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Review Requests: ON
3,159 Public Reviews Given
3,207 Total Reviews Given
Review Style
Casual for the most part. I will point out errors I see and offer suggested corrections. I like to focus on the content and formatting of the item. I love providing helpful comments and feedback that may improve the item if acted on.
I'm good at...
I like to provide suggestions to the author on things I see that may need a second look. I'm not afraid to do a little research to verify a poem's format, or the contents of a story (if requested).
Favorite Genres
Mystery, Horror, Sci-Fi, Comedy, and Suspense
Least Favorite Genres
Honestly, I will read anything if asked. I just prefer those listed above.
Favorite Item Types
Short stories, novellas, books (though a review of that may take days/weeks due to my schedule), Poetry of any format.
Least Favorite Item Types
I find non-structured poetry difficult to review, unless there is a short disclaimer about this non-structure that would help in understanding the reason it's in that particular format.
I will not review...
I'm not interested in Vore, In and Out's, Growing/Shrinking, or other items that are similar to one of these.
Public Reviews
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1001
1001
Review of February Second  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (4.5)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*



Amay,
Interesting poem here, repeating things, like in the movie of the same name. I think you know the answer to the last line, at least you better! I could never write something like this in 28 words, you did well in doing this. A big challenge if you ask me, I've tried the six word contest, and it's tough too. Well done though.

Sum1
1002
1002
Review of Bad Tires  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: 13+ | (4.5)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Hello there,
Forgive me, but I have trouble addressing you as 'Dumb White Guy' *Bigsmile* I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a look.

This is an interesting story about a somewhat eccentric woman who thinks she can control the world. While you didn't delve into it a lot in your story, I'm willing to bet that if she were married, her husband would be at her beck and call. You described the setting well, and it seemed as if she thought she really was in control of everything surrounding her. I also got the impression that she was of medium build (don't know why, because you didn't describe her), light brown hair that was slowly graying at the temples. Funny how things can hit you as you read something, and that's a credit to you and the images you painted without saying anything. *Smile* All in all, a nice story. I did see one thing you may want to look at.


1. and tomorrow being the twentieth, each porch would soon have its own single jack-o-lantern. You had a period before the word 'and', so this should be capitalized.
1003
1003
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: 13+ | (3.5)
Dear Sourmaniack,
         I found this on the static item page, and thought I'd give it a look over. I know how hard it can be to write something really good for the Writer's Cramp, and you've met the challenge with this. It is a good story of a lonely woman whose relationship with her husband has faded to somewhat less than a memory. I found myself feeling a bit like her, and felt a lot of sadness in reading this because of her situation. I do have a little feedback for you about it.



Title: Very nice for this story.


Description: You did nicely telling us it was written for the Writer's Cramp. But now that the contest for that date is over, you may want to move that to the story content as a prologue to the story, and tell us why we want to read this in the description. This is your chance to sell yourself, let's see you do it! *Smile*


Grammar: Very good with a couple of very minor errors.


Spelling: Very good.



Characters: You made Alex seem very real to me, I've seen hundreds of men like him, so I had a vision of him easily. Cindy wasn't so easy for me to see in my mind. Other than essentially taking care of everything around the house, we didn't get to know her very well in this. I know you had a word limit, and that may have been the reason, but now you can add more if you choose, and tell us more about her.



Rough spots?:

1. “Pass the mustard.” This line is indented more than other lines in the story that start a paragraph.

2. “It wouldn’t matter to you what I was doing as long as I dropped it to do your bidding,” Cindy thought as she filled in the wooden parts of the pirate ship with a burnt sienna crayon. “I didn’t marry you to be your slave.” When I first read this, I wasn't sure if Cindy said the first part out loud or not, then in reviewing it again, I would say she was thinking those words, not speaking them. Yet you have the second part of her thinking italicized, so it made it confusing. You may want to somehow identify which is her speaking to Alex, and which is her thinking. You used the italics again in the next paragraph, so maybe she was speaking, but it's still a little confusing.

3. Shaking her head again she dropped the empty can in the trash and returned to her chair at the table. It seems you need a comma after again, it reads like one should be there.

4. By the time the pirate ship was floating on a green sea below a brilliant blue sky, the storm had passed and he was snoring in his chair. I think it should be, "By that time,,," (Minus to quotation marks of course), but use a comma after time.

5. She loved the silky texture and the shading she could do produce with simple wax and a smooth technique. It seems you need to delete do in this sentence.


Overall Impressions: Overall, a good story that just needs a little TLC so it can get even better reviews and grade from future readers. Nicely done!

Sum1

1004
1004
Review of Reflections  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (4.5)
Ken,
         As always, you write a beautiful poem of love. I think you excel at that, more so than when you write about other subjects. I think it's because of the special love you had for your wife. Beautifully written, flows smoothly as you read it, even if one doesn't read it out loud. Well done!

