Banned Book Reviews and the Platform-Builder

By Bob Hughes - Nov 30 , 2011

Amazon has banned some book reviews from its site. In particular, those from publicists and companies that consolidate reviews. But you shouldn’t worry – you’ve got a platform.

Now, everyone knows the Amazon review system is flawed. Friends weigh in on authors’ books and bestow five stars to build up their rankings. Enemies try to drive them down by giving just one. Just as critics can have a personal vendetta (or affiliation) that can mar their impartiality (as if a critic is ever impartial),the Amazon “reviewers” are often driven by something other than a wish to convey their disinterested thoughts on something they’ve read.

But what are you going to do?

People actually rely on reviews on Amazon. They have little choice. The amount of review space in newspapers that’s devoted to books has shrunk considerably over the last few years. Compared to Britain, which still has lively, informed coverage of books of all sorts in newspapers and magazines, and to France, which continues to devote hours of television time to authors and their works, book coverage in the United States is, at best, limited. Television broadcasting of books is almost unthinkable in this country, where television bookers don’t care about a book, any book, unless it’s been written by a reality-show celebrity or actor who dishes the dirt, or unless it’s an exposé of some sort that purports to reveal hidden truths about the government or politicians. Or the Mayan apocalypse in 2012.

People used to rely on their local bookseller’s recommendations. But with fewer bookstores, and less personal service, people turn, for better and worse, to Amazon, or to the reviews on Barnes & Noble. Or to the many sites devoted to books that provide personal recommendations.

But if you’re an author who’s built, or is building, a platform for your work and ideas, who’s reaching out to a growing audience thanks to the conversation you’ve been having with your readers, you can build your own network of followers, of fans, of “reviewers,” who will link to your site, appreciate your work, recommend your books. The necessity to follow, or rely on, Amazon’s reviewer system is lessened.

In the meantime, you’re building your own system. Amazon is perhaps the most powerful force in publishing today. But by building your own platform you’ve got a good chance to build power for yourself, your ideas and your books.