I think my next books will be much easier in this realm now that' I've been through it. It feels good to get over that bad review mountain. It's still painful, but now it's also helpful. You take it in without feeling like you swallowed broken glass. You begin to see the constructive criticism through the words. But by the third, as a writer, you become numb. It immediately triggers a protective feeling in you, one that makes you want to snatch your book back and hide it from the world where it is safe and loved. It takes your breath away, makes you cry, makes you shaky, and knocks out any delusions of writing grandeur. *Bad reviews, on the other hand, are like getting punched in the face with brass knuckles. That makes each and every review a little more hard won and something to be proud of. In fact, I've learned that for every 1,000 people who read your book about six will review it. I figured, 'Hey, people read it and review it, right?' WRONG! I do that because I blog. I've also learned that it was super silly to assume it would be easy to get reviews. Those few words, that connection made, it's so far above any professional happiness that any other job has brought me. I've gotten dozens of emails from people who have read my book and who just wanted to reach out and connect. To know that my words brought someone a smile, a laugh, or even some mild entertainment on a rainy day is such a deep satisfaction that it's unlike anything I've known before. They lift you up and give you a happy buzz that lasts a few days. *Good reviews are akin to a moonbeam from heaven. As a new author, I would love to share with you some of the strange things I’ve learned along the way.

It has been triumphant and depressing and melancholy and elating. In that time I've obsessed, cried, and laughed like a mental patient on crazy pills.

It's been just about seven months since Elly in Bloom, my debut novel, was released.

Elly in Bloom by Colleen Oakes