The Recent drama with Rachel Vincent

23 May, 2012 Buzz Worthy News 80 comments

It all started with a tweet.

The question, “Where did you get it!?!” Led a Goodreads user to think Rachel Vincent had been accusing her of piracy.

Her course of action was to give a one star rating and refuse to review the book.  She made a comment in the review about the author being rude.

Rachel Vincent commented on the review stating her shock that she was misinterpreted that way and trying to explain herself.  Her comment:

The thread blew up, Rachel Vincent lamented on Twitter.

Eventually, the reviewer removed her star rating and slightly altered her review.

This incident is unique for us because it is the first time Steph and I have witnessed author/reviewer drama and been conflicted over who was in the right.

On our page, Break Glass in Case of Trolling for our Blogger Support Network, we define trolling as:

“Trolling in the book review com­mu­nity is not always syn­ony­mous with the term in a gen­eral con­text.  In gen­eral, what mem­bers of the book com­mu­nity often refer to as trolling is often just flaming.

Trolling refers to delib­er­ately tar­get­ing some­one for fun by start­ing an argu­ment with them, prank­ing them, trick­ing them into click­ing inap­pro­pri­ate links etc.  How­ever the term is used widely on Goodreads, Ama­zon and other review­ing loca­tions for peo­ple who post inflam­ma­tory remarks on reviews with the inten­tion of cen­sur­ing them and bul­ly­ing them into remov­ing or alter­ing the con­tent of the review.”

And we also provide a list of common ways one can be trolled:

“There are sev­eral dif­fer­ent meth­ods and all of them are wrong.  The most obvi­ous is com­ments being posted on your review ver­bally attack­ing both your­self or your review.  Emails or pri­vate mes­sages from authors or peo­ple attack­ing your review is also inap­pro­pri­ate.  If you are on Ama­zon, your review may be the tar­get of an orga­nized effort to down­vote that review.  Peo­ple do this because, with enough down­votes, a review is auto­mat­i­cally deleted by Ama­zon – thus this is an excel­lent way for author to raise their stats. Peo­ple can also be trolled by hav­ing their reviews tweeted about or blogged by an author in order to encour­age their fans to go and attack on their behalf.  If you are expe­ri­enc­ing a high quan­tity of trolls on a par­tic­u­lar review, this may be the cause of it.”

For book bloggers being trolled, Cuddlebuggery is team Blogger/Reviewer.  We believe in a free space where reviewers and bloggers can express their opinions about the books they read without fear of reprisal or the need to be censored in an effort to “be nice”.

But this situation is slightly more complicated.

After all, it was a misunderstanding in the first place and the author certainly meant no harm and had no prior (known) history of attacking reviewers.

The reviewer chose not to review the book because they were offended by the interaction – something that is completely justifiable.  They expressed why they weren’t reading the book – also justified.  Unless violating the TOS of Goodreads, reviewers can use their review space as they wish.

I am no stranger to experiencing rude interactions with authors.  When I inquired of one of my all-time favourite authors as to when her book would be available in Australia and was brusquely told, “Let me sort out the UK first” I was not overtly impressed at the brush off.

A range of understandable options are open:

a)      Forgive and forget – understanding that authors can be people too.

b)      Discontinue fanstatus – fuck them – it was a simple question!

c)      Remove positive reviews of books – I shan’t make sales for you anymore!

d)     Rate their books one star and tell everyone what an asshole they are – Bwhahaha!  Revenge is mine!

You are free to do any of the above as long as it remains in the TOS of the site you’re on.  But option D is not an option that we endorse at Cuddlebuggery.  We believe that books earn their star status and we try not to link that to author behaviour.

In that spirit, over the next week Cuddlebuggery will be providing detailed resources for bloggers, based on our own experience, for dealing with author disagreements.  These include step-by-step guides on suggested actions for reviewers, bloggers, and authors to take; ethical behaviour guides, answers to frequently asked questions, and ways for both bloggers/reviewers to protect themselves against attack.

