[ SECRET POST #1950 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #1950 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 06 pages, 122 secrets from Secret Submission Post #279.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 2 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 1 2 - repeat ], [ 2 - spambots ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[fscom.livejournal.com]

19. http://i49.tinypic.com/w70swk.jpg

[(Anonymous)]

Look, if you can find a friend or another writer to give you concrit, and the stuff they tell you is useful then I think that's great. But, honestly, it's not the job of your readers to make you a better writer. You need to handle that on your own. Take a writing class or read some books if you feel like you need some instruction. Join an online writing group. Ask for people to give you constructive criticism. But be aware that most readers aren't editors (nor should they be) and might not have much of use to tell you.

[(Anonymous)]

This.

[amethyst-rei.livejournal.com]

I agree, but I don't think that's the point the OP was trying to make. I think he's just expressing frustration that there are probably a lot of people in fandom who would be more than willing to leave constructive crit but are too afraid to do so because of the stigma against anything that isn't mindless praise.

[her-ririness-ii.livejournal.com]

I dont think OP tries to force people to leave concrit. Not that they actually could do that. However, I think it definitely became unusual to leave concrit even when the author says it's fine because there have been enough cases where this produced a negative unjustified reaction.

[(Anonymous)]

Same here, anon. I mean it's one thing to be an ass, but I don't get why it's suddenly a crime to give someone polite constructive criticism. If they don't want it, they can ignore it. I like getting concrit (one of my favorite reviews constantly points out grammatical errors in my stories). I think if you choose to put your work on display, you run the risk of getting negative comments on it. As long as the people are doing so politely, I don't think there is anything wrong.

[redseeker]

If you want concrit, ask for it...?

If all you want is to get concrit on your own work so you can approve, you don't need to give it unsolicited to others too.

[(Anonymous)]

If you want detailed concrit, OP, just leave a note saying that you want it. If they want to leave it, they'll know they're free to. If they don't want to leave it, you can't force people to spend time and effort critting your stuff.

I, however, highly prefer that it is the way it is with non-crit being the default. I've had serious WTF experiences with people who leave unasked-for crit on my stuff before. Like having them accuse me of being arrogant and dismissive because I don't jump on their advice and edit my writing around to please them. One time a girl left crit, I told her politely that "thank you for the comment, but I prefer the fic the way I wrote it or I wouldn't have written it that way" and she got her friend and some other community members to contact me "expressing concerns" that I thought I was better than everyone and was being "standoffish and hostile," which led to a huge wank thread - "but our friend spent so much time and effort offering you one paragraph crit you didn't ask for, you ingrate!" - when I kept saying it's a just a fic and I don't care. Apparently I was being a "bad example by not taking crit" and affecting the community terribly by not caring about going back and editing it a week later to suit one person and they didn't leave me alone until I lied my face off and apologized and edited the post and proclaimed it better (lies).

The best part? It was a 100 word drabble. Needless to say I never went back to that community and took all the rest of my fic elsewhere.

[(Anonymous)]

I wish there were more people like you in my fandom, OP. Instead of these butthurt babies who cry if you dare to try to give them any sort of helpful crit, and take it as a personal attack.

[anonlulz.livejournal.com]

That's why there's people out there who make a living of this.

You might also pick bad habits from fanfiction. If your plan is to become a published author or professional writer, you're better off taking classes, or something (like the other anon said).

[(Anonymous)]

Find a beta you trust. Or, what I've done repeatedly, is ask on coms and have people I don't know in the fandom read it cold as draft readers.

[megalomaniageek.livejournal.com]

Do you explicitly say that you want concrit on your profile and at the top/bottom of every chapter? Because I think you should start there. If you do, and you're still not getting feedback, it's possible that people don't feel like it or can't articulate what they don't like, or are so used to reading shit that they don't feel like picking apart something they think is good.

[ninety6tears.livejournal.com]

I can agree with most of this - I really miss having writing workshops at school and even finding a beta reader is becoming increasingly difficult - but I kind of side-eye when people think they should be able to have their concrit positively accepted by anybody whether the author was asking for it or not. It isn't just a matter of people only wanting praise, though honestly if fandom is just your fun place and you're not really here to be super serious about your writing, there's nothing wrong with that. There's also just the fact that fanfic is something people do in their often pretty limited free time and sometimes there's only so much effort they're willing to put into revision when it's something they're doing just for fun.

[drunken-clowns.livejournal.com]

I think you should find a beta in your fandom. There are probably a lot of people who want to improve, especially if that editing process takes place in private instead of where everyone can see. Maybe you can find more than one and do an editing circle type thing, so you can get more people's opinions than just that beta.

I don't see what everyone has against concrit here (it's almost like we didn't all learn a non-offensive way to do it in middle school) but it doesn't look like you'll be able to change what people like to do.

