Ficcy
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- Posted: Sun, 04 Jan 2009 19:31:50 +0000
Welcome to the Fanfiction Exchange Thread!
How it Works:
This thread is a place where fanfiction writers can come to ask for constructive criticism while helping others get the same. We work on the basis of equal trade, meaning you have to review another person's story in order to get a review on your own. You might find some here who are willing to offer you a review for nothing in return, but bear in mind that they are the exception rather than the rule. Please don't abuse their generosity. Lastly, this is NOT a place where you can promote your fic or receive blind praise - quite the contrary, actually.
Now, in the past, this exchange was based around a "member list," however that became way to hard to manage and so now it's "exchange at your own risk." Keep in mind, though, that many of the people here have been here since the beginning and that you are NOT going to get any reviews if you post and run. This exchange is still, and will always be, for those who remain active. Ask for help on something (and I don't mean for reviews!) or just chat about fandom in general, people are much more likely to do an exchange if they feel they can trust you'll hold up your end. All that being said, each person here is responsible for maintaining their own story profile (below). For those who don't wish to continuously re-post it, consider an option such as posting it in your journal and linking to it. And, if you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to ask!
Story Profile:
To start any exchange, your story must be presented in this profile format (anyone just linking to their story and asking for reviews WILL BE IGNORED). We accept all kinds of fics, for all fandoms, complete or ongoing. If you want to submit more than one fanfic, you may do so by filling out separate forms for each one. If anyone would like to volunteer as a reviewer without submitting a story of their own, that's fine with us. There is no need for you to fill out anything, simply contact someone when they post a story you might be interested in.
[b]Title and Link:[/b]
[b]Fandom:[/b] (please list which variation if there is any, like old vs. new series)
[b]Summary:[/b]
[b]Genre:[/b]
[b]Length and Status:[/b]
[b]Rating and Warning:[/b]
[b]Main Characters and Pairings:[/b]
[b]Brief excerpt from the story:[/b]
[b]Notes on any aspects you're interested in receiving feedback on and/or anything else you feel is pertinent:[/b]
[b]What I will review in return:[/b]
[b]Fandom:[/b] (please list which variation if there is any, like old vs. new series)
[b]Summary:[/b]
[b]Genre:[/b]
[b]Length and Status:[/b]
[b]Rating and Warning:[/b]
[b]Main Characters and Pairings:[/b]
[b]Brief excerpt from the story:[/b]
[b]Notes on any aspects you're interested in receiving feedback on and/or anything else you feel is pertinent:[/b]
[b]What I will review in return:[/b]
Critiquing:
Good, constructive criticism is the backbone of what we do here! One-line reviews (saying 'that was a good story' is not going to work here), reviews that attack an author personally, reviews that state how bad a story is without offering justification and/or suggestions on how to improve, etc are NOT welcome here! We understand, however, that some people don't always know what to include so here are a few things you should keep in mind when composing a review:
- Always try to point out something good about the story: It's good to know our weak points, but it's just as important to know what our strong points are as well.
- When you point out something you disliked or thought could have been better, try to offer some suggestion on how to improve it: Never say something is bad without explaining why. This is the most important thing about giving a good review because ultimately criticism doesn't exist to let us know if we're good or bad writers, but to help us improve by pointing out what areas we need to work on.
- Be as honest as possible: Remember that the review is about the story and nothing else. Don't make petty remarks just because someone said something you didn't like in regards to your own story or because the story featured something that you're personally against.
Here's a list of aspects you could analyze in your review. You don't have to talk about all of them, but they can be a useful starting point if you don't quite know what to talk about in your critique:
- How original is the plot and how consistent is it?
- How IC (in character) or OOC (out of character) are the canon characters?
- How well-rounded and realistic are the author's original characters?
- Were there a lot of grammar and spelling mistakes?
- Did you like the writing style?
Finally, to make sure everyone understands the kind of critiques we're trying to promote in this thread, here's an example:
Quote:
I liked how you portrayed the canon characters. It felt like watching a missing scene from the original show, because of how typical they were acting.
As for the story itself, I thought that while the general premise has potential, the way the plot is developing could definitely be improved. The opening situation is overdone and can be found in pretty much every fic that focuses on this theme - you should try to add your own little twist to it to make it more interesting and add more vivid descriptions. As for what happens from that point on, it gets pretty predictable after a while and I didn't think it took into account all aspects of the world you're working on - try to avoid taking an easy way out of a situation and really ponder the possible consequences of the characters' actions.
Grammar-wise, I noticed is that you tend to shift from a first-person to third-person narrative pretty often. Keep the point of view consistent and try not to insert your own comments in the middle of the story - it's disruptive.
Other than that, there were few mistakes. I could only find a few long-winded sentences in the first three paragraphs that could probably be cut up into smaller bits to make them more impacting and less ambiguous.
Overall, I think it's a story that has the potential to shine if you put in the time and effort to polish it and smooth out the rough edges.
As for the story itself, I thought that while the general premise has potential, the way the plot is developing could definitely be improved. The opening situation is overdone and can be found in pretty much every fic that focuses on this theme - you should try to add your own little twist to it to make it more interesting and add more vivid descriptions. As for what happens from that point on, it gets pretty predictable after a while and I didn't think it took into account all aspects of the world you're working on - try to avoid taking an easy way out of a situation and really ponder the possible consequences of the characters' actions.
Grammar-wise, I noticed is that you tend to shift from a first-person to third-person narrative pretty often. Keep the point of view consistent and try not to insert your own comments in the middle of the story - it's disruptive.
Other than that, there were few mistakes. I could only find a few long-winded sentences in the first three paragraphs that could probably be cut up into smaller bits to make them more impacting and less ambiguous.
Overall, I think it's a story that has the potential to shine if you put in the time and effort to polish it and smooth out the rough edges.
Once you've accepted to review a story, you'll have a limit of seven days to do so. After that, if you've failed to review a story, the exchange will be considered void. Don't commit to something you know you won't be able to do in the first place. (If the story is particularly long however, this deadline can be extended.)
