Bardothren
Muddling along somehow
- 8,645
- Posts
- 9
- Years
- Age 29
- In my room
- Seen Jan 3, 2020
Does it count as falling behind if I was already a day late last time? In my books, yes. Whatever. I'm here now, so let's get on with it.
Not much happening right now... got back from Chicago and I already miss the food. Back to ramen and spaghetti for me. I've got a few midterm papers coming up, so that'll be loads of fun.
Alright, enough chit chat. This is another topic I've been planning on doing for a while, so here we go.
I'd like to think the name's original, but I can guarantee someone else beat me to it. Screw them, I'm using it too. Today, I talk about all things editing, whether it's your own work or others. My first advice: be a complete jackass. Channel your inner anal-retentive douche who points out anything and everything wrong with your work. This is especially important for your own work, as any of us will be blind to our own faults. I know, it's happened to me loads of times, when I thought something was great and turned out it was a pile of crap. Oops. Now, for reviewing other people, you have to temper this a little - nobody likes having their feelings stomped on, even if their work deserves the criticism. However, thoughtful, insightful criticism will help their work in the long run.
This is not to say you should be mean about it. Criticizing in the literary sense isn't about being a jerk, it's about pointing out areas of improvement. It is equally as important to point out what they're getting right, so that they have an idea of how their story appeals to their audience. And if it's genuinely without redeeming qualities... which I have seen of a handful of works I've read... well, uh, be gentle and suggest some resources to help themselves out.
Now, I can say without fear of contradiction that the single most important process of reviewing any work, or anything in general, is to get multiple perspectives. Time and again, in the fan-fic section people will ask for reviews (a fault of which I am also guilty from time to timeread my stuff pls) and you'll always get the same answer: review someone else's work. It doesn't happen 100% of the time; people have lives you know. As for me, if someone puts the effort into reviewing my work, I return the favor. wink wink
So, let's get to specifics. There's several broad categories to analyze, and I since some are topics I've previously covered and others I'll save for future entires, I won't go into too much detail... which kind of defeats the purpose of going into the specifics. Hmm. There's plot, narration, description, characterization, dialogue, voice, tension, world-building, and more.
As for how to review a work, you can either start small or start big. I tend to start big, thinking about how the whole piece fits together. Analyze the overall effect of the story, see if you can create a plot summary that defines the core of your story. Plot summaries aren't quite as simple as you might think; to provide an example, I'll give a quick plot summary of the Eighth pokemon movie to show you how you might wish to proceed. Weird example, I know, but I think it fits the fan-fic theme, especially since that's a movie I love drawing upon for inspiration.
It's not perfect (I did whip this up in like a minute) and I may be a bit hazy on the specifics, but that should demonstrate what I mean. Note at the line break that the attention shifts from plot to deeper themes - that's something you should keep an eye out for in whatever you review. To provide examples of these deeper themes from here on PC, there's discourse on identity, sympathy, and trust in Aisu's Revolution, or relationships and understanding in Sike Saner's Communication. That's not to say that all stories need deeper themes - I dare you to try to find one in Bobandbill's Pokemon Anthology, and it works perfectly well without thematic elements. It's best to be mindful of these deeper meanings as you write, so you may understand your own work better.
Alright, so once I have ascertained that my overall story works the way it should, I go sentence by sentence, examining how each sentence works in and of itself; it's surprising sometimes how much unnecessary baggage you can remove when you start cutting out adverbs and rewording phrases. As a general rule, the fewer words it takes to get your point across, the better, especially among a community that reads for the fun of it. If it isn't fun, it won't be read. Simple as that. And nobody likes slogging through a painfully slow narrative, unless they're masochists or something.
And after that, it's rinse and repeat. Give yourself five to six months to forget the story before revisiting it. For the first story I ever wrote, I came back after six months and slashed out every word. I rewrote the whole thing, came back after another six months, and did it again. It's a painful process, let me tell you, for a story that's pretty bad in the first place. And let me tell you, that first work was awful. Zero conflict, the character could do no wrong, and any obstacles I placed in his path were easily and cleverly steamrolled over. I'd like to think I came a long way since then.
