Today I thought I’d start a bit of a discussion about
something I have been thinking about lately. I have noticed that when some
bloggers post reviews they use the actual synopsis on the back of their book,
or what is shown on Goodreads, Amazon or other book related websites. There are
also some who write their own synopsis for the book they are reviewing.
So my questions for today are:
1. As a reviewer would you rather use the published synopsis of a book or write your own?
2. As a viewer would you rather read the published synopsis of a book or one wrote by the reviewer?
1. As a blogger I would much rather write my own synopsis for a
book I am reviewing. The reason for this is because I often find the published
version to be lacking in information. I realize that this is only a brief
glimpse into what the book is about, but it tends to leave out key facts that
may garner more interest to a potential reader. It also often leaves out facts
that may deter a reader from picking up the book. In my reviews I like to
include a spoiler free synopsis that gives a more in depth explanation of the
topic.
2. Although I do enjoy reading reviews from my fellow bloggers,
I often worry about spoilers. Especially if it is a book that I am
anticipating. For this reason I tend to skim a review until I reach the part
where the reviewer gives their opinion on the book they read. I think that in
this case I would rather read the published book synopsis.
I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this topic.
Please leave me a message in the comments. Do you agree with my responses to
these questions or do you have a different opinion?
Let’s chat!
I definitely prefer to write my own synopsis. Some of the ones that come with the books are terrible or give away too much information. Giving away spoilers is somewhat difficult, especially if you REALLY want to discuss some aspect of it. I try to stick to the more technical aspects of a story: character development, grammar/spelling, symbolism, etc. I get to talk about the book in depth without sharing any startling secrets :)
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree. I think the only way I'd share some spoilers is if I made a clear disclaimer that spoilers were ahead. In that case it would also be good to make sure the spoilers are hidden under a page break.
DeleteThanks for joining my discussion Austen.
I used to combine the synopsis and the review into a post about the book, but eventually I realized I was spending a lot of time doing what someone already got paid to do. I do read the book synopsis if the cover/tile appeals to me.
ReplyDelete