KillerMuffin
Seraphically Disinclined
- Joined
- Jul 29, 2000
- Posts
- 25,603
Hi! Welcome to the Story Discussion Circle, I'm your local moderator, Muffie.
Getting Your Story Into a Discussion
We're very strict about which stories can be discussed here. There are a few rules, but they're not difficult to follow.
1) The story must be posted at Literotica. Allextreme is not eligible.
2) You must be the author.
3) You may volunteer your story for discussion at any time, first come first serve. Please do so on the sign up thread.
4) This is important. In order for your story to make it into discussion you must make an effort to participate in no less than two other discussions.
5) There is no limit to the stories that you may volunteer for discussion, however before you can volunteer another story your previous story must be discussed first.
6) You will have no control over the feedback that you receive.
If you would like to chat a little, please do so in this thread rather than start one here. This is a slow moving forum and it's nice to give each author as much available time on the first page as possible.
Participating in a Discussion
An effort to participate is defined as thoughtful feedback that can provide some insight into the craft of writing or into the story being discussed. This is not as difficult as it sounds, it merely requires that you answer two questions: 1) What did I like about this story? and 2) What did I not like about this story? Additionally, guided discussion questions will be provided with each new discussion.
What is not allowed
The Literotica Bulletin Board is a very large place. Please direct general questions, general comments, personal ads, poetry, etc. to the appropriate forum. Any thread that does not belong here will be moved to the appropriate forum for you. This forum is reserved for guided story discussion.
Additionally, we follow the Literotica Discussion Forum Rules:
1) No spam.
2) No child pornography.
3) No threats of physical violence.
4) No posting of another user's personal information.
Thank you for your cooperation.
How to Give a Critique You Can Feel Good About
Provided by Mickie
This is one of the best explanations I found on how to review someone else's work. I found it at the Del Rey workshop, and this is the pertinent information...
How do I write a basic review?
If you are at a loss, we suggest the following model for critiques, based on a technique used by Maureen McHugh when she teaches at places like Clarion. Reviewers should write at least four sentences, one on each of the following areas:
A one-sentence summary of the submission. This lets the writer know whether or not the reviewer got the main point of the story or chapter.
Point out one good thing about the submission. Be specific. Refer to the writing, setting, dialogue, characters, or plot.
Mention one thing in the submission that you didn't like. Again, be specific.
Ask one question or make one suggestion for improvement.
This method helps guarantee balanced reviews and reminds reviewers to include something positive and something helpful.
This is not the only method or model. Different reviewers have different critiquing strengths.
Any review that provides specific, helpful feedback to the writer is a good start.
What if I can't find anything wrong with a submission?
Uh...try harder.
Even the most successful professional writers send their stories out for critique to improve their writing. If you can't find anything in a submission to improve it, then go steal a Hugo award and start engraving the submission's title on it at once.
How do I critique a writer who's better than I am?
Develop your ability to look at a submission as a reader, not a writer. Don't compare your skills to those of the author, but ask yourself, if you read this in a magazine, what would your reaction be? Which places slow you down? Which parts interested you the most? Learn to read critically.
What if I don't want to hurt someone's feelings by saying something negative?
Your compassion commends you. However...
If you don't tell writers where they can improve, they'll never get any better. By following the model we suggested above, you will always give a balanced review, with positives as well as negatives.
Several workshop members also suggest a light touch. Brie writes: "HUMOR. It's a way to get past defensiveness. Larry West, for example, may absolutely rip my stories apart at the seams, but i'm generally too busy giggling to get huffy."
What if the writing is so awful I can't find anything positive to say?
First, remember that we were all beginners once.
Second, don't try to correct everything. Pick out one specific area--grammar, dialogue, setting--and give the writer one piece of advice, one tool, that he or she can use immediately. The next time you see a submission by that writer, you'll be able to find one positive thing to say!
How can I get more reviews of my submission?
You mean aside from bribes?
The easiest method is to give more reviews. Pay attention to writers who do reviews, and then critique their work.
I really can't add anything to that, to tell the truth. However, if you can't do exactly what's in the model, then do the best you can. No one is grading here, so just tell us what you think!
- Mickie
And from Judo
Positive Summary: You introduce a wonderful little model, properly credited, for reviewing almost anything, including reading someone else's writing.
Negative: Then, you follow up the little model with a page-and-a-half of FAQs' text indistinguishable from the model.
