ebeta: I have thoroughly enjoyed these past two years at Fanstory, and I may be back at some time in the near future. Requirements with publishers, however are forcing me to disable stories from this site, and a recent surprise with 'premier author' payment has made me question whether I should remain at all. I thank all of you for your reviews, comments, and most of all, for letting me read your work! After my new book, Mutsu, is published I will take a few days to weigh the pros and cons of continuing here at Fanstory. I appreciate this site and all of my fellow members. |
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ebeta: I had a reviewer give me 3 stars where I had averaged 5 or 6 on a story. They pointed out a number of flaws. I didn't agree with every recommendation they made, but I truly appreciate when a reviewer makes an effort to help with my writing. Sometimes we give a 5 rating when a 3 or 4 is deserved. We find it hard to rate lower out of fear of what? I know I recently read a nonfiction account of a girl who had been attacked. How do I give that a 2 without feeling like an insensitive jerk? I want to thank my 3 star reviewer. |
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There are differing schools of thought on this site. Even though the site guidelines are clear about using the rating system, the majority seem to prefer to give five stars no matter what, thus making the minority of honest reviewers look 'mean' in the eyes of thin-skinned poets and authors. This phenomenon occurs due to a misconception of the art of critique: Helpfulness is NOT hurtfulness. In the case of the piece on a girl who was attacked, I recommend first viewing the profile of the person who posted it and trying to assess if they are on fanstory for developing the writing craft (thus welcoming critique) or simply to share their works in hope of praise or friendship. You might also check other reviews and note if the author's replies to critique were receptive or not. If not, then I advise to refrain from reviewing it. If so, then I advise reviewing with in-depth feedback and an honest rating, making sure to let the writer know the rating is based on how much potential for improvement it has (and technical mistakes) and not on the content. I also recommend the sandwich approach: first offer praise for what was good and then give critique...then end with a positive note of encouraging words. One thing I tend to do on the rare occasions of giving a rating or one or two is to let the person know I felt their work had great potential and was worth the effort to spend over an hour on in depth critique. taken in the right spirit, such an effort is a compliment, not an insult. It is ultimately more kind than empty stars that mislead people into thinking their writing has no room for improvement. - | ||
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ebeta: I am almost finished with my new short story, and I like it a lot. I am afraid to upload it here, and I'd like some feedback. When I upload a story, I get the usual smattering of flowery reviews, the recognition ribbon, and the occasional all time best. While those are nice, they don't help me find a publisher. Then I get a few GREAT reviewers who point out my stupid mistakes, SPAG, and 2-3 conflicting views on punctuation in dialogue, which seems to have flexible rules... I appreciate those reviews. They're why I'm here. They help me get my story to a point where I CAN send it to an editor. That's why I was so heartbroken when a publication responded to my submission yesterday. It was a rejection, based upon the fact that my work had already been published. I had never considered that some publications would consider that a 'reprint', and that having put a story on fanstory.com would make it automatically ineligible elsewhere. I'm curious how widespread this is, and am hoping for some feedback before deciding what to do with my next story. |
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On the subject of reviews - good on you! There's a few ways you can encourage the good, detailed reviews you're looking for. One is to post author's notes and/or profile notes saying that's what you want, not fluffy praise. The other (which you may already be doing) is of course to thank the good reviewers and nominate them for Reviewer of the Month by clicking the thumb symbol that appears with reviews. Good luck on the publication trail! :) - | ||
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ebeta: 94 views and only 11 ratings.... My short stories are too long for this venue. I actually paid money to get enough member cent pumps to put me on the first page, but it seems everybody looks at my story, thinks 'too long' and move on. I wonder how the writers who are successful HERE deal with this issue. is it cut cut cut, or do you have anther tactic. I know people like Captain Jack, William Deen, and Adewpearl have enough fans, that people know its ok to invest the time.... but what about us lowly English teachers looking for constructive help? |
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Small type and small screens are not a good combination. Lee - | ||
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ebeta: I posted here a year ago, just after the big earthquake. It's amazing to see how much Japan has recovered, but there's still a long way to go. |
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ebeta: The massive earthquake that slammed the eastern seaboard of Japan yesterday has rocked the country to the core. Despite the fact that there were no tremors felt in Nagasaki, and the Tsunami waves stayed under 60cm for the most part (not comparable to a typhoon or even a very windy day), the trains are not running. The threat of additional catastrophe with the possible meltdown at major nuclear power plant leaves the event feeling unfinished, as if the worst is yet to come. |
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ebeta: Saw something disturbing today. A high school girl walked out of the Hamanomachi shopping arcade at Chuo-Bashi. She was checking her mail as she walked, and seemed to be looking for something. As she walked closer to Mos-Burger, a man's hand came out of the driver's side window of a luxury sedan and waved her toward the car. She suddenly stopped and closed her phone. The driver motioned for her to get into the back. I noticed that there was another man sitting in the back of the car. Suddenly, I realized what as happening. This person was not a 'father' or 'friend' coming to pick her up - she would have recognized the car. This was Encho-Kosai (basically high school prostitution in Japan) It's supposedly quite common, and I have had students admit to me that they have done this, but I had never seen it in progress. The look of apprehension, or maybe shame in the girls face as she got into the back seat made me want to run across the street and do something, ANYTHING, to help her, but I was paralyzed. |
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ebeta: I remember having seen a cross section of a tree that was from Malaysia... It had no rings... The speaker went on to explain that the lack of summer/winter seasonal changes kept the density uniform all year around... Suddenly I am happy for the sad times in my life, because they are the winters that give me my rings and grain... I don't know about you, but I like looking at the grain on my wooden table... |
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ebeta: A yakitori shop in Nagasaki Smells of cigarettes and grilling meat. You can feel the oil in the air as it cooks off the pork and beef. The 'master' is tall and gaunt. Sweat pours down his face and sinewy arms as he toils over the charcoal grill non-stop |
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