sholio | Crit and Concrit: discussion question

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Crit and Concrit: discussion question

So I'm tossing a question out there for the writer types. I'm sure this happens to most of us at some point. Your friend gives you a short story she wrote and asks what you honestly think -- and the main character is a gigantic Mary Sue. You read a fanfic by an author whose last story you really liked -- but this one has an ending you absolutely hate, that makes you think, "So&So would NEVER do that in canon!"

I'm not so much talking about minor grammatical mistakes; those are relatively simple to point out or ignore. I'm thinking more of big systemic problems with the story, things that taint the whole work and make you reluctant to try something else by that author. Things that make you think, "You know, this person should really be made aware of this, so that she can improve next time." Maybe the author seems to have a problem dealing fairly with a certain kind of character (e.g. can't do male characters, or seems to have a problem with people of faith or atheists); maybe she has massive plot problems in all her stories; maybe every paragraph she writes is only one sentence long. But you think her stories have promise; it's just that something about them is badly flawed.

As a writer, do you *want* to hear something like that, or not? Does it matter how it's worded -- is it easier to take if it's phrased as "The way I understand this character in canon, she wouldn't..." rather than "This character is totally OOC and she would never cheat on her husband like that!" Would you like to be asked first, and have the option of saying, "No, I don't want concrit" rather than getting it unsolicited -- or is the question itself offensive? Does it matter if it's someone you know vs. a stranger? Is public concrit (e.g. in an LJ comment or review) less acceptible than private concrit in an email?

I'm just curious about how other people approach this. For my own part, I really do want to be a professional someday, so if I'm making mistakes in my stories -- or things that my readers perceive as mistakes, even if I myself disagree -- I would like to hear about it, even if it's harsh and hurts my feelings a little. But I'm not sure if that's a rare opinion in fandom. I can understand that, if someone is writing strictly for fun and fandom is their escape from real life, then getting a 10-paragraph critique of a story would be rather unpleasant.

What do you all think?

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my honest answer is, as a writer, I totally want that stuff from my betas and nobody else. But that's me.

Whenever I've gotten something like that I've appreciated it.

The only thing I find not-so-useful are OOC comments. I don't particularly mind them, but usually there's nothing really fixable there - I see who I see.

- Helen

There were some things I would have never learned if others didn't point them out to me and that was even with a beta. Some people's beta's are better than others. Its all how you go about it, polite, with an example. Writers are sensitive, I try to balance the good with the example on what really stuck out for me......who knows it could be part of a major plot twist coming up and not bad characterization. Or other issue.

Any serious writer would want to know, but for me it'd have to be a major issue. I HATE nitpickers, those are people trying to find something to be concrit about. Most of the time if you take the time to point something out, its because you do see the potential of the author. I do tend to do with writers I have gotten to know more than strangers, but it just depends.

Kristen

When it comes to giving it, I tend to assume a writer doesn't want concrit unless they specifically say they do, and even then I try to be very polite about it. Among other things, for many writers, once a story is posted, it's over and done; they're not looking to change it (beyond editing typoes and such) anymore than a pro author will rewrite a published novel based on criticism. I have read a few fics that frustrated me enough to want to talk to the author about them, but I never have unless I'm personally acquainted with the author in question.

When it comes to receiving concrit, I don't ask for it and while I don't really mind it, it's not something I expect. I have beta's and pre-readers I trust the opinions of and ask for concrit, and will edit stories based on what they say, but once a story is posted it's finished. I prefer to get any concrit in private (especially if it's something as stupid as typoes, then I can fix 'em and no one's the wiser!) and try to respond to all of it politely, whether or not I agree with it. On occasion I have agreed with it, but I'm unwilling to significantly change a story that's already been posted and read and enjoyed by other people...and in most of those cases, it's something I'd already noticed myself, so was already writing later stores differently, regardless of the concrit.

Public criticism (such as fanfic reviews, negative or positive) I feel are totally kosher, as they're commentary on the work, same as any novel gets reviwed; they're not aimed at the writer but readers. But that's a different situation...

Interesting discussion. My personal feeling is that, if you post your work in any kind of "public" forum, be that LJ or FFnet or whatever, and are effectively soliciting readers of your work, then it is appopriate for those readers to offer feedback, including concrit.

