Should I be “nice” or should I be “truthful”?

I was faced with a dilemma recently which caused me to think about this one really closely. I was asked to review a book written by someone I know, and I replied that if they sent the book I’d read it and give my honest appraisal.

The book arrived and my initial impression wasn’t good; the cover was poorly designed and the author’s photo on the rear cover, while not inappropriate, didn’t look professional to me.

I was disappointed with both the content and the formatting. The content was almost condescending, the author seemed to be taking a moral stance on a number of issues rather than offering sage advice. Knowing the author’s target market as established business owners, I thought that the content was below them, written almost at year 12 school level or a best, young entrepreneurs or absolute business “newbies”.

Hence my dilemma… how do I pass the message on without offending the author?

If I’m “nice” I’ll write something sweet and innocent but that won’t be true to my principals. Do I speak my truth and risk offence, potentially alienating the author instead of them seeing the feedback as information that may save them from the possibility of the book damaging their reputation? My genuine concern is that this book may not generate a positive first impression from its readers thus working against its expected outcomes.

I ask the question of those writing books as positioning statements:

Is it just about the money, the elevation of your profile that comes from being a published author?

If it is, don’t write it!

As an author, you have a duty of care to your readers. If they chose to spend their money on your writing, they deserve to get value for that money. You need to make sure they get that.

Don’t join the herd of those selling hope. Don’t look at your audience as sheep while attempting to milk every available dollar from them as though it’s the last sale you’ll ever make.

Provide value and people will seek you out.

Two essential tips for those writing books:

• Have your book professionally edited proofread.
• Have a professional graphic artist design the cover and format the text.

Anything else lets both you and your readers down.