[stylist] Plot and Character Development?

Thu Nov 9 18:54:57 UTC 2017

David, Chris, Jackie and all,
I think the key here is "study the craft."  Our studies should never end.
Research, discussion, and putting in the hard work of developing our craft
is so important.
What a good discussion this is! Thanks for sharing. Lyjnda

-----Original Message-----
From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Jackie
Williams via stylist
Sent: Thursday, November 9, 2017 11:53 AM
To: 'Writers' Division Mailing List' <stylist at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Jackie Williams <jackieleepoet at cox.net>
Subject: Re: [stylist] Plot and Character Development?

Chris,
These are such good comments. In poetry, my critique group is losing the
older members and there is a crop of new ones. I find that only a few of the
members are able to critique traditional, form, and lyric poetry. The
scansion is too difficult to pay attention to. Their  Rhyme can be forced,
and lines can be totally without rhythm.
In spite of these things, I find many of the comments valuable because it
can give you good feedback on whether a piece is accessible to everyone.
Often a word will be identified as clunky or not a good choice, even though
they  are not yet poets.
This is to underlie your comment that you have to pick and choose who you
listen to. A pattern will emerge and you will know quickly which persons you
should pay attention to. Also, in critiquing new poets, I feel it is best to
just one new concept at a session, and give many examples, rather than
decimating anything they have written. There are always good things to
comment on.
Either way, it is an invaluable experience. I seldom submit a poem until it
has been workshopped.

Jackie Lee

-----Original Message-----
From: stylist [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Chris Kuell
via stylist
Sent: Thursday, November 09, 2017 7:24 AM
To: 'Writers' Division Mailing List'
Cc: Chris Kuell
Subject: Re: [stylist] Plot and Character Development?

David,

Every successful writer has had either a critique group, or a close circle
of readers who will read and give them honest feedback about their work. It
is impossible to improve without this. Hemmingway, Faulkner, King--all had
people who gave them honest, sometimes blunt, feedback.

The trick is knowing which feedback to trust and implement, and which to
ignore. To develop this knowledge I believe a writer should educate
themselves about their craft. This means reading books on how to improve
your craft, and of course, reading and reading and studying the type of work
you want to write so you figure out what works, and what doesn't. You also
need to get to know your critiquers. Do they know what they are talking
about, or do they just like to hear themselves talk? 

I've belonged to a small online critique group for 15 years or so, and
sometimes the feedback is invaluable. Other times, not so much. But I do
know each person who is critiquing, and what their strengths are. Some
people focus on nitpicky little stuff, and others give 'big picture'
criticisms. Equipped with this knowledge you can take in the criticism and
mull it over, deciding for yourself if they have a good point, or not.

It is of course impossible to comment on the person who critiqued you
without reading your story. I can say, generally speaking, it is difficult
to do much character development in a 1500 word short story. Most stories of
this length are necessarily plot driven. However, there are billions of
stories out there, and equally as many ways to tell them. As Bridgit said, a
critique group can be a good gauge as to how your particular story telling
went. If everybody responds positively, obviously that's good. If a lot of
people had critiques, you might need to do further revising. Either way, the
best critic should be you. If you have studied your craft, and know the ins
and out of good writing, and have read both good and bad writing, you will
be the best judge of your work and what to do with it.

Chris

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