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This week: Finish Strong Edited by: Annette  
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Finish Strong
It's not over until it's over.
Do you remember January and all those things you wanted to accomplish in 2013? There are a few things that might have to be allowed to roll under the rug until the next round of resolutions.
But there are still days left in 2013 for you to finish reading a couple of books, complete your reviewing goal for the year, and to enter about ten more contests. Go for it! Write each day for the rest of the year. While "the rest of the year" sounds like a scary thing in August, it's really not that much longer.
No more excuses. Sit down in your favorite spot, grab a prompt, and start writing. Force yourself to enter some contests without fear of burning out. How could you? The year is almost over and in January the new year's zeal will invigorate you all by itself.
I bet at the beginning of the year you also set yourself a goal of how many reviews to send your fellow writers. The time is now. Did you promise yourself one a week? Quickly, go to your reviews area and see where you are at. There is more than enough time to get to a total of 52 reviews for this year.
Finally, if you have the gift points, go around and send out some surprise review rewards from the public reviewing page. Did you like a contest or activity this year? How about hanging an award on it? As you go over your received reviews, is there one person that stands out? How about a merit badge for all the work they put into your writing?
If finish strong doesn't work for you, then how about: start early. Whatever your goals for 2014 are, you can't go wrong starting early. Write and review with abandon now so that you can start the next year with a pile of work already done.
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In response to my last newsletter "Compulsory Reviewing for Reviewing Group" I got the following replies:
PatrickB  wrote: Wow, Giselle! I was floored by your wonderful essay about review-fluff and cheating the system. Again, another case of Jerry Maguire and his mission statement of "Things We Think But Do Not Say." Your bulleted points of what to consider when perusing a portfolio for what to review was spot-on. I sure hope some members take heed to your words, because in the end, when I receive those reviews myself, I am more distraught that the writer short-changed themselves and their image as a writer more than me. Not to mention the worthy review group, contest, or activity the review promoted/supported. I can't help but shake my head as I scan the public review page at some of the entries from members who should know better. If we're not even going to try to do the best we can on a review, why bother? We're all busy, and each review does not have to be an epic historical saga in length, but there are critical elements that all reviews must have or else they are not good enough. Another excellent point in your essay was the one about removing template headings that are not necessary. Bravo, my friend. Great lesson, great writing, great courage. An epic offensive in the WDC Reviewing Revolution! 
 Thank you for this endorsement of my newsletter. To be honest, I did not know how it would be received. It was a bit harsh on the edges after all.
Joshiahis wrote: I found it oddly refreshing that a blue case has the same problems as the rest of us. When i do a review, I need a minimum of an hour just to read the piece and gather my thoughts around the basic concepts (setting, characterization, plot, grammar, etc.) and that's before I write the review! At the end of the month, I see my 12 reviews and pat myself on the back because I know they were good... and then lower my head in shame at some guy near the top with 200 reviews!
Ah, don't worry about those with 200 reviews. I bet they spent less time on 50 of theirs than the care you give to just one. Bravo to you for taking reviewing just as serious as any other part of writing. Thinking about another person's text can offer insights into your own stories. You are giving and receiving this benefit.
rubai wrote: I really enjoyed reading this NL. I don't get some reviews and reviewers. I have seen a good number of reviews that devote a paragraph or so summarizing what the author wrote for THEM. If I need a review on a piece I wrote, I don't really need the reviewer summarizing it for me. I don't get the point of templates either. They just fill up space and add to the character count. Quality reviewing is the need of the hour. Your tips were great! Thanks for such an informative and enjoyable read.
Thank you for your praise of my newsletter. In defense of the paragraph re-telling what was written (although it seems redundant at times) I've once learned 'how' my story was perceived by a reviewer from the summary part of their review. First, I thought she was way off, but then I read my story and found that her way of reading and understanding it was a possibility. So, while a review should be much more than a summary (because then it would be a summary, not a review) having a short plot overview can hold valuable information for the writer if it is well done.
Matt Bird MSci (Hons) AMRSC wrote: This is so true. WDC is great, but this lets it down time and time again. If you're going to review something, review it properly. If you're not planning on sending a proper review (or in this case, even reading to see if it is a piece that should be reviewed) then don't bother. I would quite happily see the number of reviews on this site fall by 50 % if those remaining were all high quality. Reviews needn't be long and take hours to write (though those are great). In fact if you've read a piece, and enjoyed it, all you have to say is why you enjoyed it giving a few examples. Perhaps a suggestion for improvement or two.
Your comment reminds me that WdC is not an entity in and of itself. While the site owners give us this place, each and every one of us is one of the many parts that make up the site. The quality of the site stands and falls with our choices to give quality comments to one another. As long as the majority of us uphold standards, such as the ones you say to give examples of parts enjoyed and suggestions to the text, we'll be all good.
rjsimonson  wrote: I have to admit I normally do not read every bit of a newsletter.... This time I did. I believe that a lot of reviewers have probably came across a review that HURT, and even if it was true, it made it hard to want to keep on reviewing. So we fall into the yahda-yahad type reviews the ones that say literally NOTHING. Which is probably worse than a truly opinionated review. I personally do use Templates they are nice and give some direction for reviewing.
I disagree to some extent on giving place holder reviews. If someone has gone through exceptional lengths to organize there port I think some merit should be shown in, those cases.
Thank you for an exceptional newsletter!
