Kelhanion

I recently finished the first draft of my novel and handed it to my first test reader - my mother. It is often said that moms make poor critics since they just happen to love every little thing you do. How is/was your situation? How do you "use" your parents and other relatives? Are you able to get good, constuctive criticism from them that can help you in your editing or do you just give them a copy of your book when it's published/ready to be stuffed in the drawer?

I'm really looking forward to hear what my mom has to say about my work. I think it's a win-win situation. If she can see beyond the fact that I, her son, wrote it, it may prove very helpful. On the other hand, if she sees just the good sides, hey, I'm not complaining for getting a free ego boost . I just have to remember to get as many a person as possible to read my MS besides my mom.

Sam

I suppose you could say that it wasn't your work. Just say it was something you found on the 'net and thought it was good. A bit of deception should bypass her motherly binds Of course that can't really be applied to your current situation as I'm guessing most people would know you were into writing if you've finished your novel. Damn.

Well, this was a waste of web-space.

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Procrastination is like masturbation; in the end you're just screwing yourself.

Aevin

I know EXACTLY what you mean, Kelhanion. Best friends and family members are generally pretty poor critics. I've stopped showing most of my work to my mother because I have the same problem. She is nothing but complimentary, more liable to think, "What an imagination my son has!" than analyze the story, sentence structure, etc. Recently, I've been able to get more . . . amusing reactions out of her by showing her my most graphic pieces. She'll read them, pause a moment and say, "Veeery interesting, Aevin. . . ." (not my real name). Only after I push her for more information will she offer her usual compliments.

You should remember that not everyone is as interested in writing as you are. Some of your readers might be reluctant to criticize your work because they don't know what to criticize. I find that most of my acquaintances keep an eye on the story, but are blind to the technical aspects of writing because they lack the skill. If it entertains them, they're likely to give nothing but praise. Even my insistance that "Praise is fun, but criticism is far more useful" rarely draws more in-depth comments.

That's what places such as this sight are for.

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TimK

I usually show my work in progress to whoever I think can give useful feedback. Sometimes this may be a family member; sometimes not. For example, I sent a recent opinion essay to my father and to a group of friends on a certain email list, because these people all knew the issue and could give constructive feedback regarding how I handled it. Only after it was finished did I show it to anyone else.

-TimK

shaggy

I never show my stories to anyone I know. I think it'd be difficult for them to give me an honest critique.

All my stories are put online for strangers to read. I write yaoi, so I want yaoi fans to read my stories. They are the ones who would have read other yaoi work, and they can compare what I write with everything else they have read so far. When these perfect strangers give me feedback, I cherish every single comment. Although most are compliments, I do have a handful of readers who do not mince their words. They do tell me which scenes worked for them and which ones did not, what they liked and what they did not like. But, good or bad, because the feedback comes from perfect strangers who have nothing to gain either way, I value all their comments.

Of course, I realize that most of you would probably never put your work online if you aim to get it published properly. I put my work online because it isn't important to me to get published the usual way. I have self-published my own novel and I might do another one before I call it a day. I write for pleasure, and a good deal of that pleasure comes from knowing there are online readers who have enjoyed my writing. =)

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