I think that's everything I have to say about that, so let's summarize!
Editquette is all about being a polite asshole. Just telling people what's great about it won't help them at all; in fact, as it did for me, it might give them illusions of mastery that really need to be trampled as soon as humanly possible. Luckily, I had Creative Writing courses and a couple dozen students per class to tell me how terrible my work was, but for those of you without that luxury, reach out to other writers.
And let me tell you right now: do not ask them to go over an entire novel. Just don't. People aren't made out of time. Please, start small - a chapter's perfect.
With that message out of the way, question time! Here's the two most captain obvious questions to ask:
What works? What doesn't work?
Ask them both, and make sure you answer both. Next questions:
What is the condensed version of this story?
Make a plot summary - a good plot summary doesn't just review plot but also catches the other elements worked into the story - important themes and whatnot.
Can this be said more efficiently?
Compare these two sentences and see if you can spot the difference.
Specificity and efficiency go hand in hand. Say more with less, and your story will pack a million times more punch.
What emotions does the reader feel at X point in the story?
Controlling mood is the most important component of storytelling. If the reader doesn't feel anything as their eyes wander through the words, you've failed your job.
Alright, that's that. I think I'll restrain myself to Fridays now because let's be real, Thursdays and Wednesdays are terrible days for me to do anything.
And to wrap it up, I have a question for you all. I've been tempted several times, including this time, to reference my own works within this blog. It's a sacred taboo within the fan-fic section to never promote your own work while reviewing others - another piece of advice I have to all of you seeking reviews - and let's be real, it can be seen as bragging, especially when it is bragging. So, if there's anyone interested in leaving comments, do you think this blog's a place I might critique or mention my own work without invoking the wrath of the fan-fic gods? Let me know in the towel section below, and I will see you in another life, brother.
#ShamelessSuperCarlinBrosReferenceIsShameless #BardIsADesperateSelfPromotingBraggart #WhyAmIUsingHashtags
Wow. Looking back at this, it feels like I just wrote a fricking novel. Okay, that's it, time for me to get to work.
Not much happening right now... got back from Chicago and I already miss the food. Back to ramen and spaghetti for me. I've got a few midterm papers coming up, so that'll be loads of fun.
Alright, enough chit chat. This is another topic I've been planning on doing for a while, so here we go.
Editquette
I'd like to think the name's original, but I can guarantee someone else beat me to it. Screw them, I'm using it too. Today, I talk about all things editing, whether it's your own work or others. My first advice: be a complete jackass. Channel your inner anal-retentive douche who points out anything and everything wrong with your work. This is especially important for your own work, as any of us will be blind to our own faults. I know, it's happened to me loads of times, when I thought something was great and turned out it was a pile of crap. Oops. Now, for reviewing other people, you have to temper this a little - nobody likes having their feelings stomped on, even if their work deserves the criticism. However, thoughtful, insightful criticism will help their work in the long run.
This is not to say you should be mean about it. Criticizing in the literary sense isn't about being a jerk, it's about pointing out areas of improvement. It is equally as important to point out what they're getting right, so that they have an idea of how their story appeals to their audience. And if it's genuinely without redeeming qualities... which I have seen of a handful of works I've read... well, uh, be gentle and suggest some resources to help themselves out.
Now, I can say without fear of contradiction that the single most important process of reviewing any work, or anything in general, is to get multiple perspectives. Time and again, in the fan-fic section people will ask for reviews (a fault of which I am also guilty from time to time
So, let's get to specifics. There's several broad categories to analyze, and I since some are topics I've previously covered and others I'll save for future entires, I won't go into too much detail... which kind of defeats the purpose of going into the specifics. Hmm. There's plot, narration, description, characterization, dialogue, voice, tension, world-building, and more.