Wow, what an honor to have captured your attention the whole way through. I mean it. I too find some NLs tedious to read. I think it is a huge compliment to my chosen topic to get that many reactions, but also one such as yours that it held your interest through the end. What better compliment to give a writer?
Place holder reviews: I can agree with folder, forum, even 'certain' list reviews. As long as the item is something that shows the creator worked on it, then it can be commented on and even reviewed. Sometimes, a list has a mistake and the author of it is happy to be shown their mistake.
I also agree that templates can be a good way to streamline a review. They offer value when they are relevant. Once a question gets N/A, it should not be there. It makes it appear like a fill-in-the-blanks text.
Quick-Quill  wrote: Hands around neck squeezing slowly until the reviewer agrees to REVIEW. I understand the feeling. I love getting a review that says more than "I liked your story. They don't even care about the 250. I appreciated that the person read it and responded. As a writer what does that do to help me become a better writer? Was it perfect? then give me 5 stars. If it were anything less, why not? What would it take to make it 5 stars? That's all I need to know.
True. If somebody liked a story, felt entertained by it, and has nothing to add to it, then simply saying "I liked it" and giving stars that reflect that is appropriate. There is nothing wrong with letting a writer know that the story is okay as is to at least one reader. As a massive online writing group, we can find parts to critique forever and ever. It is good to know when something finally "works" for somebody. So, yes, a review doesn't have to be 250 characters or analyze every sentence to death. It can be a pat on the back for a job well done.
Jeff  wrote: Great article this week, Giselle! While each review is ultimately the responsibility of the reviewer (I would certainly hope that no review group encourages lazy reviewing!), I've also been concerned with review programs that put an emphasis on quantity rather than quality... where a dozen generic 250-character reviews net you more rewards than two or three really in-depth and thoughtful reviews. I've often thought about creating a "quality over quantity" review group... and you just inspired me to revisit the idea.
Let me know if you create a quality over quantity review group. I think it should also have requirements to those asking for those reviews. The reviews should not be raffle or auction wins. The writers asking for those reviews would have to want critical reviews so that the reviewer knows their hard work is going to be used. Not every suggestion has to be taken, but it's disheartening to work for a day or two on a review and then nothing comes of it in terms of making the piece a bit better. Now with NaNo over for eleven months, many of us have plenty of material to work through in productive ways. Serious reviewing of one another could put many of us on that path.
Lobelia is truly blessed wrote: Fantastic discussion on bogus reviews. I had one reviewer send strings of very long words, strung together in a nonsensical way. Being slow, it wasn't until the third such review that I got from that particular reviewer that I realized it was word count they were going for, not actual review. Such reviewers give a bad name to review groups- I think there should be a link with every reviewing group for reporting such reviews. Such people should be kicked out of the group. The dictator in me speaking, but I'm serious. For myself, I review short pieces because that's all I have time to read, but I write a real review on those short pieces,without a template. The closest I come to a template is to try to start with a positive comment before I suggest changes. I don't review a piece if I don't have anything significant to say about it... and since I'm not in a reviewing group, the word count doesn't matter, right?
I like your approach. There is nothing wrong with reviewing short pieces. Sometimes, those short pieces need more help than long pieces. Words have to be used more economically to give the needed information. In a novel, there is more time. Missing pieces might get revealed in the end or in a later part.
And, the dictator in me thinks you are right. Maybe there should be a one-time warning. Some people simply don't know how to do certain things because they didn't read the rules or didn't take the time to look around how others do it. But if an email from the group leader doesn't yield any changes, then maybe that person shouldn't be in a reviewing group that gives out gift points and other prizes for reviews.
👼intuey  wrote: Great NL! I couldn't agree with you more! Reviewing for rewards is fun and inspires reviews, but if the reviews are not truereviews, I believe they should not be counted toward the reward. I enjoy receiving many reviewing styles - as long as I can tell they read the writing and made a genuine attempt at reviewing my writing (even if it's just a comment), it's very much appreciated. But, if you're only going to copy and paste a review, (or similar) then in my opinion, it's best not to review at all. 
Yes. You are right.
Anonymous wrote: Amen Giselle! I'd rather keep myself anonymous if you don't mind, but I'm so happy you came out and said this. I can't count the number of reviews I've gotten that are almost entirely devoid of substance but packed full of "Write on!"s and "This was nice"s and signatures and ML. Glad to hear I'm not the only one who finds this concerning. Thanks for the newsletter and, er, write on!
Anonymous
 Of course. Always write on. But write on with sense and thought.
Teerich - 2019 wrote: This has made me think about reviewing in a new light.
*Although I use a template, it is as a prompt for myself when writing. I always delete the n/a sections.
*I try and make every review individual and often change the wording of the template. I tell the author why I am reviewing their work.
*My view is that a job worth doing is worth doing well, so my reviews tend to exceed the minimum requirement by quite a bit.
*I proof-read and point out any mistakes I find as I feel that, no matter how careful I am myself when checking, the odd blooper can be missed, and I appreciate it when people point them out to me.
I must be doing something right as I haven't had any complaints, so far.
I think that the writers who receive reviews from you are truly lucky. Your use of a template sounds sensible and makes sense. No reason not to use a template if it helps you to streamline your review and hit on all the points that you like to comment on. And pointing out typos and bloopers, yes, we all need that. Good going.
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Contests & Activities: December 18, 2013 Issue [#6040]
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