This lady left a one star review on both "The Mormon Theocracy" and "Prayer: Archangels and Intercessory Beings." Neither of her reviews show an "Amazon Verified Purchase" below them so the most she could have read was the sample. From what she criticizes, I doubt she read anymore than the page count and description. Here are her reviews of my history articles, which she hasn't read.
The Mormon Theocracy: Free
Review: Have you noticed a lack of concern on the part of readers? Perhaps that is because we don't think you have finished your research. You aren't ready to write. Try harder. And when you take 5 of your 'articles' and put them together, that doesn't do it either. While I think that your topics sound interesting, I would prefer to find someone else with the initiative to research and share that information with me. Your's is more a rush to publish than a concerted effort to share your thoughts with the reading public. Again I say "try harder".
Prayer: Archangels and Intercessory Beings: $1.49
Review: I can't imagine how the writer can call himself an author when he hasn't bothered to research the topic enough to write more than a handful of pages. This, sir, does not make you an author! I believe that you have the ability to write, but not the initiative to adequately research your chosen topic and say enough to inlist a reading public. Try harder.
I've decided I won't be responding on Amazon because people have a right to say whatever they want about whatever they want... even when they don't know what they're talking about. My articles stand on their own. Prayer: Archangels and Intercessory Beings gets a few sales every month and The Mormon Theocracy has been downloaded over 130 times. That doesn't mean that I won't take this opportunity to destroy this reviewer on my blog... it's been one of those days and this really annoyed me beyond my ability to not retaliate somewhere in some form. So here are some problems I have with my reviewer, the cat lady:
1. My reviewer is an obese cat lady.
I wouldn't poke fun at her for this except for the fact that she makes it obvious and it really does take away from her ability to critique me. Here are a few more of her reviews on Amazon:
-PLUS SIZE-
0 of 2 people found the following review helpful
What is she wearing?,
This review is from: Torrid Plus Size *CUSTOMER FAVORITE* Blue and Ivory Stripe with Skull Challis Tube Top (Apparel)
I have not bought this item. I will not buy this item. I wear plus
sizes and this model clearly shows that a plus sized woman should NOT
put this garment on her bod-JOINT PAIN-
At last...a pill I can swallow.,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Move Free Ultra Undenatured Type II Collagen and Hyaluronic Acid 60 Tablets
All the other joint pills are HUGE and I had so much trouble getting
them down...and I had to do it twice! The Move Free Ultra is a small
pill and I only have to take one. I have already reordered.-SHOES ARE TOO SMALL-
They hurt.,
This review is from: David Tate Women's Yknot (Apparel)
The shoes are cute, but the thin straps and knots hurt as soon as I put
them on. I knew I wouldn't be able to walk a block in them. I returned
them.-DIAPERS FOR CATS-
They WORK!,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Joybies Navy Blue Piddle Pants(tm) for Small Cat (Measuring 13"-15" Along Back from Collar to Base of Tail) (Misc.)
I bought a couple of pair for a leaky cat of ours. We had tried diapers
and at first he refused to walk in them. When he finally got over that
fear, he'd take off running and in 10 minutes he'd stroll by "naked".
Just couldn't keep the diapers on him no matter how tight we taped them.
But Piddle Pants stay on, are less bulky, and do a good job. The pads
are thin but hold a lot of urine. Great product.-CAT COCAINE-
Cat Cocaine!,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Catnip Pellets 2 Oz (Misc.)
Pellets are not easy to find, and I hate the loose-leaf catnip. Too
messy. This stuff is so good that my cats played with the box and the
packing for hours. I had to hide the pellet packs where they couldn't
get to them. I think they would have eaten it! Hurry and restock so I
can keep this stuff in the house.See what I mean? Her reviewer profile also has a picture of four cats with the heading "My Babies" underneath. How can you take a woman like that seriously on an intellectual topic other than... well I won't say anymore on this. I honestly just found this part funny. My first hater is an obese cat lady.
2. My reviewer is a hypocrite
While this lady enjoys lashing out at authors for poor spelling and bad grammar... she can't even write a review without screwing up herself. While not all of her reviews had mistakes, many of them did. Both of the reviews she wrote on my articles had mistakes.
The Mormon Theocracy
-"Your's" is not possessive in the way you want it to be. Yours should never have an apostrophe (look it up). The sentence you were trying to write would read a lot better like this: "Your works are more of a rush to publish than a concerted effort to share your thoughts with the reading public."
