Banned from leaving a review

[Cauldrons]

A little while ago I was commenting on a story I was reading talking about how I didn't think certain parts of it were realistic or could have been done better. Low and behold the author doesn't like critics and banned me from commenting on their chapters. I wasn't excessively rude or anything like that but that's beside the point. I went to leave a review(I won't deny being banned from commenting did spurn me to do so but I was going to leave a fair review.), however after I soon found out I wasn't even allowed to post one since I had been blocked there too.

This gives way too much power to authors and effectively shuts down bad reviews. They should be allowed to report reviews if they find that they break rules but stopping people who don't have only positive things to say about the story from posting reviews is way too far. I don't know how everything works and just how far that ability goes but authors being able to pick out people from their comments and stopping them from being able to leave reviews is not something they should be able to do.

 

[ForestDweller]

Ha, maybe I should start doing that with my story as well.

 

[Tony]

A little while ago I was commenting on a story I was reading talking about how I didn't think certain parts of it were realistic or could have been done better. Low and behold the author doesn't like critics and banned me from commenting on their chapters. I wasn't excessively rude or anything like that but that's beside the point. I went to leave a review(I won't deny being banned from commenting did spurn me to do so but I was going to leave a fair review.), however after I soon found out I wasn't even allowed to post one since I had been blocked there too.

This gives way too much power to authors and effectively shuts down bad reviews. They should be allowed to report reviews if they find that they break rules but stopping people who don't have only positive things to say about the story from posting reviews is way too far. I don't know how everything works and just how far that ability goes but authors being able to pick out people from their comments and stopping them from being able to leave reviews is not something they should be able to do.

Once the author has blocked you, you won't be able to comment on any of their chapters or leave a review on any of their stories. They can't go and delete previous reviews or delete any reviews they don't like though so no, it doesn't shut down bad reviews. If you had a review before the block, it wouldn't delete it.

I went to leave a review(I won't deny being banned from commenting did spurn me to do so but I was going to leave a fair review.)

This is why you can't leave a review once an author has blocked you. You even admitted to going to leave a review because you were blocked. Even though you said "fair review", how fair can you be after being annoyed from being blocked? and can you guarantee that others will be "fair" after being blocked too?

Once blocked, you two should just go your separate ways.

 

[Valmond]

There is an old saying. If you have nothing good to say, don’t say anything at all. It applies throughout every single thing in life. Typically, it is better to give reviews if the author asks for it. In that case, they get what they get. This is also how I operate when giving reviews. I only do so, when someone requests it of me. Also, on a more further point. The only times an author really has no control over whether they want reviews or not, is if they are selling their work. In a case like that, it is best the author never responds at all. A good practice is to start now, and simply do not respond to the reviews at all.

Now onto the next point. This is the authors story, the reader has absolutely no control in the least. All they can do is comment. If the comment is offensive to the author or other people. Then, a ban is a ban. It is why I recommend to always be weary of one’s words. Lastly, this falls on the reader themselves. You can simply choose not to comment, there is no excuse in the least. Humans are held responsible for their actions due to the fact that they are able to reason.

Most of the time, I do not leave a comment nor review. This is because, I simply have no way to balance the pros and cons. Effectively giving a review like this would not be feasible. In all reality, it is more effort than it is worth. So overall, in a case like this. Where the work isn’t being sold for profit. The author has 100% control over what they do. It would be a different story if they were selling their work. If that were the case, then the author should simply ignore the review and move on.

 

[Nyan_sempai]

A little while ago I was commenting on a story I was reading talking about how I didn't think certain parts of it were realistic or could have been done better. Low and behold the author doesn't like critics and banned me from commenting on their chapters. I wasn't excessively rude or anything like that but that's beside the point. I went to leave a review(I won't deny being banned from commenting did spurn me to do so but I was going to leave a fair review.), however after I soon found out I wasn't even allowed to post one since I had been blocked there too.

This gives way too much power to authors and effectively shuts down bad reviews. They should be allowed to report reviews if they find that they break rules but stopping people who don't have only positive things to say about the story from posting reviews is way too far. I don't know how everything works and just how far that ability goes but authors being able to pick out people from their comments and stopping them from being able to leave reviews is not something they should be able to do.

Imo the author has the right to decide what kind of reviews he wants. If his work isn't offensive or something then what's wrong if he just doesn't want any bad comments? if he doesn't want to grow as an author it's his choice. It's his work and his wish. Not like his work is harming the society or anything lol

 

[placeintime]

Once the author has blocked you, you won't be able to comment on any of their chapters or leave a review on any of their stories. They can't go and delete previous reviews or delete any reviews they don't like though so no, it doesn't shut down bad reviews. If you had a review before the block, it wouldn't delete it.



This is why you can't leave a review once an author has blocked you. You even admitted to going to leave a review because you were blocked. Even though you said "fair review", how fair can you be after being annoyed from being blocked? and can you guarantee that others will be "fair" after being blocked too?

Once blocked, you two should just go your separate ways.