Sum1
1005
1005
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (4.5)
T.E. Caminiti,
         Are you sure that you and Eric Wharton aren't brothers? He wrote an excellent essay called The Sentence Amusement Park
STATIC
3.1 The Sentence Amusement Park  (13+)
A playland filled with poor sentence structure.
#1090999 by Eric Wharton
. I found that to be incredibly helpful to me in improving my writing. I love to write, but I was never very good in my English studies. I can't identify a verb, adverb, adjective, or any of their brothers in a sentence. I think I write decently well, but I let others be the judge of that. I write for me, and I'm thankful I have people on this site like you to educate me on how to properly use the English language.

         This is well written, and for me, helps me understand my language a little more, even at this somewhat late age. Thank you for writing this, every little bit helps. And believe it or not, I enjoyed reading it. Maybe it's time for me to take an English class at a local community college. Thanks again for the enjoyable read.

Sum1
1006
1006
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (4.0)
Dear Nihon,
         Welcome to Writing.com, or WDC as we affectionately call it! I see you're new here, and hope you find this to be a wonderful place to improve your writing skills, and help us all do the same. After all, that's our goal isn't it? To become better writers.

         This is an interesting poem you have here. I love the images you places in my mind about the roaring dragon confined in its prison. Then you calmed the beast by introducing the power of music, very nice! If I may, I have a little feedback for you about this.



Title: Very good for this poem


Description: Your description is good, not as long as it could be, but I'm not sure it needs to be longer for this poem.


General Comments:
1. Placed there by those that hated and feared the creature.

2. These two lines start with 'Its', and just jumps out at the reader. You may want to consider changing one of these.

Its feet pounded and stomped,
Its tail swung and crushed.


3. The next two lines after the ones mentioned in comment 2 both end in 'anger'. Again, you may want to find another word to use to end one of them.



Rhyme/Rhythm: Being a free verse poem, this has little rhyme or rhythm, but then, it doesn't need it.



Overall impressions: An interesting poem about a caged dragon. I would love to see it in rhyme, and a bit longer. Maybe tell us how the dragon became imprisoned in the first place, does it ever get out, and if so, how? Overall though, nicely done!

Sum1
1007
1007
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: 13+ | (4.5)
Robert,
         I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a visit.

         You know, very seldom am I at a loss for words, but this is one of those times. I really don't know what to say, this reminds me a lot of the original 'The Ring', or the Japanese version, 'Ringu'. It seems to me that an evil that one can't understand or comprehend inhabits this little girls body, and after she dies, everyone who looks in her eyes does too. I was chilled reading this, even though I had my small heater going in my room. Well written, a bit scary, very disturbing! Well done!

Sum1
1008
1008
Review of A Family Lost  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (4.5)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Dianne,
          I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a visit. Happy 5th WDC Anniversary!

         Wow, I'm not sure what to say. What a terrible, sad story you've written here. It is well written, flows nicely. I think the only thing I would comment on, is that Sean and Janie's initial dialog about accident didn't seem 'normal'. I'm sure a lot of different things would be said, a lot more said in that phone call. Other than that, it is a very powerful story that flows from a good, loving atmosphere, to tragedy. Well done!

Sum1
1009
1009
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (2.5)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Lydia,
         I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a visit. Happy 3rd Anniversary!

         You have an interesting poem here that speaks of love in words not said, yet a sad love all the same. It is beautiful, but I'm not sure why 'kind of poem' this is. However, I do know this is a nice poem, beautiful as it is. You seemed to want to use 'Old English', but weren't sure of when, or their correct use. (I could be wrong though about that). But I do have some feedback for you.


Title: You have the title on the title line above the poem, but it is not a part of the poem. If it has a title, then the title is a part of the poem, and should be in the body of the text.


Description: I think your description does not do this justice. There is far more you could say about this poem to entice a reader in, after all, you have 92 characters you can use.



Grammar: The use of 'Old English' mixed with modern wordings made this a hard read. I'm not sure some of the words you used are part of Old English. An example would be 'shall'th' (it seems 'Shalt' would fit here instead). I'm willing to bet that if you read an old version of a King James Bible (the Ten Commandments in the book of Exodus in particular), you'd find the words you want to use in this poem.


General Comments:1. You used 'each' to start two consecutive lines, as well as 'written' (which was used three times in those two lines) and 'how'. This tends to detract from the read because it makes the reader think that you didn't have other words at your disposal to use.

2. The last verse has three lines, while the rest have two, and threw me off when I read it. If this part of the poem structure, then forgive my ignorance, and this comment please.

3. These lines are wonderful, but it's a good example of a misuse of Old English.
Does thy cry for truth?
Shall’th the words be the proof?


It seems this would fit a little better, but I'm using it only as an example.

Why doth thy cry for the truth?
Shan't my words be the proof?