But as always, when in doubt seek advice from Ryan!

“Hey Girl, blogging drama getting you down?  Don’t worry.  You can review me ANY time. I won’t get mad.”

Steph says:

Five stars, Ryan! XD

Kat Kennedy

Kat Kennedy

Co-blogger at Cuddlebuggery
Kat Kennedy is a book reviewer and aspiring author in the Young Adult genre. She reviews critically but humorously and get super excited about great books. Find her on GoodReads.
Kat Kennedy

80 Responses to “The Recent drama with Rachel Vincent”

  1. Jenni @ Alluring Reads

    Ya, this one is tough because it was a misunderstanding. It’s really too bad that it happened. I’m not certain that I would have interpreted it the same way, but then again if in the situation it may be different.

    Buuuuuuut then we got our RG fill 🙂 *hubba hubba*
    Jenni @ Alluring Reads recently posted…The Glimpse ReviewMy Profile

    • Kat Kennedy

      @KB/KT Grant: I will be sad the day they don’t. I’ve seen it made out that critical reviewers like Steph and I mistrust and dislike authors. The truth is we have many, many author friends and I would hate to lose that. I love talking to authors.

  2. Nicola

    I know tensions have been high this year but I do think everyone needs to stop being so damn touchy. It does seem like an author cannot say anything right now without it being interpreted to mean something they didn’t intend it to mean. Some of the comments are SO out of line. I don’t think any of it is justified just because other authors have done stuff in the past.
    Nicola recently posted…Review: On The Island by Tracey Garvis-GravesMy Profile

  3. Amanda @ Sisters Unedited

    I agree. Thanks for posting this Kat. I was wondering what had happened. I have enjoyed books by this author in the past and was looking forward to Shadow Bound when this went down. It does look like a misunderstanding, but as you said a reviewer can do what s/he wants on their review as long as they stay in the TOS of the site.

    As far as rating go everyone rates different and most of us on those sites get a feel for how each person rates. I know some do rate books before they come out based on cover, blurb etc. Others rate books that are out 1 star even when they don’t want to read it.

    I for one don’t think stars are necessary for books that I haven’t or will never read. However, what annoys me is when authors/other reviewers get upset about how you shelf a book or what you put in your review/comments about why you shelved it that way. It is a shelf and we just want to share with other people we talk to or who follow us why we are not fans of this book. sigh. I just think that whole point is obvious but as seen on GR it is not.

    BTW, I am pretty sure I know the authors you are referring too. I believe that question made the FAQ on the site.
    Amanda @ Sisters Unedited recently posted…Top Ten Tuesday!My Profile

  4. Lisa @ Fic Talk

    See, when we tweet, text, email, etc, sometimes what we say and mean can get lost in translation.

    I’ve recently had to deal w/ such a thing and it wasn’t pretty.

    However, I can see where things went badly in this situation.

    Rachel’s tweet with all this: ?!?!
    Can be translated as a “not happy” response or a very excited/anxious/a-little-freaked-out-surprised response.

    If you follow her you know that she, at least weekly, complains and tweets about piracy. Understandable.
    So I can see why the reviewer felt a little ‘funny’.

    However, if the book is an unreleased novel… How would one be able to get ahold of a pirated copy?… I’m not really sure of the logistics but wouldn’t you have to wait until the book comes out to get a pirated version of it? (I honestly don’t know, so I’m only guessing here)

    In that case, if I was said reviewer I wouldn’t have felt like the author was attacking me when she responded the way she did b/c I’d know that the only way to get a copy of the book was through legitimate means.

    So I understand both sides but… I’m not really sure that it was the author’s fault in this scenario.