Tony, I have a question. Let say a commenter had already left a review onto the novel and then the author had blocked him from the novel. I know you said they can't delete it, but can the commenter still change the review's rating once they get blocked? Also what about ratings as well?

 

[Cauldrons]

There is an old saying. If you have nothing good to say, don’t say anything at all. It applies throughout every single thing in life. Typically, it is better to give reviews if the author asks for it. In that case, they get what they get. This is also how I operate when giving reviews. I only do so, when someone requests it of me. Also, on a more further point. The only times an author really has no control over whether they want reviews or not, is if they are selling their work. In a case like that, it is best the author never responds at all. A good practice is to start now, and simply do not respond to the reviews at all.

Now onto the next point. This is the authors story, the reader has absolutely no control in the least. All they can do is comment. If the comment is offensive to the author or other people. Then, a ban is a ban. It is why I recommend to always be weary of one’s words. Lastly, this falls on the reader themselves. You can simply choose not to comment, there is no excuse in the least. Humans are held responsible for their actions due to the fact that they are able to reason.

Most of the time, I do not leave a comment nor review. This is because, I simply have no way to balance the pros and cons. Effectively giving a review like this would not be feasible. In all reality, it is more effort than it is worth. So overall, in a case like this. Where the work isn’t being sold for profit. The author has 100% control over what they do. It would be a different story if they were selling their work. If that were the case, then the author should simply ignore the review and move on.

It's called a review, I'm not complaining about him deleting my comment I'm saying being banned from leaving a review ruins the entire point of it. A lot of people look at the reviews and rating to see if something is worth reading and say if the author has the ability to make sure only positive reviews are left then theirs no point in them. As for "If you have nothing good to say don't say anything at all" I only comment negative or find faults in the authors writing because I want them to improve them pretending problems don't exist don't help them.

 

[Ral]

I would like to debate with the points being made by Valmond and Nyan_sempai but their view is what this site is in support of. It is a take it or leave it situation.

@Slavin

Tony have spoken.

It is just how this site works. That is the desired outcome. You have to either accept it or find alternative platforms that suits you better.

 

[Jemini]

I once got blocked by an author specifically BECAUSE I left a bad review. The review was still there even after being blocked. The author even decided to try arguing with me about my review because one of the reasons I listed for the low rating was the horrible way the supposed love interest was handled. (She was just an abusive brute, an idiot, and an all around horrible person who the protagonist would be better off leaving in a ditch, so I think the very fact such a person was treated as a love interest and the MC stuck around with her is plenty of grounds for a bad review on it's own even if there weren't several other critical flaws with the story.)

My opinion, there are authors who are just unable to take criticism at all. They don't tend to be among the good and successful authors, so these ones naturally get weeded out simply by the fact that their works become unpopular once the initial glimmer of the story concept wears off and the author's complete inability to plot becomes evident.

 

[Cauldrons]

Imo the author has the right to decide what kind of reviews he wants. If his work isn't offensive or something then what's wrong if he just doesn't want any bad comments? if he doesn't want to grow as an author it's his choice. It's his work and his wish. Not like his work is harming the society or anything lol

I think authors need to be challenged when readers feel something doesn't make sense or they face the risk of not growing as an author. Trial by fire if you will. They need to A. grow from mistakes, and learn to take reader discontent or B. never improve their writing

 

[Ral]

I once got blocked by an author specifically BECAUSE I left a bad review. The review was still there even after being blocked. The author even decided to try arguing with me about my review because one of the reasons I listed for the low rating was the horrible way the supposed love interest was handled. (She was just an abusive brute, an idiot, and an all around horrible person who the protagonist would be better off leaving in a ditch, so I think the very fact such a person was treated as a love interest and the MC stuck around with her is plenty of grounds for a bad review on it's own even if there weren't several other critical flaws with the story.)

My opinion, there are authors who are just unable to take criticism at all. They don't tend to be among the good and successful authors, so these ones naturally get weeded out simply by the fact that their works become unpopular once the initial glimmer of the story concept wears off and the author's complete inability to plot becomes evident.

Seems to be a masochism fetish to me.

 

[Nneeil]

A little while ago I was commenting on a story I was reading talking about how I didn't think certain parts of it were realistic or could have been done better. Low and behold the author doesn't like critics and banned me from commenting on their chapters. I wasn't excessively rude or anything like that but that's beside the point. I went to leave a review(I won't deny being banned from commenting did spurn me to do so but I was going to leave a fair review.), however after I soon found out I wasn't even allowed to post one since I had been blocked there too.

This gives way too much power to authors and effectively shuts down bad reviews. They should be allowed to report reviews if they find that they break rules but stopping people who don't have only positive things to say about the story from posting reviews is way too far. I don't know how everything works and just how far that ability goes but authors being able to pick out people from their comments and stopping them from being able to leave reviews is not something they should be able to do.

Lol... just make an alternate account.

 

[Aaky]

Imo the author has the right to decide what kind of reviews he wants. If his work isn't offensive or something then what's wrong if he just doesn't want any bad comments? if he doesn't want to grow as an author it's his choice. It's his work and his wish. Not like his work is harming the society or anything lol

This is inherently dumb. You'll just end up with authors manipulating the reviews to game the system. Thankfully authors can't delete bad reviews.