As a writer myself, I would certainly want to know if there were issues with my work which I could improve. In fact, I've thought recently of looking to join some kind of writer's group locally (in RL) - from chatting online with a few of the Fandy authors I know a lot of professional writers do this and that it's a valuable resource to objectively crit and improve your work. I admit that, personally, I find criticism a little difficult to deal with but I certainly appreciate honest feedback and it's probably damn good for me to have to suck it up a little and take the criticism onboard and evaluate it. :) My initial reaction tends to be a bit knee-jerk "someone's criticizing me!" but then I can get by that and use it as a constructive tool.

I think the wording of concrit is definitely vital and so is the opportunity for dialogue... if someone concrits and says "I think this is OOC" but there is no opportunity to respond and a) explain your thinking on the issue, or why you feel it is not OOC, or b) ask why particularly your reviewer feels that way about the fic, or what particularly they had issues with, then it is frustrating. I also think that being detailed and specific when giving concrit is vital - I've had for example one concrit review that I found terribly frustrating because it said something vague about the fic not being as good as my other works, or something like that, but didn't give any detail as to why they felt that or what specifically they thought the problem was.

I do think however that wanting genuine concrit is a rare attitide in fandom. I used to offer genuine concrit in reviews on e.g. ffnet - and tried to word my reviews so that I praised positives as well as pointing out problems - but I found in general that most people (maybe more so on ffnet than other places) don't really want that kind of review and really only want to hear how great they are. I even had one "author" (who consistently begged for reviews and held further chapters hostage to minimum review numbers and then posted ranting, aggressive, hostile A/Ns (naming and publicly attacking people she felt had slighted her) screaming at people to stop telling her in reviews that her grammar and spelling was bad, she knows it's bad but can't be bothered to fix it so just stop mentioning it!) block me from reviewing because I tried to offer concrit (in which I did not just discuss the fic's problems but offered advice and solutions on how to improve it)! In my experience, even people who say they want concrit often get offended when actually given concrit.

My experiences have made me wary of offering concrit, I have to say. I think the question of how it is offered is also a valid one... if there are real issues with a fic then I would again feel hesitant to post public comments pointing out the flaws, particularly if the writer is someone I know. But then, one doesn't always have the option to email and give the feedback privately, so then what is best? Use discretion and the writers misses out on an opportunity to critically evaluate their work and be able to improve it, or post public concrit and risk hurt feelings? It's a tough one.

Whoops! Actually overloaded the word limit! TBC....

continued...

I myself definitely want concrit - but I fear that most others don't share my view and that makes me reluctant to offer concrit. Which is a shame. I admit also to being somewhat lazy.. in that if there issues with the fic are too big, the thought of trying to explain just what is wrong and why and how to improve it is just too much and I tend not to review at all! *wince* I think, to a certain extent, if the issues with a fic are that big then to try and tell the author just what is wrong with it and what needs changing is almost crossing the line from reviewer/giver of concrit to beta.

I actually have a RL occurence of one of your examples at the moment - my sister is writing a "novel" and has asked me to read what she's got so far and give feedback. I haven't looked at it yet and I admit I am hesitant.. for the combined reasons that a) historically her writing has always been a little clichéd and derivative and just generally "okay" but not great (although I've not read anything written by her in years so she may well have improved) and b) I know from long years of experience that she does not take criticism well and tends to take any advice as a hurtful criticism. So again I find myself in the situation where I am hesitant to offer what could be useful concrit because I fear that what she is actually looking for here is praise and validation as opposed to objective concrit. Maybe I should ask her outright how "critical" she wants me to be?

A lot of the answers to your queries depend on the relationship established before the writer handed you the piece.

As a writer, of course I would like a more palatable presentation of story flaws than "This is totally OOC!" The wording of concrit is important so that writers can see the strengths and weaknesses of their work without throwing up their hands and deleting the entire thing because the criticism of it was too strong--especially coming from someone they like and trust.

The writers who have asked my opinion of their stories understand that it is better to get the truth before posting rather than after. They seem happy to hear what works and what doesn't in a story, and I do try to be as specific as possible both ways. If the writer and I are friends, so much the better.

I never give negative critiques via LJ comments or FF.net reviews and so forth. Frankly, I don't see a situation where I'm doing a beta and the writer wants a public forum for our discussions anway, but they probably do happen. If the story is already posted, I will try to send a PM.

As you know, aspiring to be a writer also means learning how to give and accept criticism. Even someone who is writing just for a lark wants a nice response to their story, I would think. Part of the challenge of writing for fandom is finding effective ways to communicate negative opinions (of anything, really) without making them sting too much.