    There’s no winner or loser here. Just a case of a huge misunderstanding gone bad.
    Lisa @ Fic Talk recently posted…Check here to Subscribe to notifications for new postsMy Profile

  5. Fangs for the Fantasy

    I think there was a misunderstanding and I didn’t think Rachel Vincent was rude at all – I think the reviewer over reacted… buuut I also think Rachel Vincent’s reply was similarly over dramatic and rather an overreaction. A simple “I’m sorry, that was completely not my intent. Curse twitter and it’s character limit – I was just excited and in no way did I ever think you had pirated.” would have been better than “I’m sooo hurt by this!”

    We did have a past discussion with Ms. Vincent over a review we did of one of her books http://www.fangsforthefantasy.com/2011/11/review-of-blood-bound-by-rachel-vincent.html we gave it 2.5 out of 5 (which, on our site, is average – neither good nor bad) for various reasons which she then took issue with on Twitter (back on the 18th November in Fangs4fantasy twitter feed). She was pretty polite about it as far as authors complaining about reviews go.
    Fangs for the Fantasy recently posted…Being Human U.K Season Three, Episode 5: The Longest DayMy Profile

  6. Luan Pitsch

    Yeah, I kinda think that it’s hard to post online because words without facial expression and tone can be hard to interpret. Your example, “let me sort out the UK first.” Say that using different inflections and you get different interpretations. Have you ever seen the movie, “The Conversation?” Case in point. but here I am saying this and maybe you think I’m meaning this in a rude way. NO. I’m just in my hmmm, this is interesting, let’s discuss it phase. Which goes along with the, ‘why do i find Ryan up there so totally hot?’ I do. And I don’t know why. That’s also why I like the visuals that accompany your reviews. Love them.

  7. Jenn R. Johansson

    I sort of wish everyone would just chill a little bit. It seems like anxiety and emotions running high seems to fuel a lot of the disagreements between reviewers and authors. Live and let live, peace out, and all that mumbo-jumbo. 😉

    That said. I think it’s fantastic of you to provide some guidelines and words of advice. It’s never a good position to be in, for either side.

  8. Lavi

    Hey there! Great one, Kat! You know I am team Blogger all the way usually, but this time I cannot agree. I mean, I really think the author is being honest (at least according to her message). I am sure it was all taken out of context, which is, alas, a big risk when it comes to the world of the Internet, and, especially, to the shitty world of micro-blogging where, due to the space restrictions, short, snappy answers and questions tend to be the most common. That’s why blogging is the better alternative. At least then, if you are a complex creature capable and willing to express profound thoughts, emotions and concepts, you can (see, for example, the lovely ladies of Cuddlebuggery). But this case was, indeed new and weird. I am curious to see how it unfolds, if it unfolds.
    Lavi recently posted…Californication Season 5 RantMy Profile

  9. Lou

    Looking at the screencaps you’ve provided, the reviewer in question probably overreacted by rating down the book.

    But on the other hand, the author demanding where she got an ARC was not the most tactful of things. Vincent should have said, no, I didn’t think you had pirated it and just left it at that. Writing that post on Goodreads was overkill.

  10. Rose

    Yeah, I’m of the mind that both parties overreacted in this situation. I love Rachel Vincent and her writing, and I’ve never known her to be mean in her online interactions. Understandably, she was upset and I don’t blame her for that, but I think it would’ve been better if she took a step back, assessed the situation before replying, and it probably would’ve been better if she hadn’t taken to Twitter to vent about it in retrospect. I also understand the reviewer’s upset, but I also think she overreacted in this case as well – because judging from the conversation, I didn’t get “author accuses reviewer of piracy” from that alone. She has every right to refuse to review a book for whatever reason she feels, however, and I don’t fault her for that, but I do think that she overreacted to the situation.

    It’s unfortunate that there have been so many high tensions running between authors and reviewers as of late (on Goodreads and other communities).
    Rose recently posted…Review: Always Upbeat/All ThatMy Profile

    • Kat Kennedy

      @Rose: Yes. I wish things would go back to how they used to be when authors and reviewers weren’t so tense around each other.

  11. Nysa

    What shocked me was the amount of sheer rudeness in the comments on the review.

