Thank you to the Challenge Judges

[carpenterdaughter]

I just wanted to take a minute to tell all the challenge judges how much I appreciate your time and effort critiquing our writing. As someone who genuinely wants to improve as a writer and get to that place where I can put together pieces that a publisher would be interested in, I am grateful for the opportunity to have my work critiqued. You all put a lot of time into this, and you are encouraging and insightful. That's a blessing to me. I don't always take the time to tell each of you thank you, so I want to do it now.

I'm sure there are MANY of us here who feel the same way. God bless all your hard work!

[Shann]

I agree the people behind the scenes here are amazing. Faithwriters has truly saved my life in so many different ways. I am blessed and encouraged by so many people here. I never would have dreamed a small town girl like me could become great friends with people from all over the world while finding a way to make me a better writer and person.

[lish1936]

I echo the previous comments, but I'm wondering about the "critique" part. As far as I know ( I could be wrong), they are not involved in critiquing Challenge entries. I thought their role was to read them and to determine their rank.

I suppose some critiquing is a part of that process, but the author of the entry is not the recipient of that process; unless there is a special request. Isn't there is a minimal charge for individual critiques?

Please let me know if I'm wrong.

Lillian

[Deb Porter]

Thank you for the encouragement for our judges. It's a huge job every week (even when entries are lower).

Lillian, the judges don't comment on articles, but they are definitely critiquing every single thing they read. Just not publicly.

Unfortunately, yes, I do charge a small fee for the ratings feedback report service because it is a really big job. It's a bargain for what the author receives, but I don't push the reports because of the work involved in preparing them.

Love, Deb

[lish1936]

Deb.

I realize there has to be some critiquing, but I wanted to clarify that to benefit from that critique, the author would have to put in a request for feedback.

Blessings,
Lillian

[Shann]

Anyone who enters the challenge is subjecting themselves for feedback from other writers. Granted it's just one person's opinion and many people don't like to leave comments except the nice ones.

I remember dear sweet Geoffry leaving me my first real constructive critique. Above it had been oodles of that's a great story and I love it but he very kindly told me that I started almost every paragraph with my MC's name or a pronoun. I remember rolling my eyes and thinking that probably wasn't entirely true--and I was correct in that assumption because not only did every paragraph begin like that almost every single sentence did! I was so grateful for the time he took to point out that flaw. It's made a huge difference in my writing and has helped so much.

I know some people think if we are going to leave constructive critiques then perhaps we should send it via PM but then I think of all the other writers who read as many stories as possible to get an idea of what is considered strong writing or wants to know what she should avoid to make her piece smoother and I wonder if PM are fair to those people. (I dare say I receive at least one or two PMs thanking me not for the comment on their work but for something on another article--don't get me wrong they are very grateful for my input on their story as well but are also grateful for feedback left on others' stories.

I do spend hours each day reading and commenting and have never written anything in those Gold boxes that didn't come from a place of love. I always start with a few things I like about the story, then in the middle I may give some examples and explain why I had a hard time 'getting it' and then I end on the bigger plus side and often comment the criteria that the judges use. For example: The beginning was strong and build me in and I had to keep reading. Then the next comment might be about how well-written it was or that the twist ending took me by surprise which I love when that happens. At times I feel God nudging me to just keep it simple while on other stories I hear his voice say give them details and examples.

I want people to understand that 99% of the people here leave comments from a place of love. Sorry didn't mean to ramble on but I hope my words help somewhat. God bless you all

[Deb Porter]

I think Lillian was just clarifying that the judges don't leave critique on the entries.

Love, Deb

[carpenterdaughter]

I think the "fault" for the confusion over this is mine because I wasn't clear about what I was referring to. I was talking about the comments posted on our entries and just assuming that some of them came from the judges of the challenge. You'll all have to forgive my ignorance of the workings.

I didn't realize that we could subscribe to a detailed critique of our challenge entries. That's a great tool--something I am going to look in to. Thanks for the direction, all.

As someone who is just starting out and not really sure of what she's doing, I am VERY appreciative of this site. The way I see it, it approaches the "writing business" with the attitude of Christ--a servant's heart. There are many opportunities here for us as writers to begin this journey. I haven't invested a lot of funds into "really" polishing my writing or seeking to be published because I just don't have the money for "extras" right now, but here I am still getting help and still being encouraged and still have a PLACE to at least begin toward a goal. And I get to do it with like-minded people who teach me things that go above and beyond the skills required to be a good writer. Thank you, Lord!

I just want anyone here who thinks that what you are doing goes unnoticed or unappreciated to understand that that is not the case. I'm just grateful for the opportunity and making sure to express it.

