Part of writing is wanting other people to read your work. And when other people read your work, you’re probably going to get some feedback–good and bad. At Babble, Alice Bradley asks: Should you read reviews? Bradley cautions writers:

“So: someone’s going to disike you. It’s a fact. An unpleasant, painful fact. And the wider an audience your book (or article, blog, etc.) reaches, the more people are going to read it who don’t get you at all. Or who begrudge you your popularity, or who think you might be anti-Irish because you said the color green doesn’t work with your skin tone. Sometimes people are just unhappy, or having a bad day, or nuts. You can’t control who reads your work, or how they’ll react.”

This is particular good to remember in light of the recent YA author/review clash. Not everyone is going to love your work, or even be nice about it. Fortunately, I think most reviewers would rather write a thoughtful review than post something unhelpful, but bad reviews are going to happen. If you can read those reviews and still remember why you write, awesome. If you know you’re going to get upset, avoid them.