  12. Amanda Pearl

    sweet baby Jesus, people make me head desk. Based on the image you have posted it’s pretty obvious from Rachel’s tweet she just wanted to know where the reviewer got the copy from, and that she didn’t know there were any galleys on NG. I have no idea how that blogger thought she was implying it was stolen somehow. In my experience authors love to hear about people who are excited for their upcoming books and people who are reading arcs and freaking out (in a good way). People are re-goddam-diculous, I swear….
    Amanda Pearl recently posted…Off the Shelf #2My Profile

    • Kat Kennedy

      @Amanda Pearl: The blogger claims that there was another tweet deleted by Vincent asking more directly if the blogger had stolen the work. But there is no screen cap of this tweet.

  13. Tatiana (The Readventurer)

    This was the most ridiculous drama yet, and this time I was totally flabbergasted by the reader who felt justified to post such crap over absolutely nothing and encourage her misguided friends to malign the author. I am normally on the side of reviewers, but in this case the author got my complete support. Why should her name be dragged through the mud because of one innocent comment? I don’t think it’s “whining” on her part to want to clear her name. I tell you, I defriended some people on that thread. A lot of comments on that thread were disgusting.
    Tatiana (The Readventurer) recently posted…YA Review: The House of the Scorpion by Nancy FarmerMy Profile

    • AnimeJune

      I am on the author’s side – not because the reader posted publicly how she felt wronged by an author, but because she gave a one-star rating to a book in order to spite someone.

      To me, a one-star review means you read the book and didn’t like it. Reviewers review the books and judge the books based on their individual merits.

      If you’re going to give a book a single-star to SPITE someone instead of actually judging the book, to me, that seems a betrayal of what a reviewer does and should do. It’s dishonest. And of course she has the “right” to do it, just as everyone has the “right” to lie and make shit up and say whatever they want to on the internet.

      I wouldn’t have been half as annoyed with this reader if she’d started OUT with an un-starred review explaining why she wouldn’t finish the book. That’s fine. Making out like it was a terrible book when she was actually angry at the author seems deceitful.
      AnimeJune recently posted…"A Gentleman Undone," by Cecilia GrantMy Profile

      • emma woodcock
        Twitter:

        @AnimeJune:

        “If you’re going to give a book a single-star to SPITE some­one instead of actu­ally judg­ing the book, to me, that seems a betrayal of what a reviewer does and should do. It’s dis­hon­est. And of course she has the “right” to do it, just as every­one has the “right” to lie and make shit up and say what­ever they want to on the internet.”

        That is the most sense anyone has said on this subject 🙂
        emma woodcock recently posted…I hate writing blurbsMy Profile

  14. Christina (A Reader of Fictions)

    I had all of these intelligent thoughts that I was going to post in a comment, but my mind just turned into happy mush from that Ryan Gosling photo. Hubba hubba.

    I really didn’t see anything in that twitter conversation to anger anyone. I’ve seen authors asking where people got ARCs before, usually because they want to tell EVERYBODY if it’s up on NG. I don’t even know why this happened. Tensions are WAY to high in the blogosphere right now.
    Christina (A Reader of Fictions) recently posted…Waiting on Wednesday (9)My Profile

  15. Kara @ Great Imaginations
    Twitter:

    I side with the author here. Her original question was taken the wrong way. I don’t think it was an attack on the blogger at all. I just think she was confused, shocked, and probably a little EXCITED that arcs were out there. The blogger took it the wrong way and then proceeded to attack Rachel Vincent on Goodreads which, imo, was a really bad decision.

    I just feel that when someone makes you angry, it’s better to take a step back and think for 10 minutes before you react. I think most of the time the result will be better for both parties involved. Reacting out of anger never ends well.
    Kara @ Great Imaginations recently posted…Book Review of This is Not a Test by Courtney SummersMy Profile

  16. Well

    I was told by the person who wrote the review that there was another tweet sent via Rachel condemning the reviewer for stealing that was deleted.