I think it's always going to come down to the individual. You can decide what you think is fair in general, but that's not going to let you know what any one person can deal with or wants to deal with.

Like, for me -- I show my work to my betas while it's still in progress. And they've been my betas for years, so they know that at that stage, criticism will kill the story dead. I just want cheerleading at that point, unless they see me going completely off the rails.

When the story is a complete draft, I want my betas to be tough, and I want them to fight me on things they feel strongly about, but I also want them to realize that I'm my final beta.

When the story is posted, for the first three days or so, I'm highly, highly invested, and at that point actual concrit when I'm hoping for sparkly love would likely be annoying. But after that first couple of days, I become a rational human being again and I can take all comers, regardless of how tough they may be on me.

But saying all that only helps you out if it's my story you want to give constructive criticism about. Now you know exactly how to do it for me. =) Have at! But when it comes to people who you don't know about, I would always, always ask first.

That isn't to say I don't agree with everybody else - you post publicly, you're opening yourself up to whatever comes, and you have a responsibility to deal with it like a grown-up. But in fandom, in a group where we've got to at least make an effort to get along, you just have to ask yourself what's more important, you know? I think finding out what a person wants, and not giving them something they don't, is more important than sharing negative feelings about a story with someone who might not want to hear them.

And I think most people will be grateful for the request and say yes -- which gives them time to brace themselves, too, so they won't be getting hit out of the blue.

As a writer, do you *want* to hear something like that, or not?

Yes. OMG. A million times yes. That's what beta's are for, to keep you from embarrassing yourself horribly in the greater fandom forum. At least, that's my opinion. When I send a story to a beta, I expect them to tear it to pieces if need be. It hurts sometimes, but that's how we grow as writers. I'd rather get better at my hobby than just put myself in a bubble, hands clapped over my ears, LAHLAHLAH I AM AWESOME, y'know?

That being said, I think you do need to email this person and ask them if they're only looking for grammar issues/spelling issues/strange sentence composition, etc, or if they're looking for plot problems and characterization issues too. If so, make it clear there are some issues, and if you're betaing, you can help her try and untangle some of it, or point out where her flaws in characterization are most obvious and nudge her in the right direction.

I think to answer this, I need to come from two different positions.

As a writer:

I want my betas to crit me. I want them to give me input, but it has to be workable. I had a beta once tell me that she didn't like the story, that it wasn't up to my usual. While I appreciate input, it didn't leave me with anything to work with. A beta has to come back to the writer and be explicit as possible with issues they feel the story has. IE this character response seems OOC, or this exposition doesn't work here, or this entire section just bogs the story down. If there's a pattern to a problem that they see in the overall work (ie he said, she said syndrome), that sort of information is incredibly valuable because it affects all the work and being aware of the problem helps. When I first started writing I had a guy say, "You've got adverb-itis." And I did, terribly. He said, "Don't use them. Avoid it at all cost." So, I did. Now, I'll actually use adverbs again but I'm much more cautious with their use.

But I have to admit, I will take any crit from my betas without getting upset. That's what I've gone to them for -- honesty and help. But if just some general reader sends me a huge email of crit, there's a level of "who the heck are you" off the get-go. If I don't know who you are, then it's hard for me to judge the feedback and put it into context. An example, the betas I use on a regular basis are writers whose judgment I trust and whose work I respect. Someone unknown enters in and I have no idea of how valid their opinion is and I know this is a loaded subject, but I stand by it. I've read stories with very poor characterizations, grammar and spelling. They could read one of my stories and feel I've totally done McKay a disservice and my grammar is awful -- coming from their possibly radically different perspectives and knowledge base.

I don't feel that every single feedback or crit can automatically be taken and trusted at face value. For me, there has to be a background of reference for me to give a crit validity.

Which is why, in general, I just prefer detailed crit to come from my betas. It's not that I can't handle criticism, it's just that unsolicited crit is harder to qualify. And there's already a level of interpretation that allows writers to see the characters and show in different ways. I'm open for debate, but if someone tells me I characterize Sheppard completely wrong, then I'd have to debate that my interpratation is just that -- mine. It's going to differ from person to person.