As for how to review a work, you can either start small or start big. I tend to start big, thinking about how the whole piece fits together. Analyze the overall effect of the story, see if you can create a plot summary that defines the core of your story. Plot summaries aren't quite as simple as you might think; to provide an example, I'll give a quick plot summary of the Eighth pokemon movie to show you how you might wish to proceed. Weird example, I know, but I think it fits the fan-fic theme, especially since that's a movie I love drawing upon for inspiration.
It's not perfect (I did whip this up in like a minute) and I may be a bit hazy on the specifics, but that should demonstrate what I mean. Note at the line break that the attention shifts from plot to deeper themes - that's something you should keep an eye out for in whatever you review. To provide examples of these deeper themes from here on PC, there's discourse on identity, sympathy, and trust in Aisu's Revolution, or relationships and understanding in Sike Saner's Communication. That's not to say that all stories need deeper themes - I dare you to try to find one in Bobandbill's Pokemon Anthology, and it works perfectly well without thematic elements. It's best to be mindful of these deeper meanings as you write, so you may understand your own work better.
Alright, so once I have ascertained that my overall story works the way it should, I go sentence by sentence, examining how each sentence works in and of itself; it's surprising sometimes how much unnecessary baggage you can remove when you start cutting out adverbs and rewording phrases. As a general rule, the fewer words it takes to get your point across, the better, especially among a community that reads for the fun of it. If it isn't fun, it won't be read. Simple as that. And nobody likes slogging through a painfully slow narrative, unless they're masochists or something.
And after that, it's rinse and repeat. Give yourself five to six months to forget the story before revisiting it. For the first story I ever wrote, I came back after six months and slashed out every word. I rewrote the whole thing, came back after another six months, and did it again. It's a painful process, let me tell you, for a story that's pretty bad in the first place. And let me tell you, that first work was awful. Zero conflict, the character could do no wrong, and any obstacles I placed in his path were easily and cleverly steamrolled over. I'd like to think I came a long way since then.
I think that's everything I have to say about that, so let's summarize!
Summary
Editquette is all about being a polite asshole. Just telling people what's great about it won't help them at all; in fact, as it did for me, it might give them illusions of mastery that really need to be trampled as soon as humanly possible. Luckily, I had Creative Writing courses and a couple dozen students per class to tell me how terrible my work was, but for those of you without that luxury, reach out to other writers.
And let me tell you right now: do not ask them to go over an entire novel. Just don't. People aren't made out of time. Please, start small - a chapter's perfect.
With that message out of the way, question time! Here's the two most captain obvious questions to ask:
What works? What doesn't work?
Ask them both, and make sure you answer both. Next questions:
What is the condensed version of this story?
Make a plot summary - a good plot summary doesn't just review plot but also catches the other elements worked into the story - important themes and whatnot.
Can this be said more efficiently?
Compare these two sentences and see if you can spot the difference.
Spoiler:
Spoiler:
Specificity and efficiency go hand in hand. Say more with less, and your story will pack a million times more punch.
What emotions does the reader feel at X point in the story?
Controlling mood is the most important component of storytelling. If the reader doesn't feel anything as their eyes wander through the words, you've failed your job.
Alright, that's that. I think I'll restrain myself to Fridays now because let's be real, Thursdays and Wednesdays are terrible days for me to do anything.
And to wrap it up, I have a question for you all. I've been tempted several times, including this time, to reference my own works within this blog. It's a sacred taboo within the fan-fic section to never promote your own work while reviewing others - another piece of advice I have to all of you seeking reviews - and let's be real, it can be seen as bragging, especially when it is bragging. So, if there's anyone interested in leaving comments, do you think this blog's a place I might critique or mention my own work without invoking the wrath of the fan-fic gods? Let me know in the towel section below, and I will see you in another life, brother.
#ShamelessSuperCarlinBrosReferenceIsShameless #BardIsADesperateSelfPromotingBraggart #WhyAmIUsingHashtags
Wow. Looking back at this, it feels like I just wrote a fricking novel. Okay, that's it, time for me to get to work.