A better way to get your book read by publishers — Trust the Bubblecow!
A good critique of your early work can be an invaluable stepping stone to a great novel. However, a poor critique can kill a potentially good book stone dead. Yet what is a writer to do? We all need feedback and who better to critique your work than your nearest and dearest.
Here’s six tips to help you get the most from a friend’s critique:
1. Give them permission to criticise: Make it VERY clear from the outset that you are looking for bad, as well as good, feedback. Let your critique partner know that their critique will improve your book and give them permission to highlight any problems.
2. Explain what you want: It may be clear to you what you need from a critique but it may not be clear to your critique partner. Before any reading takes place set out very clear critique guidelines. If you are looking for a proofread, make is very clear that all you require from the critique is your attention to be drawn to spelling and grammar errors. However, if you want the critique to go deeper then say so. Don’t be afraid of asking your critique partner to look for specific details. If you think a particular scene is weak or you are not sure about a certain character ask them to look at these things in particular detail.
3. I don’t like it is not good enough: If the critique is to be of any value, then the feedback needs to be constructive. Make it clear to your critique partner that you need ‘framed’ feedback. If during their critique they say they don’t like a certain character find out why. Look for specifics and don’t be frightened to ask questions. If a critique just throws up comments like ‘the scene didn’t work’ then it is a wasted critique.
4. Be prepared to ignore: Remember that it is your work. Don’t be too influenced by the critique. Every reader has personal tastes. If you feel strongly about a certain point then just ignore what the reader has said. However, you may ask a different critique partner to read your work and provide feedback on that one particular issue.
5. Get your head in the right place: It is tough to hear negative feedback about your own work. However, if the critique is to be of value then you need to be Zen-like in your responce. Resist the temptation to go on the defensive and listen to the critique with an open mind.
6. If you have to explain then it’s time to rewrite: A critique often throws up comments where the reader is confused by a certain section. If your reaction to the critique is to explain the context of what you have written then you are missing the point. If the reader can’t get everything from the words then you are missing something – after all you will not be there to explain to every reader who reads your book!
Imagine how much easier it would be to get published if a writer could think like a publisher or agent. This was Caroline Smailes’ goal when she set up BubbleCow.
After securing a multiple book deal with HarperCollins, editor and writer Caroline realised that most writers stood almost no chance of getting published due to a lack of understanding of how the publishing industry really worked. BubbleCow was set up to give writers the best possible chance of securing a book deal.
This is an excellent article on what to look for in a critiquing partner – there’s only one point I’d take issue with.
In my experience, those nearest and dearest will want to read your novel in progress but they’re often not the best person to critique.
And it’s a big ask – unless they are writers themselves I strongly believe it’s not fair on them. They’ll be full of mixed emotions – from surprise that it’s “really quite good” to not wanting to hurt your feelings.
I’d recommend finding a writing partner, either online or off. By all means let your friends and family read, but don’t expect them to come up with a detailed critique.
Debra – I think you are correct. My experience is that if you get feedback too soon in the writing process it tends to stifle the creative juices.
Every point you make is valid.
When I asked my three friends including my daughter to assess my work, I began by critiquing them in the sense I assessed what they could bring to the MS, i.e. what sort of literature they liked, did it marry with what I’d written; how courageous they were in terms of telling me something was terrible; and what their particular strengths were when it came to make a judgment.
My first reader I asked to give me a general critique in terms of the overall novel. Did it work? Did it hold together? Were my characters consistent? Was it engaging?
My second critic, my daughter, I asked to be brutal and underline anything she found that made her wince. She, I knew, would be the most fearless of my critics.
My final critic, who had no inkling what to expect and was an English Lit. tutor of thirty years standing, I asked to proofread the MS as well as give his judgment on the novel in terms of how it stacked up against other literary works, also as to whether he found it engaging as I know him to be very critical of a lot of contemporary fiction.
I handed my MS out to the three one at a time, correcting, adjusting and editing after the feedback of each.
The most important point you make, I believe, is the one where your stress the importance of the writer giving licence to their critics to criticise. Otherwise there is no point in conducting the exercise. Conversely by granting such, you must accept their comments, not with good grace as though it was some sort of punishment, but as a dialogue which, if explored, will improve your writing.
[...] Over at the BubbleCow blog, Gary Smailes believes there is a time when you can get a good critique from your friends. He gives you six tips to get the most from your friend’s critiques when he tells you How to Let Your Friends Critique Your Novel. [...]
There is some good advice here but I don’t necessarily think it’s the best tactic to have “your nearest and dearest” act as critiquers. After receiving countless rejections from agents I found that what was most helpful in making progress was finding a manuscript consultant (usually a published novelist) that I paid to get honest and constructive feedback. I like the idea of a person looking at my work who doesn’t know me, has no agenda, and wants to bring me to next level. This is also why I think writers’ groups can only go so far. The longer you are together, the more people get to know you and your writing. The advice can grow stale, not to mention the fact that often writers in these situations are highly competitive with each other, which doesn’t always make for the most useful feedback.
Since BubbleCow provides professional feedback I tend to agree with what you say. However, the aim of the post was to give guidelines to writers looking for a ‘cheaper’ alternative.
[...] How to let your friends critique your novel (Writing,Critique) [...]
DOT – I think the question that springs to mind is – did the feedback help? This said I think you have taken the correct approach. Many writers forget that readers read books differently. They are not looking at sentence structure and plot development, they are just reading. It is important that a writer is fully aware of what they want from the critique. Do they want constructive criticism or to just hear the book is good.