I'm caving to the pressure

[Jan Strnad]

You're the writer, so it's your call. That's one of the strengths of novels vs. movies, which are "focus grouped" to death. You have to write an ending that is honest. You don't owe the reader a happy-happy, joy-joy ending if it has to be forced.

Having said that:

Risen was traditionally published, then went out of print for several years. During that time I worked with a film producer on a screenplay and some nice changes came out of that collaboration. When I got the rights back and decided to release the book for Kindle, I changed a couple of scenes and revised the ending because I liked the screenplay ending better.

Of course, you don't just "change an ending." You have to change a number of things that lead up to that ending. I had to go back through the whole last third of the book to make the new ending credible.

So...tread carefully!

As for the title: I don't know what your title is, but I'd love to sell 1000 copies a month. Once you're through with the old title, may I have it?

[Bards and Sages (Julie)]

Perhaps all of those free downloads are now "coming home to roost" so to speak and those are the source of the bad reviews.  I would suspect that is more the issue than the ending itself.

The problem with knee-jerk purchases (which are what freebies often are) is that the customer may be the completely wrong demographic for the book.  But they aren't going to judge the book based on "Hmmm, this isn't normally a genre I read so maybe that has something to do with why I don't like it."  They are going to judge it based on what they wanted it to be and it wasn't.  This is why I have never been a fan of the carpet-bombing approach to freebies.  You end up with a lot of "customers" that the book was never intended for.

[Consuelo Saah Baehr]

Julie: you are right on with your analysis: all those impulse purchases were the wrong audience for this book.  One of the reviews even says "not your typical read." Uh, yeah, maybe not typical for you.

As Dana said, I'm sleeping on it.  I had this book up for a Select "freebie" and took it off because of this discussion.  I'm leaning to leaving things alone and moving on as several of you have advised.  The book is still selling and I am trying to concentrate on a new release. 

Thanks for the wisdom and wit.  Appreciate it.

[LisaGraceBooks]

Also, remember that Shakespeare was not respected in his time, but considered to be writing "pulp" and low brow entertainment. And Herman Melville's Moby Dick bombed during his lifetime. It only became popular when it was toted as good read after whaling's demise like (fifty years? Don't have time to look it up) later.

Their "I hate the ending" could be what sets it apart someday as a classic.

[acellis]

What tkkenyon said.

[LisaGraceBooks]

For all those who love James Joyce-- remember he was hated and criticized for writing Ulysses and received numerous scathing reviews. He was banned from Ireland too.

[Robert E. Keller]

If a book is "a huge seller" under no circumstances should you change ANYTHING. Furthermore, I'm not sure it's a good idea to ever change a book (significantly) that has been published and purchased many times. It makes the writer look weak, like the writer is plagued by uncertainty. That shows lack of confidence. Even if the work is flawed, stand by what you wrote and move on.

[mrv01d]

I would retitle and do a new cover and rework the blurb and see how it goes from there. I would not rewrite unless you really felt you needed to do it.

M