Topic ID: 11211
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Incandescence
If you've nothing nice to say, come sit with me.
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 Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 4:48 am Post subject: "Critiques" - A Word from the Department Head |
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All--
Many, many articles have been written on the way you should critique a work. I am not going to do that here. Instead, I am going to give you some general guidelines for what NOT to do in your reviews.
1. Clearly, many of you are not used to workshops. Otherwise you wouldn't post three pieces in rapid succession on our forums. Believe it or not, the YWS Literature forums are meant to be workshops in which writers can get serious help on their pieces. If this is not the kind of thing you are seeking, you're probably looking for a showcase where you can "share" your work instead of a workshop where the work will be subjected to criticism and where you are expected to participate in critiquing the work of others. You might consider www.postpoems.com for your futher postings.
2. A serious response to a poem does not include or consist solely of any of the following phrases:
"this was so awsum i could totaly relat to this! keep writting!"
"wow ure imagary is grate! xoxoxox grate job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"i luv it. ure so talented. the flow is off but it's okay because you did a GREAT job with this. wowwww!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Okay, so any serious review should not include multiple exclamations points, exhibit poor spelling and grammar, or just flat-out suck. This is a place where writers post to get feedback on ways to improve their writing. If you can't find anything to improve upon, just shut up and keep reading other poetry and reviews that actually amount to something worthwhile for the writer. Learn from those.
If you can't find anything to improve, you had better be absolutely sure that the piece in question is perfect, before saying how great it is. Otherwise, you might as well tell the writer what you had for lunch, since that is the total use-value of your response. Further, responding to other users on somebody's work's thread is disrespectful and unhelpful to the writer. Feel free to reference their critiques and what you agree/disagree with, but do NOT respond to them. In short: post to the topic, don't post at all, or get out of Dodge.
3. Do NOT spare an author's feelings. I don't care if their poem is about how awful their life is, how they messed up big time, how they're thinking about suicide, or whatever. The fact is: we aren't here for anybody's feelings. If they don't want to get negative reviews, they'll either buckle down and seriously try or realize workshops aren't right for them.
If you want to be somebody's friend, take it to PM, the Lounge, blogs, or wherever. There are many, many opportunities for you to get to personally know people here sans the Literary forums--take advantage of them.
4. Do NOT lie to author's to get positive reviews on your own work (OR for any other reason). I can't count the number of times I've seen less-than-mediocre poets praise less-than-mediocre poetry in hopes that other poets will be guilt-tripped into positively reviewing the dross they've posted. This is both pathetic and unhelpful. Sure, herd mentality feels good, but it's only worth something, say, when you're stampeding from a pack of lions.
Honestly, I don't care if it's your bestest buddy from grade school: don't do it. Inevitably, I will decide to critique your buddy's post and crush them because you have inflated them with a false sense of worth, and then everybody loses: your buddy is crushed, you have to put up with him/her, and I get reprimanded for being "mean" to other users. So, don't do it. Period.
These four guidelines should help those of you who have consistently reviewed pieces in unhelpful and patronizing ways.
Take care now,
Brad |
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Snoink
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| Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 5:12 am Post subject: |
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| 4. Do NOT lie to author's to get positive reviews on your own work (OR for any other reason). I can't count the number of times I've seen less-than-mediocre poets praise less-than-mediocre poetry in hopes that other poets will be guilt-tripped into positively reviewing the dross they've posted. This is both pathetic and unhelpful. Sure, herd mentality feels good, but it's only worth something, say, when you're stampeding from a pack of lions. |
Not only that, but it usually backfires on you anyway. When I see that kind of behavior from writers, aka, "this is great, critique my work!", I stop critiquing for them. Why? Because why do I even bother? And, by not critiquing them, I mean not reading them. And this is what nobody likes, right? |
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Revere
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| Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 11:17 pm Post subject: |
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Just an addition to #3 -
While you're critiquing and not sparing the author's feelings, make sure you aren't being personally offensive. This would be something like:
You are the worst writer in the world! You're so bad that you're a disgrace to the craft or writing. I will never read one of your stories/poems again just because you suck so much.
So in short, if you have negative comments, direct them at the work, and not the author. I've never really seen someone do this, but it's something everyone should try and avoid. |
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Fandilocks
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| Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 11:31 pm Post subject: Re: "Critiques" - A Word from the Department Head |
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| Incandescence wrote: |
| Inevitably, I will decide to critique your buddy's post and crush them because you have inflated them with a false sense of worth, and then everybody loses: your buddy is crushed, you have to put up with him/her, and I get reprimanded for being "mean" to other users. So, don't do it. Period. |
I. Love. You.
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Cassandra
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| Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 11:34 pm Post subject: |
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2. A serious response to a poem does not include or consist solely of any of the following phrases:
"this was so awsum i could totaly relat to this! keep writting!"
"wow ure imagary is grate! xoxoxox grate job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"i luv it. ure so talented. the flow is off but it's okay because you did a GREAT job with this. wowwww!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" |
I HATE getting those comments on my work, or seeing them on others'. I just want to take the author and apologize that to them because they had to see such stupidity on YWS. O.O
And...are those actual quotes that people have actually posted? *shivers* |
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Chandni
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 2:55 am Post subject: |
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"omg this is such a luvley topic !!!!!!! WOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWW !!!
GREAT JOB !!! Keep writting tips !!"
I totally get your point about that 
I don't like getting those reviews that much as well...
the lying part well I always try to see the both good and bad parts of a poem (if there are no good parts, erhmm well then you might not like my crits but I dont like your poetry!) |
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Sam
it's you! it's me! it's dancing!
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| Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 3:58 am Post subject: |
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I'd sympathize with Number 4- there comes a point in your writing where you just need to get over it.
I loved Smaur's quote of the week from a month or so ago- something about how professional writers don't get gold star stickers and such. You get what's wrong and that's pretty much it. |
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