Rhyme/Rhythm: The rhyme was very good, until the last verse, the rhythm varied, but fit the read nicely.



Overall impressions: A beautiful poem that just needs a bit of TLC for it to be a wonderful, emotional read.

Sum1

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Go Noticed.
1010
1010
Review of The campaign  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: 13+ | (4.0)
Wally,
         Welcome to WDC, I'm glad you joined! I know this is your first posting, but am hoping you'll post many more items, and enjoy this site like I have.

         This is an interesting story about a meeting in the middle of the night, on what sounds like the coldest night of the past decade. You leave the reader guessing about why this meeting is so necessary on such a night, hiding the outcome until the very end. Nicely done there! I found that because of this, it kept me reading to the end, even though it was late last night when I finally logged on. I liked this a lot, but do have a little feedback for you.


Title: I think the title is off the mark a little. True, the meeting is because a man wants to hide something hideous from his past, something he fears will cause the people of his state to not elect him governor. But to me, a more appropriate title would be 'The Meeting'.


Description: Descriptions seem to be a weak point for everyone here on WDC, my self included. It's our chance to sell our product, and I think yours does a nice job in drawing a reader in.



Characters: We got to know the main character decently well, but I would like to have known a little more. I guess it's that 'inquiring mind' thing in me. We didn't learn much about the man he was meeting though, and in a way, it's understandable, since this was about the candidate; but still, it would have been nice to know a little more about who he was meeting.



Rough spots?:
1. You tend to overuse comma's on some places. I've provided an example from the first line. "I was waiting by the side of the road as the arctic wind whipped the collars of my jacket into my ears, hard and fast, to create a frantic and painful beat." It seems the comma after ears could be deleted without affecting the read.

2. In the second paragraph you start the first two sentences with 'sure'. This seems to attract unwanted attention, at least when I read it. Maybe you could change the second one to 'of course', or something like that.

3. About halfway down it slowed to a stop with an exhaustive moan. It wasn’t going any farther on a night like tonight. I shouldn’t have come this far. But like the window, I couldn’t turn back now. This part should be with the previous paragraph since it's about the same subject.

4. “Of course” was my chilled reply. You need a comma after course in this line. The same comment applies in the next paragraph when the other man says "Of course."

5. Even if I wasn’t worried about my career then (which I wasn’t) there was no good that could every come from this behavior. I think you mean ever, not every.



Overall Impressions: This is a cute story that I think anyone can relate to. After all, we all have skeletons in our closet! *Smile*

Sum1
1011
1011
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (4.0)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Chickenkeeper,
         I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a visit. Happy 1st WDC Anniversary!

         I find this story to be a bit sad, you obviously love your pets/animals, and you felt a bond with this one. I find human-animal relationships to be fascinating, mainly because the average human takes the animal for granted, whereas the animal adores their human keeper (on average of course). I'm wondering if you ever proved your hypothesis about the weasel, it must have caught her while she was focused on getting a bug outside the coop or something.

         I do have a little feedback for you.

Title: Very interesting, and proper for this story.


Description: Your description is very good, it's what caused me to stop and read this.


Grammar: I noticed no errors.


Spelling: I noticed no errors.



Characters: I guess your main character was Buffy (besides yourself), you created a nice image of her in my mind.


Rough spots?:1. I would center the title on the page of the story.

2. I fed my two dogs Ivan and Anna and my cat Pia. I would think a comma after dogs and Anna would improve this line.

3. I watched one in particular-Buffy was just out of chick-hood and was a brown and black and orange-ish bird with a very sweet personality. This sentence reads a little awkward. I think it could be worded better so it would read smoother. A suggestion for it would be, "I watched one in particular,Buffy. She was a brown and black and orange-ish bird just out of chick-hood with a very sweet personality."

4. I soon grew bored of watching my birds bustle around busily eating bugs, so I went in the house again. I soon left for the store, a haircut, and gifts for my father; when I returned the mystery was revealed. You use the word soon in two consecutive lines, you might want to delete one, or reword it somehow. Your last part says 'mystery was revealed', but so far there was no mystery. I would think that before it was a 'mystery' in your mind, that you'd be shocked, saddened, and stunned. Maybe, (again, my own thoughts here), "when I returned I was shocked to see a chicken lying on the ground in the run, the rest huddled inside the coop clucking in fear, no doubt witnesses to the dastardly deed."

5. In several cases, you used a hyphen to stop one train of thought, and start another. The 'usual' thing to do is use comma's. I'm not saying it's wrong, I just found it to be different.

6. I prepare to give Buffy a funeral pyre later this evening and I wish that there was someway to prove my hypothesis that the killer was a weasel. I think you meant prepared.



Overall Impressions: Overall, a sad story of loss. Nicely written, the flow keeps the reader involved. Well done!

