Hatrack River Writers Workshop: Does my opinion count?

This is topic Does my opinion count? in forum Open Discussions About Writing at Hatrack River Writers Workshop.

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Posted by Christine (Member # 1646) on :

I keep hearing a common undertone around here, both in open discussion and most especially in fragments and feedback. The insinutations come in two forms:

1. I've never been published before so who am I to criticize?

and

2. I'm new here so who am I to criticize?

Who are you? You're a person who reads and has opinions. (If you don't read this probably isn't the best site for you, to be honest.) You know what you like and you know what you don't like. You are a part of the audience for the stories we hope to sell and in the most important of roles we would LOVE to hear what you have to say.

You don't have to be perfect. You don't have to be right. There is no right, there is only opinion. In fact, that is the only trick to keep in mind when critiquing. It is always, "I think...." not "I know..." Follow that rule and you can't be wrong! Unlike in those bad English classes in high school where incompetent teachers would deduct points for students disagreeing with their opinions, we know that all opinions count and have value.

Do you have to have been published? No! My first publication came two months ago, ask people around here if they took me seriously before that. You bet they did, because I was always honest with my feelings and backed them up with as much details as I could. I'm a reader and I know what I like. Frankly, that's more valuable a tool for critiquing than any darn publication.

Do you have to have been here a while? No! Jump right on in and start sharing. Your critiques may get better as you participate for a while and learn better ways of phrasing your opinions, but who cares? The opinions don't change, only the presentation, and in the meantime jumping in the water is the best way to learn to swim.

For those of you newbies who still aren't convinced, let me paraphrase Card's wise reader approach to critiquing:

Pretend you are reading a book. As you read, you will occassionally find your subconsciouss asking the following questions:

"Oh yeah?" in disbelief

"Huh?" in confusion

"So what?" in boredom

All readers ask this question. A wise reader notices when he or she asks the question and writes it down, preferrably with a description of what part of the story caused the reaction.

That's it. That's all you have to do. If you feel uncomfortable saying anything else there is always the bare-bones, no elaborations, wise reader critique. Frankly, it is the most valuable critique there is. Sometimes a lot of suggestions, especially when they do not come with specific reasons, are far less useful than plain reactions. When critiquing a mystery, I like to keep the reader abreast of who I think did it. Why? So they know if they've laid their clues out properly. Well, all forms of fiction have goals they are trying to accomplish and all readers need that kind of feedback. The brilliant thing is that ANYONE AT ALL WHO READS IS QUALIFIED TO DO IT!

So go on in there and start giving your opinions. If we didn't want them, we wouldn't have posted the darn fragments on the internet for any stranger to look at.

Posted by RavenStarr (Member # 2327) on :

I totally agree... I never look at anyone's work as a writer because there really isn't any point to that unless I'm the one writing. I always try to look at their work from the perspective of the reader because in the end, that's the only perspective that really matters...

Posted by wbriggs (Member # 2267) on :

OSC says we have 3 important reactions in reading:
"Oh, yeah?" (losing ability to believe)
"So what?" (I'm bored)
"Huh?"
I'll add:
"This is cool!"
That's what I want to know, from critiquers. Not whether my commas are in the wrong place (although I'll take that too!). Whether I'm engrossing you, what your reactions are right now, at this point in the story.

Posted by TaShaJaRo (Member # 2354) on :

Hear, hear! I agree. Of course, I want to know where I have made a mistake or missed the mark; but I also want to know where something was really good so that I keep that part the way it is. It's not so much for ego stroking (though that's always nice too) as to learn from not only my mistakes, but also my successes. I can look back through my writing and say, "don't do this, but do do this."

Posted by Christine (Member # 1646) on :

Careful not to miss the point guys...this wasn't so much a commentary on how to critique as an assurance that everyone who reads is a valued and capable critiquer. The wise reader thing was only to show why you only have to be able to read to critique. We could talk all day about the best ways of critiquing (and have) but that wasn't the intention here.

Posted by RavenStarr (Member # 2327) on :

That's basically what I was getting at... basically the only way your opinion wouldn't count is if you never read, and just flat out don't care about books or writing what so ever... and if that's the case, then the fact that you're here is puzzling in itself...

Posted by djvdakota (Member # 2002) on :

YES, YES, YES!!

Critique, people! Do it often! That's how we learn! My first critiques here sucked canal water! But I did them anyway, and as I critiqued and received critiques I learned more and more.

As I see it, there's a cycle around here as well, that always must receive fresh critiquers if it to survive. It goes like this:

Newbies come on board. They give a few comments, some critiques, receive some, make friends, learn A LOT! As they learn their critiques improve, as their critiques improve so does their writing, as their writing improves they need critiques less and less. The fewer critiques they need the fewer they give. So the holes left by them in the Hatrack critiquing community need to be filled by more Newbies.

So FILL THEM, you guys! Keep the cycle alive!