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This week: Reviews: A Main Pillar of Writing.Com Edited by: NaNoNette  
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| Hello, I am NaNoNette and I will be your guest editor for this issue. |
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Reviews: A Main Pillar of Writing.Com
How important is it to send reviews and should you respond to them?
On giving and receiving reviews.
Benefits of reviewing:
Each time you read the work of a fellow writer here on Writing.Com, you will read something that you didn't come up with. Just look at such contests as "The Writer's Cramp" or "Daily Flash Fiction Challenge" and see how many different stories and poems can come from the same prompt. This means, as a reviewer, you get an insight into another person's mind, possibly learn new words, and even become friends with another writer.
Reviewing for fun:
This is kind of the sweet spot of reviewing. If it is for your own fun and reading enjoyment that you searched for something to read here on Writing.Com and left the writer your impression of it, then that is the best! Because: you approached the piece of writing from a reader's point of view. You have your own ideas about life, fiction, and writing, but at this time you don't have to judge the writing or the writer. These reviews that come from true leisure reading are gold for authors because they can give an honest reply to their writing as it impacts another person who didn't come with an agenda.
Reviewing out of interest:
I have, on occasion, searched for items to read because I wanted to learn about a certain topic. Once it was about a specific religious festival. I even found a piece that gave me good information. I sent the author a review thanking him for the good bit of information. This led to a nice email conversation on the topic and I learned more than I would have by reading a static website or a book on the topic.
Reviewing for a group:
This can be good or bad. Good because reviews through groups usually have some sort of standard that the reviewers should follow. It's also bad because those reviews can quickly turn to "quantity over quality" and the reviews are heavily weighed down with all kind of decorations, but hardly say anything about the piece they appear to review.
Reviewing for gift points:
Gift points from reviews come from many sources. Auto rewards that the writer set up, the Writing.Com reviewing system, groups that grant a certain amount of gift points per review sent, and daily review rewards. If you are reviewing for gift points and you send each author an honest review that shows you read the whole piece and really spent some time and effort with it, then it's okay to review for gift points. Some of us buy their memberships in gift points and reviewing for points is good and valid. Careful though with nonsense reviews just to collect gift points. Those might be taken back and you might even become excluded from the Writing.Com review rewards.
How to respond to a review?
First of all (and not everybody will agree), you should ALWAYS respond to a review. As soon as possible, but even months or years later if that is when you discover the review. The reviewer spent their time to read your writing. They did not spend that time writing, eating, sleeping, playing, doing the dishes, or anything else. They worked for you. The least you can do is acknowledge that with even a simple "thank you."
Ideally, in the case of a review that gave you good insight into your writing, send the reviewer some review rewards or gift points. If they read something long, like a novel, send them a merit badge. Also, if they read something long, say a little more than "thank you" and let them know how their critique may or may not affect your writing going forward.
If you have the time, it's always a nice thing to go to a reviewer's portfolio and send them a review in return.
Critical review:
So you got a critical review and you are angry. The reviewer found everything wrong with your writing. Yeech. What did they even do in your portfolio?
Take a deep breath. Take a break. Come back tomorrow. If you can't look past your hurt feelings, send them a quick "thank you" and never look at that review again.
Or:
You read over the critique and see how and where your writing could have created a harsh critique. Realize, a review is another person's opinion. They don't know you, your history, your sense of humor or anything really. Give them the benefit of the doubt and see if any of the critique (aside from pointing out typos where false/correct is clear) is valid and you should see how you can change your writing to get a better review from that same reviewer.
Kind review:
A kind review is one that tells you that your writing is good. When you wrote a compelling story and you have no typos or grammar issues, then such a review is warranted and valid. You should be happy and recognize that you are becoming a good writer. Be sure to thank the reviewer for the encouraging words.
Blah review:
You open a new review you just got and realize that member either didn't read your writing, was more interested in decorating their review, or have a cookie-cutter phrase that is as generic as a horoscope. Those are usually friendly-neutral. You should still send a quick "thank you," but you are under no obligation to start a longer conversation about writing with this user.
Finally:
Reviewing makes you a better writer. Here on Writing.Com you find writers of all skill-levels and from different English speaking regions. Reviewing opens up your horizon. And the best thing about reviewing here on this site is that there is the potential for ongoing conversations about writing. Something you can't get by sending a review about a published piece to some book-selling site. Here, we have the opportunity to influence each other in positive ways and come out better writers.
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For my last newsletter "Publishing. Why. How. Where." , I got the following responses:
Quick-Quill  wrote: If you write to get rich, you'd better keep your day job. Writing is a purge of emotion and knowledge that spews forth and most of the time can't be stopped. If you write for money, you probably aren't writing a book and uploading it to amazon. Sharing a good story, seeing your name in print, reading the reviews and handing out bookmarks are a validation you put together a story. Is it good? I'm sure you think so. Your friends aren't going to tell you the truth. The trick to getting noticed is just that a "trick of fate" How hard you work it, promote it and keep at it is the real story. I have a book published. I feel I'm the only one working it even though my publisher says they are trying.....
They are trying .... whatever that means. Did you pay them to "try" or will they get paid when you get paid?
Dandelion Man  wrote: Self publishing has been around for quite some time and many famous authors have used it as an avenue to jump start their careers, authors you have no doubt heard of and perhaps even read including:
Mark Twain, Huckleberry Finn
John Grisham, A Time to Kill
Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass
Beatrix Potter, the Peter Rabbit stories and others
Arthur Agatston, The South Beach Diet
The list of famous self-published authors includes: Margaret Atwood, William Blake, Ken Blanchard, Robert Bly, Lord Byron, Willa Cather, Pat Conroy, Stephen Crane, e.e. cummings, W.E.B. DuBois, Alexander Dumas, T.S. Eliot, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Benjamin Franklin, Zane Grey, Thomas Hardy, E. Lynn Harris, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ernest Hemingway, Robinson Jeffers, Spencer Johnson, Stephen King, Rudyard Kipling, Louis L'Amour, D.H. Lawrence, Rod McKuen, Marlo Morgan, John Muir, Anais Nin, Thomas Paine, Tom Peters, Edgar Allen Poe, Alexander Pope, Ezra Pound, Marcel Proust, Irma Rombauer, Carl Sandburg, Robert Service, George Bernard Shaw, Percy Bysshe Shelley, Upton Sinclair, Gertrude Stein, William Strunk, Alfred Lord Tennyson, Henry David Thoreau, Leo Tolstoi, and Virginia Woolf.
Quite the list. I find it encouraging.
remusmdh  wrote: I poked this newsletter expecting a quick and easy "delete to make room in the mailbox", but instead found someone not spreading sunshine nor BS. Loved "how do you self-publish" aahahahahaha. So basic, straight-forward... That far too many miss 
It kinda is that easy to self-publish. If you're earning with it is another thing.
brom21 wrote: I have a short story that I am focusing on. I intend for it to become my first published work. Since you put things like that, I will look into self-publishing. Where, however, would get it proofread other than WdC reviews?
Winnie Kay  offers professional proofreading. Contact her.
Monty  wrote: I enjoyed this News Letter although most who know me think of me as for Poetry only. Your N/L is of interest to all writers here as it fits all.
Thank you for reading and commenting. |
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For Authors: July 13, 2016 Issue [#7741]
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