Sum1

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Go Noticed.
1012
1012
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (4.0)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Doc,
         I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a visit. Happy sixth WDC Anniversary!

         I got a little chuckle out of this, I wonder if everyone has gone through something like you did. I often think of a word, then say if over and over, and wonder how it came to be. After a while, even the spelling seems off, and the word doesn't make sense. Then when I finally stop, everything comes back to normal, and all is well. It seems this happened with you and time. You did well in listing/describing the types of time (but did you forget Miller time intentionally? *Smile* I don't actually drink Miller, lol). You made this a fun read, leaving the reader with a smile on their face throughout. I do have a little feedback for you.


Title: Your title is on the top of the page, but not in the poem itself. You should add the title to the poem on the page itself, not just at the top. Myself (my opinion only), I'd have it titled as 'Time'.



Description: A description is meant to draw a reader in, a short summary that makes one want to read that particular item. While I wouldn't really call this a poem, I wouldn't call it a story either. But to be honest, I think a good description of this would be your current title. We know it's poetry by your posting, and you could add a little to the title to let us know just a tad more about it. Your current title only uses about half of what is allowed for descriptions, so you could add to it. Maybe something like, "Ah,, Excuse me, but do you have the time? An irreverent look at how we view time."



General Comments:

1. Why is Time trying to get passed me without my Noticing? I think you meant to use past, not passed in this line.

2. You can wait a Minute or an Hour or a Day or a Week or a Year I know what you're doing in this poem, but in this one line, I think you could delete all but the last 'or', and still keep the tongue-in-cheek approach you had throughout the poem.


Rhyme/Rhythm: Being free verse, this has no discernible rhythm or rhyme, nor does it need it. The flow was very good, keeping the reader going throughout.


Overall impressions: A nice comedic look at how we view time, a fun read, worth a moment of your time. (No pun intended).
Sum1

1013
1013
Review of Special Delivery  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (4.0)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Dear Lianahush,
I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a visit. Happy 9th WDC Anniversary!

You do have a way with words, the story you tell here is pretty compelling, pulling the reader in slowly, yet holding them gently at the same time. I loved the images you painted in my mind as I read this. While I have never been involved in a home birthing, I could almost feel myself there with them. I do have a little feedback for you. *Smile*



Title: Perfect for this story.


Description: This is a nice description, it doesn't give the story away much, yet entices one in to read. Nicely done!


Characters: I didn't see a lot of detail about characters here, but I think you focused on what you needed to, the birth of your grandson. I would have liked to see more detail about the baby, his size etc, but I can't fault you for not saying more.


Rough spots?: I saw a few things you may want to look at so this can get even better reviews from future readers.

1. The man, tall and thin lacks his usual laconic composure, he is distracted and seems overwhelmed by the situation. A comma after thin helps this sentence read smoother. I think this would be best as two sentences, the second one starting with, "He is distracted,,,"

2. The fair-haired women are the professionals - the ones in charge, ready for any development but we are all here to work together, to support each other in a ritual as old as time. A comma after development is needed, I paused at that point in the read, as if one was already there.

3. I have never hear him sing before. I'm sure you meant heard, not hear.

4. The cord that has been the physical connection between mother and child sustaining life is severed and is replaced by a stronger, invisible cord that will never be cut - the bond of family. The first part of this sentence seems clumsy, even after reading it four to five times. Maybe something like this would work for you. The life sustaining cord that has been the physical connection between mother and child is severed

5. The doorbell rings many times this Sunday afternoon, Grandma, Grandpa and Patsy, and Pardy arrive to meet Jack Melvin Trevor. You have two 'ands' in this sentence, and should delete the first one.



Overall Impressions: A wonderful story of home childbirth, naturally done, and naturally written with a nice flow to it.

And please accept a personal Happy WDC Anniversary greeting from me!

Sum1
1014
1014
Review of More About Me  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: E | (5.0)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Sherrie,
You know, it's hard to find something to review in your port (said tongue in cheek). I love reviewing, even more so, I love reviewing something that needs it because no one else has. This one is unique because it's YOU! So I don't know how to review it, other than to say, "Thanks for sharing a part of you with us." I appreciate honesty, I try my best to live by that good ol' rule we all learned as kids, "Treat others as you would have them treat you." Thank you again for sharing yourself with us, I look forward to returning another day (when it isn't approaching midnight), and review something of yours. And of course, Happy WDC Anniversary!

Sum1
1015
1015
Review of The Streak  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
In affiliation with I.N.K.E.D.  
Rated: 18+ | (4.5)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Jace,
I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop by for a visit. Happy 3rd WDC Anniversary!

I have never streaked, but wanted to, never found the right time or place I guess. This is a really good story about your streaking experience. I loved the final critique, it was right on the money. I just don't see why that poor hapless man removed his glasses, I'm sure he'd be recognized with or without them. Very cute, pretty funny. I can see why it won the contest. Well done!

