Just because you CAN write a review, does not mean you are a REVIEWER

*WARNING! This is a rant and will contain swearing, spelling errors, examples of things that tick Vampy off, and possibly hypocritical statements. Read at your own risk.

 When I write a review, I try to do so from a reader's point of view. I have a huge passion for reading after all, and I like to share it. But I also keep in mind that behind the words there is a living breathing human who has feelings and dreams. Authors put a lot of hard work into their books. It takes time, money, tears, and smiles to create something for the rest of us to enjoy. These stories can take anywhere from weeks to years to finish, and afterwards the reviews they get in can help shape up the next tale- and effect sales.

The point of a review is to help the readers out but saying whether or not you enjoyed it, and why. And to help the authors out by explaining politely what you thought worked, and what needs to be fixed up.

The plotline 

Character development 

Spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors 

How the story flowed 

Entertainment value

These are things I try to put into a review for a book, because it's what I think will be the most helpful in the long run. Now, everyone is different. You might think the cover art needs to be mentioned too, or that spelling should be ignored. That's fine. But what ISN'T helpful is spiting, in fact, by doing so you just look like an asshole. Yep, I swore. This ramble requires it.

I won't lie, there have been a few books where I wanted to do nothing but bash it into the ground because I thought it was so horrible! "Free is over priced, the author should be arrested for murdering what could have been a good idea, my 5 year old can spell better!"
That is all hateful and not going to accomplish anything- except ruining your own name. I've read worse, which involved certain names that- according to the dictionary- refer to female dogs and woman's body parts, but I won't specifically say or repeat them. Just know that some people took things too far.

So this brings me to my point here- Just because you can write a review, does not mean you are a reviewer!

(These examples are not quotes, I have made them up based off of real experiences. Anything that reminds you of another bad review is kind of the point. But I did not quote them!")

I have seen so many good authors get needlessly bashed for stupid stuff. Heck, I've seen authors I did not enjoy get bashed for pointless things. I feel bad for them, because it gives reviewer a bad name. It upsets everyone, and for what? Most of the ones I have seen said "I did not finish the book but I give it... I'll read the rest later"
First off, if you didn't finish the book but plan to, don't write anything until you hit the last page! Nothing looks more ignorant that a half-assed review for one little detail you didn't enjoy. Ignore it, move on, or say something about it AFTER you finished the book! Things change, so that tiny detail you hated might have taken a different twist and turned into something awesome. So if you didn't look like an ass in the beginning, by the end you definitely do.

"I hate this author, and this book going to be horrible!"
Why did you buy the book if you hate the author? And why are you writing this pointless bash when you haven't even started the book yet? More pointless, wasteful drivel.

"Her hair is pink, it's not realistic!"
... This blows my mind. I'm pretty sure you weren't reading a biography, so why would you assume the book is realistic to begin with? And dying hair is pretty common. The color might not be, but the act is. Fantasy books are just that- fantasy. Vampires don't exist, brain eating zombies don't exist, laser eyes don't exist, magical powers don't exist. Why are you looking for 'realistic'? A book is meant to take you into a mythical, magical realm of someone else's drama and stress so you can forget your own. Even history books are changing and admitting there are details they have missed, or the facts weren't completely accurate!

 While you don't need to write up four paragraphs to leave a helpful review- or even one. Please make sure that it is, indeed, helpful! If you want to fangirl a little, fine. But to insult and bash for no given reason? You're not a reviewer, you're just a mad person who is at the computer.