One thing I'm always receptive to is typos/goofs. I've seen that even a story having gone through the beta phase extensively, can still surface with these. If someone says, "Hey, I think you meant your not you're at xx place." I really appreciate knowing. But I do get a little annoyed if it's accompanied by a grammar lesson on your vs you're because, dude, I KNOW. It's just a mistake my finger-brain coordination makes and it's a doh! moment every time I find one.

Now, coming from a reader:

I'm just never going to do it. I'm never going to point out mistakes, goofs, issues I have with a story, etc. Why? Because I feel fanfic is a hobby, it's a fun thing people are doing for other people for fun, and I feel if a writer wants serious crit and growth, they'll seek out betas. If their betas are crap, then I feel bad for them, but I also feel anyone who is serious about writing will figure things out eventually. It's too hard to predict who wants realistic feedback and who doesn't and I don't have the emotional investment to play Russian roulette for who does.

When I read fanfic, I'm going in with the knowledge that there will be things I wouldn't agree with. Plot, characterization, etc. If I can still enjoy it, then I'm thankful and try to leave a note saying so, but if it's awful or I disagreed with an ending, or something along the way, etc, I just leave and don't comment.

I rarely even discuss stories I disliked with friends, but I did make one exception to that not so long ago. I'm still scarred from that writer, but I didn't leave any constructive crit for one big reason there. I had nothing positive to say, period. *shudder*

Of course if someone gives you a story and wants your opinion, then you should by all means give an honest, but politely worded (which I know you would do), opinion.

As for posted fic, in my opinion, if someones sees something that really bothers them about a story I'd written, I'd be happy if they would e-mail and offer to discuss what they perceive is the problem. After all, one learns from one's mistakes. I'm not sure I'd want someone to concrit too harshly in public feedback, though, because I think that leads to embarrassment and hard feelings.

I'm with

kodiak_bear here. If I'm specifically *asked* for my opinion, I'll give it - sometimes after asking how much of it they want! - but I'll try to focus the criticism on making the good parts of the story stronger, or on mechanical details like POV or verb tenses.

On subjective issues, I try to support my points but make it clear that it's *my* opinion. Even in beta, though, unless it's someone I know really well, I try to focus on keeping the basic story arc as they've written it, and confine my input to strengthening that story, not getting them to write the story I want to see.

If I haven't been asked I don't offer criticism. My way of leaving feedback is to pull out something I liked and talk about that. If I really felt motivated to say something, I'd do it in an email. Or hit the back button & save myself the trouble all around!

As a writer, I like it when my betas are really thorough - here's what works, here's what doesn't, here's why, try this...and I'd welcome concrit from someone whose opinion I valued, but I'd consider the source before taking it to heart.

I suck as a beta, so I don't usually go there. LOL!! I've beta'd, and I'll happily do it, but I want another beta or two to back me up. I've little faith in my beta-ability on my own.

I have, at this point, I think 45 stories on ff.net, and most of the went without a beta. I'm just now getting used to using them, and I'm excited when I get the proofed copy of my story back. Not only because of the much-needed tech help (you'd think English was my second language at times) but because they have the ability to look beyond what I see in the story and make me comfirm things, or explore more. I really like that, though it means more writing and by the time I send a piece to a beta I'm ready to be done with it! I am NOT a patient writer, and it shows.

I'm not a patient reader either, as I've discovered over the past year or so. Don't know if it's RL distractions or oncoming ADD or what, but I'm finding it harder and harder to just sit through a fic and not skim it for the good bits. The author has to be really good for me to read word-to-word, and excellent for me to be really sucked in to the point where I lose myself. This is true with regular novels as well. Now, feedback? I usually leave a note to let the author know that the work was read and enjoyed. If it sucks me in, I'll go into more detail. If I didn't like it, I simply won't say anything. Again, this is more of a timing/brain-not-with me thing rather than the lack of desire to leave detailed reviews.

For me? I'll take what I can get, when I can get it. Detailed reviews helps me know what works and what doesn't, but those are rare. At this point I just want to know if it is liked, I just want people to read it. Not going out for the whole poduim thing. Just let me know the story was read, you know? I'll even take flames.

Just let me know it was read, that someone heard me.