Sum1
1016
1016
Review of What's In A Name  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: 13+ | (4.0)
Dear Sirius,
I see you're new to Writing.Com (WDC), so welcome to our world! I hope you have fun on this site, and become what I think all writers want to be, a better writer. *Smile*

I saw this on the newbie page, and thought I'd give it a look. I love stories with a twist in them, this one doesn't disappoint in that regard. I could see early on that English isn't your first language, when I visited your port, I could see that. So a lot of what I point out are not necessarily errors, just the way you see our language. The fact that anyone can write or even think in a foreign language amazes me. I do have some feedback for you about this,,,


Title: Very good for this story.


Description: This is nice, but you can do better I know. Entice the reader, tell us why we should want to read this.


Grammar: Very good, considering English isn't your native tongue. There are a few things for you to look at, detailed below.


Characters: Describe the men to us a little more. Let us get to know them. You described Mr. Bryant a bit, but we knew nothing about Frank, other than he was a detective.



Rough spots?:

1. Many of your sentences just end, no period, nothing. I saw this occurring most often at the end of dialog.

2. “It maybe possible, but there is something else you should know” This is one of the sentence I mentioned in comment #1. The period belongs inside the quotation marks.

3. “Whatever you say, Mr. Bryant, but I am telling the truth, somebody was tailing her, one time he even tried to ran her over by his car, I am surprised she didn’t tell you that” Another period missing

4. Frank took a long pause and then said “No, my job was to find out who was after her, not that who she was having an affair with” You should delete the word 'that', it is not correct where it is, and of course, add that period.

5. “Who made you detective, haven’t this thought crossed your mind that her lover might be behind that, her lover might drove her to death” Change "haven't" to "hasn't". The rest reads a bit clumsy. It might be better worded as, “Who made you a detective? Hasn’t this thought crossed your mind? Maybe her lover is behind everything, that her lover drove her to her death?”

6. You don’t wanna know who was trying to kill her” Wanna is slang for want to, you've done well in your English so far, I'd change wanna to want to.

7. love.She was a decent woman, i should have told her how much i loved her.I indeed drove her to suicide. You need a space between the sentences, the letter "I" when alone is always capitalized.

8. “But if your wife committed suicide, and this is her grave, where my Maggie is?” Where is my Maggie is a better way of wording that.

Overall Impressions: A nice mystery here, you never tell us where the other Maggie is. So, I'm left wondering if there will be a sequel.

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Go Noticed.

Sum1
1017
1017
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: 13+ | (4.5)
Ken,
As usual, you don't disappoint. I found this to be a bit amusing with a few "Kenism's" thrown in. I do hope this isn't a true story, at least the part about losing your wife. Everything your write about is so true. Even more so if you're just 'separated', and not divorced or something like that. I've found it easier to be alone, than go through what you've described. Very nicely done!

Jim
1018
1018
Review of Distant hearts  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: 13+ | (4.0)
Dear Prashan,
I saw this on the 'read a newbie' page, and decided to read it. And I'll be honest, I wanted to read it because of the 'misuse' of the word hours in the description. That should be 'ours'. The minute I saw your name, I knew English was your second language, and knew I'd see a few errors here and there, so I was prepared. What I wasn't prepared for, is the wonderful story of love you wrote! Your talent is easily seen, it's natural. I will try to provide you constructive feedback on this without sounding derogatory, or as if I'm saying things in it are not correct.


Title: Your title is excellent for this story.


Description: This is what made me more determined to read this story. Well done!


Grammar: I will discuss grammar issues in the area below called rough spots.


Spelling: I noticed no errors.



Characters: You made Peter very real to me, Revana was a little less real, mainly because this story is all about Peter. You might want to describe Revana a little more. Tell us how tall she is, color of her eyes maybe, what she enjoyed doing (as far as you could tell from the distance you kept), was she slender or slightly heavy set, etc.



Rough spots?: I wouldn't call these rough spots for this story. I'd call them your excellent use of English as a second language, but areas you will want to look at to further improve your use of the English language. Please keep in mind these are only suggestions, I am certainly no expert in the English language myself. *Smile*

1. Anyone would think ‘My gosh, what an evil person!’ who can blame them? You should also add the word 'and' before who. This will just help tie in the dialog to the description.

2. Peter had a target-to, someday-practice medicine as a successful doctor. It was his dream. This might be better worded as 'Peter had a dream; to work hard in his studies of medicine so he could become a successful doctor.'

3. Peter went to some extra classes apart from schooling, to get some extra knowledge to better his grades. You can delete the second use of extra. You've already told us he's going to extra classes apart from schooling, so it's obvious that he's looking for extra knowledge. Maybe this would work for you, 'Peter attended extra classes apart from schooling, to better his grades in each class.'

