Contests
Judging is hard. On the one hand, I know that some people get extremely hurt and offended when they don’t do well. On the other, this is supposed to be a learning experience. It’s pretty straight forward when a manuscript is pretty good. I offer a few suggestions and some encouragement in my comments and send it on its way. I had one, though, that I guarantee will not sell. It is 30 pages of backstory. A man dies, asking that his best friend avenge everyone treated badly by the rich in the first two pages. After that, the friend returns to London and has a brief meeting with the heroine. The rest of the text in all those pages is each one thinking about all the events that have taken place in the last few years to bring them to the point they are now, and there are a lot of events.
Part of this is the constraint of the genre. There’s this push to have your hero and heroine meet in the first chapter. I never like to do this. I always want to establish them each as individuals first. I think this forced meeting and creating sexual tension and conflict all in the first few pages makes for a shallow set-up. The nice thing about the better of the two manuscripts was that she saved a lot of the backstory. Contestants only send the first 30 pages and a synopsis. I had to read the synopsis to find out the main characters’ history. She only gave me what I absolutely needed right up front.
I also have this tendency to want to include grammar and punctuation lessons. The writer in me knows I’m just supposed to make editing marks. The teacher in me wants to explain the rules.
I am glad that the judges remain anonymous. For all I know, these were submitted by chapter members that I interact with at meetings, and I know for a fact that some people do not take criticism well, even if it is liberally peppered by encouragement and positive statements. Naturally, I hope my comments help people, but I’m not helping if I do nothing but gush, even when I know they have problems that will keep them from selling.
Won't the grammar and punctuation lessons give it away that you judged
them?
When I want/expect people to critique my work, I state up front that I
learn from my mistakes so don't feel you need to pat me on the back.
However, I hold the same position when I critique the work of others.
A little off topic, but why do they call them "hero" and "heroine", instead
of simply "main characters"? I can't usually see either of them as having
done anything particularly heroic in the course of such novels.
John, I do occasionally learn. It certainly gives me a more objective view
when I read someone's work who makes the same mistakes I do. I can see
more clearly why they detract.
And they grow, heroes grrooowww emotionally and other-ly-ways.
I have two friends who have become mortal enemies over comments made over
various pieces of their work. Its hard sometimes to be objective about
other peoples work. There are times when a piece just doesn't work and
there is no way around it. That's when the s__t hits the fan and feeling
are hurt.
I know that I don't handle criticism very well especially if I preceive it
to be an attack on my character. My work however is a moving target and
always in progress, sometimes good, sometimes not so good but always
moving.
I don't envy you your task.
Ciao, JWL