As writers, very few of us have ambition to simply store our blood, sweat and tears in a dark closet, never to be read by another soul. The great majority of us seek to be published, or at the very least, to share our work with family, friends, and our fellow writers on numerous stages. Therefore, it is imperative that we are ready for the world at large, especially when the work we create is so much a part of who we are.

I speak specifically of the importance of accepting critique.

I can’t think of one writer (and correct me if I’m wrong) who, during their career, has not been criticized or outright flamed at least once, and I’m sure every writer on DA has experienced the same. Accepting these instances is so very important, because it not only reflects on us as people and artists, but it is one of the great stepping stones on our journey to become the best writer we can possibly be.

In this article I will outline a few of the important points that I have found in my many years as a writer and critic. And keeping with the spirit of this article, feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, offer a counterpoint or add your own instances/rules/examples as you see fit. (Just be respectful!) Also, these lessons may be useful to visual artists, though not every specific will apply.



Responses To Comments/Critiques
Here on DA, it is so simple to find new writers and leave them feedback. It’s a fabulous feature for us! However, this may open up inexperienced or soft-skinned writers to the disillusionment of critique if they aren’t properly equipped to handle it. Here are my recommendations on proper responses depending on the style of comment.



When the Commenter Leaves A Detailed, Yet Friendly Critique
Here’s the scenario: You’ve just posted a short story you’ve worked your butt off perfecting. You love it! It’s a masterpiece. Then you log on to DA one day to find a comment from someone that sounds like this:

“Great story! There were just a few things that could have been done better:

On line so and so, instead of (this), you could try (this).
Also, I felt the character’s emotions were all over the board, and didn’t fit with his back story as a hard-edged, self-made cowboy.
You may also want to think about dropping the 7-11 clerk with the cockney accent; his part in the story only adds unnecessary wordiness.”

Oh, the heartache! Doesn’t this jerk know you spent the last week staying up till 3AM researching that cockney accent and writing that cowboy’s back story??

No, that “jerk” doesn’t, and to be frank, it doesn’t matter to your readers. When you post a story in a public forum, you are welcoming both critique and praise. That is the most important thing you can remember! DA is rare in that it has many options allowed a Deviant concerning comments. Sure, you can turn on the “Critique Not Desired” setting, but you can’t prevent someone from leaving it, unless you disable comments altogether. This is your choice, but I advise against it; you will be missing perfect chances to learn. But if you don’t want feedback- good AND bad- stuff your writing in a drawer instead of posting it online. You can’t post it on the internet, and then become upset that people tell you something you don’t want to hear.

Best Response: At the very least, thank the person that critiqued you for their time. Even if you don’t agree with their points, and would never think of taking their advice, that person still put in time and effort to read your work and then leave a comment trying to help you. You don’t have to agree with them, use their suggestions or even rewrite your story, but thank them for their time and suggestions.

Worst Response: Based on my experience, the absolute worst response you can give is to list all the reasons why the way you did it is better than the critique’s suggestions. This includes but is not limited to:
“I’m normally not picky about character names, but this one is special.”
“You need to read the entire series of these characters. Then you would understand why there is no emotion in this piece.”
“The whole point of this story was to lead up to that surprise twist ending. Without it, there is no story, so your suggestion to take it out is stupid.”

Et al, etc. There are a few reasons this is a bad response.
1. You don’t need to justify yourself to anyone. So someone told you to change a character name, and you disagree because it’s in honor of your lost grandmother? Totally fine. Your readers don’t know that, however; they only know what you put in front of them. But what you change about your story is your business.
2. It makes you look defensive, insecure, combative and, sometimes, even snobbish. It may even make you look like you think your writing is perfect, and you don’t need suggestions. (PS: Not true. No one’s writing is perfect. Not even yours.) Making it as a writer is hard enough as it is without a bad reputation like that; you don’t need it! And if you choose to pursue publishing one day, no editor in the world is going to put up with that kind of behavior.
3. Remember, this person took time out of their day to read and comment on your work! That is nothing to sneeze at! Be grateful, not defensive!

Bottom line is, only you can decide what goes into your writing, and not every suggestion you get is going to work. You don’t need to explain to every critic why their suggestion won’t work (especially when you haven’t even tried it yet!). But you should remember your best manners as a person and treat those who comment with respect.



When the Critique Is Just Useless

“This story sucks.”
“So-and-so writes it better.”
“You’re just trying to be (insert famous writer here) and you’re not.”
“This was so boring.”