[Shann]

I did know where you were coming from and I should have mentioned that Deb graciously offers feedback from the judges and also takes the time to explain it. Like she said unfortunately she does have to charge a fee but if it's something you can afford it's worth every penny as it goes over the 7 or 8 judging criteria and shows you how you did one each one. It's super helpful if it's a story that you want to polish and maybe some day submit it to a publisher or look into independent (indy) publishing.

I've learned one of the best ways to get feedback on your story is to throw a brick and other brick throwers will leave feedback on your story and also if you leave feedback on others they often like to pay that time back and will leave feedback on your story.

Don't feel intimidated about leaving comments because you are new to writing, you've likely been reading for a long time and know what you like in a story. You don't need to leave long ones (although I tend to be quite chatty) but just leave your comments in a polite way and from a place of love and you'll soon find more people taking the time to comment on your stories.

[lish1936]

I was talking about the comments posted on our entries and just assuming that some of them came from the judges of the challenge. You'll all have to forgive my ignorance of the workings.
I didn't realize that we could subscribe to a detailed critique of our challenge entries. That's a great tool--something I am going to look in to. Thanks for the direction, all.

No need to apologize. Mistakes are bridges to new discoveries. You've learned more ways to have your article critiqued, and that's a good thing.

Blessings,

Lillian

[HeartSpeaks]

I, too, want to thank the Challenge judges. It must take a lot of time to read, analyze and decide on winners. I appreciate that!

Faith writers is truly a godsend for me. I wasn't ready to really participate until 3 years after I first joined, but this site is providing welcome suggestions for improvement. The fact that it is online enables me to bypass the defensiveness of people I've worked with in physical writing groups who really don't want to improve their writing. I've gotten the very, very icy message that they just want the glory of seeing their writing published.

Thanks so much for providing an avenue to improve, read others work, learn about the craft, advertize via your author websites, and have writing opportunities sent to us! I treasure all of it!

HeartSpeaks

[HeartSpeaks]

So how does one subscribe to a service at faithwriters for critiques? Did I misunderstand something? I'd be glad to pay for this service.

I have tried critiquing other stories and tried to get critique buddies. All the critiques except one said, "Nice story. It made me think."

One critique said, "Obviously you haven't edited it." But that person gave no suggestions explaining what she meant.

When I give critiques, I use sandwich technique in my critiques
1. I like this part because...
2. Maybe you'd like to find a different way to write this part because...
3. Overall, I like it because...

I'm really looking for meat not potatoes--substance, not generalities.

The only person who gave me meat was Shann. And I thank her so very, very much.

HeartSpeaks

[Shann]

Are you looking for a critique for something like that critique circle? Because there is a place on the opening page where you can pay for critiques but you can't do that for the challenge (unless it's an older challenge piece that you want to polish and either use it somewhere like the general submission page or if you want to submit it to an agency.

I am so sorry someone said it's obvious you didn't edit. I know that must have hurt. I do believe the person probably meant well even though it may not have felt like it. We try to encourage constructive critiques in the sandwich method (which seems much like what you mentioned) where you start with something positive then something constructive and try to give exact examples like in this line: xyz I felt confused who was speaking. Maybe something like this would work: xyzabc. Then end on a positive note.

If you're still looking for a challenge buddy, let me know and I can help you find someone. Hugs

[lish1936]

So how does one subscribe to a service at faithwriters for critiques? Did I misunderstand something? I'd be glad to pay for this service.

I have tried critiquing other stories and tried to get critique buddies. All the critiques except one said, "Nice story. It made me think."

One critique said, "Obviously you haven't edited it." But that person gave no suggestions explaining what she meant.

When I give critiques, I use sandwich technique in my critiques
1. I like this part because...
2. Maybe you'd like to find a different way to write this part because...
3. Overall, I like it because...

I'm really looking for meat not potatoes--substance, not generalities.

The only person who gave me meat was Shann. And I thank her so very, very much.

HeartSpeaks

Hi,
Below is the site for a paid critique that Deb provides.

http://www.finessewriting.com.au/index.html

As far as the type of critique you receive, either in the Challenge or the regular Article section, I share your concerns. However, I've come to the conclusion that when it comes to your Challenge article most people are reluctant to put suggestions for improvement because the article is in the public domain. Anyone can read the article and "negative" comments can influence a potential reader.

I recently made a suggestion on a Challenge article that contradicted the Judge's assessment. The article made the Editor's Choice list.

Sometimes, when I really have the time to critique an article, I send it through the Priv. Message system.

[Vincemar]

Just wanted to add my thanks to all the dedicated and talented judges. Thank you so much for all you do. I'm sure it must be time consuming, but I for one am very appreciative. As a newcomer to the site, I really look forward to the challenge. God bless you and all who make FaithWriters great.