By the way, I borrowed a line from your text and put a similar one in my essay. Hope you don't mind… I honestly liked the humor in your article. Funny writing. :)

I suspect that this really has to do with how you deal with other people and criticism in general. Some people can ignore the harmful comments and respond appropriately to the helpful comments with ease, and others can’t. Some people have to write in seclusion and some are completely incapable of editing their own work without a sizable body of criticism from a variety of sources. Personally, I’m the sort who really crafts through the editing process and needs a little feedback to do that. If posting something online in “first public draft” form helps with that, so be it; I can always re-serialize it somewhere more public once it’s been finished.

But when it comes to my own writing, I can’t tell if I’ve done what I want to. Because I can see the whole story in my head, and when I check the written word it seems to say what I saw. So, for me, the only way to know if my written words communicate the imaginative story in my mind, is to show people.

I’ve finished No Man an Island, my online novel. I finished it probably a year ago. But I had no sense of whether it “worked,” so I post it online one chapter at a time. And when people comment, I learn whether I’m doing what I wanted to accomplish.

I find it pretty easy to separate the good from the bad. Subjective comments kind of don’t matter: so-and-so likes this, but say-and-say doesn’t. Well, I don’t like romance novels and I enjoy some sci-fi, but not all of it — that’s something personal.

However, some smart commenters are able to say specifically why they like something, and why they don’t. Then, I can see objectively if it’s something that needs tinkering, or something I want them to like/not like. I can see my authorial intention reflected in their response.

Readers catch flaws in sentence structure, or clunky paragraphs, and point them out to me because I have this weird quirky blind spot. I can tell when they’re being constructive. It’s pretty easy to tell when someone is being objective and helpful, and when they’re trying to be a troll, or contribute nothing of substance.

We write in caves, certainly. But sharing the story afterwards can help us become better writers, if we’re willing to listen and then sift for the nuggets that help us. It’s the same as the long tail everyone talks about: readers find good stories. Well, writers are able to sift out the most helpful comments and improve themselves to attract more good readers.

I ran across your site while following a rabbit trail from their project and I try to say hey and let people know what brought me into their neighborhood when I pass through.

*slaps self on head*

@Windvein, accepting criticism is still tough for me. I tend to only listen to those I trust, and discredit everyone else. I find this mechanism helps to ground me. Perhaps I should take up art classes too!

@Nitschke: I like your comment about shrugging your shoulders and letting it fly by (if it isn’t constructive). We really can’t please everyone, though we do try out best to be good.

@stormy: You write good stuff, that’s why you probably don’t get much negative things. =)

Criticism can be a very good thing – one of the kindest thing someone ever did for me was to tear apart my first novel and give me 12 pages of feedback – it was a champion effect.

I think whether we accept criticism is also in part to the motives of the critic. I’ve had somebody do the same to one of my short story drafts, and it was eye opening. I loved him for it. He wanted me to improve, and he was doing it for my benefit – how could I not? On the other hand we aren’t likely to follow advice given by a snarky, jealous friend now, are we?

@rabbitchaser: to tell you the truth I was thinking of exactly the same thing when drafting out the design for my online fiction experiment (it’s still in the works, so … yeah). They’ve got good implementation over at We Tell Stories. Watch them.

@Scott: you were the one who articulated that point in the first place, after all. =) Nice to see you back again.

It’s not that I don’t trust Joe Public, but if you listen to all criticism and take every comment on board, you end up writing something based on committee approval rather than drawing from your own voice.

Criticism can be a very good thing – one of the kindest thing someone ever did for me was to tear apart my first novel and give me 12 pages of feedback – it was a champion effect.

I’ve one of those writers who believe that their work is inherently flawed – if someone likes it, then great – I’ve had a lot more people read through the archives than I ever expected (even if they didn’t comment).

Comments on serial fiction – for those of us who haven’t finished the thing beforehand anyway – can spark new thoughts and new directions. You shouldn’t bow to every whim just to keep a reader, but sometimes you can meet them halfway.

As to commenting – if I read something, I leave a comment. I try and look at one or two new serials a weeks, even if I don’t wish to keep reading, I’ll leave a comment on what I have read. (And maybe a review on PU).

After I view it as a compliment, I weigh what they said and if it’s a valid criticsm, I implement it. If it’s not I shrug my shoulders, thank them anyway, and say to myself that I can’t please everybody.

I think my studio art classes have desentized me. Haivng your work put before 30 people and then told, “Critique!” and the professor being more than ready to make an “example” out of someone has given me a thick skin.

I finish my stories beforehand (like you, and I’m sure many others). And I’m still figuring out how serial writers deal with criticism without affecting the story they’re trying to tell.

If I find out I’ll jot it down and share it here.

If someone cannot take criticism then they should not share their work and taking criticism means not crying when someone says something mean, ignoring unfounded crits, humbly accepting praise without ego swelling, and acknowledging the ‘good’, as in they may have a point, criticism.

I’d be interested in what the true serial authors say. I don’t consider myself one because my stories are finite, and completed before posting, but I’m happy with any comments I get. Even the monkey ones.