      • Anonymous

        @Tatiana (The Readventurer): I definitely didn’t say that it make sense, but that is what the reviewer is telling people who ask for more details about the situation. Could be a situation where the reviewer felt offended and couldn’t help elaborating herself into a huge lie.

        • Tatiana (The Readventurer)

          I don’t claim to be privy to the whole exchange and ins and outs of it all, but when I stumbled across that review, I looked at the exchange on twitter, and the reviewer had no problem with the author’s question until a third party tweeted at the reviewer something along the lines of “She is asking as if you stole it.” That’s when this thing took a wrong turn, or so it looked. It’s so sad that something so small escalated to something so ugly.
          Tatiana (The Readventurer) recently posted…YA Review: The House of the Scorpion by Nancy FarmerMy Profile

          • Anonymous

            @Tatiana (The Readventurer): I looked at the exchange, too, and I wasn’t remotely bothered by it, but when I asked for more details, I was told by the person that wrote the review that Rachel tweeted something like, “you can never be to sure if your ARC’s are being obtained illegally for from a publishing source” to her and then deleted it. Which, I could understand some offense being taken by a reader if that had been said, but even if it had been, it seems like the entire thing was blown completely out of proportion. Either way, it might explain why the reviewer had so many people blindly defending her.

          • Anonymous

            @Tatiana (The Readventurer): I agree with you wholeheartedly, which is why I didn’t get involved. I don’t want to accuse anyone of lying, particularly about an author the reviewer previous lauded, but I don’t understand why Rachel would make such a statement either. I know that films can be illegally obtained prior to release, but I didn’t know that the same was also true for unreleased books? So I’m not sure what happened exactly. I think Rachel probably should have just apologized and moved on instead of reacting in the way she did, but I do think this is also a case of reviewer embellishment for sympathy.

          • Anonymous

            @Tatiana (The Readventurer): The reviewer said that she didn’t want to bring it up to cause ‘more problems’ which I thought was really shady; it seems like the quick way to cause fewer problems is to take down the review. It also made me wonder if she was worried about Rachel responding to her claims about it, which she might be inclined to do if no such tweet ever existed. I don’t think that what everyone was saying about Rachel whining and attracting attention to the reviewer was wrong, but if it were me, I would want to know what was happening and I, too, would be upset. Rachel never went out of her way to encourage any negative behaviors of her followers the way some authors have historically, she was simply venting. I think wiser choices could have been made on all sides: author, reviewer, and commenters. I know that some of the commenters deleted what they said after talking to Rachel (or intending to talk to Rachel) about what happened, because they went in to defend a friend and sort of felt betrayed when they figured out they were being lied to.

  17. Kat (AussieZombie)

    I tend to live under a bit of a rock on some things, but I don’t find that an overly accusatory conversation. Maybe we all just need to chill out a little bit with a cocktail (or three) and get a little bit of perspective.

    If I saw, or was part of, a conversation that I was confused or worried by, I’d contact the author and clarify, not jump to conclusions.

    Marking down a book due to the author’s perceived attitude is a little harsh – there have been plenty of author over-reactions that just made me decide, personally, not to read any of their books.
    Kat (AussieZombie) recently posted…Review: Divergent by Veronica RothMy Profile

    • Andrea K Host

      As for illegally obtaining arcs, it’s long been _very_ common practice for galley copies sent out to reviewers to be resold on Ebay – usually well before release and without the original recipient bothering to review.

      I do think all this has been a bit over the top from both sides. It reminds me of an incident at my day job where someone used to always use excessive punctuation in her emails. When asking a question it was always “Are you ready????” instead of “Are you ready?” Her boss got lots of complaints about how rude she was. Excessive punctuation can definitely imply heightened tone. [If there really was a second, deleted tweet discussing how the copy was obtained it does change the argument – I’d be offended too! (And a young girl might be quite upset by the implication.) Don’t know if I’d one-rate someone’s book over it, but I’d probably be less inclined to read it.]

