ForestDweller
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I mean, it can't be good for newcomers to see it on the top of the list whenever they want to know whether your story is good or not.
I somehow knew it was you who asked this question.I mean, it can't be good for newcomers to see it on the top of the list whenever they want to know whether your story is good or not.
You’re doing good over all. To be real with you, gotta remember this. Most people who read something, watch something, etc. Are those that do not interact much. They may leave a like here and there, but the majority of the world does not translate to the online base directly. They are usually just there. Typically, you’ll tend to come across people that are more open to being vocal in comparison. Just try to remember, the online world is really a fraction of the total that directly participates in it.I mean, it can't be good for newcomers to see it on the top of the list whenever they want to know whether your story is good or not.
I more or less agree with you, but I would still argue that any feedback has its constructive core.If you ever do get constructive feedback, value it. It is not often you’ll come across it.
That's for authors who'd rather disregard negative feedback on the outsideI more or less agree with you, but I would still argue that any feedback has its constructive core.
Reviews and comments are mostly from readers for readers, but they still display what they take from your novel. So it's less about "constructive feedback or not" but "what do you take from it?"
E.g. a ton of my novel's criticism comes from the slow pacing and readers voice that. So now you can take two things from that:
(a) Check whether your novel is too slow. A lot of times there will be a disconnect between what writers want to write and what they actually wrote. So it might be a problem.
(b) If the "problem" is by design, then it's time to overthink things like setting of the tone, synopsis, tags or even the way one advertises. People often give bad reviews because they didn't get what they wanted and it wasn't made clear enough that they won't get it - hence feeling like they wasted their time.
Not every comment should be the reason to rewrite/rethink the story. But bad comments and reviews are the symptom of a problem the novel has on some level. And those are made by the readers, so exactly who you want to hear it from in the first place.
You want your readers to enjoy your novel? Then also listen to those who don't enjoy it. That's exactly where you get your feedback from...
[Not an answer to this, but I find the focus on "constructive feedback" really funny, when a lot of outspoken writers will also go "My editor just wants to change things so that he changed something" or "I write like I want and others don't get it"...]
I mean most users will barely notice the review-tab on SH. Especially with how few reviews there are.Recently, I checked my story statistics and found no big differences.
I mean my post was just meant in general. I just dislike the idea to differentiate between "bad comments" and "constructive feedback". Maybe just because I always try to find out why I think my writing sucks :Dfor those that consider quitting, it's usually the opposite.
True and I agree with you there. Even negative comments have their values, at times. I say at times, since well, we can get into a very messy area.I more or less agree with you, but I would still argue that any feedback has its constructive core.
Reviews and comments are mostly from readers for readers, but they still display what they take from your novel. So it's less about "constructive feedback or not" but "what do you take from it?"
E.g. a ton of my novel's criticism comes from the slow pacing and readers voice that. So now you can take two things from that:
(a) Check whether your novel is too slow. A lot of times there will be a disconnect between what writers want to write and what they actually wrote. So it might be a problem.
(b) If the "problem" is by design, then it's time to overthink things like setting of the tone, synopsis, tags or even the way one advertises. People often give bad reviews because they didn't get what they wanted and it wasn't made clear enough that they won't get it - hence feeling like they wasted their time.
Not every comment should be the reason to rewrite/rethink the story. But bad comments and reviews are the symptom of a problem the novel has on some level. And those are made by the readers, so exactly who you want to hear it from in the first place.
You want your readers to enjoy your novel? Then also listen to those who don't enjoy it. That's exactly where you get your feedback from...
[Not an answer to this, but I find the focus on "constructive feedback" really funny, when a lot of outspoken writers will also go "My editor just wants to change things so that he changed something" or "I write like I want and others don't get it"...]
I mean, it can't be good for newcomers to see it on the top of the list whenever they want to know whether your story is good or not.
but if you are thinking about quitting, it should mean "back to the drawing board" no matter what the readers say... even if it's just to come back with "this is exactly how I want it to be..."
At the end of the day, just do what you think is best. Whether it be restarting, rewriting, continuing, or flat out stopping. If that helps your mental, then you will be better for it than slogging through whatever you're going through now.Well, this happens to me so many times I've lost count.
But the answer so far is still to keep going. Just because I got nothing better to write.
I've just looked at your review and I'd like to share you my opinion on it despite not having read your work.
His review sounds like a "promise break problem".
The first chapters of a story are supposed to set the tone, direction of the plot and how the characters evolve. The author foreshadows those elements in the early stages of a story so that the readers can judge whether the story fits their tastes (reading is worth their time).
Reading a book is a time investment, and we need to handle it with care. So, author must provide enjoyable payoffs, powerful emotions and meaningful closures.
If your stories change radically in the middle:
- The readers who enjoyed the start will hate it
- The readers who could enjoy the twist wouldn't have lasted that long
If many readers felt betrayed to the point of liking that review, it might be good to think about editing the early part of the story to put whatever flavors were hiding in the later parts.
It can't be helped when we write first drafts to overlook some stuffs that will appear later. So they are pretty much unfinished products.
The problem with webnovels is that even if you edit the first part of the story, your reviews won't disappear. Though you could re-release it under a different name...
Ditto!