Just Imagine

Feeling chatty?

Welcome to my blog! Pull up a chair, grab a cup of coffee and read what's on my mind. I've a vicious sense of humor, an apprecation for romance and a mad addiction to writing.

Friday, November 16, 2012

What Losing Sixteen 5-Star Reviews Feels Like. How to Turn a Negative Into a POSITIVE!

 
Losing so many reviews made me sad. And bloody angry!
 
at first…
 
Can you blame me? Never in my wildest imagination would I have believed that one of my retailers would have allowed such a thing to happen. But it did. Can I explain it? Not to this day. Who is that retailer? I’ll never say.
 
Regardless, it happened.
I lost sixteen 5 star reviews from nine titles between October 18th and October 28th.
Lord, was I depressed. It wasn’t fair. At least not in my book. Funny thing, after a few days of hanging my head and feeling sorry for myself, something occurred to me…
Is that all I have to be depressed about?
Seriously?
Here I was all bummed because I’d lost a few reviews. Aye, perhaps a wee bit more than a few but still. In what I thought my ‘darkest hour’ I was mourning the loss of a few stars and words when so many would do anything to be in my shoes.
What do I mean?

Consider this. Though I worked hard to write those stories that lost the reviews, I did it in a warm house with electricity and with a full belly. Not bad, eh? My plight was becoming far less daunting by the minute.
Then it occurred to me that I wrote these stories while my son played happily downstairs with more toys than he really needed. My husband was watching a ‘just released’ movie on cable TV. My dog was eating wet AND dry dog food and slurping up fresh water.
Those sixteen lost five star reviews were meaning less and less.
By the time I got back from my vacation I was downright disgusted with myself.
Shame on me!
Yes, reviews can make or break me but you know what? I’ll find a way. I’ll bounce back. But what about all of those families in my town, country, in other countries, who might not find a way to survive?
That became the MUCH bigger picture.
In the past week I’ve been on a crusade to find ways to help those in need. I’ve bought pre-made meals at my grocery store to help local families, participated in my son’s school's Thanksgiving food drive and volunteered to help at my local Soup Kitchen this holiday.
This is just the beginning of what I intend to do.
The moral of my story? Thank God I lost sixteen 5-Star reviews!
What a world of difference they’ve already made.
Have you lost something lately that you realize might not be as terrible as you thought? If so, consider turning your attention to those who could use your help. Google your town + help + food drive. You might be amazed!
Stay tuned. I'll be posting more about ways you can help with tons of links.
God Bless,
Sky

7 comments:

Kristen My Bookish Fairy Tale said...

This is so amazing! If more people realized how fortunate they really were then the world would be a much better place. Thank you so much for putting this out there. And as you said it may hurt you but in the end I definitely thing it will not.

You made my day :)

Kathryn Knight said...

Great post Sky, what a wonderful way to change a negative to a positive and realize what is truly important! Still, I'm sorry you lost the reviews...we work hard for them and it must be frustrating to say the least.

Unknown said...

{cyber hugs} It's good to see you've turned this negative around and some good came from it. ;) Bless you and your family. ~ Aithne

Anastasia Vitsky said...

What a great attitude. It must be disappointing, but it certainly is humbling to remember how much we can appreciate despite the disappointments. Good for you! Posting this on my FB.

Cathie Dunn said...

Wonderfully inspiring, Sky! So right, even though it's tough to see good reviews - a form of appreciation of our work - disappear. But if you put it in the right context, there are worse things going on out there.

Great, inspiring post!

Kenra Daniels said...

Great post, Sky, with great timing! We tend to get so wrapped up in our own little worlds, especially around the holidays, that we forget to keep things in perspective.

Losing the reviews sucks, though, for you and all the other authors hit.

Sky Purington said...

Thanks to everyone who stopped by and commented! You're all so sweet. As many said, it's a great time of year to put things in perspective no matter how depressing some things may seem. Since posting this, I've been busy putting together helpful links and should have them up soon. Wishing you all a wonderful holiday! *hugs*