 

[Nneeil]

Imo the author has the right to decide what kind of reviews he wants. If his work isn't offensive or something then what's wrong if he just doesn't want any bad comments? if he doesn't want to grow as an author it's his choice. It's his work and his wish. Not like his work is harming the society or anything lol

Jesus no... let's not turn Scribble Hub into Webnovel. As far as I know, authors there can delete reviews willy-nilly. I'm not sure if they still can though

 

[Tony]

I would like to debate with the points being made by Valmond and Nyan_sempai but their view is what this site is in support of. It is a take it or leave it situation.

@Slavin

Tony have spoken.

It is just how this site works. That is the desired outcome. You have to either accept it or find alternative platforms that suits you better.

Support? No, the author doesn't get to decide what type of reviews they get and bad reviews are allowed. Reviews cannot be deleted by authors. As long as the reviews doesn't violate the review guidelines then it would be accepted. So how am I in support of that?

I'm referring to the emotional and biased factor after a user gets blocked by the author. Leaving a review in that state? It's best to just go your separate ways. All types of communications are cut off after the block.

 

[Valmond]

It's called a review, I'm not complaining about him deleting my comment I'm saying being banned from leaving a review ruins the entire point of it. A lot of people look at the reviews and rating to see if something is worth reading and say if the author has the ability to make sure only positive reviews are left then theirs no point in them. As for "If you have nothing good to say don't say anything at all" I only comment negative or find faults in the authors writing because I want them to improve them pretending problems don't exist don't help them.

And I understand this, it still falls back to pretty much everything I stated. The author isn’t doing this for profit. Meaning, how they react to the review is 100% within their right to do so. Readers in this case has zero power in whether they wish to argue this or not. Since these sites typically contain works that will not be made for profit. More often than not, people don’t care whether or not your efforts are to help them or not. It is why it is better to not say anything at all. Some people don’t want the help, these are things you gotta accept. As I said, be weary of your words. Given how you are reacting, I am beginning to see why you have been banned. So, I will say this now. Quit complaining about it. If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything at all. If the author asks for the review, then so be it. They get the review, they deal with it. It is a completely different scenario from free versus paid. Another thing to mention, if the review does violate guidelines, or if it is offensive to either the author or readers. Then I would imagine the ban will hold.

 

[Ruriha]

I think it's everyone's right to leave a review, but please don't be that guy who tries to coach what authors should write if they didn't ask for it.

 

[Nneeil]

And I understand this, it still falls back to pretty much everything I stated. The author isn’t doing this for profit. Meaning, how they react to the review is 100% within their right to do so. Readers in this case has zero power in whether they wish to argue this or not. Since these sites typically contain works that will not be made for profit. More often than not, people don’t care whether or not your efforts are to help them or not. It is why it is better to not say anything at all. Some people don’t want the help, these are things you gotta accept. As I said, be weary of your words. Given how you are reacting, I am beginning to see why you have been banned. So, I will say this now. Quit complaining about it. If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything at all. If the author asks for the review, then so be it. They get the review, they deal with it. It is a completely different scenario from free versus paid. Another thing to mention, if the review does violate guidelines, or if it is offensive to either the author or readers. Then I would imagine the ban will hold.

Sorry to intervene, but your "If you don't have anything good to say, don't say it" doesn't really apply here. It's a review. It's either good or bad. If I go to a restaurant that serves me shitty food and gives me an overall bad experience, it would be within reason to leave a bad review to warn the others.

 

[Cauldrons]

Support? No, the author doesn't get to decide what type of reviews they get and bad reviews are allowed. Reviews cannot be deleted by authors. As long as the reviews doesn't violate the review guidelines then it would be accepted. So how am I in support of that?

I'm referring to the emotional and biased factor after a user gets blocked by the author. Leaving a review in that state? It's best to just go your separate ways. All types of communications are cut off after the block.

I can see where you're coming from and while I was going to leave a fair review(probably would have been 3 1/2 or 4 stars) I can see how hard feeling can affect it since I purposefully made sure before hand I wasn't going to let feeling like that affect me.(before I found out I couldn't even review it)

 

[Valmond]

Sorry to intervene, but your "If you don't have anything good to say, don't say it" doesn't really apply here. It's a review. It's either good or bad. If I go to a restaurant that serves me shitty food and gives me an overall bad experience, it would be within reason to leave a bad review to warn the others.

And as I said, this isn’t being made for profit. If it was, it would be a completely different scenario. When works are for profit, authors cannot do anything about it, and are best left to ignore it. You tend to forget, that this site is far from anything professional. Your comparison is a moot point at best. Hence, given that these works are free, the author has 100% control on what they do. Quit complaining about it. Don’t say anything at all, use your better judgment. I only give reviews if an author asks for it. Other than this, I mind which words I say. Taking into account what may come across as offensive. A ban is a ban, the fault is entirely on the person who got the ban.