Hi Elisabeth and many thanks for sharing your work with me. This review is to 'Support a member' by THE COFFEE SHOP FANTASY SOCIETY. I am by no means a professional editor and all comments and opinions are just a one person perspective that hopefully you will regard as positive and helpful. The most important thing to remember is to always write for yourself and follow your gut instincts. Take from this review what you find helpful and discard the rest. You will notice that I have not included anything in my review about punctuation or grammar as I am still learning the ropes of this myself. This review is solely based on plot, general feel and overall enjoyment.
Setting/Plot- The plot is not made completely clear as of yet but this is only an expcerpt to the story. Our protagonist, Alexis is discovering she may have supernatural abilities. Setting, vary from a high school and a school bus, although these are not described in depth within the piece.
Pacing- Very fast, the piece for me is a little abrupt and comes across as slightly stiff. However,this is only an excerpt to what I presume belongs to a longer piece and therefore the pace maybe appropriate? The flow seems to warm-up later as we read on, however.
Description- When added, your description is very good, although for me a little brief and rushed. I see you have talent however and some authors prefer not to go in depth in regards to character setting/surround and appearance.
Characterisation- I thought you conveyed Alexis' concern for her brother very well, their relationship is convincing and the paragraph within this chapter regarding their mother, I feel is the most informative and rich of the whole piece. To me, it shows that with some work, all this piece could be just as engrossing. You background description on Alexis as a whole is very good and helps the reader connect with her.
Favourite Passages-
'Scowling angrily, she stomped over to him and grabbed his backpack, yanking him up off the stairs.'- Good description of body language here.
'Alexis felt time slow, whether in reality or her own mind. She reached to embrace her brother as adrenaline flooded her veins. She waited, stomach in her throat, for the impact.'- Well conveyed, I saw and understood this whole paragraph clearly.
'The gravel was suspended in the air, the bus was tilted and falling. Yet, it wasn't falling. Standing up, she looked at the driver and saw his face frozen in fear, the wheel gripped tightly in his hands.'-Again, nice description.
Tweaks and improvements- I know this is an excerpt and probably a work still a work in progress and what I say my just be a personal preference in regards to reading. You prose come across as a little list-like and abrupt eg:'I won't be needing this anymore, she thought, relieved. She folded the paper and put it in her pocket. She stared at her empty locker for a moment, when the hair on the back of her neck suddenly stood on end.'
I feel these could be smoothed out rather than 'she did this. She did that.' a rough example of what I mean is:
'I won't be needing this anymore, Alexis thought, folding the paper and putting it into her pocket. She stared...'
'Alexis would always give the same reply.'- You never tell the reader what the reply was and just tell them the situation. It may be worth giving a reply or taking this sentence out all together. For me as a reader, I wanted a to know what she 'always' replied and when know explanation came, I was a bit peeved.
Overall Conclusion- I liked the idea of this piece but for me personally it lacked a little depth and felt a little rushed. The skeleton of the story was there and I see your talent but I feel more meat needs to be added to the bones of this story. I certainly feel you need to look at your first few paragraphs. Your background story and relationship your protagonist has with her brother is very convincing but the rest of your prose lacked a little substance and rushed a head without divulging much information to the reader and this, for me anyway, made it hard to submerge myself within the story. All it needs is for you to slow the pace, add more description/setting and such and this would be an interesting piece. You provide the reader mystery and I really like the hook of the 'mystery man' who appears in through-out the story. I like where you going with it, so don't give up and I must say I am intrigued to see where your story leads.
Many thanks for sharing you work, and here is little quote that I think all writers should remember:
‘If you can imagine it, then you can create it. If you can dream it, then you can become it.’- William Arthur Ward.
Tigerlilystar.
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