Wattpad Block Party - Summer Edition III (August 2017)

theotherideas Presents: Tips on Writing a Critique

Hi guys! I'm Nicki, also known as theotherideas on Wattpad, where I'm an aspiring author, graphic designer, contest host and critic. This year, I've had the honor of being featured in the Wattpad Block Party - Summer Edition III. A huge thank you to the awesome KellyAnneBlount for hosting this!

After a lot of consideration on what my post should be about, I've finally decided on sharing some of my personal tips on writing a critique/review for other people's works. I hope that you guys will find these helpful! Please note (in case there's any confusion or anything) that I'm not a professional critique, and I'm not claiming to be one by writing this article.

#1 - Prices: How Much is too Much?

Most of the critique/review books that I've seen on Wattpad require some sort of payment in return for the critic's services. This, on its own, is perfectly fine, but one of the biggest mistakes a critic on Wattpad can make is overcharging.

Think about it: would you want to follow a critic, vote on all chapters of their book, comment three times on every chapter (said book has 67 chapters), dedicate a chapter of your book to them, all for a lazily written, generic three sentence "critique" on your story?

Okay, okay, so maybe that was an exaggeration. However, this is sadly the case on some of the Critique/Review books on Wattpad. I've seen critics charge an insane amount just for a brief overview on a story that could practically be said about, well, any story. Frankly, authors are being cheated.

So what's the ideal payment?

Well, it really depends on what type of review a critic is writing, what the critic personally thinks their review is worth, and the amount of time taken for the critic to write the review. Is it a brief, 250 word overview of someone's story? Maybe a meaningful, 3+ lined comment on a specific chapter of the critic's book will do. Or is it a hefty 2000+ word, chapter by chapter review that really digs deep into the core of a story? In that case, critics can think of charging more such as requiring follows, more comments, dedications, and the like.

Honestly, just don't get too greedy. It rarely ever works.

#2 - Critic: Know Your Stuff

So, you want to be a critic/reviewer. Maybe it's to gain exposure, find new books to read/friends to make, or you just want to work on sharpening your writing skills. That's awesome! But before you start planning out very little detail of your services, stop and think: are you really cut out to be a critic?

It's a harsh statement to make, but it's true. There are some critics out there whose own stories contain numerous grammatical errors, inconsistent plotlines and one-dimensional characters. Yet, here they are, offering to critique other people's work, usually for a price. Is that fair to the customers, who are most likely expecting some usable feedback/criticism on their work? No, not really.

Does that mean that every single critic out there should be a world-class author up in the ranks with J. K Rowling or Stephen King? No, they're not - far from it! However, a critic should know their stuff.

Can they spot technical errors (mistakes in spelling, grammar, etc.)? Can they tell if a piece of writing flows well? If they're critiquing the entire book, do they know the qualities of a clear beginning, middle, and end as well as identifiable exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution? How about character development? These are just a few of the questions that potential critics should ask themselves before taking up the trade. Don't worry if you're not perfect (as stated before, no one is), but a potential critic should have a good deal of knowledge.

#3 - Delivery: The Good and the Bad

So, you've decided that you want to be a critic. You open a shop, and receive a request. Elated, you begin reading your requestor's book. But where do you go from there? How do you deliver your critique?

Every critic has their own style, but there are some general "rules" that almost every critic follows:

Rule One: Don't bash.

Don't bash your requestor's work, even if you're doing one of those 'brutally honest reviews'. This is a must. Your job as a critic is to help your customers improve their work by commenting on what you noticed was lacking in their story, not to tear it apart. Understand the difference between constructive criticism and bashing/destructive criticism. Here are the definitions for the two of them taken from Dictionary.com:

Constructive Criticism: helping to improve; promoting further development or advancement

Destructive Criticism: tending to overthrow, disprove, or discredit

Here's an example below:

Bashing/Destructive Criticism: "This story is absolutely terrible. The characters are so laughably unbelievable and there are so many mistakes that they make my eyes water."

Constructive Criticism: "This story has a lot of potential to grow, but needs a lot of work. At the moment, many of your characters are unbelievable because of *insert reason here*. I also noticed that there were a lot of mistakes littered throughout your work *maybe point out some notable examples*, so I would definitely suggest hiring an editor or going back and editing your story yourself."

Notice the difference? Constructive Criticism, while a little harsh, delivers their criticism in a helpful manner by providing examples of what needs to be worked on. Destructive Criticism does not, leaving the author feeling terrible about their work and not giving any advice at all.

If you're writing a critique and you're confused about whether or not your criticism is constructive or destructive, try imaging receiving your written critique for your own book. Does it help? What type of tone does it have? Does it make you feel angry or upset?

Rule Two: Don't sugarcoat.

With that being said, don't sugarcoat either. A lot of critics, especially new ones, are afraid of offending their requesters and thus hand out untrue, sugarcoated reviews which are more like artificial praise than actual criticism. Although their intentions are usually good at heart, it's quite damaging to their customers and it gives them a false sense of praise and leave them confused and upset if they request another critique and receive an honest but harsh review.

Rule Three: Be a nice person.

I think this goes without saying, but when interacting with customers, be a nice person. By being a nice person I mean being honest (which is a quality that most requesters admire) and friendly (making them feel comfortable with having their work critiqued - it can be a daunting experience for some!). Treat your customers with respect. Sometimes customers can get on your nerves - maybe they're asking 'redundant' questions, or they're filling out the form wrong - but keep your cool. Remember, you were a newbie just like them once.

Sometimes, customers could get rather hateful, and I've had my fair share of those people. Some people are just like that. They could swear, bash your critique and demand that their work is the best, or even take back the payment. The first time I received a truly negative comment, I remember feeling quite depressed and angry. I thought that my critique had been worthless and my hard work had been wasted. However, I took some time and cooled down, before writing back and apologising that they did not feel the same way as I did about their work and that they've had such a negative experience with me as their critic.

Although I didn't need to apologise - I did nothing wrong - writing back in a calm and collected manner does give off an air of professionalism and also shut down the argument quite quickly. If you come in contact with a prickly customer and they keep arguing, you could resort to blocking and/or reporting them.

And, I suppose, this would just about sum it up. I really hope that I've been helpful and that you've enjoyed reading my Wattpad Block Party post! Have an awesome day/night!

Cheers,

Nicki 

***********

Enter the #WattpadBlockParty Giveaways for Your Chance to Win Amazon Gift Cards, Signed Paperbacks, E-Books, Shoutouts from Your Favorite Wattpad Authors, and Much More!

Link: https://goo.gl/2x2anC