#ooh good format
absolutelynotclassicusernam-blog:
“But let me give you the dark side of writing groups. One really dark side of writing groups is, particularly newer writers, don’t know how to workshop.
"And one of the things they’ll try to do is they’ll try to make your story into the story they would write, instead of a better version of the story you want to write.
"And that is the single worst thing that can happen in feedback, is someone who is not appreciating the story you want to make, and they want to turn it into something else.
"New workshoppers are really bad at doing this. In other words, they’re really good at doing a bad thing, and they’re doing it from the goodness of their heart. They want you to be a better writer. They want to help you. The only way they know is to tell you how they would do it, which can be completely wrong for your story.”
—Brandon Sanderson, Lecture #1 Introduction, Writing Science Fiction And Fantasy
And this is why many writers (including me) don’t ask for concrit on their published stories - they’ve told the story they want to tell.
If that’s not the story you want to read, you are welcome to write your own version.
He goes on to say that to give good feedback, tell them how the writing made you feel. Don’t say, “instead of that you should do this.” Tell them, “this part confused me.” Or, “my attention drifted during this scene.” Your job isn’t to tell them howto fix it or even that it needs fixed. Your job is let them know what impact their story had on you, the reader. Then they can determine if it’s accomplishing what they want it to and if not, they know which parts need attention.
It isn’t just young writers who do this! Until last fall, this is what I did because this is what my teachers taught me to do. And I hated writing workshops. I kept going to them because I needed to learn how to be a better writer, but…did I actually learn? Mostly what happened was that my work got picked apart and I became depressed and left the story behind because I no longer thought it was any good. My teachers were operating with the best intentions in the world too, but with their help, I ended up with the world’s worst case of writer’s block and a chronic lack of belief in myself.
Then, last fall, my very last semester of college, I took a class with a professor who told us that we were not going to use the classic workshop format. Instead of writing down everything that we thought our classmates should do, we were assigned to ask them questions. And as writers, we were assigned not to sit passively while feedback was fired at us, but to ask questions, to explain what we had been going for and ask if it worked, and if not to brainstorm together how we might make it work.
It was miraculous. Instead of shutting my mind down, this workshop process blew it wide open. Instead of going home after class dispirited, never wanting to touch my story again, I went home inspired, with a hundred new ideas.
So I am a big advocate for this method–and I think it is important to underscore that it isn’t just students who need to be taught it. Writing teachers need to learn it too.
Constructive feedback is the most important thing I teach my students to give and to receive. We do three-part constructive feedback, which is like the compliment sandwich, but with, you know, feedback.
1. WHAT WORKS IN THIS STORY? This is where you’re setting the bar for the writer. You’re pointing out the technical and stylistic choices that get the job done. Is their characterization consistent throughout? Do they write action scenes well? Does their dialogue sound natural? You are establishing as a reader what about their writing stands out to you in a positive way. This can help them work on building their authorial voice (did they MEAN for that to be a standout aspect of the story) and also helps them build confidence in their writing.
2. WHAT COULD BE CLARIFIED, EXPANDED, OR CONDENSED? Note: I did not ask “what could be better?” That isn’t the goal. This is where you’re pointing out areas of the work that could be shored up in specific and useful ways. Not what you would LIKE better. If a scene feels muddled, the blocking isn’t clear, you can’t tell who the speaker is – the work needs clarity. If a scene feels rushed, if necessary details have not been revealed, if foreshadowing is needed, if more characterization is necessary – the work needs expansion. If a scene feels too long, if the dialogue feels tedious or repetitive, if something is explained multiple times or in too much detail – the work needs condensation.
3. WHAT IS YOUR EMOTIONAL RESPONSE TO THE STORY? Even if a work has many technical errors, you might still find it enjoyable because the narrative and authorial voice are great. Even if a work is technically perfect, you might find the subject matter dull if the writer sounds like every other writer in the genre. Did you feel frightened, happy, sad, angry? Did you connect emotionally with the characters? Did you wish you immediately had the sequel in hand? Emotional responses are much more subjective, sure, but also typically much more satisfying.
While the feedback is happening (in my classes) the writers just listen. They don’t interrupt or immediately try to explain their choices. Only after the feedback is over do they respond. This forces them to take a moment to process what’s being said to them instead of having a kneejerk response, and also means they get to hear the EMOTIONAL RESPONSE before responding to feedback about technical or stylistic choices.
