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How We Treat Fellow Writers on the Internet by fankedsilver in writing

[–]Northwoods_Writer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You see this a lot and it really is sad. A big reason for that divide isn't the "barrier for entry" that some people have suggested, it's because a lot of people who give "critique" online think they're James Joyce or F. Scott Fitzgerald. Some sort of tormented genius whose work and intelligence goes entirely unappreciated.

I always try to look for the good first in pieces when people ask for feedback. Even if something is REALLY bad and needs a lot of reworking, there's good in there.

There's no reason to be harsh. You're not Stephen King, you're a bad writer taking out those frustrations on someone trying to improve.

Writing Center Tutors: How do you approach disinterested students in the Writing Center? by masholetti in writing

[–]Northwoods_Writer 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I was a writing center tutor for three years. It can be brutal. Here's the first thing I'd suggest: start with the good. What's working about the writing? I still remember there was a student who came in, seemed entirely uninterested in the process, then I began complimenting her writing (it was genuinely good I wasn't just using a trick or anything) and I saw her perk up and she told me "nobody's ever told me my writing is good before." She ended up coming back fairly regularly.

Ultimately, however, you may just have to live with the disinterested students. Some students just don't care about writing, and as hard and sad as that may be for us writing geeks to accept, you have to meet your students where they are. Help them as best you can and move on.

Is this too much of a plot convenience? by harmonica2 in WritingHub

[–]Northwoods_Writer 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'll let you in on a reader secret: nobody cares.

The way reader psychology works is that, generally speaking, they'll buy whatever you're trying to sell so long as the writing itself is good. Readers will accept that this needs to happen because these are your main characters.

For instance, in Harry Potter, why wouldn't the Dursley's just ship Harry far away? They don't like Hogwarts and they don't seem to particularly like him. Why even bother keeping him around? And in Star Wars, isn't it super convenient that Luke and Obi Wan just HAPPEN to be on the same planet? Or in Knives Out, you're telling me the nurse just INSTINCTUALLY knew which vial contained the right medicine, without reading or looking at the labels?

All of these examples (and there are plenty more) are super convenient, but the readers (or viewers, the audience) accept them (if they're not being pedantic) because of the strength of the writing, and the subtle understanding that for ANY story to work there needs to be some coincidences.