4. He may be a silent person, but he never was afraid to talk to the teachers, a common fear that his friends had. There were many other fears-insane fears-handed from generations to generations in the society they knew. This section reads a little clumsily to me. What you don't tell the reader here is that he was comfortable talking to the teachers because he was eager to learn, therefore he wasn't shy about being with them. He wasn't afraid of being ridiculed by them because they knew more than he did, so that made him feel safe around them. However, even though he was eager to talk to girls, they (along with the boys he knew) were his peers, people on equal footing with him, and that meant that they may tease him about things, and it was something he didn't want to face. Perhaps it would be better worded as, 'He may have been a silent person, but he never was afraid to talk to the teachers, a common fear that his friends had. but there were many other fears handed from generation to generation in the society they knew.'

5. One evening before the class starts Peter was reading some notes outside the building. His friends chatting and girls doing the same in a different place away from them. Three young girls came and joined the others. Peter noticed that one of them was much more interesting than any other girl he has ever seen. In this whole section here, you write as if it is in the present, while the rest of the story so far is written as if everything occurred in the past. Maybe this would work, 'One evening before the class started Peter was reading some notes outside the building. His male friends were nearby, chatting with each other. Girls were doing the same, yet not chatting with the boys, they stood apart from them. Three young girls came and joined the others. Peter noticed that one of them was much more interesting than any other girl he had ever seen.

6. Tall, dark eyes that matched to her dark hair which was cut in a bob cut style. Delete the word 'to' after matched.

7. Class was as interesting as ever. But for Peter it was more interesting than ever. This would be better worded as, 'Class was as interesting as ever, but for Peter it was more so.'

8. She is so charm. Charm should be charming

9. They both looked away red with shy. This too is a little clumsy, and may be better worded, 'They both looked away with red faces, a little embarrassed, obviously shy.'

10. Next week Peter waited before the class starts until she comes. The whole week he missed her face. And finally she came. He felt like a great stone blocking his veins and air supplies as she went passing him in to the classroom. He wanted to say ‘Hi’. But the fear grabbed him each time he tried. He cannot talk to her and that’s for sure. Maybe this would work here for you. 'Next week Peter waited before the class starts until she came, and finally she arrived. The whole week he had missed her face. He felt like a great stone was blocking his veins and air supplies as she passed him as she entered the classroom. He wanted to say ‘Hi’. But fear grabbed him each time he tried. He could not bring himself to talk to her.'

11. Revana on the other hand felt very uneasy as she passed him in to the classroom. She, never in her life, has smiled to a boy. But she really wanted to smile to Peter. But she too, like Peter, had no guts. This is such a nice paragraph here, you describe how Revana feels around Peter. But it may be better worded as, 'Revana on the other hand felt very uneasy as she passed him entering the classroom. She never in her life had smiled at a boy. But she really wanted to smile at Peter. But she too could not bring herself to do it.'

12. ‘What would she say if I talk to her, I wander. Will she talk to me or will she walk away? If I talk to her the other girls and boys will surely laugh at us. I can bare it but it is not good for HER’ Peter thought. This follows the previous paragraph nicely, you change the viewpoint and tell us why he can't bring himself to talk to her. And it's all because he's afraid others will laugh at the both of them, and he did not want her hurt. Wander should be wonder. Bare should be bear. Add a comma after HER.

13. He doesn’t look very much friendly. He does not have a smile. He will surely scold e if I talk to him and he will surely frown at me if I smile at him. What is this strange feeling? Why do I so much want to talk to a person that I fear? Thought Revana. This might be better worded as, 'He doesn’t look very friendly. He does not smile often, he would surely scold me if I talk to him. He may even frown at me if I smile at him. What is this strange feeling? Why do I want to talk to a person that I fear?' thought Revana.'

14. ‘He is a person who studies very hard. He does not have a place in his mind for a woman, specially a lonely girl like me.’ Change specially to especially.

I think you see the minor differences in how the story is now worded. I've not changed your story one bit, just changed a few words, or wordings here and there. I will not do the rest just to keep this a little shorter than it would be if I did comment on the rest. See if you can use the examples provided to make changes there where needed.


Overall Impressions: This is a beautiful story of love that is never realized. And that is what makes it a very sad story. Beautiful. Sad. Lovely. Sad. Very nicely done!

Sum1

My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Go Noticed.
1019
1019
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: E | (4.5)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Doug,
I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop by for a visit. Happy WDC Anniversary!

I remember reading 'The Raven' long ago, but remember little of it, other than that it held me captive as I read it. This is a very enlightening story of Edgar Allen Poe, almost a short biography. Thanks for writing this, and informing me of his eccentricities. It is well written, flowed nicely and kept me wanting to read more about Poe. Well done!

