I'm really anxious and excited to get started!
I have been dreaming of (and secretly dreading) the day I would be able to have my work reviewed by my peers (new / unpublished writers), and I always enjoy reading other people's work. I don't believe in harping on the negative, and will focus primarily on what I liked about the work of others, and perhaps lend a suggestion if asked. But on the other hand, please offer any criticisms you believe are necessary when reviewing my work - I'm not thin-skinned, and I think that constructive criticism is key to improving my stories.
I do hope to connect with some / most of you all, and grow from this experience.
Ready to go!
There's a difference between harping on the negative and pointing it out.
What kind of writing do you do?
Thank you for your insight - clearly there is a difference, and perhaps other writers might see the usefulness in pointing out to others what they dislike about their work, but that's not my bag. While I welcome constructive comments on my own work (and have the good sense to ignore comments that fall into the 'your work sucks' category), I simply prefer to point out WHAT I enjoy in other people's work and WHY. I'm sure there will be no shortage of folks who wish to weigh in on what they don't like, so I'll leave that bit of commentary to them.
To your question - currently I am researching / working on a historical fiction novel (and thoroughly enjoying the process), and I am also polishing up a few short stories for a book I'd like to independently publish within the next few months or so. In the coming weeks, I will be submitting a few of my short stories here to get some feedback from the community.
I think you're doing a disservice if you don't give both. You need to know when your readers are bored just as much as excited. When they find something completely unbelievable just as much as when they were totally immersed. Etc.
The thing is, don't forget the positive in place of it, and don't harp or disparage, just point out.
To the OP:
Positive feedback is great. Constructive criticism is even better. It's up to the posting writer to discern (and ignore, should they choose) comments that don't fall into either category.
FYI: Were I to post work in the workshop (which I haven't done in ages, because I'm simply not writing), I wouldn't want someone to review work whose primary goal is to point out what they "liked about the work of others". Implicit in the act of posting in a workshop is the request to receive constructive criticism.
I do agree that some critiques can be unduly negative. But in that regard, a workshop's a bit of a minefield. To moderate the risk of unduly negative critiques out of a workshop undermines the integrity of the workshop.
Good luck!
^
Huh?
What?
Thanks (I guess), but I'm going to proceed with my strategy (of sticking with the positive), and leave the 'land mine' reviews to other folks who feel it's in their best interest to let readers know that their work is boring or whatever. Not for me.
Thanks for the warm welcome, though; I'm excited to get started.
I read a quote by I forget who that went something like this,
"Bad reviews make me want to write better. Good reviews make me want to write."
Oh, and welcome to the pit.
I like what Jose said.
And seriously, if you're reading my stuff, I need to know if you get bored.
Or if you don't like a character. Hell, I may not even want you to! But you're doing a disservice if you're leaving out the negative when you feel it.
The problem is simple. You need to KNOW things about how your writing comes across. If someone doesn't tell you "Hey, X was great AND y was horrible, and there was no z. Most things need z."
If you don't tell someone x was great they might change it trying to fix y or add z. If you don't tell them that y was horrible they might make it worse trying to add. And so on.