Humor: It's a lot to read for instructions (especially if you're the type who likes to throw them away). Perhaps a little color coding would help identify the sub-sections and not make the instructions seem so long.
- Judo
Getting Your Story Into a Discussion
We're very strict about which stories can be discussed here. There are a few rules, but they're not difficult to follow.
1) The story must be posted at Literotica. Allextreme is not eligible.
2) You must be the author.
3) You may volunteer your story for discussion at any time, first come first serve. Please do so on the sign up thread.
4) This is important. In order for your story to make it into discussion you must make an effort to participate in no less than two other discussions.
5) There is no limit to the stories that you may volunteer for discussion, however before you can volunteer another story your previous story must be discussed first.
6) You will have no control over the feedback that you receive.
If you would like to chat a little, please do so in this thread rather than start one here. This is a slow moving forum and it's nice to give each author as much available time on the first page as possible.
Participating in a Discussion
An effort to participate is defined as thoughtful feedback that can provide some insight into the craft of writing or into the story being discussed. This is not as difficult as it sounds, it merely requires that you answer two questions: 1) What did I like about this story? and 2) What did I not like about this story? Additionally, guided discussion questions will be provided with each new discussion.
What is not allowed
The Literotica Bulletin Board is a very large place. Please direct general questions, general comments, personal ads, poetry, etc. to the appropriate forum. Any thread that does not belong here will be moved to the appropriate forum for you. This forum is reserved for guided story discussion.
Additionally, we follow the Literotica Discussion Forum Rules:
1) No spam.
2) No child pornography.
3) No threats of physical violence.
4) No posting of another user's personal information.
Thank you for your cooperation.
How to Give a Critique You Can Feel Good About
Provided by Mickie
This is one of the best explanations I found on how to review someone else's work. I found it at the Del Rey workshop, and this is the pertinent information...
How do I write a basic review?
If you are at a loss, we suggest the following model for critiques, based on a technique used by Maureen McHugh when she teaches at places like Clarion. Reviewers should write at least four sentences, one on each of the following areas:
A one-sentence summary of the submission. This lets the writer know whether or not the reviewer got the main point of the story or chapter.
Point out one good thing about the submission. Be specific. Refer to the writing, setting, dialogue, characters, or plot.
Mention one thing in the submission that you didn't like. Again, be specific.
Ask one question or make one suggestion for improvement.
This method helps guarantee balanced reviews and reminds reviewers to include something positive and something helpful.
This is not the only method or model. Different reviewers have different critiquing strengths.
Any review that provides specific, helpful feedback to the writer is a good start.
What if I can't find anything wrong with a submission?
Uh...try harder.
Even the most successful professional writers send their stories out for critique to improve their writing. If you can't find anything in a submission to improve it, then go steal a Hugo award and start engraving the submission's title on it at once.
How do I critique a writer who's better than I am?
Develop your ability to look at a submission as a reader, not a writer. Don't compare your skills to those of the author, but ask yourself, if you read this in a magazine, what would your reaction be? Which places slow you down? Which parts interested you the most? Learn to read critically.
What if I don't want to hurt someone's feelings by saying something negative?
Your compassion commends you. However...
If you don't tell writers where they can improve, they'll never get any better. By following the model we suggested above, you will always give a balanced review, with positives as well as negatives.
Several workshop members also suggest a light touch. Brie writes: "HUMOR. It's a way to get past defensiveness. Larry West, for example, may absolutely rip my stories apart at the seams, but i'm generally too busy giggling to get huffy."
What if the writing is so awful I can't find anything positive to say?
First, remember that we were all beginners once.
Second, don't try to correct everything. Pick out one specific area--grammar, dialogue, setting--and give the writer one piece of advice, one tool, that he or she can use immediately. The next time you see a submission by that writer, you'll be able to find one positive thing to say!
How can I get more reviews of my submission?
You mean aside from bribes?
The easiest method is to give more reviews. Pay attention to writers who do reviews, and then critique their work.
I really can't add anything to that, to tell the truth. However, if you can't do exactly what's in the model, then do the best you can. No one is grading here, so just tell us what you think!
- Mickie
And from Judo
Positive Summary: You introduce a wonderful little model, properly credited, for reviewing almost anything, including reading someone else's writing.
Negative: Then, you follow up the little model with a page-and-a-half of FAQs' text indistinguishable from the model.
Humor: It's a lot to read for instructions (especially if you're the type who likes to throw them away). Perhaps a little color coding would help identify the sub-sections and not make the instructions seem so long.
- Judo
