KillerMuffin
Seraphically Disinclined
- Joined
- Jul 29, 2000
- Posts
- 25,603
I did it officially at Lit for a year, then the load got to heavy and I couldn't give it the time and attention it deserved. That's volunteer editing.
I still do some editing, though I call it giving feedback these days. For some people I still do an actual line by line edit, those things take forever.
The point, though, is that when you dissect a piece of writing to figure out what worked, what didn't work, what was great, good or awful, you force your mind to think about writing in a way that never happens when you just read or write. You have to think about all parts of a story, from the big picture of plot, flow, character development down the tiniest parts like proper word choice, correct punctuation in one specific phrase, the difference between effective use of an adverb versus and adverbial phrase for one particular sentence.
I found that it never works for me to do my own nearly as well as it does for doing someone else's. Why? I'm too close to my own work and I'm much harder on myself. I'm also revising and rewriting, not just critiquing. You cannot revise or rewrite someone else's work, you can merely suggest.
When you give good constructive criticism/critique/edit/well-consider feedback, you aren't just thinking about how to write, by the why as well. You just don't think about why when you read or write.
What do I do? Usually I take a short story that I didn't like or really liked and dissect it for personal learning experience. Sometimes just an attractive piece of it.
Other times I go to the feedback board and offer to give feedback or give feedback to those asking for it. That also teaches you to communicate with others about what you mean with topics that are subjective and abstract. You can learn tact that way.
Every week I participate in the story discussion board, if I can.
I still do an occasional edit for friends and I have another writer that's my writer buddy. I'd like to expand that a little bit to a small group, but that's just one of those vague feelings in the back of my mind.
If you're a beginning writer you may not feel qualified to offer your opinion to such "greats" as whoever you think writes better or has more experience. However, you may not realize it, but your not just a writer, you're a reader, too. You have discerning tastes and a good eye for what works for you and what doesn't. Picking a story apart is good for learning.
Just learning to do it tactifully, thoughtfully, and with sound reasoning is one of the tricks.
I still do some editing, though I call it giving feedback these days. For some people I still do an actual line by line edit, those things take forever.
The point, though, is that when you dissect a piece of writing to figure out what worked, what didn't work, what was great, good or awful, you force your mind to think about writing in a way that never happens when you just read or write. You have to think about all parts of a story, from the big picture of plot, flow, character development down the tiniest parts like proper word choice, correct punctuation in one specific phrase, the difference between effective use of an adverb versus and adverbial phrase for one particular sentence.
I found that it never works for me to do my own nearly as well as it does for doing someone else's. Why? I'm too close to my own work and I'm much harder on myself. I'm also revising and rewriting, not just critiquing. You cannot revise or rewrite someone else's work, you can merely suggest.
When you give good constructive criticism/critique/edit/well-consider feedback, you aren't just thinking about how to write, by the why as well. You just don't think about why when you read or write.
What do I do? Usually I take a short story that I didn't like or really liked and dissect it for personal learning experience. Sometimes just an attractive piece of it.
Other times I go to the feedback board and offer to give feedback or give feedback to those asking for it. That also teaches you to communicate with others about what you mean with topics that are subjective and abstract. You can learn tact that way.
Every week I participate in the story discussion board, if I can.
I still do an occasional edit for friends and I have another writer that's my writer buddy. I'd like to expand that a little bit to a small group, but that's just one of those vague feelings in the back of my mind.
If you're a beginning writer you may not feel qualified to offer your opinion to such "greats" as whoever you think writes better or has more experience. However, you may not realize it, but your not just a writer, you're a reader, too. You have discerning tastes and a good eye for what works for you and what doesn't. Picking a story apart is good for learning.
Just learning to do it tactifully, thoughtfully, and with sound reasoning is one of the tricks.