Back to a Reader/Analyst topic.
Possibly the most common question I get from someone who wants to know more about what I do is, "Where do you start when writing a comment?"
The perception is that there could be so much good, bad or indifferent that choosing what to focus on first might be a problem. However, advice I got from my first story editor has proved invaluable and is so simple, you slap your head if you didn't think of it first.
What is the Writer trying to do and do they accomplish it?
From there, you take the first basic step. Identify the genre. Then, what are the basic elements of the genre. Just keep it simple. If it's an action film, did it have exciting action? Were the reasons for the action plausible? Is the story that holds the action together interesting without the action? If not, why?
A romantic comedy? Do you buy into the romance and is it funny? If not, why?
See, simple. Since most comments are typically a page long, you should probably be able to fill a page just answering the simplest questions, from characterization to dialogue to originality.
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2 comments:
Lots of people decide to write already heard things not to risk too much.
And it is definitely terrible.
More scary, however, is that lots of producers decide to develop already heard things.
Not to risk.
Luckily in this crazy world there are people who still believe something new should be created.
And luckily, some rebel is still alive.
Your mentor knew his stuff.
Goethe's three laws of criticism:
1: What was the artist trying to do?
2: Did (he) succeed?
3: Was it worth doing?
It's amazing what is still rattling around inside my head almost 30 years later.
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