How to Comment on Other People’s Writing
Talking about someone else’s writing can be tough, especially if that person is your friend. If you don’t like the writing, or even if you do but think it needs a lot of work, how do you keep the conversation constructive? As a workshop veteran, I’ve learned a few ways to help a fellow student without seeming boorish or insensitive. So take a look at this list of five ways to comment helpfully on someone’s writing. Feel free to add anything you’ve learned in the comments!
1. Find something positive.
The cardinal rule of commenting on and workshopping others’ stories is to include both good news and bad news, and to start with the good. For a person who is nervous and defensive about their work, it’s a way to ease them into the commenting process and reassure them that there is potential and talent in the work, even if in only a small part at the moment. So be thoughtful and dig up something that was done effectively or surprised you. Did the person describe things beautifully? Have sympathetic characters? Maintain a strong sense of suspense? Whatever it is, find it and begin with it.
2. Encourage growth in that direction.
All right, so as rough as the story may be, you’ve discovered a small strength. Rather than go on endlessly about how wrong wrong wrong another part is, try to emphasize that good thing and encourage expansion of it. Say his writing was very vivid in one scene, but fell flat everywhere else. Try saying or writing, “I really enjoyed this scene and thought your writing rose to a new level. I think you should try writing the other scenes in this style as well.”
After the jump: three more ways to be respectful and helpful.
3. Don’t say you love it when you don’t.
More than anything, writers want to learn. They may need a little positive reinforcement because they have delicate psyches like everyone else, but they’ll think the workshop is a bust if everyone is too afraid to hurt feelings and won’t say how to improve the story. Plenty of times in my workshop I’ve heard people praise something they didn’t actually care for in a story just because they’re grasping for positive things to say. After all, their own writing may be on the line next week, and they want people to think well of them. Don’t go down that road; always be honest about what you thought worked and what didn’t.
4. Cover language, story, and characters.
It’s important to be thorough so that your friend or classmate can really make this story the best it can be. Don’t get fixated on one little problem of continuity on page 7. Instead, ask yourself if the characters, story, and writing all work, and work together. It’s the whole that needs to be polished for a good overall story.
5. Suggest an idea to enhance the story.
Often a student will come out of a workshop feeling overwhelmed by all the criticism. He or she won’t know where to go or what to do once so many things have been criticized or torn apart. To be most helpful, each time you say something didn’t work, suggest a way it could be improved or rewritten. Though the writer may not take the direction you suggest (and you must respect that!), it gives him or her a direction, some momentum after a tough day of revision.
Very nice post. I’m an TA in an intro level creative writing workshop and this is exactly the kinds of trips for feedback the students need. They seem to be able to find things they like, but never suggestions for improvement. I’ll definitely recommend to the Prof that he share this information. Thanks!
I think it depends on the ‘writer.’ These rules should not apply in all cases. Case in point: my wife who wrote her first short story last week. What did I think of it, she asked. I said it was wonderful and that I hope she writes another thousand just like it.
Just another piece of advice: just because you read something it doesn’t make you an expert on it. Critics are professional ass holes. Simon is a case in point.
Writers shops and groups are cesspools for mediocrity. I remember the last one I went to, I listened to one after the other stand up and read their drivel. Then, one of them whipped out a book and started reading an excerpt, and it was the same style of drivel. Then, I realized, I was at risk of catching the drivels. It’s like going to Procrustes for advice on your height. If you were too short, he’d stretch you ought. If you were too tall he’d cut you down to size. In the end, it’s not whether or not what is written fits the mould of perfection, but rather if it accomplishes its task. That’s something a lot of critics miss.
In the end, there is only one critic who matters, and that’s the writer. Did you achieve what you set out to? Who cares if people like it or not. Liking or disliking something is not a measurement of quality.
So, if someone comes to me out of sincerity and presents their work to me, I will say that I love it no matter what I think of it. On the other hand, I teach basic English skills… and I’m a devil for details when it comes to punctuation, spelling, and grammar. I don’t care what they write, as long as it follows the directions and it’s an earnest effort.
I like this article simply because I find myself begging for people to be honest with me on my writing. Right now I am doing a writing challenge to solidly define what type of writer I am and I’m asking the average person to offer up what they liked or hated and why. It’s like pulling teeth.
Of course my writing sucks to me so I would like some praise with some honesty but at the same time I agree with the last poster, I really want to know did I hit my mark. I don’t need a breakdown on the proper use of ellipses and commas, just tell me if you were entertained or gained any knowledge. I hope that’s what all writers hope to accomplish. Otherwise, what are you doing here?
On the other hand I would propose an article heading. “Where to get people who actually comment” As many webmasters would agree with me it is extremely hard to get users to be a little active, not just crawl through the site and leave, that is job of search engines not users
Ведь именно мы придумали подворачивать пиджак, чтобы он не был виден из-под куртки, и чистить туфли рукой.