Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > Brokeback Mountain Fan Fiction & Poetry
Brokeback Mountain inspired Fan Fic recommendations
Bigheart:
--- Quote from: littleguitar on January 06, 2007, 11:53:04 am ---Seriously June, any and all constructive criticism is welcome on my stories. Believe me... after years of writing workshops where you pretty much only hear the negative aspects of your writing I've built up a really thick skin... I didn't mind you saying that about that part of my story at all! I had wondered while writing it how it would sit and because you were honest I know and will most likely rework it in revision.
Of course, I can't say what other readers will do... but if they were to jump on you I would step in. It is really hard with fan fiction and I'm the same way, I've noticed myself just not commenting if there is something that doesn't sit right.Also, just for myself, only getting positive feedback makes for really lazy writing, because I get in the groove of "everybody likes my story, yay!"
There are so many problems with TLBoH that I cringe sometimes when I think about it and one day I'm going to go back and revise the hell out of it :)
--- End quote ---
Yeah, I had that the other day with one I've been reading and commenting on all along. It was just off to me and believe me I'm an easy reader, not all that picky at all. I just didnt comment on it. Maybe I should, I don't know. I just find it hard especially if everybody loves what I thought was off.
louisev:
--- Quote from: littleguitar on January 06, 2007, 11:53:04 am ---
Also, just for myself, only getting positive feedback makes for really lazy writing, because I get in the groove of "everybody likes my story, yay!"
There are so many problems with TLBoH that I cringe sometimes when I think about it and one day I'm going to go back and revise the hell out of it :)
--- End quote ---
absolutely true... it isnt all about liking a story.. especially if one of the reasons you are writing is to learn more and improve.
Everybody can use an edit... when I published a novel at last in print, I had two editors go at it separately and independently, and one of them found such a glaring tic in the text that I felt like kissing her feet for findiing it. I would NOT want to notice that after it got printed! You might want to make sure on your fic announcements you say "Feedback and Constructive Criticism Welcome" so that people who are good at noticing the glitches can start giving you their free help. Leslie has been a tremendous help in that department and so has Betty (yb) who seems to catch things I never see, and whips them off to me as soon as the chapter posts. And I keep thinking... one of these days, I'm going back for a complete revise of all of this stuff!
littleguitar:
--- Quote from: louisev on January 06, 2007, 12:11:09 pm ---absolutely true... it isnt all about liking a story.. especially if one of the reasons you are writing is to learn more and improve.
Everybody can use an edit... when I published a novel at last in print, I had two editors go at it separately and independently, and one of them found such a glaring tic in the text that I felt like kissing her feet for findiing it. I would NOT want to notice that after it got printed! You might want to make sure on your fic announcements you say "Feedback and Constructive Criticism Welcome" so that people who are good at noticing the glitches can start giving you their free help. Leslie has been a tremendous help in that department and so has Betty (yb) who seems to catch things I never see, and whips them off to me as soon as the chapter posts. And I keep thinking... one of these days, I'm going back for a complete revise of all of this stuff!
--- End quote ---
I know exactly how that is... and sometimes it really does take another set of eyes because the writer has read over their story so many times that they start reading what they want it to say and not what it actually does say. And like you said, I'm all for writing to learn and improve. Especially because I've noticed the laziness seaping into my original writing.
--- Quote from: Bigheart on January 06, 2007, 12:09:57 pm ---Yeah, I had that the other day with one I've been reading and commenting on all along. It was just off to me and believe me I'm an easy reader, not all that picky at all. I just didnt comment on it. Maybe I should, I don't know. I just find it hard especially if everybody loves what I thought was off.
--- End quote ---
That happened to me recently too June, and with a really popular story... I found myself leaving just a few lines of comment where I usually leave a lot more. Then I was angry with myself for not just speaking up, especially because I think this author really wouldn't have minded. *shrug* But, like Louise says, everyone here was so inspired by brokeback and writes with so much care and love that sometimes I just don't want to say anything to ruin it.
Mikaela:
Very interesting discussion.
Especially to me who is a reader only and never a fic writer, at least not in relation to BBM.
My policy in leaving feedback has always been that there's too much negativity in the world as it is, so I make sure to leave a positive comment, giving details on the aspects that I liked, when a fic touches my heart or tickles my funny bone for that matter. Otherwise I just keep mum and pass it by in silence. The authors work so hard on their stories, invest so much effort and time and care, - they try their very best - and all of it is a tribute to the original that inspired it. So who am I to tell people their effort isn't good enough or doesn't meet my (after all clearly subjective) criteria?
However, I've been a beta a couple of times and though I am careful to be balanced in my opinions and to always point to the stuff that works and the good aspects , as a beta I'm also entirely candid in pointing to errors, things that do not work, inconsistencies etc. be it in plot, characterization, timeline, writing style etc. and to explain and discuss my opinion further if necessary.
--- Quote ---Yeah, I had that the other day with one I've been reading and commenting on all along. It was just off to me and believe me I'm an easy reader, not all that picky at all. I just didnt comment on it. Maybe I should, I don't know. I just find it hard especially if everybody loves what I thought was off.
--- End quote ---
This happened to me recently when one very popular fics that I had invested a lot of interest and enthusiasm in turned out a chapter that to me nearly ruined the entire fic. It was off in characterization for several important OCs and in important parts of the plot taking a turn for the realm of unrealistic disbelief, damaging the entire fic and the main characters in the process IMO. I refrained from commenting at all on that chapter and several of the subsequent ones. I'm still wondering whether I should have commented, explained why it was off to me and how it IMO impacted the fic - perhaps the author would have wanted that and would have seen it as constructive criticism. Perhaps she could have made sense of some of her choices that I still think were completely detrimental to the realism of the fic. But you never know, and so I kept silent.
Bigheart:
--- Quote from: Mikaela on January 06, 2007, 02:59:59 pm ---
My policy in leaving feedback has always been that there's too much negativity in the world as it is, so I make sure to leave a positive comment, giving details on the aspects that I liked, when a fic touches my heart or tickles my funny bone for that matter. Otherwise I just keep mum and pass it by in silence. The authors work so hard on their stories, so much effort and time and care, - they try their best - and all of it is a tribute to the original that inspired it - so who am I to tell people their effort isn't good enough or doesn't meet my after all clearly subjective criteria?
--- End quote ---
Well, that's exactly how I feel too and what I do. I ALWAYS try to keep in mind with how much love the fic must have been written and how much time and care must have gone into it. And that's why I find it hard to bring up things I didn't like, and just keep quiet about it and don't mention it in my comment or not comment at all. I do know of some author's that would really appreciate hearing the lesser parts of their stories and maybe there are a lot more out there that would appreciate it too. As long as it's put forward in a respectful and pleasant way.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version