5 of 18

Write now Article Tools

Page 2 of 3

the dust off and move on.

The Critiquer
You have someone's work in front of you, and you're about to review it. You've worried that you're not qualified to give a "good" critique. You don't want to sound inexperienced or stupid, and you don't want to hurt the author's feelings.
Every critiquer, no matter how long he or she has been writing, or no matter how much education or experience, has something valuable to say. We've all read stories and have formed opinions on what we've read. We know what stories we did or didn't like, what characters we loved or loathed, or what plots didn't seem believable. Use this informed reader experience in your critique. The critique process is a wonderful learning experience for both the author and reviewer. The process not only helps the author improve his or her own work, but it also helps the reviewer's editing skills, and ultimately, the reviewer's writing will improve as well. And with practice, your critiques will get better.

When we give a critique, we don't want to be too negative. The way a critique is delivered is important. We don't want to be condescending, sarcastic, or nasty. We're not in competition with the author. We're trying to help each other. A good rule of thumb is to critique as you'd like to be critiqued.

Ready to give your critique? Where do you start? Different types of writing require varying amounts of feedback. We'll take a look at each separately.

Freewriting, Writing Practice, Journaling
In this type of writing, no editing or censoring is allowed. Grammar and spelling mistakes and junky writing are acceptable, and it doesn't always have to make sense. So how do you critique it? Tell the author your first impressions. How did it make you feel? Did it remind you of anything? Were there places where you saw a lot of energy or places you'd like to see developed into a story? Which areas sounded natural or forced? These critiques will be shorter and less detailed, of course.

Fiction
You won't always have time to do a detailed critique, and the level of critiquing will also depend upon what draft of the story is submitted. If it's an early draft, you'll probably want to hit on the basic elements. A final draft will require more nitpicking, especially if it's about to be submitted for publication. Also, the amount of critiquing depends on what the author wants. It's always helpful if the author states whether he/she wants a nitpicky or a general critique. And don't read other critiques before giving your own

• << previous page
• 1
• 2
• 3
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about How to critique a short story in an online writing group?
We want to hear your view. Write now!