Sum1
1020
1020
Review of Noah's Ark  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: 18+ | (5.0)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Shannon,
My God, what memories you brought me just now. Not that I've lost a child. No, I've been spared that torment. But I joined WDC in mid-June 2010; this was the first contest I entered. I remember being a little disappointed when my entry got very little attention. It was graded fairly, and received good reviews, but not good enough to win that contest. It pales when compared to this story. It is wonderful, heart wrenching, with a ray of hope at the end. I remember being impressed with it when I first read it (and realized I was amongst excellenet writers here on WDC, and that I'd have to really improve if I expected to win contests). I didn't review it, I didn't know better, didn't know I should read AND review the winning entry. Absolutely outstanding, there's nothing more I can say.

Sum1
1021
1021
Review of Day 2: Trees  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: E | (4.5)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Dear Hyperiongate,
I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a visit. Happy WDC Anniversary!

I love stories that have a twist, and this one is very cool if you ask me. I could see her lying there looking up at the trees, and when I found out she couldn't move, I was wondering where you were taking this in such a short story, then I got the twist. Nicely done! A little feedback for you, if I may.



Title: Fits the story very well.


Description: I think descriptions are something most of us here on WDC fail to write well. We write wonderful stories or poems, yet when it comes time to describe it, time to write something that will entice people in to read, we fail. Yours is short and to the point, and fits well.


Grammar: I noticed no errors


Spelling: I noticed no errors



Characters: It's hard to get to know Janice in such a short space, but you did decently well in describing her without going overboard. You had fifteen minutes, I think you met the challenge. *Smile*



Rough spots?: This isn't a 'rough spot'; the only suggestion I have for this is to indent the first line in each paragraph. Very minor comment on that.


Overall Impressions: A well written story about alien abduction, except we don't know that til the end. Well done!

Sum1
1022
1022
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: E | (2.5)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Dear Surfng,
I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a visit. Happy WDC Anniversary!

As I read through this, I felt I was reading something that was passed down generation to generation. I applaud that you have tried to put that passed down story into words. But the thing you have to do in that, is change the wording some so it is easy for people who do not live in the southern states, whether it be South Alabama as the description says, of Florida as described in the story. There were many times that I felt I was reading something written in a foreign language, and it caused me to re-read several lines and paragraphs. I do have a little feedback for you about this story.


Title: The title is "Legend Of The Catman Trail", but no where in the story do you mention 'Catman' (or Catmen), nor men at all. Three witches in an ancient coven seem to be the main characters of this story.


Description: In the description, it says it's a legend about an old trail in South Alabama, but the story seems to center in Florida. Is the trail in South Alabama? Or Florida? Both? If both, don't mention one state in the description, and another throughout the story.


Grammar:

1. Many of your sentences are very long. Read the first one aloud. If you find yourself stopping to take a breath (or two), then the sentence needs to be broken up into multiple ones. There were several words and 'wordings' I am not familiar with, and made me pause in the reading to ask myself, "What are they really trying to say?"

2. You do not capitalize the first word in your sentences, nor your title. This should be done if you want this story to receive constant excellent reviews and grades from future readers. You may want to consider centering the title on the page, and indenting the first line of each paragraph.


Spelling: Your spelling was fine, other than not capitalizing the first word in each sentence. The only time you used capital letters was to stress a point near the end of the story. That is a nice touch, and works well for that. But, the first word in each sentence must be capitalized. This helps the reader identify the start of a new sentence.


Characters: I did not 'connect' with the three witches in the story. I think this may be due to not being from that area of the country, and not understanding some of the wordings you chose to use.


Rough spots?: I do have a few comments for you about the general content of this story.

1. three witches watch over the enchanted forest. as dusk falls silently around the giant live oaks, and spanish moss whispers together, the forest itself breaths in quiet sighs of longing for the old days of spanish gold pieces, or even further back when the indians of the glade wrapped ceremonies of worship to the trees; the holy trees which reach skyward and form the forest canopy backlit by the pinprick stars at night . This is the FIRST sentence of your story! It should be three or four sentences instead of one, with the first word of each sentence capitalized. Delete the space between night and the period that follows it. Spanish, as does indians, needs to be capitalized, no matter where it is in the sentence.

2. a silver moon rises above the black waters of the inland lakes which stream down to the gulf of mexico and her emerald clean seas, the path of alligators and gars, and the native creek tongued peoples of the island. This too is a bit wordy, and the words gulf, and mexico need to be capitalized.

3. spinning in the silver light giant spyders weave their nocturnal flashing webs while the day flutters of butterfiles winged silent at night's forest falling. Spyders should be spiders. Butterfiles should be butterflies.

4. the wiches gather and brew. Witches, not wiches. Having this line sit alone before and after that paragraph does not make sense to me.

5. fluttering on wings of color, yellow and black and spotted alert to the new day dawning before its antenna, and cacoon cast off in metamorphosis, the forest child hidden against the bark of witches worship; leaves her safety to challenge the flowered woods. Cacoon should be cocoon. This is very long also, and to be honest, I don't understand what you're trying to say.