[velvet-mace.livejournal.com]

Other people have said it, the problem with concrit is that often what passes as concrit is in fact not actually that helpful giving you a path towards improvement.

This doesn't mean that you are helpless and can't improve. It does mean that you need to be more proactive in improving.

Decide what it is that you want to do with your writing. "Be good." Is too vague a goal. Do you want your fic to have more emotional impact? Do you want it to be more philosophically sound? More nuanced? Do you want your prose to be more more evocative?

Find a person whose writing has the qualities you want in your writing to have and study them. Look at what they are doing. What tropes are they using? What kind of language? Compare them with someone who doesn't have the quality you like and see the differences. Make a conscious effort to put those elements into your fic, now that you've identified what they are.

You can do it, but you have to improve your own eye.

[nyxelestia.livejournal.com]

I always leave a note at the end of my fics saying I'm open to everything, even concrit. Gotten a few helpful reviews. :) But you really do have to drive the point home about being open to everything and anything.

[antialiasis.livejournal.com]

The common attitude here that giving concrit is horribly rude if the author doesn't expressly solicit it really weirds me out. Perhaps because I've spent most of my fandom life hanging out in places where flipping out at concrit (provided it doesn't feature personal insults) is generally seen as something people do when they're new, young and immature and are expected to grow out of, and even authors who do in fact whine about perfectly polite concrit will pay lip service to the importance of taking concrit in stride in discussions.

Personally, I think I'd go insane if I knew every time I posted my work that even if it were terrible nobody would dare tell me so. What does it even mean to get praise if people will give you praise even if they thought many aspects were lacking? The most meaningfully ego-boosting reviews I've ever gotten were from people who'd torn my work apart before, because then I knew they wouldn't be saying that unless I really had gotten something right.

[kitsunebaba.livejournal.com]

More often than not, people who want to critique someone don't actually know how and just point out the flaws, or what they think are flaws without suggesting ways to improve on what was done right. Thats when people get angry because they think the fic is just getting bashed.
Crit is good but the best way to improve is to simply write and read more. Don't get stuck in your ways. Also another suggestion might be to start text based roleplaying on somewhere like gaiaonline. That's given me a definite excuse to write almost every day.

[(Anonymous)]

I don't get any comments, positive or negative :( I'm in about the same boat - I want to know how to get better, what to improve, but it's quite discouraging when apparently my writing isn't deserving of any comment whatsoever. Is it good? Bad? Who knows! Clearly it isn't interesting enough.

[unsernameinuse.livejournal.com]

Do you ask for it? Cause if someone asks for constructive criticism, they usually get it. If not from general readers who don't really know how to help, then your writer friends should be able to.
And if someone else's story needs help, just offer it. That way, if they don't want it you can just go on about your business.

[(Anonymous)]

There's nothing wrong with wishing for it, but remember at the end of the day that your readers don't owe you anything.

[dentedsky.livejournal.com]

I say advertise for a beta and express that you're willing to listen to concrit as well as have the technical errors picked out. Perhaps if you truly want to see where you need improving don't just get one beta, get two or three who will rip your stuff apart for you and give you heaps of concrit. After that you'll feel exhausted enough that you'll only want good comments from your readers I reckon.

But yes fandom doesn't like concrit in comments... personally I don't either because other people can read them and I prefer private concrit.

[citrinesunset.livejournal.com]

Remember, too, that some readers just aren't interested in or comfortable with giving criticism. Giving people criticism can be intimidating and take practice, and sometimes you just don't want to read a fic with a critical eye. If there are noticeable issues, okay, those can be easy to bring up. But when there are no glaring issues, it can be hard to think of what could make the writing stronger, and you're also getting into very subjective territory.

But definitely mention that you're open to concrit, and you may get some good responses. Also, even if people don't give you concrit in their comments, sometimes you can still get useful feedback from them. But ultimately, you're probably best off not only trying to find a beta but, perhaps most importantly, paying attention to the fics you like and what you think they do well.

I wish fandom critique communities seemed to work better. It seems like the ones I've been a part of or have thought about being a part of haven't lasted long. There are definitely people open to giving and receiving concrit, but for some reason critique communities don't seem to work for fic as well as they do for original fiction. If I had to guess, I'd say it's because a lot of people may not be willing to critique fics that they wouldn't normally read.

[renomeupyo.livejournal.com]

I agree with the OP on this. Perhaps the best way to go about this is to get a beta who will not just correct minor issues and bounce ideas, but will give you honest criticism. I try to do that when I beta. Concerning reviews, though, that's just a dead cause. :3

[mjnuts.livejournal.com]

Send me a PM with links to your fics since I review with constructive criticism and not only to say "Love this!".