#navbar-iframe { display: none !important;} The Naked Page: Don't Believe the Hype

The Naked Page

Author Jamie Sobrato's Diary

6.08.2005

Don't Believe the Hype

So I got a really complimentary review of my July book yesterday from Romantic Times. Usually my attitude toward reviews is: if it's a good review, the reviewer was probably smoking something, or maybe she just gives everyone good reviews, and if it's a bad review, the reviewer was probably smoking something, or maybe she just gives everyone bad reviews.

If I believe the good hype, that means I have to believe the bad hype too, and vice versa. Right? Well, some people don't buy into this line of thinking. (They're probably smoking something.)

But yesterday I was in an uncharacteristically perky mood and decided to just be happy with the review. I chose, for a day, to believe the hype.

In high school, I dated for a short while a guy who was mostly a typical jock--a basketball player, since I go for tall, lean types. He had a huge ego, an adolescent sense of humor, and pretty much nothing to recommend him other than the fact that he was cute.

Oddly, he taught me one of the most memorable lessons I've ever learned. He gave me a compliment one day, and I responded with some stupid teenage girl response like, "Oh no, I don't have a nice smile at all." He then told me that when someone gives you a compliment, you're supposed to say thank you. Nothing else. Just "thank you."

I don't know why I had the sense back then to take that surprisingly good advice to heart, but I did, and it only occurred to me yesterday that it applies to book reviews too.

So, thank you, RT reviewer.

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