I crave that kind of stuff. But I'm very particular about it; I want it honest, but in a much nicer way than "you just really sucked with this one, what's up?" The harsher it is, the longer it will take me to get back to them, because I will keep composing emails that start with "OH, YEAH? WELL, FUCK *YOU*!" and deleting them. My favourite nitpicker-type, it usually takes me at least three days to reply to her, because i have to go through my "I HATE YOU" phase, then my "WELL IF YOU HATE EVERYTHING I WRITE, WHY ARE YOU EVEN FRIENDS WITH ME OH MY GOD I'M JUST AWFUL AND YOU HATE ME DON'T YOU?" phase before I can get to the "Oooh, you made some good points here, this is awesome" phase.

I was going to reply, but then I read the others answers first, and everything Kodiak Bear said is exactly how I feel. Basically: (1) I want good crit from my betas. I trust them. I know how they write and what they write, and, for that reason, I trust them. This is why, while readers sometimes offer to beta for me, I say no (as kindly as I can) because I don't know if I can trust that reader. There's so much subjectivity in fanon and even in canon, so, while one reader may find something I write OOC, another could see it as being perfectly in character. It's one of the pitfalls of fanfic writing. (2) I don't offer crit unless specifically asked, for the same reason above. Unless that person actually wants me to tell them what I think, I won't offer my opinion because, honestly, it could simply be that I see something differently from they do. (That being said, if I am asked, I try to be as honest, balanced and as kind as possible).

The exception, as Kodiak Bear said, is grammar and punctuation. That I'm all for people telling me what I've missed. I miss a word (my latest -- I keep skipping words while typing, WTF?) or use a homophone or what have you, then please tell me.

But that doesn't mean that all non-beta advice is bad. Just, if you want to give advice (because you want to help that person or because you want to discuss their story, like a book club sort of thing), then I would ask the writer first if they would like to hear some crit. While I have a thin skin for unsolicited advice, if certain writers, whom I adore but don't beta for me, offer to give me crit, then I definitely take it and greatly appreciate it. You, for example. I often aspire to write as well as you. But there aren't many like you in fanfic. Most I would just say no to.

Regardless of the above, if I do get crit that's unsolicited, I do hope that it's private. Posted publicly, like in the ff.net review page, it feels too much like a flame. And if it is posted publicly, then, yeah, it really needs to be done kindly. Your examples above are perfect.

Heh. I meant this post to be shorter. Anyway, there you go. Glad you're back home again, by the way! I missed these sorts of posts!

::laughing:: This is so true, about the nitpickers and the gut response to them, and just too funny.

I miss a word (my latest -- I keep skipping words while typing, WTF?) or use a homophone or what have you, then please tell me.

Isn't it maddening!? I have phases where I fall prey to the same stuff. I remember one period of adding 's all the time. It's incredibly frustrating to get a long lesson on when to use posessive s and suffix s when you really DO know grammar, it's just incredibly easy (apparently) to have dropped communication between the brain and the fingers.

It's great to see I'm not alone in feeling the way I do, too. :)

On subjective issues, I try to support my points but make it clear that it's *my* opinion. Even in beta, though, unless it's someone I know really well, I try to focus on keeping the basic story arc as they've written it, and confine my input to strengthening that story, not getting them to write the story I want to see.

Oh yeah, definitely. I'm the same way. When I beta I stress areas that I mark that I feel are subjective compared to correcting a straight up grammar goof or a plot hole, more often as it relates to dialogue and sometimes sentence structure, as those can fall under stylistic preferrences.

Very interesting question (and one I've been thinking about a lot recently, actually.)

As a writer, do you *want* to hear something like that, or not?

Well... no. I think no one wants to hear that, not really.
But (and it's an important but), even though I have no plan on going pro, and even though writing is just a fun hobby for me, I'm aware that I should accept con crit comments, and listen to them, and take them into account.
And truth be told, I have received a few con crits over the years; usually, it hurts for about an hour and I think, "He/she is so full of it, what does he/she even know?" Then, the comments sink in, I think about them, and decide whether or not I agree with them. (Most times, I do. Does it mean I always can correct my mistakes? No, but at least I'm slightly more aware that they're here and should be adressed).

Does it matter how it's worded -- is it easier to take if it's phrased as "The way I understand this character in canon, she wouldn't..." rather than "This character is totally OOC and she would never cheat on her husband like that!"

Definitely.
IMHO, it's always, always easier to swallow a comment saying, "I think you should avoid writing short sentences so much; they become distracting when used too often," and "Stop using short sentences, it's not working."
"I think," "In my opinion," are very important. In my opinion. :)

Would you like to be asked first, and have the option of saying, "No, I don't want concrit" rather than getting it unsolicited -- or is the question itself offensive?

