Lois & Clark Forums Forums Fan Fiction Fanfic Related On critiques

Thanks for the article, Framework4. It really puts me in a different mindset. I'll approach my beta-ing and reviewing on the boards (hopefully) a more positive light. I usually go in as a writer and note what items bothered me as a reader, especially what wasn't clear. There have been times when I know I've stopped myself as a beta from editing a story too much, and remind myself: "This isn't MY story. This is his/her story and while I wouldn't have written it this way, it isn't WRONG."

Please do. Have you heard of the Science Fiction writer Robert A. Heinlein?

In an essay in 1947 he listed his rules for writing

• You must write.
• You must finish what you write.
• You must refrain from rewriting, except to editorial order.
• You must put the work on the market.
• You must keep the work on the market until it is sold.

Heinlein was a fantastic writer. Everything he wrote sold extremely well, but the last few years of his life it was because the name 'Heinlein' was on the cover. At the time he wrote the essay, though, he was just starting out as a novelist. Everything he'd done up to then had been short-form. So I would amend the third rule
and add that the author MUST revise his/her story.

It is vanishingly rare that a writer can hold an entire novel in his or her mind, so it is almost inevitable that small plot holes, timeline inconsistencies, draggy or incomplete scenes, excessive or unlabeled POV shifts, punctuation errors, obvious misspellings, and the like will appear in the first draft. One must review and sometimes rewrite entire sections of stories. Readers of 2014 are not as forgiving of such things as they were in 1947.

I have read things on other boards (and occasionally on these) which have wonderful concepts but get tripped up because the author didn't want to revise and correct the simple things he or she could have easily fixed. Such things damage the story because they jar the reader out of the fictional world the author is creating.

For example:
This status seriously needs a comma or two somewhere. Revision, anyone?

I think what Heinlein was saying was the same thing Ms. Rusch is saying: Don't obsess over perfection because you'll never get there. Make it good. Make it as good as you can. But don't be paralyzed by trying to make every word, every phrase, every bit of imagery absolutely perfect.

Because none of us is perfect.

I agree, Terry. First drafts should NEVER be posted. I always try to age my stories (and/or parts) at least a day before posting or sending to beta. On my longer stories, I try to write at least half of the next part before sending a part to Beta. That way, it's had time to age, I know if what I wrote still works with what I'm currently writing (this doesn't always work and why I require at least a 5 part cushion between where I'm writing and where I'm posting), and it gives me time to re-read it after it's not so fresh in my mind. Then after it returns from Beta and changes are made, it sits on my HD for several more weeks before posting to age it a little more, then I usually tweak it (if need be) one more time before posting.

Any changes I make between posting here and to the Archives usually are grammatical in nature or to fill any minor plot holes (it happens on occasion). The basic gist of the story doesn't change much between these boards and the Archives. Although, I had such a wonderful GE on Missing Lois, who cleaned up my characters repetitive sighs, smiles, and chuckles, I have to say it did improve substantially before making it to the final Archive stage.

It's amazing how many grammatical errors and typos you can pick up after letting your story sit just a couple of days before re-reading it. When it's fresh in your mind, you read your story as a writer... and you don't always see the flaws, because you still remember what you've written and gloss over it more quickly. When it's not so fresh in your mind, you re-read your story as a Reader and those blemishes pop right out at you.

Other than my very rough outline, Wrong Clark is currently plotted out in my mind. Which probably explains why I often feel like this: Thankfully, my Beta John has re-read the earlier sections of my story more recently than I and usually catches me when I fall through a hole.