      • Tatiana (The Readventurer)

        @Andrea K Host: I am not sure an ARC sold on ebay is considered an illegal ARC. Yes, ARCs are not for sale, but they exchange hands all the time – ARCs are mailed in bulk to many reviewers who never requested/had interest in them, they are routinely swapped and exchanged and given away. I don’t think that if an ARC wasn’t given to you directly, but you get it from some 3rd party, it makes it illegal. If it were true, then those librarians who distribute ARCs to their patrons are criminals as well.

        The only way I see an ARC could be illegal is if somebody steals a manuscript and distributes/sells it, like it happened, let’s say, with Stephenie Meyer’s “Midnight Sun.” Otherwise, if galleys are unleashed to the world, they can end up in anyone’s hands.
        Tatiana (The Readventurer) recently posted…YA Review: The House of the Scorpion by Nancy FarmerMy Profile

  18. Lexie B.

    Ryan Gosling gets ALL the stars.

    But, regarding the situation . . . I must say that, in this case, I’m on the side of the author. Rachel Vincent did nothing wrong, and no one felt wronged by her; the reviewer acted based off of one statement seen out of context. If I were Rachel Vincent, I’d have been rather upset, too. Did she need to comment? No. She could’ve just ignored it. It’s just one review of many. But I do understand why she commented, and I don’t think she was incredibly rude about it. She was simply explaining that she hadn’t done anything.
    Lexie B. recently posted…Joint Follower Appreciation Giveaway!My Profile

  19. Lyndi

    I have to disagree with the reviewer here. It looks like she got all bent out of shape over a misunderstanding, then continued to be angry after an explanation was given. I see no reason for her to be upset.

    Also, if I find an author has behaved badly and I don’t want to support them, I will add their most popular or most recent book to a specific shelf on GR and explain why in the review section. I won’t rate it 1 star because the ratings refer to the books, not to the author.

  20. Lady Jaye

    Just in case anyone cares – yes, you can steal ARC copies. A friends showed me her pirated copy of an ARC of Archangel’s storm. Not too long after Nalini Singh said she’d finished with the book.

  21. zapkode.marie

    {i’m following your blog}

    I am leaving this note to let you know that I am following you. If you aren’t already following me can you please return the favor and leave a comment on my most recent entry. Please and thank you! 🙂

    {http://www.justonemorechapter.net}

  22. AwesomeSauceBookClub

    I seen when RV posted this to her, and I was like what the heck. I took it rude as well. One thing is that I have tweeted Rachel and seen other tweet her positive things and get no response. Also to comment on her goodreads was weird to me. Because she doesn’t comment on positive reviews. I just think authors should focus more on the positive side and not on the negative. I understand they can not reply to all but why waste time with negative, had she just ignored it this wouldn’t be an issue. Also I like to add the blogger removed her star rating since she did not read the book.
    AwesomeSauceBookClub recently posted…AwesomeSauceBK: On page 271 of 404 of Arise, by Tara Hudson http://t.co/zZXkMZSZMy Profile

    • Kat Kennedy

      @AwesomeSauceBookClub: “Even­tu­ally, the reviewer removed her star rat­ing and slightly altered her review.”

      Thank you for your comment. We did note that in the above article.

      • Anonymous

        @Kat Kennedy: I must have missed that. I just seen a lot of comments about the 2 star rating and wanted to point out that it was removed.

  23. hrose2931

    I love your post! I’m glad to know you’ll be answering questions and providing information on how to handle these situations. Frankly, I’m getting tired of GoodReads and Twitter rants. It’s making me feel like GoodReads isn’t a reliable place to post my reviews. And Twitter? Forget it, I only go there when I have to. I wouldn’t want to offend someone. From the screenshot you have up there, it looked like the blogger was so excited to read the book. And I don’t see anything accusatory in the words from Rachel Vincent. It’s all in the way the blogger read into it. And apparently someone else’s suggestion. However, like most everyone on here, I don’t think giving a book one star is fair. You’re rating the book not the author’s personality or twitter behavior.

