A couple of weeks ago there was a lot of discussion about reviews, their purpose and how best to write one. A lot of bloggers popped in (especially over at Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist and OF Blog of the Fallen) and left their ideas about how they wrote reviews and how they thoughts others could improve.

It was all well and good… except for the fact that it was a bunch of bloggers telling each other how to blog without much input from the people who’s opinions really matter: the readers. So, leave it to Tobias Buckell (INTERVIEW), author of Crystal Rain (REVIEW) and Ragamuffin, to come up with a novel approach to the subject…

He asked – wait for it – his readers!

No endless dissertation on what he wants in reviews. No lamentations on the state of online SFF journalism. Just three simple questions:

It sparked some interesting discussion in the comments section and is definitely worth a look for any bloggers, readers or writers. While you’re at it, why not leave your own $.02? What do you appreciate in a review?

You can find the whole discussion HERE.

So, apparently Tor doesn’t read my reviews. Why? Because a day after I lamented over R.A. Salvatore’s latest lackluster effort (found HERE) I received an email from Tor asking if I’d be willing to show off this little widget. Now, not one for offering free advertising to huge publishing houses, I normally wouldn’t worry about it, but… the web designer in me just thought this was too damn cool too pass up.

The Widget there is chock full of cool information about The Ancient, including an audio/video interview, an excerpt from the novel, news and more. Despite my less than stellar review of his novel, I’m still a fan of Salvatore; and hey, who knows, I may not have liked The Ancient but maybe you will. If anything, this is a great example of how publishers can use the web to properly promote their authors.