The Art of Critiquing Part 2: The Critiquer

Hey everyone! I’m back with part two of The Art of Critiquing, focusing on Critiquers, and how to handle authors from this side of the story (pun entirely intended). As I mentioned in the last post, I’ve been on all sides of this activity, and I’ve actually had more issues as a critiquer with authors (most are very sweet but there have been a few) becoming very defensive and hurtful than I have as an author with critiquers giving me their opinions.

So this post is going to be on that–how a critiquer can give critiques most effectively, nicely, and deal with authors who may become defensive or argumentative.

Part Two: The Critiquer

Again, I figured this would best be done in story format!

Once there was a critiquer who had an author friend who asked them to look over their story chapter for them. The critiquer, excited to do this, agreed, and eagerly opened the doc as soon as their friend sent it to them, read it, and then readied themselves to send off their thoughts on it, both good and bad.

But how should the critiquer respond to the chapter and author? What would best help them without hurting them or their writing aspirations, while still being honest?

#1: Find Out What Critiques the Author Wants

If the author doesn’t specify (and says something like “Can you read over my chapter for me?”) You can always ask if they want feedback on anything. Usually, I always give a positive response to the chapter “Oh, [this scene] was so good [and here are reasons why]” and then ask “are you looking for thoughts on anything in particular?” Sometimes they’ll say no–that’s a good sign they just wanted encouragement. Other times, they’ll say “sure, whatever thoughts you have” or even go more specific.

Typically, if they don’t specify, I like to ask before I read the chapter if they’re looking for anything, so I can especially be on the look out for anything in that which I notice. It also helps not accidentally giving critiques when they really don’t want any.

Now, sometimes an author will say “critiques welcome” or “I want critiques on this chapter”, but what they’re really looking for is someone to pat them on the back and say it’s great with no need for change–getting annoyed when anyone gives them constructive criticism. Those authors are really just looking for encouragement readers and you cannot fault yourself for giving critiques when they clearly and specifically asked for them.

Taking this a step deeper, sometimes a critiquer can help an author by asking what specific areas they would like critiqued. One author might want feedback on their characters. Others might want it on pacing or plot. A lot of times, authors will state what they are and aren’t looking for, but other times they won’t, so sometimes it helps if the critiquer clarifies so they can be as helpful as they can.

#2: Giving the Critique

When you know what an author wants, it’s time to give the critiques as nicely as one can, even “harsh” critiquers. “Harsh” critiquers aren’t “harsh” in the mean way (at least, they’re not supposed to be) but generally this just means they look for a lot of things and are willing to be totally honest with you about what they really thought about your chapter. In fact, I consider “harsh” to mean “honest”. As a “harsh” critiquer myself, I always tell people ahead of time, even before I read their chapter, that way they can tell me if they decide they don’t want my critiques or only want a light critique.

Whenever giving critiques, even when the author specifically requests “harsh” critiques, always give something positive. Whether it’s a paragraph on how you love this character, plot device, or sentence wording, or even a simple sentence like “This is really good for a first/second draft” or “I love the enthusiasm and thought you put into this chapter”, it’s very important to be honest both about the positives and negatives, not just the negatives.

When you write out the critiques, especially the negative ones, be careful how you word it. Some people can be bluntly honest and hurt the authors, whereas wording it in a gentle and constructive way would be better. Think about how you would best receive this if it was your work, and try to word it like that.

When you have a negative critique, it’s super helpful to be as clear as you possibly can with your critiques. Don’t just say “the middle felt too slow” or “it bored me at the end”. Say, “I felt there was too much politics being spoken and not enough action happening.” If you feel a certain way “I just don’t like [this character]” but don’t know why, just state that, so the author isn’t left wondering if there’s a certain thing making this character unlikable.

If you have a solution to your critique, I usually suggest it by giving an example of how I might fix it if it were my work. Now, I have had an author get angry at me for this, condemning me of trying to change her work–when I was just giving a suggestion to try to help her see what I meant and stir up her own creative juices. However, giving a suggestion of how to fix a noticed problem is, in my opinion, (and that of several professional editors) a very good thing to do. Notice I said suggestions not prescriptions. As a critiquer, your opinion is valid, but it’s up to the author whether they want to take it or not. You can state your opinions, but don’t say it’s wrong or the author must do your critiques, because their opinions are also valid, and it’s their work, so ultimately they can decide whether to implement your critiques or not.

#3: Responding to a Defensive Author

Back to the story. Let’s say the critiquer followed the above guidelines. They asked what critiques their author friend wanted, they put the positives first, mentioned some ways they thought the chapter could be improved upon as gently and clearly as they could, and offered some suggestions of how the author could fix it. Then, they sent it off to their friend.

When their friend responds back, they’re a little taken aback. Even though their friend thanked them for the critiques, they are responding so defensively to their critiques, it feels like they’re arguing with them about everything and making them feel bad for having their own opinions. The author says they’re not “seeing it from their perspective”, and that they were harsh and made them feel like a terrible writer and like they never want to write again.

None of this was the critiquer’s intent, and they clearly followed the above guidelines. What should the critiquer do?

Having been in this situation, there really is only one thing to do which I know of. Typically, I just say something along the lines of “Yeah, those were just my thoughts so you can take them or throw them out as you wish” and leave it at that. I don’t argue with them, but I also don’t lie and take back my honest opinions.

Usually I’ll give the author another chance or two–maybe they were just having a bad day–but if the cycle continues with them arguing with and making me feel guilty for giving them the honest thoughts they asked for, I stop critiquing for them. It’s not worth ruining a relationship over or one’s own mental health and self-esteem. And most likely, these authors are not really ready for critiques (even though they think they are) and really just need encouragement readers until they can become confident enough to face the harsher critiques.

A side note here–some authors will attempt to clarify things you may have mentioned in your critiques. These may not be them trying to argue with you, but truly just trying to help you understand things which may be foreshadowing tools or important for later on. If it clears things up for you, it’s helpful to notate that–but there are times there’s something an author thinks is necessary which a critiquer does not–in which case you can once more gently repeat your critique with the added context, remembering not to give the impression that you and only you are right.

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It can be tricky to find the balance between helpful and hurtful critiques, especially when there are all types of authors, both thick-skinned and sensitive, ready for critiques, and maybe not-so-ready out there in the world. Your job as a critiquer is to give the type of critiques the author wants honestly yet gently, without making your opinions seem paramount. If you have done this, most authors will thank you and value your opinions, even if they don’t agree with 100% of them.

What type of critiquer are you? How would you handle an author being argumentative and defensive about their work? If you have both given and received critiques, what is one major thing you have seen that both sides can improve upon? Let me know in the comments! Thanks for reading! ~ Kay Adelin