For me, I'd rather be asked first. Some fics, I just love, and even though they're not perfect, I don't want to hear what's wrong with them. Besides, we all have days when we're less... strong, and getting con crit on those days could potentially be even worse.

Does it matter if it's someone you know vs. a stranger?

No, not for me...

Is public concrit (e.g. in an LJ comment or review) less acceptible than private concrit in an email?

I'd rather receive con crit in an email--who wants to be told in public that his fly is open or that he has spinach on his teeth, right?

But I'm not sure if that's a rare opinion in fandom.

I think it is, at least partly for the reason you mention (people see it as a hobby and don't necessarily want to be told what's wrong with what they do), and partly because people are hesitant to send con crit, fearing it'll be mistaken for a flame.

I think it's very courageous of you to want to hear con crit, for the record. :)

Less is more. The least said, the least wounded feelings. So if you hate it head to toe, stick with, "It was nice." and shrug. The message will not be lost on a writer craving love. If she wanted more, she'd get a beta, a tough one.

I just read what everyone else has said. Most of it, I agree with. A few things I do not. To summarize:

1.The place to get detailed criticism is with a trusted Beta.
2.I never leave a negative review at ff.net or LJ. If I have something I want to point out to the writer I do it privately on email. Let's not embarrass each other.
3.I do enjoy constructive feedback. That means someone was polite. That person asks a question as opposed to harshly objecting to some aspect of the story without details. "Why did you think Character X would do that when in such and such ep she did the opposite. Maybe more explanation would help the reader." I can appreciate a comment like that.
3.Unsolicited deconstruction of a story is heartless. Fanfiction or not, someone put a piece of his soul into it. Respect the bravery if nothing else. Tiptoe quickly away from it.

Vis a vis a Mary Sue? I just hosted a Meta Discussion on Sues on a Yahoo board. The conclusion is that the various definitions and checklists on the net to determine if you have one can only bring you to one conclusion. Every original character is a Sue. Phooey. Sometimes a Sue can be fun. Sometimes a Sue is great as an author's avatar for humor and parody. But once again, this is fanfiction and we are allowed to write any damn thing we want. Sometimes the writing exercise is simply therapy.

Oh, absolutely! Drives me up the wall! Thankfully, my beta doesn't pick on me for it--just makes a joke out of those "darn its/it's!" Gah!

I used to blame my fingers for not listening to my brain, but now I'm thinking there's a gremlin in my keyboard. I type, say, "They" and the Gremling turns it into "The". It's all the Gremlins fault! Stupid Keyboard Gremlin!

i would like an honest opinion, but wording is important

usually if i am beta'ing i point out the good as well as the bad and try to guide more then just say things like 'this is crap fix it' lol

Thanks!

There's no right and wrong answer ... everyone is different. That's why I wanted to hear from a range of different people and kinda get an idea of where the fannish "average" might lie -- that is, what sort of reaction I'd be most likely to run into if I did offer crit.

True. I've run into versions of the canon characters that were so wildly off from where I see them that it made me wonder if the person was watching the same show as me ... but I suppose they saw those personalities in the characters.

I pretty much agree with all of this, right here! In addition to being receptive to typoes, I also deeply appreciate it when certain minor plot holes are pointed out - in one of my fics, a character's swords just disappeared; my beta didn't catch it because the reason for the disappearance was a crucial paragraph getting cut during the final rewrite. So readers going, "uh, hey, what happened to Zoro's swords?" was very important! But that's when it's a case of objective details. When it comes to subjective opinions like OOC, most times if I don't know a reader from Eve - or if I know her but don't care for her own stories! - then I'll like as not dismiss her crit without much thought...

I don't offer concrit unless the writer specifically mentions they want it, and even then I go gently. I've heard people say that without concrit a writer will never improve, but putting aside the fact that not all folks are writing fic to hone their craft - that's simply not true. A lot of different factors help a writer improve, practice being first and foremost. Besides, a writer who doesn't get concrit is still getting opinions; only positive feedback can still tell you a lot about how a story is received, whether it's enjoyed, how much it's enjoyed. I rarely get unsolicited negative concrit, but I can usually tell when, say, a chapter of a multi-part fic falls flat, because I'll get less feedback. Then I can go to my betas or readers I trust and ask them what went wrong.

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Crit and Concrit: discussion question

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Criticism from the peanut gallery?

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