This was so enjoyable to read! I feel like everyone fears 3 stars because it suggests mediocrity, which is such a human fear (for perfectionists anyway). With so much choice of content, it also doesn’t help out sheepy brains decide what to consume. :b I guess the impulse is you may as well go for a 4-5 star or 1 star cause it will hopefully provoke some sort of reaction.
This reminded me of a less-than-enthusiastic review I gave to an original theatrical production a few years back and the playwright/lead actor badgered me for a long time to change my review because he couldn't use it to convince other theatres to stage his play. One of his final emails was filled with a lot of deliberate misspellings and a lament that he was suffering from some disease so I should go easy on him.
Excellent read. As the recipient of a number of one star reviews in the past (turns out Americans aren't keen on either Geordie dialect or council estate profanity...who knew?) this made me laugh. I'm not a fan of Taylor Swift either but I'm going to read that thread now...
Great read. Before I click all these Succession links I wanted to say that once I tweeted a (very sweet!) joke about the Avatar episode of How To with John Wilson without tagging anything or anyone and the Avatar fans still found me. 😒 But to one of your other points, my initial contact with my agent was because she liked my Twitter voice - so there are instances that it can be a good introduction to a writer, but I agree that it shouldn't then set any expectation for subsequent work. Every version of our written selves is specifically curated, whether we notice we're doing it or not.
It's so funny that one of the sweetest films has such a toxic part of its fanbase! I would never have guessed. And yes you're right, I think for getting on people's radar it is good, as long as your 'other' voice isn't a disappointment/not in line with whatever it is they then expect from you. In that way I suppose I'm glad my twitter voice is so underwhelming. However one of my biggest fears is how much more intelligent and sharp I sound written down than in person - I'm terrible at public speaking and find it hard to order my thoughts verbally!
This was so enjoyable to read! I feel like everyone fears 3 stars because it suggests mediocrity, which is such a human fear (for perfectionists anyway). With so much choice of content, it also doesn’t help out sheepy brains decide what to consume. :b I guess the impulse is you may as well go for a 4-5 star or 1 star cause it will hopefully provoke some sort of reaction.
thanks Daria! and yes I agree -- I guess star ratings can be pretty reductive, but I do find them helpful when trying to make a quick decision...
Totally.
This reminded me of a less-than-enthusiastic review I gave to an original theatrical production a few years back and the playwright/lead actor badgered me for a long time to change my review because he couldn't use it to convince other theatres to stage his play. One of his final emails was filled with a lot of deliberate misspellings and a lament that he was suffering from some disease so I should go easy on him.
blimey!! I sort of feel sorry for him but... not ok.
Excellent read. As the recipient of a number of one star reviews in the past (turns out Americans aren't keen on either Geordie dialect or council estate profanity...who knew?) this made me laugh. I'm not a fan of Taylor Swift either but I'm going to read that thread now...
A one star review from an American – a badge of honour!
Great read. Before I click all these Succession links I wanted to say that once I tweeted a (very sweet!) joke about the Avatar episode of How To with John Wilson without tagging anything or anyone and the Avatar fans still found me. 😒 But to one of your other points, my initial contact with my agent was because she liked my Twitter voice - so there are instances that it can be a good introduction to a writer, but I agree that it shouldn't then set any expectation for subsequent work. Every version of our written selves is specifically curated, whether we notice we're doing it or not.
It's so funny that one of the sweetest films has such a toxic part of its fanbase! I would never have guessed. And yes you're right, I think for getting on people's radar it is good, as long as your 'other' voice isn't a disappointment/not in line with whatever it is they then expect from you. In that way I suppose I'm glad my twitter voice is so underwhelming. However one of my biggest fears is how much more intelligent and sharp I sound written down than in person - I'm terrible at public speaking and find it hard to order my thoughts verbally!
I like to think the 'in writing' version of me is actually The Real Me.