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I did skim through the previous threads (about 75 days back) to see if anyone else has asked this question but I didn't see any topic relating to it. I could be looking in the wrong section. Anyway, I am wondering if there are any hard and fast rules (as there always seems to be in writing) to critiquing other people's works. What is the etiquette here at Hatrack? My editing skills are fairly limited and I would like to expand them. Which means you all get to be my guinea pigs . Not only that, if I expect other people to critique my work, I should be able to offer the same courtesy in return.
Posts: 45 | Registered: Jul 2004
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posted
There are a lot of guides to critiquing out there. Some of them blatantly contradict each other, as always with such things. I don't think there's any specific way to do it that we have here (if there is, I missed it when I joined up...). Posts: 626 | Registered: Jun 2003
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I've critiqued writing before in a live face-to-face writing group I once participated in, and I retained a lot of what I learned about giving and receiving critique, and Kathleen has assembled some excellent guidelines. I learned a lot from them.
I've notice that some people prefer you to give them something specific about the work to critique.
[This message has been edited by Magic Beans (edited October 23, 2004).]
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Something I could add, and emphasize, is that a good critiquer ALWAYS says something positive and is ALWAYS polite and supportive.
And a good receiver of a critique NEVER mails back a long letter justifying every story decision they made that the critiquer pinged. You accept the critique, you send an email thanking the critiquer, maybe you ask questions for clarity or ask for specific (and minor) suggestions (like, "You said this sentence was awkward but I can't seem to fix it. What do you suggest?"). Later, in the closed safety net of your personal computer, you accept those comments you feel are justified and chuck the rest.
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If there were hard and fast rules to critiques, then they could be generated by computer programs. That said, here are my rules.
The first rule is to read the text. If you didn't make it all the way through, admit it (do note that this counts as a very harsh statement about the quality of the work, so admit it politely ).
The second rule is to only give feedback that will be helpful. Don't tell people to quit writing, even if you think they should. Tell them what they need to do in order to improve.
The last rule is to be honest. Don't say it was great if you thought it was terrible, don't say it was terrible if you thought it was better than anything you could have written (or at least, if you can honestly say something like that, tell the full truth ). In either case, be honest that this is just your opinion unless it is really a fact.
As for etiquette, it is mainly a matter of being sensitive to the particular likes and dislikes of individual writers when it comes to recieving critiques. I can't stand grammatical "corrections" that substantially alter the sense of what I've written. I especially can't stand them when the original was already correct, and absolutely hate it when the suggested change is not merely nonsensical but grammatically incorrect. The fact is that I care far more about syntax than grammar. So I don't mind having syntax problems pointed out, even if they aren't technically errors.
I've found that many people don't mind having their grammer or style corrected. I'm sure that I've run across a few people that were horrified by syntax corrections. Try and figure out whether a critique is going to hit the writer like a burning bag of doggie-doo...but remember that etiquette can't help you to give a good critique, it only helps the writer swallow it
Also, knowing what level of critique is wanted. If this is the first round of critiques, I would say anything goes. However, if someone says something like, "This is the umpteenth time I'm getting this critqued but I just wanted to do it one more time before sending it out.", then I figure they've probably gotten all the opinions on "I like this, don't like that" sort of thing and they might want the more nit-picky things picked out.
Just to add to Survivor's comment about being honest, be honest about the level of critique you can provide. Sometimes you have time to comb the lines for any and all errors that may be lurking. Other times you might only be able to read it and give comments like: this worked/didn't work for me, this sentence sounds awkward, huh?, etc.
It can also be important as the writer to let people know what you would like them to look for. If all you really want is a copy edit (i.e. grammar, spelling, usage, etc.) then let your critiquers know that you've already got the plot and the characters where you want them.
[This message has been edited by Robyn_Hood (edited October 25, 2004).]
The basic building blocks of the quest-type fantasy plot. The "hero" collects sufficient plot coupons (magic sword, magic book, magic cat) to send off to the author for the ending. Note that "the author" can be substituted for "the Gods" in such a work: "The Gods decreed he would pursue this quest." Right, mate. The author decreed he would pursue this quest until sufficient pages were filled to procure an advance.
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. Not only that, if I expect other people to critique my work, I should be able to offer the same courtesy in return.
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