 Poetry: August 31, 2022 Issue [#11540] |
This week: Just a Suggestion Edited by: Fyn  
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From my close observation of writers... they fall into two groups: 1) those who bleed copiously and visibly at any bad review, and 2) those who bleed copiously and secretly at any bad review. ~~Isaac Asimov
A bad review is like baking a cake with all the best ingredients and having someone sit on it. ~~Danielle Steel
Praise and criticism seem to me to operate exactly on the same level. If you get a great review, it's really thrilling for about ten minutes. If you get a bad review, it's really crushing for ten minutes. Either way, you go on. ~~Ann Patchett
It's enormously cheering to get a good review by someone who seems to understand your work.~~ Kenneth Koch
I wish I could be like Shaw who once read a bad review of one of his plays, called the critic, and said: 'I have your review in front of me and soon it will be behind me.' ~~Barbra Streisand
If a book I've committed myself to review turns out to be 'disappointing' I make an effort to present it objectively to the reader, including a good number of excerpts from the text, so that the reader might form his or her own opinion independent of my own. ~~Joyce Carol Oates
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Reviews. There are good ones, well-thought-out ones, bad ones, horrific ones, useful ones, and totally useless ones! We've all gotten them. Yes, a great review is awesome. You want to shout out to the world - 'Hey there! Someone really likes my poem!' It makes us smile, lift our heads, and it validates what we do.
But. What constitutes a 'good review'? (And, just to be specific, I am not talking seeing five shiny stars!) Reading 'I loved this, this was great,' in and of itself tells us nothing. What was good? Voice, tone, method, subject? What? Conversely, a review that says, 'I didn't like this, it was boring.' also says nothing at all. Why? Wording, rhyme scheme, the point?
For me, a 'good' review is one that is informative, both gives and shows the reasoning behind the thoughts, and even when it says things that I might not care for, it lets me know the 'why' behind the criticism. This may, indeed, be helpful! Perhaps a thought wasn't as clear as the reader thought it could have been. Perhaps they simply disagreed with the premise. Valid reactions. And then I can apply it or not.
I used to think telling someone that a phrase or poem was 'well-crafted' was a compliment. But it wasn't as much so as I thought at the time, because I didn't say why, didn't show the writer what about it was so 'well-crafted' --such as what stood out and why it all fell seemingly into place so well. I've since learned to give examples - good and bad (when appropriate) that shows the reasoning behind my thoughts. This then gives the poet/writer, a solid place to look at.
There is nothing quite like reading a brilliant turn of phrase. One of the ones that stops you in your tracks to go back and read it again just for the sheer pleasure of it! Equally, there is nothing quite like a string of words that loses you mid-thought and leaves you going, 'Whaaaat?'
The point of reviewing is three-fold. 1. You can learn a LOT about writing from the exercise of giving a review. You have to dig deep into what the writer is trying to say, how they say it, and go from there. Does it work? Why or why not? One has to think about how they, themselves might word it. (This is not to say that the writer should do it only that way!) But it is still a good exercise. 2. The second reason is to offer constructive criticism as to how it might or could be revised to make it better/more understandable/more eloquent. It lets the writer know you read it, and that you found it incomplete somehow and wished it was more 'something or other' because of blah blah blah. It still shows there is value in what they did or tried, but still needs some playing with in your estimation. 3. The most fun, of course, is the review that loves the concept, the wording, the rhythm, or the rhyme. It appreciates the work that went into the piece. It values the work of the writer.
That being said, the work of the writer should always be valued. We may not 'get' it, we may not understand it, or we may not have a life experience to truly comprehend where they meant the piece to go, but there is a fine line between our understanding and their means to communicate the thought. Which is the one lacking? May well be either or both. And that is something to keep in mind.
No one ever wants to get a totally negative review with one star that is patently unhelpful or just mean. Frankly, it is a useless review. For a while, there was an anonymous reviewer who did just that. It was frustrating in the extreme. It hurt. Maybe they were having a horrid few months. (And maybe that was their way of screaming at the world in general. (?) Maybe they really hated my writing. (which makes me wonder why they kept reading my work?) Maybe they were just a miserable excuse of a person. (Which is sad.) Doesn't really matter, because, over time, I learned to let it go. Did it mess with 'star ratings? Yup. Nose-dive city. But then, others read it and things even out. You absolutely cannot please all of the people all of the time. What one may deem 'drivel' another will think something 'brilliant.' It is what it is and each of us has our likes and dislikes.
I always look for potential in a piece that I think needs a lot of work. I try to suggest what might be improved and suggest ways in which that might be accomplished. I ask that they let me know if they have revised/edited/reworked their piece and I will go back and review it again. We all (whether or not the aim is getting published) want to further hone our craft. At least that is my assumption which may not always prove true!
There was a long review I wrote once where I seriously thought the writer was almost 'there.' But weren't ... yet. The piece had massive potential to be something important. I made numerous suggestions - things like varying language, less repetitive wordings, and things about mixed tenses. I was effusive about the things done well and constructively (so I thought) critical about what might be better. I was responded to that I knew nothing (obviously) about writing, that I "sucked" and that since it won a contest, I clearly was an idiot. It didn't need a single word of revision. Alrighty then - well that put me in my place!
This brings me to being on the flip side of responding to reviews (or being responded to) in a negative manner. If a review isn't appreciated, I tend not to review their work anymore as there are tons of writers who appreciate expended effort. When I get less than a stellar review that offers things I disagree with, I simply thank them for the read and review, appreciate the time they took and let it go. I do go and look at what they were (if they were being specific) telling me. Always. Many's the time I found that, indeed, some editing was called for. Perhaps not quite in the manner, they suggested, but in a way that might clarify. or otherwise fix what they had issues with.
Other times, I simply thank them for the /read/review and ignore what was suggested. A toss-up really depending upon what's said. One thing I do not ever suggest anyone do is to respond in a negative manner to a review. Maybe English is their second (or third!) language. Maybe they just didn't 'get' it for whatever reason. Thing is, reviews are, after all, based upon an opinion. We may not agree with their opinion, but it is theirs, after all.
When someone doesn't care for something we write it may hurt. Even deeply. And yet, as writers, we need to develop a thicker skin because not everyone will get it. Not everyone will like it. It is the nature of the beast. This applies to both the givers and receivers of reviews. Funny thing is, the more reviews I've given, the more I've learned how to write an effective review! One excellent thing I see folks doing is qualifying their review. Saying something like, 'I am not a poet, and I am in no means a person who knows a lot about the varying forms and styles--so I can only give my opinion about what I liked or didn't like and why. Take what is useful for you and pitch the rest.'
We all need feedback. We all like to read a great review. Just remember that we just might learn more from a less-than-stellar review than we will from a really ego-satisfying one! And above all, it is just as easy to write a review with kindness in mind as it is to write one that is flat-out negative. I always try to find something that I can say good things about. I always try to be encouraging.
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Pieces begging to be reviewed!
| |  | Invalid Item
This item number is not valid.
#2222921 by Not Available. |
| |  | A TALE OF DEEP (E)
This is a part of a larger poem, request your reviews on it. Hope you will enjoy it
#2164604 by AP  |
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