighty.
2. C.S. Wachter reviews Lauren Salisbury’s Courage.
3. Kenyon Henry reviews Bridgett Powers� Keeper of Shadows.
4. Lauren Salisbury reviews Sean Russell’s Shiloh’s Rising.
5. Bridgett Powers reviews Steve Pillinger’s The Mindruler.
6. Sean Russell reviews Glen Robinson’s The Key of Solomon.
7. Steve Pillinger reviews David Bergsland’s Invasion.
8. Glen Robinson reviews Justin Coogle’s Kingdom Come.
9. David Bergsland reviews Guy L. Pace’s Sudden Mission.
10. Justin Coogle reviews C.S. Wachter’s The Sorcerer’s Bane.
11. Brannon Hollingsworth reviews Lara Lee’s Gryphendale.
12. Guy L. Pace reviews Brannon Hollingsworth’s Nod.
13. Stoney DeGeyter reviews Steve Pillinger’s The Mindruler.
14. M.H. Elrich reviews Glen Robinson’s The Key of Solomon.
15. Cassie reviews David Bergsland’s Invasion.
16. Cortez Law reviews Justin Coogle’s Kingdom Come.
17. Ann reviews Brannon Hollingsworth’s Nod.
18. Rondi Olson reviews Guy L. Pace’s Sudden Mission.

B. Who is reviewed by Whom (for exchanging review copies):
1. Lara Lee is reviewed by Brannon Hollingsworth.
2. C.S. Wachter is reviewed by Justin Coogle.
3. Kenyon Henry is reviewed by Lara Lee.
4. Lauren Salisbury is reviewed by C.S. Wachter.
5. Bridgett Powers is reviewed by Kenyon Henry.
6. Sean Russell is reviewed by Lauren Salisbury.
7. Steve Pillinger is reviewed by Bridgett Powers and Stoney DeGeyter.
8. Glen Robinson is reviewed by Sean Russell and M.H. Elrich.
9. David Bergsland is reviewed by Steve Pillinger and Cassie.
10. Justin Coogle is reviewed by Glen Robinson and Cortez Law.
11. Brannon Hollingsworth is reviewed by Guy L. Pace and Ann.
12. Guy L. Pace is reviewed by David Bergsland and Rondi Olson.

OK folks, we're in business! In the post above you'll see all the participants, books, and the all-important review pairings.

(I started out adding this to the top post, which was my original intention, but I ran out of characters! So I'm afraid you'll need to page through to find this post when you need to refer to it.)

The first thing that needs to happen is for authors to contact those reviewing your book to arrange free review copies. This is best done not in this thread, but by sending a personal message. The B. lists above provide a convenient summary of who you need to contact. If they can read your book on Kindle Unlimited, nothing else needs to be done (but you need to check if they're subscribed). If you can gift them a copy, well and good. Otherwise get their email address and send them a file: mobi, epub or pdf.

If you're having trouble with this, you can ask here in this thread.

This might be a silly question, but I don't know how to contact my reviewers here on GR. I tried, but was unsuccessful. What steps do I need to follow to initiate a conversation with someone?

Not a silly question at all. It's not very obvious! You need to go to their profile (which is why we have the list of participants' links in the post above), then if it's an author, look for the "Following" button under the picture. Click on the down arrow to the right of it, and you'll see the option "Send Message".
For our reviewers who are not authors, under the info at the top you'll see a blue link, "Send Message".
Hope that does it for you!

Okay, ignore my last post. I figured it out. Although now I am feeling a little stupid here.

Note to all participants:

Please let us know in this thread when you've received your review copy for round 1 and are able to start reading. Just so we know where everyone's at.

I got Choice of the Mighty for Round 1.

Steve, David has already reviewed my novel. Could you swap him with someone else?

Changes to the reviewing pairs:

Sorry, folks, I neglected to check if any of you had already been reviewed by other participants in this session! My bad. Justin has pointed out one such error in the list. If anyone is aware of another case like that, please let me know straight away!

I have now adjusted both the Session 1 and Session 2 lists to correct the error. This affects the following people: David Bergsland, Justin Coogle, Guy L. Pace, Brannon Hollingsworth and C.S. Wachter.

Sincere apologies if you've already sent review copies to the wrong people! I guess we're all still learning how this works�

Steve wrote: "Sorry, folks, I neglected to check if any of you had already been reviewed by other participants in this session! My bad."

Very small thing there Steve! You have put a lot of work into organizing this - and it is well organized! Great work and know we all appreciate it! Blessings!

Yes, Steve! Thanks for all your hard work--and your organizational skills which are exceptional! God bless, Steve!

Agreed. Thanks, Steve. I'm looking forward to reading two new books in the next month or two!

Thanks Steve!

Thanks, guys! Much appreciated. Hope the session turns out to be a blessing to all.

Steve,
Ditto on the thanks! You have done an amazing job matching and re-matching.
Thanks!

Hi Steve,
I've communicated with both reviewers (and sent the cheques to them--just joking haha). And I've added both books that I'll be reviewing to my Kindle library.

All the best!
Sean