6. cheating her fate, she follows the lit colors of morning's dew, to the garden, the gesthemane of our witches prayers. leaving behind the jaws of wracked pain and despair, the butterfly of the forest lands on the flowers of our hope, sucking the sweet pollen down to begin the morning of our birth. our children's children breathe the hope of our ages. I don't understand the word gesthemane, I've never heard it, and suspect it's a slang term, or one used by those who live in the deep south. If that's the case, then you need to identify that in the story with a (), and wording in between the () to explain what it means so the average reader knows what you mean.

7. they garnered no riches upon this earth to turn under the keepers of the forest, for worldy gain, but held tight to the promise made

eternal ages ago.
Worldy should be worldly. I don't understand why these three words are separated from the rest of the paragraph. You should edit this to put them on the same line as the rest of the paragraph.


Overall Impressions: Old legends are great when passed down from generation to generation. But writing them down can be difficult. I would love to re-read this after you edit it, if you choose to edit it.

Sum1
1023
1023
Review of Reading Aloud  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: E | (4.0)
K. M.,
This will not be a review, but a note to you about hope, about 'growing' as a writer. One may ask why I'm putting it here in a review? Well, others may feel the same way, and if they read it, they may find hope in it too.
I find this poem, though it's not really a poem, a little upsetting. You might ask why, and I'll tell you. I didn't discover a love of writing until I was in my 40's! And late forties at that. I think this poem speaks of what we all encounter. As a beginner writer, we write stories or poems that we are very proud of. But as we mature, as we learn more about writing, obtain better writing skills, we look at the 'old' things we wrote, and are aghast at how poor it was written. I look at some of my old poems, and am almost ashamed of them. Some I haven't posted on WDC, because in my opinion, they are not near good enough to be posted here. Or what I should say, is that they don't meet the standards I have for myself today. Yet when I wrote them years ago, I was very proud of them.
So we grow, we learn to write better. As we do, we raise the bar of expectations for what we do. And, things we wrote long ago no longer measure up.
What I want to really tell you, is do not give up. Never give up! Just realize that you are growing and maturing, and becoming a better writer. *Smile* Then go out and show the world what a better writer you've become.

Sum1
1024
1024
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: E | (4.0)
Dear KHunt,
I saw your suitcase on the Anniversary Review page, and thought I'd drop in for a look-see. Happy WDC Anniversary!

At least I'm not the only one who had trouble watching his siblings in growing up. I found this to be a cute story, one that made me smile as I read it. You seemed to dislike having to watch your brother, yet when you looked around and didn't see him with his group, your love for him shone very bright. I do have a couple of comments for you.



Title: Fits the item well.


Description: In creating this, you chose 'short story', so there's no need to really tell the reader it's a short story about a girl losing her brother in a museum. Tell us a little bit of what happened, maybe how you didn't like watching 'the brat', yet when it really counted, you found you really loved him. Make the person who comes to your port WANT to read the story!

Grammar: I noticed no errors


Spelling: No errors noted



Characters: I could see the two of you it seemed, you were pretty real to me.



Rough spots?: There is one line that you may want to look at

1. I assured him that everything is going to be fine and he looked up at me and said, “I got lost because you weren’t with me.” You wrote this and described things occurring in the past. You should change 'is' to 'was' as a result.



Overall Impressions: A nice story about your love for a brother you thought you didn't like having around. Nicely done!

Sum1
1025
1025
Review of Body Talk  
Review by Sum1 Is Home!
Rated: E | (3.5)
*Candleb*HAPPY WDC ACCOUNT ANNIVERSARY FROM "Anniversary Reviews*Candlev*


Hello Devine Miss Devin,
I saw your suitcase on the anniversary review page, and thought I'd drop in for a look-see. Happy WDC Anniversary!

This is a nice love poem, one can feel your love for this person in every word. I think we've all had someone like this in our lives, and for the most part, we're afraid to tell them, afraid of rejection. I do have a couple of comments for you about this.

1. I would center the text on the screen. You can use writingML for this, or highlight the entire text, and look at the toolbar on top that is visible when you're in the edit mode, and press the button to center text. (Looks just like the center text button in Microsoft Word).

2. Include the title in the body of the poem.

3. Even though repeating the lines "I Love You", "Don't tell", and "Like You" is dramatic, I think it detracts from the read. You can use each line one, and underline the text, and make it bold using writingML.

4. Tell the reader a little more about why you love this person so much. What is is about them that attracts you. Are they beautiful, do they exude sexuality/sensuality? Does the sound of their voice turn your knees to jelly, causing you to quickly find a place to sit so you don't look foolish? Does the sight of them make you drool, at least inwardly? Tell us! This will increase the power of the poem, and make a reader say, "Wow!" when they are through reading it.

Sum1
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