Is Critiquing Critical?
© by Catherine M. Chernow

I have been writing for eight years. During that time, I developed a very devoted readership…me. That’s right. For eight years I’ve enjoyed writing great stories with great characters and settings. (I’ve even been getting rave reviews from myself). There’s only one teeny, tiny problem with this: I’m not writing for the reader.

I have a way with words; I’m a writer, right? (Pun intended). But if I’m writing for the one who’s going to eventually read my work and get enjoyment from it, then I had to come to terms with my writing blunders and bad habits, those aspects of my writing that were holding me back from producing a great manuscript…like understanding point-of-view. I had also developed the habit of overusing adverbs and exclamation points. Since I’ve become involved with the “Sweet Critiques,” my writing has changed and all for the better.

The Sweet Critiques
It didn’t happen over night. It took several sessions to ram home the idea of point of view. It took several more to get across another point of view issue: head hopping. My writing, many times, jumped too much from my hero’s head, then back into my heroine’s head for her point of view, then back to his, then back to hers…all in the space of a few pages, and sometimes, even a few paragraphs. How confusing is that for a reader? Very. But I didn’t see that until I got my work critiqued by my very talented critiquing partners.

These ladies have conquered problems like point of view. They excel at the use of imagery. They don’t just tell a story…they illustrate it with language. Now, thanks to them, I’m learning to do that, too.

So now you’re saying, “Sure, let someone else read my work? That’s scary…what if they don’t like it?” Critiquing, if it’s done well, is gentle, constructive criticism. All manuscripts are created equal in the fact that they are worthy of being written and have sensational plots, themes and characters. No idea is bad, but all ideas need the proper execution on paper.

Learning From Rejection
Editors will reject work and don’t follow up that rejection with a critique. They don’t have to – they either like the story and know you’re capable of writing a good one – that you know the mechanics like basic grammar and point of view - or you don’t. It is up to us, as writers, to write the best book possible and that can only happen if you get it critiqued prior to sending it to an editor. If your critiquing partners see a problem in your manuscript, won’t that editor see the same problem if you send the manuscript to that editor the way it is? Having someone else read your work can be gut-wrenching at first, but it is all for a good cause: to make you a better writer - so that maybe the next time, your work won’t be rejected, it will be read with enthusiasm.

Here is something else I learned in my critiquing sessions: Set the scene. Use imagery to make the reader feel like they are there in that setting. You must assume your reader has never been on a city street, so make sure they experience every aspect of walking down a crowded avenue in New York City as they read your work. They should smell the yeasty pretzels warming in the vendor’s carts, see the steam coming up from the subways, feel the heat of the midday sun on their face as they stroll down the street.

My critiquing partners have made me realize that characters shouldn’t just converse, they should be animated as they speak to one and other. If what the characters are conversing about causes them angst, illustrate it. Do they pace? Make nervous gestures? If it is a tender scene, does one character place a hand on the other’s shoulder to offer comfort? A good tip I learned: What was my last face-to-face conversation with a friend? Where were we? What did we do while we had that conversation? I’m sure we just didn’t sit there with our hands folded; we were animated as we spoke.

Putting It Into Practice
Now I realize that I couldn’t possibly write without my fellow “critiquers,” and I don’t know how I did before. I take more time, now, to think before I write. Where’s the setting of the story? How can I describe it so that the reader sees it in their mind’s eye? How can I avoid using a “-ly word”? Can I say something other than, “quickly, slowly, gently?” Maybe I can rephrase so that my description would be more powerful than if I just used an adverb. In this scene, who’s point of view is the story going to come from? Am I being true to that character’s point of view?

I’m learning that there are always ways to make your writing better…and the best is yet to come because if an editor sees you really know how to set the scene, animate your characters to make them jump off the page and drive your plot, then he/she might just give your work a chance.

Here are some guidelines for getting a critiquing group started:

• Decide how many you want in your group.
• Try and meet once a week.
• Decide on a start and end time and…pre-read material for critiquing.
  This can be done via email. It saves time at the critiquing session.
• Limit the amount of work to be critiqued, too.
  One chapter or two, it is strictly up to you. Just don’t overload or it won’t be fun, which, by the way, is an important part of critiquing.
• Have fun.
  Enjoy the privilege of reading another writer’s work, because that’s what it is - a privilege. Whether it is a fast-paced, witty, chick-lit book written in the first person or a sensual, erotic paranormal romance with a hunky vampire as the male protagonist, no matter what the genre of romance, it is a privilege to read another’s work. And…it gives you a break from your own work in progress. Think of how many times you edit and re-read your own work in an attempt to get it “just right.” You read it countless times. That can get boring. You need a break once in a while from your own work, to read another writer’s material. It will open up your creative mind and get the juices flowing, for them, as well as you. Perhaps you can decide to devote some time at your critiquing session to brain-storming an idea to help get someone’s manuscript moving.
• All comments should be constructive.
  Let the writer decide what to do with your suggested changes. Be honest. If you feel something isn’t working in a colleague’s manuscript, then say so. Remember that the comments and suggestions regarding your work could very well be what an editor finds wrong with it, too. It’s best to iron it out before it gets sent to an editor.

Here's a couple of bio lines for me: Catherine Chernow is an award-winning author. Her manuscript, THE FINE ART OF KISSING took first place in the RWA Central Ohio 'Ignite the Flame Contest.' You may contact her at CathyChernow@lirw.org.