PiiXIE Dust Magazine: Issue 2

Truly honest critiques

Being a critic isn't easy. You have to try to be nice to everyone without being overly rude, but then you have to be honest about the story. I'm a critic and like any other person, I don't like to hurt other peoples feelings. Some critics do, they don't praise you in any way and have nothing but negative things to say, but that's completely normal. I became a critic so that people would get good constructive criticism, while getting a tiny boost of confidence, like I said, tiny.

Some of the books I have critiqued include: Meaningless Words by @noodledoodles123 , Morbid Curiosity by @elahhh, and Release by @Discorded.

I actually have a bad habit of saying yes to every person that asks me to critique their work, I guess it's just in my nature to be nice to everyone because I have a hard time saying no. I need to work on that.

Also I have recently critique some works and many people have this weird habit of putting *Peep Peep* to represent car horns, including myself, I have no idea as to why we have a tendency to not put a decent sentence for this particular moment...I know that my excuse is because I'm lazy. Do you ever feel like that sometimes? Of course you do most of the Wattpad population are teenage girls.

Ha-ha I'm just messing with you, but seriously do you feel this way most of the time?

Some people like to write there story so that it's easy to read but sometimes we forget to put our stories in paragraphs. I like to read stories that have a nice flow to them so I guess having some decent paragraphs is a good start. Maybe it's just me?

Here are some tips on how to be a critic:

The first thing to say about a piece is what you liked about it–the idea, a character, the plot, a glittering piece of writing, whatever. Find something you liked, and mention it.

Don’t say only “I liked it!” or “It’s beautiful!” Figure out what made it good or bad, if you can, and talk about that.

Tell the writer whether you liked the story as a whole or not. Did it move you? Make you laugh? Make you cry? Leave you cold? Overall, what stood out, good or bad? Whether you liked the story or not, what could be done to improve it? Talk about the writing style. Was the style too flowery, or too pedestrian? Too cute? Were the sentences overlong, or too short? Were they all similar, so they became monotonous, lacking in variety; tediously unvarying? What about the structure? Do the parts of the story follow in the right order? Did you learn something way down that you should have known sooner? Does the story go at breakneck speed, leaving you breathless? Or is it just too slow? Was the piece overwritten–that is, should it be cut? Where? What’s not necessary? What actually detracts? Was it too short? Did you need more information about something?

I know that's a lot to take in ,but if you genuinely want to help someone, this is the way I do it best.

Does the setting seem real? Can you feel the place? Settings matter. You can do a line-by-line critique if you want; you don’t have to, but it’s good to show examples of things you think need to be improved. A good critique takes time and thought. Remember, that’s what you want your stories to get–give it to those of others. When someone critiques one of your pieces, say thank you nicely, even if you think the critique was stupid people will view it if you talk in the comments.

Take the good suggestions, and ignore the not so good. If nobody likes it, it needs work. If half love the piece and half hate it, that’s fine, for tastes differ. Don’t feel bad if there’s plenty wrong with it; nothing’s perfect, and you can make it better. If a critique hurts, that’s okay; you’ll survive. Nobody has a heart of steel, even if they say they do.

Here Is How You Can Take criticism:

I've always envied people who can graciously accept constructive criticism. It seems I was not born with that trait, and throughout my career I've struggled with receiving feedback, even when it was entirely accurate. At the moment I hear the words of critique, my heartbeat quickens and my mind begins to race—first in search of an explanation for this assault on my person and then for a retort to rationalize whatever actions are in question.

And I'm not alone. Unfortunately, in the heat of the moment, many of us react with defensiveness and anger or—even worse—attack the person giving us feedback. But the truth is, we need to get over it. We know there's value in constructive criticism—how else would we identify weaknesses and areas of improvement? Being able to handle it calmly and professionally will only help us maintain relationships and be more successful in everything we do.

So how do you learn to back off the defensive? The next time you receive constructive criticism from a critic, use this six-step process to handle the encounter with tact and grace.

1.  At the first sign of criticism, before you do anything—stop. Really. Try not to react at all! You will have at least one second to stop your reaction. While one second seems insignificant in real life, it's ample time for your brain to process a situation. And in that moment, you can halt a dismissive facial expression or reactive gulp and remind yourself to stay calm.

2.  Now, you have a few seconds to quickly remind yourself of the benefits of receiving constructive criticism—mainly, to improve your skills, work product, and relationships, and to help you meet the expectations that your manager and others have of you.

You should also try to curtail any reaction you're having to the person who is delivering the feedback. It can be challenging to receive criticism, from a critic but don't really fully respect them, but remember, accurate and constructive feedback comes even from flawed sources.

3.  You've avoided your typical reaction, your brain is working, and you've recalled all the benefits of feedback—high-five! Now, you're ready to engage in a productive dialogue as your competent, thoughtful self (as opposed to your combative, Mean Girls self).

As the person shares feedback with you, listen closely(or type closely ha-ha). Allow the person to share his or her complete thoughts, without interruption. At this point, avoid analyzing or questioning the person's assessment; instead, just focus on understanding his or her comments and perspective. And give the benefit of the doubt here—hey, it's difficult to give feedback to another person. Recognize that the person giving you feedback may be nervous or may not express his or her ideas perfectly.

4.  Next (and this is a hard part, I know), thank him or her for sharing feedback with you. Don't gloss over this—be deliberate, and reply, "I really appreciate you taking the time to talk about this with me." Expressing appreciation doesn't have to mean you're agreeing with the assessment, but it does show that you're acknowledging the effort your acquaintance took to evaluate you and share his or her thoughts.

So, yes feed back from someone is sometimes hard to take in but don't let them bring you down because remember that you should still continue no matter what!