Prayer: Archangels and Intercessory Beings
-It's spelled "enlist" not "inlist"
Using big words doesn't make up for the fact that you make mistakes on a consistent basis. Don't get me wrong here, I know I make mistakes and some of my works have typos. I don't chastise others for poor spelling and bad grammar, though.
3. My reviewer didn't read any of my articles
She doesn't feel the need to have that much information to give something a 1 star review. Going through her reviews, she gives out many 1 and 2 star reviews and then admits in her review that she never read the book. It extends further than that. In the review above where she admits that she is a plus size, she also admits that she hasn't bought the product she's reviewing and that she never would. Everyone is entitled to an opinion but every opinion is not an informed one. None of her opinions seem to approach the "informed" category unless we're talking about cat diapers and how much urine they can hold.
4. My reviewer knows nothing about history or history articles
History articles tend to narrow in on a specific topic and prove a thesis. I would say the following is a good list of what a solid history article contains:
-A clear, concise thesis statement that is as specific as you can make it
-Organizational structure that follows logically when proving the thesis
-Historiography
-Ample usage of primary and secondary sources
-A conclusion that presents something new to the field or helps you think about a topic in a new way
Now if an article has those five things, it can be an interesting, solid article because it makes for a good argument. My article on Constantine is a great example if you haven't read it but I did broaden the thesis to add in some interesting stuff that wasn't really relevant to what I was trying to prove. Gotta keep my Amazon readers awake :-P To help those of you out who don't write or read much history:
Historiography: refers either to the study of the methodology and development of "history" (as a discipline), or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic. (taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historiography). To make it simpler, a historiography traces what scholars have said on a certain topic in the past. A historiography will make several cases from past scholars (some of which have been proven wrong) that eventually lead up to the thesis you wrote and the support you give to your thesis. It's almost like tracing the evolution of the topic.
Primary and Seconday sources: Primary sources are sources from the era of the topic you are discussing. For example, in my article, Caribbean Piracy: Pirates and Privateers, the journals of John Esquemeling are a primary source because they were written when he acted as a barber/surgeon and a pirate on board with Captain Morgan. Secondary sources are sources written after the time of the subject. Anything I write about history would be a secondary source unless I write about current events that I'm involved in or have witnessed in my lifetime. Scholars writing today using primary sources would be considered secondary sources.
So while my article The Mormon Theocracy doesn't contain a historiography (and I couldn't include one when my professor gave us a five page limit), it does contain all the other elements. Also, neither Prayer: Archangels and Intercessory Beings or The Mormon Theocracy claim to be an exhaustive book on the topic. Let's be honest, would any of you want to read a 400 page non-fiction book on a topic like Caribbean piracy? If you do, I envy the amount of time you have available. Most people wouldn't... is what I'm guessing. It doesn't mean you don't have an interest in the topic which is why I provide much shorter articles that can familiarize you with the topic, give you some key points, and give you my perspective.
I wanted to add in here as well that most of the online databases that history majors use for secondary sources (JSTOR, SSCI, etc) all contain published journal articles that average between five and twenty pages. Trust me, I've read through hundreds of them. Sometimes I would read partway into one, find it wasn't relevant to my topic, and move on to more. Most of them are about that length. When I'm trying to find good secondary sources, I have to choose the information that is most relevant to my topic and most helpful in proving my thesis. If I use a 400 page secondary source, I will never end up using all of it.
Conclusion
While I respect everyone's right to their own opinion, I am very much against how many people in today's society seem to hero worship themselves. Not everything that pops into your head is gold, or even silver or bronze. I'll be the first to admit that I'm wrong sometimes. I'm wrong on occasion even when I'm pretty sure I'm right. There are too many people that can't admit that to themselves or others. You may be right a lot of the time. You are not right 100% of the time. If your intent is to break someone down and you know nothing about the subject... you're wrong before you even say anything. When it comes to history articles I research and write, my opinion is fairly informed. I would assume that most readers are not yet informed but they would like to be and that's why they purchase my articles.
Months of research went in to most of my articles. Like I said earlier, I constantly run into sources that I initially think will be helpful and then I find out that they aren't. When writing Constantine, I made major changes to my thesis and the organizational structure of my paper four times. So whether you know something on the subject or not, you shouldn't ignorantly dismiss an informed opinion. You can disagree with me all you want but reading my description, looking at my page count, and then calling me uninformed just shows how ignorant you are. Thank you, obese cat lady, for giving me a reason to lash out against the ignorant. I also really hope that the next time I'm stalked by a Catwoman... that it's Anne Hathaway.