Ah, the bane of writers; these one-lined, useless little imps. It can frustrate and anger when you receive them. You may think, “Why did this person even bother?” And you’d be right; these types of comments do nothing to help a writer in their craft.

Best Response: Ask the Deviant to be a bit more specific. This may seem silly, given their already negative tones, but the point of a critique is to help you understand how your audience views your work, and to help you make changes in your style that better your writing. Simply being told “This story sucks” just doesn’t cut it. So find out why they said it! “What sucks about it? What is it about so-and-so’s writing that you like? What about my work reminds you of (famous writer)? What bored you- the plot, the dialogue, the pace…?” Asking these questions, you may get actual honest answers you can use. Or, if the Deviant in question had no intention of helping and only wanted to anger you, this kind of response usually bores them and makes them move onto another target.

Worse Response: Any kind of childish retort or response in anger is generally a bad idea. “Well you suck, and so does so-and-so! I am totally the next (famous writer) and your mom is boring.” That’s not helping anything, least of all your writing. If you can’t drum up the patience to ask them for more specific help, then at least ignore the Deviant in question.



When A Commenter Critiques Your Work Halfway Through A Story
I’ve had this happen to me, and seen it several times. Here is the comment I received:
“I only read the first couple of paragraphs, but it seems like you go WAY too far into description of every tiny detail. In every sentence. =/”

Now, I’ll be the first to admit I get wordy. But what was unusual about this comment was that the Deviant admitted he hadn’t even bothered to read the entire story, yet was judging it. You probably already have or will receive comments like this. It is frustrating to a writer because in this case, they couldn’t even bother to finish the story, but yet felt they had enough information to critique it.

Best Response: Challenge the Deviant to help you out. When they admit they didn’t finish the story, ask them to do so and leave you a more appropriate comment. In the personal example above, I pointed out to the Deviant that critiquing, like writing, is no good when it’s half-assed, and asked if he wouldn’t mind reading the whole work before critiquing so that I can get something constructive to use. This quickly took the wind out of his sails and I never heard from him again. When you respond in an adult, patient and respectful manner to situations like this, the type of people who do these immature things will quickly lose interest. They wanted a rise out of you, usually, not patient acceptance.

Worse Response: As much as you may want to, don’t rise to anger or flaming with the critic. This may bring more trouble than it’s worth, and is definitely not a good use of your time.




When The Commenter Attacks Your Subject Matter
So someone who hates horror movies just came across your work all about bloodsucking vampires, or perhaps you just finished a masterpiece about a parallel reality in which Hitler won WWII and someone of German or Israeli descent is disgusted with it. Does their personal distaste mean the story itself is bad?

No!

If a commenter condemns your piece based on its plot points alone, you do not want to be drawn into a battle of opinions and try to explain why they should like it. Fact is, they won’t change their mind. What you can do, however, is ask for more constructive criticism. If they took the time to read your entire story and tell you how terrible you are for writing about (insert subject here), then ask them for something you can use to better your writing in the future.

Best Response: Ask them questions like “Aside from the plot itself, was there anything about my writing voice/style you enjoyed? Can you give me any feedback on how to clean up my dialogue? Was the speech the main character gave advocating slavery too wordy?” They may give you honest answers to your question(s) that you can use in the future or in a rewrite. Hell, you may even make a friend. Or they may ignore your questions because they really only wanted to flame your idea, not actually assist your work; you are no worse off than when you started.

Worst Response: Something like: “Well, you’re stupid for trying to infringe my creativity”, or “Open your mind, Square!” Again- don’t start a battle with them.



When The Commenter Attacks You Personally
If a commenter on your piece has the audacity to flame you as a person based on your looks, likes/dislikes, religion, beliefs, viewpoints, etc- this is abuse. And it is not tolerated!

Best Response: Ask the commenter to be respectful or to not visit your page. If this doesn’t help, report it to your Gallery Moderator or DA Admins immediately and/or block the user from your page. The flamer will be dealt with appropriately and leave you alone, and it will reflect well on you since you took the adult route.

Worst Response: Do not be drawn into a battle of words, insults, etc. with this person; it will reflect badly on you and may even result in YOU being disciplined by the Admins.



All in all, the best thing you can remember is that your critics are people too and, for the most part, they are only trying to help you. Be respectful, and don’t be afraid to admit that you will always be learning how to better your craft every day of your life, therefore there is no reason to shy away from the assistance of another!

If you feel I've missed (or misrepresented) anything, or just plain disagree- correct me!