    Heather
    hrose2931 recently posted…Blog Tour A Pulse of Heroes A. Jacob Sweeny and GiveawayMy Profile

    • Kat Kennedy

      @hrose2931: I must say that, despite it all, I love Goodreads. It’s my home and they seem to be overtly on the side of the reader.

  24. Archer

    I’m gonna be honest here… I don’t get why the reviewer blew up… Was it a breakdown in communication? Was something lost in translation? I don’t really see anything wrong in the tweets… Just a little ignorance from the author about NG operating in the UK… I think this is maybe an over-reaction due to the polarised mood of the community as a whole…

    Please don’t kill me if I’ve missed something.
    Archer recently posted…ARC Book Review: Blackwood by Gwenda BondMy Profile

  25. emma woodcock
    Twitter:

    Even if this supposed ‘other’ tweet exists (According to comments above, some­thing like, “you can never be too sure if your ARCs are being obtained ille­gally from a pub­lish­ing source”) – that isn’t particularly rude either! It’s an explanation of a thought process.
    It isn’t a fraction as rude as slagging someone on a review and giving a one star review to a book you haven’t read – and all of it unwarranted, unreasonable and based on misunderstanding.
    I can’t understand comments above saying the author should have just apologised and moved on. Apologised for what exactly? “I’m sorry you’re so silly and unreasonable”?
    ffs!
    emma woodcock recently posted…I hate writing blurbsMy Profile

  26. Aly

    i don’t get it. what did she even do wrong? she simply asked where she had got her copy from.

    it actually made me feel bad when i saw how upset the author had become by the whole thing.

    if anything the reviewer should have apologised for being in the wrong and overreacting and being rude after it became clear that the author had no bad intention but still went on to say things such as ‘wasting my time’ and ‘rude authors’. is that not being rude? and i say this as a reviewer.

    if asking where you got your copy from is wrong then i don’t even know what to say.

    • Kat Kennedy

      @Aly: I don’t know. I would pretty offended at the implication that I would pirate an ARC. I love authors and only want to support them.

  27. Louise

    Huh. Well I can actually see why the reviewer might have seen in that way. ‘!?!’ does sound accusatory (and slightly crazy) and ‘where did you get it from?’ is an odd first response to being told someone is reading your book (as opposed to ‘I hope you enjoy it’ or a more polite version such as ‘cool, where did you get your copy?’). I would do a double take at that reply too – and then probably decide I was reading too much into it and remind myself that tone doesn’t always translate well through the internet, especially in a limited-character format like twitter.

    But equally it was pretty obviously a misunderstanding that could (and should) have been cleared up straight away by you know…asking the author before leaping to conclusions and publishing accusations without bothering to check what was meant.

    I’m definitely on team author on this one, she didn’t do anything wrong beyond phrasing herself poorly and I can understand her being upset at a review that accused her of being nasty. But I also think a ‘sorry, I didn’t intend my remarks in that way at all and I’m sorry that’s how they were interpreted’ rather than a ‘I’m so hurt by this!’ response would have been a more diplomatic way to go and soothed the situation a bit better. That said who acts diplomatic when they’re accused of shit they didn’t do? I certainly wouldn’t in her sittuation. And none of the comments she got in that thread were remotely called for.

  28. Joie

    Huh.I personally don’t see anything accusatory about Vincent’s tweet… if anything, she seemed nice and excited! Oh goodness, the perils of miscommunication…

    Wait, is the SooooVain mentioned here the same as the Vanity who trolled Wendy Darling?

  29. Lainey

    So sad. Many times I see this goodreads association attacking authors who did nothing wrong and nothing is ever done about it. This website is a huge part of the problem, being the “say” on who is right and wrong in their own warped reality. Remind me never to write a book. Book reviewers can be so catty in recent years. I’ve stopped visiting over a dozen blog sites due to this. My heart goes out to Rachel to have to put up with it now.

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