Time for a tantrum

[CeriseNoire]

Just out of curiosity, what is it you think you need to work on before seeking critique?

Flow, dialog, transitions, character development, the list goes on.

 

[Tom Collins]

Flow, dialog, transitions, character development, the list goes on.

That's the sort of stuff that you need critique on in order to know where it is that you're going wrong.

If you're worried about them ripping something to shreads that you're proud of, you could always offer up your least fav piece for consideration.

Just a thought.

 

[CeriseNoire]

That's the sort of stuff that you need critique on in order to know where it is that you're going wrong.

If you're worried about them ripping something to shreads that you're proud of, you could always offer up your least fav piece for consideration.

Just a thought.

Thanks for the suggestion. Now, if I were afraid to have my stories ripped to shreds, I wouldn't bother putting them out there. I don't mind criticism that's actually constructive. I just think that presenting a story for critique when I don't feel it's up to my standards is a bit disrespectful to people who take the time to read and critique. Also, atm I don't have the time to offer the same depth of critique to the other people there.

 

[MadelynW]

Aren't you all smoochable!

Sorry if the title makes you gag...

But really, what a lot to thank you for.

The articles on dialogue were great - I'm making a real effort with my next story and it is forcing me to flesh out my characters big time. I guess you can't make convincing dialogue unless the speakers have personalities.

But I'm still convinced that stories without dialogue can work, too. With my story I was trying to tell the story through the thoughts and impressions of the characters. And I agree that it didn't quite work - I was so close to my characters that I didn't see how little of them was going into the story.

Not to mention the limitations of my abilities. But I'm feeling bullish about this.

 

[JamesSD]

Dialog is definitely my friend. It helps me "show not tell", and frankly I'm not the most descriptive writer. Dialog also helps with "readability" as it breaks up long paragraphs into nice, short little chunks.

No one gets as much feedback as they'd like. Generally I only comment on stories I really enjoyed a lot. A lot of times I don't even finish stories I don't care for. I agree with the advice of asking for feedback on the message boards if critique and improvement are your primary goals.